Diesel pickup

Blue Jays said:
Hi All-

If the various factories would release smaller, four-door pick-up trucks along the lines of a Nissan Frontier, Ford Ranger, Honda Ridgeline, Toyota Tacoma or similar, with an efficient diesel motor, they would smack the ball out of the ballpark.

Folks who don't need to haul sand and gravel...but need to transport bulky shopping items and muddy mountainbikes would scoop 'em up.

~ Blue Jays ~
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They do make them. They just don't sell them here.
 
Dodge .... been a diesel mechanic since 1963,own one 1999 3500 19.5 -22.5 in town, 23.5 highway , dually automatic extended cab 156,000 miles on the second transmisson pulling a 44 ' fifth wheel trailer on weekends 15-18 mpg with trailer ,engine problems with GM & Ford .

BCCI for life
 
kinzli said:
Having owned a F*rd 6.0L diesel (no longer, thankfully), I'd never, ever suggest that someone else should own one. There was seemingly no end to the problems we had with ours. It was in the shop for over 3 months in it's first year.
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It sounds like they needed a good diesel mechanic that knew what he was doing
 
I have an 01 Duramax 4x4 four door, long bed and haven't had a minutes worth of trouble out of it. However I dont beat on one like some do. It only has 48,000 miles on it. 19mpg hwy empty, 17-18 pulling the small trailer with a couple of 4 wheelers. There is an extended warranty due to a possible injector problem, and only one other recall, I believe a transmission filter.

Has been a fine ride so far... You can get them in the plain white versions from several dealers down this way. No idea the cost.. The Allison 5 spd is awesome. The newer ones may have tapped the allisons ability for 6 speed. Not sure.
 
DaveH said:
how about a used dodge/mercedes Sprinter?
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The Dodge sprinter, Freightliner, and another are all the same model with a 5 cylinder mercedes diesel engine in it. But I think they are all vans.
 
Its probably worth the hassle to put it together from proven parts. The Euro made Diesels are particulalry good for reliability and emissions, get one out of a light Mercedes truck and foof around until you get the gear ratios you are looking for. Automatics are for old ladies anyway.
 
Folks who don't need to haul sand and gravel...but need to transport bulky shopping items and muddy mountainbikes would scoop 'em up.
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Hmmmm, I can do all of that in my diesel jeep liberty. It's a good alternative unless you just must have a truck.
 
Pardon a short rant, please.
People who run diesel trucks should damned well keep them tuned so that they do not stink up the road behind them. I am so bloody tired of getting stuck behind a diesel truck in traffic or on a narrow road and nearly being asphyxiated by the exhaust of a badly tuned diesel engine. Than God for the recirculation setting on modern cars.

If I may ask a question, why don't more trucks, especially commercial trucks, route their exhausts up over the cab so that they are not piped directly out into the air intakes of the cars behind them?
 
People who run diesel trucks should damned well keep them tuned so that they do not stink up the road behind them. I am so bloody tired of getting stuck behind a diesel truck in traffic or on a narrow road and nearly being asphyxiated by the exhaust of a badly tuned diesel engine. Than God for the recirculation setting on modern cars
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New diesels don't have that much of a small to them. By new diesels I am referring to many of the cummins and euro made diesels that have been offered in just the past few years. Little if any smoke and no smell. And I'm not just used to it :)
 
Yup, actually the diesels in Europe burn the fuel so well they actually have less emissions than a comparable petrol engine.
 
I am aware of the new diesel technology available in Europe and that it will be coming to America with the advent of Light Diesel Fuel availability in September of this year, I believe. Is that not part of why Audi is running the R12 diesel racecars in the American LeMans series?
 
beefangusbeef said:
New diesels don't have that much of a small to them. By new diesels I am referring to many of the cummins and euro made diesels that have been offered in just the past few years. Little if any smoke and no smell. And I'm not just used to it :)
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In addition to the newer ones having less smell and smoke, they are quieter.

When the Duramax came out, the others quickly followed suit and made them quiet also.
 
Pack Rat said:
In addition to the newer ones having less smell and smoke, they are quieter.

When the Duramax came out, the others quickly followed suit and made them quiet also.
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Least until we put 100HP injectors and a superchip on em :foot: :D
 
skunked said:
Alright, who makes diesel pickups? I am looking for a diesel work truck and the only ones I have been able to find are the way too fancy trucks that charge an extra 5000 for a diesel. Doesn't anybody make a plain white 1ton diesel pickup?
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I was faced with a similar "motor" decision when I ordered my 1 ton Ford van several years ago. I tow large heavy trailers, so I special ordered mine. The choice (at dealer cost as this was an invoice deal) was to pay $3500 for the diesel package or $650 for the V10. Given all the extra diesel maintenance requirements I read about, I went for the Ford V10. That was in 1998 and the van still runs like new. Nary a wrench on the engine except for minor tune-up parts. Just don't forget to select / order the right rear axle! That's almost as important as the motor if you plan to tow heavy loads.

Razz
 
Razzierb said:
I was faced with a similar "motor" decision when I ordered my 1 ton Ford van several years ago. I tow large heavy trailers, so I special ordered mine. The choice (at dealer cost as this was an invoice deal) was to pay $3500 for the diesel package or $650 for the V10. Given all the extra diesel maintenance requirements I read about, I went for the Ford V10. That was in 1998 and the van still runs like new. Nary a wrench on the engine except for minor tune-up parts. Just don't forget to select / order the right rear axle! That's almost as important as the motor if you plan to tow heavy loads.

Razz
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We had a Ford v10 at work and it ran good but what’s your gas mileage pulling a heavy load?

I am curious as to what folks think all the extra maintenance is with a diesel? The oil change intervals on my 05 for light service are 15k miles. I still have are hard time with that so I just settles on changing the oil every 10k now that the truck is broke in and I change the fuel and air filters every other time. Differentials, transfer cases, and transmissions are the same as for gas trucks, so no difference there. I averaging at 22k miles a year right now so my cost for maintenance is about 200.00 so far. My old 91 diesel I changed the oil every 6k miles, other than that I followed the same plan.
 
No spark plugs to replace either on the diesel. More importantly, I'd rather buy diesel fuel than gas for a guzzling V10. The price difference would be made back real quick.
 
Razzierb said:
I was faced with a similar "motor" decision when I ordered my 1 ton Ford van several years ago. I tow large heavy trailers, so I special ordered mine. The choice (at dealer cost as this was an invoice deal) was to pay $3500 for the diesel package or $650 for the V10. Given all the extra diesel maintenance requirements I read about, I went for the Ford V10. That was in 1998 and the van still runs like new. Nary a wrench on the engine except for minor tune-up parts. Just don't forget to select / order the right rear axle! That's almost as important as the motor if you plan to tow heavy loads.

Razz
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I too am interested in the gas mileage with that Triton V-10 engine for both empty and loaded MPG.

In my case, diesel is 20 cents a gallon more expensive the gasoline so, couple that with ~$3500 to $5000 for a diesel engine package, how many miles a year to you have to drive to get your original expense back?

Diesels in general require less maintenance if you buy a REAL diesel and avoid the abortions of years past (specifically GM 350's and early 6.2's). Diesel engines have longer lifespans for the high "milers" among us. However, I could replace the gas short block in an average pickup for about the price of fuel injector rebuild on a diesel pickup. In my case, I tried my best to wear out two different Volkswagen diesels and found them to be excellent for general errands and vacations (no trailers). At 55 MPG, I could drive those VW's to any vacation spot without regard for travel expenses. The really sweet Volvo and BMW diesels that are sold in Europe are what I want today. There is no way to legally import one of them into the USA at the present time.

Today, I am waiting on the new generation Toyota Tundra's to come out next year. They seem to have (based on literature) all the basic requirements met for the average American consumer. High payloads, heavy trailers, good engineering, all at a cost that is competitive with Ford and GM.

I really like that Cummins in the Dodge but, I just can't bring myself to buy one. The Dodges I have driven do not have good ergonomics for my body. When I drive a 1,000 miles in a single day, the seat has to be good enough to keep my back and butt from hurting. The controls (steering wheel especially), have to be at a comfortable distance and height from my body to keep my shoulders and arms from hurting. If the steering wheel vibrates, my hands go numb and it is no longer safe for me to drive.

So, will it be a gas Triton V-10 from Ford this year or, a Toyota Tundra/Nissan Titan next year? :confused:

FWIW, the Nissan pickups were available for while in the US in Diesel form and they sold very poorly. The current generation Nissan Frontier and Toyota Tacoma would really benefit from a small efficient 4 cylinder diesel but, will they ever sell enough numbers to bring them to the American marketplace?
 
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