New to the scene!

[DJ13]

new to the diesel scene and looking to get into one by the end of summer. A few buddies own diesels but all three drive different ones. Cummins, dmax and powerstroke. So of course they are pretty opinionated. It sounds like most of you guys have owned more than just a ford and i was wondering what all info you guys could give me about the ford. Why you like it? Why you dont? Things to look out for if i put chips in and so forth. Is there a certain year that they had a lot of problems. I am lookin like 01-05. Thanks for the information.

 

[draftlover]

Check the stats on all of them. I've had problems with my '05. I've lost two injectors so far but the tranny rocks. Dmax juiced up to 360 H.P. stock and from what I hear have worked out the Allison bugs. They all have little quirks. The Cummins is the most reliable but Dodge transmissions suck. It's a toss up if you're not "brand loyal" like myself. If Dodge would have had a diff. transmission and a true full size door crew cab, I would have went that way.

 

[F350DRW1]

You will get three different opinions from Cummins, DuraMax and power Stroke owners. Want to see unity? Get all three in a debate with gas owners about diesel vs. gas. I think its fair to say you won't be going back to gas once you own any of the big three diesels.

 

[draftlover]

You will get three different opinions from Cummins, DuraMax and power Stroke owners. Want to see unity? Get all three in a debate with gas owners about diesel vs. gas. I think its fair to say you won't be going back to gas once you own any of the big three diesels.

Well said!!! Alt least they all burn the heavy stuff!!!

 

[whatabudro]

Why start at an 01? If you're looking at an 01 or 02 then you are at least thinking of buying an 7.3. That said, did you know that the 99.5 and 00 models had forged rods rather than pmr's? If you were thinking of getting the later 7.3's because they had more power, then the consensus I have seen is that is all a wash once you chip it. The higher hp rating is from the factory programming in the pcm/ecm.

 

[powerboatr]

99-00 were very good for upgrades and 01(50/50, depending on build date) and early 02's had pmrs but were also great HP and tq right out of the box
Late build 02's and all 03's had the highest tq and hp from the factory pcm/ecm in the 7.3

04, 6.0's had issues with chaffed wires, egr, wiring wiring wiring, tranny recalls for clutches and snap rings . but most should be recalled into a good truck MAYBE.

as far as towing in the future no real significant rating jumps happened until 05's came out, coil spring front end, intergrated brake controller, bigger brakes
ealy 05's had some issues with motors left over so to speak
late 05 and some early 06 got new head gskets, and all late 06's get new head gaskets

personally speaking i wouldnt rule out psds back to the old body style 96/97 up to the new body in 99 through 03 with 7.3, skip 04 with 6.0 and look for 05-06s depending on your $$$ flow
Old body was the sharpest for certain body styles like crew cab

but when the 07 's hit the street being as ugly as teh spy photos are, i would expect the 06, 05 frames to be a highly sought after model
then in 08 if the new 6.4 is introduced, ... its anybodies geuss, but based on past intros it should be interesting
good luck ,

 

[DJ13]

Thanks for the help guys. Ya i like the mega cab but my brother had a dodge 1500 and it dropped the tranny right after the warranty at like 76000, and from what i hear as far as the sheet metal goes it is pretty weak. Anyone else have somthin to say?

Thanks a lot powerboatr. good stuff to know!

 

[sf jakey]

I'm a current Dmax owner. I wouldn't say by a long shot they are unreliable, as stated above. Saying the Allison has problems is pure BS, the Allison was and still is the best auto tranny ever put in a pickup, why do you think Ford tried to copy it with the torqueshift. In fact, I have had no problems whatsoever in 65k miles, and I use it primarily for towing a 10k fishing boat. I'm looking at the Ford because I really like the look, the interior is much nicer, the frames are much beefier, I want a 1 ton that isn't a dually, and they finally have a good auto tranny. I know several dmax owners, 1 had an injector failure, which is covered to 200k miles, and that is the extent of the problems I have first hand knowledge of. I know several Ford owners, every one with a auto that is not the torqueshift 5 spd has had major problems, some within 10k miles of new when towing even light loads. I know enough that in the older Ford's, go with a manual. I'm trying to convince myself I don't need a new truck now, but I think maybe I should get an 06, before the new fed regs go into effect. Everyone swears by the power of the 6.0, although the fuel economy isn't quite what I think it should be in a diesel p/u. AS far as Dodge, the cummins is a great motor. That is the only good thing you'll ever hear about Dodge.

 

[F350DRW1]

Dodge also offers a 3500 series SRW. Saying the Allison has no problems is pure BS. They have a quality product. Argueably the best in any vehicle with an automatic. I own several medium duties with Allison's. And owned a 2500 series Chevy with an early Allison. There is plenty to go wrong. But as far as whats available, their the best choice. At 127,000 I have done nothing to my torqueshift but filters and fluid changes. So far, so good.

 

[DJ13]

sf jakey, i was stunned by the unreliable remark to but i know of some things going really wrong within first 1000 miles. My buddies dad was driving his brand new dmax home from texas to kansas and half way through the trip it would only go into second gear. Had to be towed all the way back to the dealer. And what kind of fishing boat do you have that weighs 10K??????? I have a 24 foot chap which is a runabout and it with trailer is only a little bit over 7K. so do you have a 30 foot fishin boat. Not to be an ass but i dont see that. Thanks for the info about dmax though. I kow they are a good engine just like you thought and like the ford frame and interior. Thanks!