3/4 and 1 ton diesel - 2000 and newer

[weebl]

Originally Posted By: clinebarger

I would love to hear bad things about the LBZ, Besides people over fueling...running crazy timing & Cracking a piston? Keep an LBZ/Allison stock, & it will outlast the truck. Mine has 298,000 miles on it, With just maintenance.



Glancing through the Duramax forums, the one issue that stood out for me on the LBZ was watching engine temperatures, as they were prone to overheating under heavy load. They were offered for such a short time, so it is quite easy just to go a couple of years newer to a different engine.

Not interested in doing powertrain mods on any of the trucks, nor am I interested in buying one that has powertrain mods. Only exception to this rule might be if a powertrain mod were done to address an inherent design flaw, and not for the purpose of gaining more power.

 

[weebl]

Originally Posted By: ls1mike
I won't discuss the truck as my 3/4 ton is a gasser, but I went from a 5er to a bumper tow. Works better with the kids because of the [censored] you have to take.


Isn't that the truth, though. On this trip, I fought, and ultimately lost with my wife and kids on what to pack: the older 2 wanted their bikes, and wife wanted an adult one along, in case one of us had to go get them. Tried saying no bikes, but didn't win that one. Then the baby gear for the youngest. Amazing how a little guy can have as much stuff in terms of volume, as the other 4 of us combined. I made a decision to leave home a fold-up wagon that gets down to about 3 feet x 3 feet x 1/2 foot, and heard no end of it: "how are we going to carry stuff to and from the beach?" In reality, we did just fine without it.



Originally Posted By: ls1mike

Oh and...

www.rv.net/forums

Pretty decent board.


I think I may have stumbled across it. I'll add it to my list of sites to frequent.

 

[weebl]

Originally Posted By: Jarlaxle
Before buying a Ford 6.7 diesel, Google "CP4 pump failures". Every one of them is a $10,000+ repair waiting to happen!


Originally Posted By: itguy08

Yes but isn't that same pump used on the newer Duramaxes and Cummins? I can't remember. And, yes Ford requires tons of proof to get them to cover it under warranty (which IMHO is [censored])

With these newer Diesels you have to be very careful of fuel quality.


Yes, I remember reading about those years ago. The CP4 are the HPFPs on these, right? When I first started looking into getting myself a VW TDI, I quickly decided against them, at least the Jettas and Golfs with the CBEA and CJAA engines, both using self-destructing HPFPs from Bosch. This in turn contaminated the whole fuel system with metal particles (poor design on VW's part), and resulted in repairs in the $10k range. If you were lucky, you'd get warranty coverage, but then it would just happen again down the road. Then along came the 2012+ Passat TDI, which used a completely different CKRA engine, and no history of HPFP failures.

I looked up the pumps, and learned they were used by many diesel engines of this era. And while there were certainly a number of failures happening, it didn't seem to be anywhere near the neighbourhood of the failure rate on VW's CBEA and CJAA. Also seems, on all these diesels, to be fuel quality related, particularly with lubricity values and scar ratings.

Part of it, was this discovery after my recommendation to my wife's grandfather in 2011 to get the PSD 6.7, just after it came out. When I looked a year later, some people were voicing concerns on this, but his truck has been great, as others here have mentioned with the 6.7.

Not sure I see enough of a problem to make me eliminate any of these engine choices, but certainly if I dig deeper and become concerned, I'll reevaluate my plan.

I think I now have a specific age range and vehicle to target, so my homework can be more specific, rather than all over the place.

 

[Nate1979]

I would suggest to pick out the trailer you are interested in, or at least have a few options that you like. Then once you know the weight range of the trailer you will be able to better judge if the truck you are looking at is a good match. With a 5ver you have to watch payload and RGAWR and not every 3/4 or 1 ton can handle every trailer. Otherwise depending on how big you are going I wouldnt discount a gasser.

 

[Jarlaxle]

Originally Posted By: itguy08
Originally Posted By: Jarlaxle
Before buying a Ford 6.7 diesel, Google "CP4 pump failures". Every one of them is a $10,000+ repair waiting to happen!


Yes but isn't that same pump used on the newer Duramaxes and Cummins? I can't remember. And, yes Ford requires tons of proof to get them to cover it under warranty (which IMHO is [censored])

With these newer Diesels you have to be very careful of fuel quality.


Duramax, VW, BMW yes, the Cummins still uses the older CP3 pump. The fundamental problem is that US diesel fuel DOES NOT MEET THE MINIMUM SPECIFICATIONS for the CP4 pump. Bosch should be ordered to buy back & destroy every vehicle with that abortion.

 

[itguy08]

Originally Posted By: weebl

Not interested in doing powertrain mods on any of the trucks, nor am I interested in buying one that has powertrain mods. Only exception to this rule might be if a powertrain mod were done to address an inherent design flaw, and not for the purpose of gaining more power.


That was one thing that scared me on the Diesels. Tuners seem to be popular with them and they can be removed easily. Not sure if they leave traces in the computer but it may be worth it to have a trusted Diesel mechanic examine it with a fine tooth comb.

 

[weebl]

Originally Posted By: itguy08
That was one thing that scared me on the Diesels. Tuners seem to be popular with them and they can be removed easily. Not sure if they leave traces in the computer but it may be worth it to have a trusted Diesel mechanic examine it with a fine tooth comb.


This may be one instance where a company/fleet unit may be a safer choice than a privately owned vehicle, though in classifieds I am seeing some units that appear to be listed by more mature individuals less likely to be into tuning. Any mention of lifts, chips, deletes, etc, and I skip the ad, as those mods also suggest the vehicle may have been driven hard as well.

 

[hatt]

How big of a trailer are you looking at? There's a big difference between the capabilities of a minivan and a new half ton. I wouldn't get a diesel unless absolutely necessary. They're for work or rich folks.

 

[clinebarger]

Originally Posted By: weebl
Glancing through the Duramax forums, the one issue that stood out for me on the LBZ was watching engine temperatures, as they were prone to overheating under heavy load. They were offered for such a short time, so it is quite easy just to go a couple of years newer to a different engine.

Not interested in doing powertrain mods on any of the trucks, nor am I interested in buying one that has powertrain mods. Only exception to this rule might be if a powertrain mod were done to address an inherent design flaw, and not for the purpose of gaining more power.


The '04.5 & '05 LLY engines did have problems with heating while towing heavy, Cooling stack size & small air intake was the issue, GM has TSB's about this but never got 100% resolved. The Aftermarket has (Or at least had) Auxiliary radiators for this.

In '06 GM redesigned the Cooling Stack, Fan, Shroud & Air Intake, The heating issues was NO LONGER a problem. GM actually over engineered these areas because of the issues with the LLY's, They brought Donaldson onboard for the Air Intake engineering, Larger Radiator, Bigger Cooling Fan, Engine mounted Fan Shroud (To decrease distance between the Fan & Shroud), The Hood was even redesigned LOL.

The '07.5-'10 LMM's used the same Cooling Stack & Air Intake as the '06/'07 LBZ.
In fact the LMM is identical to the LBZ save for a larger EGR system, Throttle Valve & DPF.

It is refreshing to hear you don't want power upgrades! The only mods on my LBZ are...Blocked EGR (codes turned off with HP-Tuners), AirDog lift pump, AAM aluminum diff cover (Stock on the new HO Dodge Cummins trucks). Yes, GM & Dodge use the same AAM 11.5" diff in their Diesel trucks.

There is 1 thing about my truck that does annoy me, The intermediate steering shaft rattle.

 

[Nick1994]

My dad had an 04' Duramax and towed all the time an 8,000+ pound gooseneck and pulled great, and once pulled a 12,000 pound backhoe (I believe the trailer was 3,000 pounds alone) so 15k pounds and it did 65 mph no problem at 6-7 mpg. Did a few hundred miles pulling it, no overheating at all but it also wasn't pulling on much hills.

 

[Smokescreen]

I am with ls1mike...did what he did. I have a 23ft bumper pull (sleeps 7) and an older 2003 3/4 ton. It easily does what I need it to and then some.

You need to figure out what your priorities are, how much you want to put into the RV hobby. It can get out of hand in a real hurry. You can get a nice trailer and truck combo and drop over $100K easy these days. I have seen it done many many times and they suck you in with the $180/month...but its a mini mortgage for the next 20-30 years.

Figure out how much you are willing to spend for what its worth to you. Also remember you and your kids interests may change in the next few years. Depreciation on RV trailers in the first 5 years is downright nasty, then it levels off for a bit. Do your homework and be wise.

 

[jeepman3071]

Either a good condition 7.3 Ford or a gas truck. There are plenty of good gas trucks out there that will tow perfectly without the added maintenance of a diesel.

The GM/Duramax trucks are probably the best option diesel-wise, but they are also priced accordingly. Duramax trucks with 200k miles are still 10-15 grand around here. Most of the used ones people are selling have been modded and beat on, then they still want 20k for it. They are also the king of electrical issues. I've yet to see one that doesn't have some kind of electrical gremlin. Dash boards, fuel injector control modules, transmission stuff, lighting, power seats, you name it.

I'd go for a GM truck with the 6.0 V8 or a Ford V10. The Dodge Hemi is also a good truck for towing. There is a reason most contractors are using gas trucks now. The cost to run a diesel truck has passed a gas truck in some cases. Diesel trucks are getting worse fuel economy, repairs are more expensive, they have higher initial purchase cost, and the higher price of diesel fuel is not making them the better choice. Not to mention if you camp in rural areas, diesel may be a bit harder to find.

 

[hattaresguy]

IMHO from what I have seen on the job sites diesel trucks and vans are great until they break, than they cost a fortune. They also cost a fortune to buy.

A new 3/4 or 1 ton diesel truck is a $60k-80k purchase. Used trucks are hit and miss, but generally if they are in good shape your going to pay.

I'd just get a gas 1/2 ton, and a 20 something foot trailer for it. All the gas half tons are rated to tow 10k if optioned correctly.

Modern gas motors generally don't break and when they do, they are cheap to fix. A couple of my contractors have 2006 2500HD's with between 200k-225k on them. The 6L truck lost a head gasket and was fixed for $1,500. The D max just needed another $3k put into it. Overall if you add up the cost of these trucks new even with the poor fuel mileage the gas truck is way, way ahead.

Another benefit is their resale is less, so you can get a much nicer and lower mileage truck for the same money.