Diesel tow rig opinions (1 Viewer)

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green40

green40

Joined
Apr 16, 2003
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Location
Swanzey NH
Retirement time is getting closer. Bette and I plan to do some
RV'ing using a medium size trailer. I had been considering the
F150 Ecoboost. Enough truck for the size trailer we will pull plus
decent everyday Mpg. Big problem is the price for even a used one.
$40K is more than we want to spend on a truck alone.
So, lots of you guys have diesel trucks, what are the pros
and cons of the brands that you have? What kind of daily mpg's are you
getting? Towing? Things to look for when buying used. Would you get
the same brand again? Should you be afraid of a rig with 150,000 miles on it?

Thanks,
 
Lane,

Took me a while to figure out my tow rig. Here is what mine does and other things ive heard/learned along the way:

I got my 011 duramax used with 20k on the clock for a steal. basically got the LT version with the diesel for less than a brand new work truck gasser.

what i like: super comfy, tows my lil buggy like its not even there. 15-16mpg commuting in city traffic. 19-22mpg highway empty or with empty trailer. 14-15mpg towing buggy to FnF or Kina's. faster in a straight line than my old 300hp subaru! Only bad things about it are that I have to fill it with DEF fluid every 4-5k miles. and the regeneration mode comes on to clean out the exhaust every 300-400miles so that drops the fuel economy by 1-2mpg while running.

other trucks I was considering and why I didnt get them:

anything 1/2 would tow my buggy but everyone says more comfy towing behind a 3/4 or 1 ton. Less duty cycle/stress on truck by using a bigger truck. I can let Kristen drive it with trailer comfortable if I get too tired on a road trip.

chevy gassers tow great but super thirsty. like 10-11mpg on highway. 7-8 around town( according to neighbor).


old cummins stuff and old ford 7.3 stuff is simple to work on and will tow fine. autos are weak link.. so finding a manual rig for cheap,not beat up or rusted to hell, or owned by a bro with stacks and Monster stickers was impossible.

anything newer ford seems to be problematic according to buzz on interweb. 6.0 fords are especially bad.

new Ram stuff is good? never got around to testing one out since there are no dealers nearby that carry em new. that being said I am curious about the new Ram 1/2 ton diesel

as far as Duramax's go. the LB7's have injector issues. LLY's have overheating issues, LBZ's are supposedly awesome as there were no issues and no emissions..Problem is they are expensive because they are desirable. LMM and LML's seem to be fine if left stock..except they have emission junk in them.

just my $0.02 :beer:
 
I have a 02 Ford F350 powerstroke, ext. cab w/ 8' bed. The last yr. of the 7.3 diesel. Its a great truck. They are proven reliable. There are tons of them around. Just have to do regular maintanance. 15 quart oil changes. I have put 45k miles on it so far with no major issues. No breakdowns. Current 185k
I plan on keeping it for a LONG time.

I have towed a variety of cars/trucks with it and you can't even tell something is behind you. It started out getting around 11-13 MPG when stock. I put a DP tuner selectable chip, intake, and turbo back exhaust and it gets 15-17 MPG. It has a tow code on the chip that changes all shifting points of the trans. While towing It feels very good set at 80hp tow. I leave it on 80 hp economy daily. The truck is very fun to drive!

I am against buying new mainly because I don't like to pay for ppl to work on my stuff. There is TONS of materials/DIY etc. on the 7.3 powerstroke. Just like our Cruisers!

If I was to buy a newer model diesel I would go for a Duramax. All IMO. Good luck finding a tow rig.
 
You might wanna look at this thread over on Pirate:

http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/tow-...get-why-everyone-thinks-they-need-diesel.html

Some pretty honest opinions and facts expressed there.

My 2 cents: I have used several old Fords to tow with...
1. '92 F150 2wd 5.0/auto/3.55 gears regular cab long box - This was ok for cars on a tow dolly locally in the flatlands of IN. I would not tow a trailer with a Cruiser onboard with it.

2. '96 F250 2wd 5.8/auto/3.55 gears regular cab long box - much better than the F150. Gets 15-17 mpg driving around empty - 10-13 towing a trailer with a Cruiser (towed a Cruiser and a bed full of parts from MD to central OH this spring - that's the mileage we got). I also tow my gooseneck once in a while with this truck. Then it gets high single digit mileage. :doh:

3. '92 F250 4x4 7.3 non-turbo IDI/5sp/4.10 gears extended cab long box, converted to dually. This is my current towrig. I've consistently gotten 13-15 towing a Cruiser or race car on a bumper pull trailer with this. The gooseneck loaded brings the mileage down to 9-11 mpg. This truck would tow whatever you hooked to it as long as you weren't in a hurry. I am currently swapping a 24v Cummins into it and regearing back to 3.55's to match the powerband of the Cummins. I'll admit that this truck is as much a toy as it is a workhorse but I don't drive it much without a load of some sort.

My parents just bought a 2012 Chevy 1500 2wd 5.3/auto. My mom and brother used it to tow a car on a bumper pull trailer to NJ last weekend. IIRC my brother said it got 13-15 mpg while holding the speed limits. I understand it towed very comfortably. The only complaint was the springs are a little soft to tow with - needs air bags or a weight distributing hitch to help with towing road manners.

Summary: If you tow a lot then a diesel might make sense. But if it's only occasional use I'd buy a gasser 1/2 or 3/4 ton truck. Right now I'd buy a Chevy/GMC if I had to replace the diesel towrig I have now.

Nick
 
Have you given any thought to a diesel Ford Excursion? Obviously they won't work with a gooseneck but they are less expensive than a comparable F250.
 
I am also in the market for a tow rig, Lane my first choice was the Ford f150 ecoboost but like you $40,000 is just too much, I am currently looking at a 2001 chevy duramax diesel with 133k on it, 4 door 4x4 for $12,500.
Anyone have any experience with one of these?
 
Only thing to add is I have a 2013 fusion with ecoboost and it gets nowhere near the MPG advertised. I'd check any ford with that system for true numbers if it's a big consideration on purchasing.
 
Last edited:
Early duramax had fuel injector problems. Very expensive to replace.
 
Also 01 is the first year duramax is used in silverados,(i think). And its not that great on fuel either. For towing a 5000 lb load once or twice a month i would look into older 4 door tundra with the 4.7. It would get 11mpg towing but empty 17-19
 
A couple of questions;
How many days will you be towing
How many miles a year
How much does the trailer way
Will the trailer be parked for periods while the truck is used daily
 
rapovt said:
A couple of questions;
How many days will you be towing
How many miles a year
How much does the trailer way
Will the trailer be parked for periods while the truck is used daily
Click to expand...

Probably will only see 3 long weekends and 5 weeks worth of vacation time
worth of towing use until retirement.
Once retired we plan to be on the road 6-8 months. Maybe 15-20000 miles.
Not all of that will be towing.
Looking at a trailer this weekend thats 4000 lbs empty and about 6400 loaded.
Trailer will be parked quite a bit.
 
You don't need a big diesel to tow a 6000 lb trailer. A used one with decent mileage is probably going to cost $20-25000. You may have to do brakes , tires exhaust. And you need to think about a rig that has 100k on it loosing a transmission on the way to Alaska. Brakes, tires, oil changes are expensive on a big diesel and diesel fuel is about .50 more than gas. A new or newer 1/2 ton gas should get about the same towing as the diesel, probably saving $20 a day in fuel.
If it were me I would go with a new 1/2 ton that is efficient (fuel) and a 5 year warranty. Dodge is coming out with a 1/2 ton with a 3.0 liter diesel soon. They say 20-28mpg.[/I]
 
And don't forget Nissan is putting a Cummins in the 2015 Titan. So that's another option.
 
A lot of stuff to think about and research. Thanks everyone!
 
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