Trucks (or engines) to stay away from advice needed

Bigg_Redd said:

Even when they are in perfect mechanical condition they feel worn out. After 7 years I'm used to the vague feel, but so far only 1 trip to the shop for front end parts. So far.

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when you have to replace the front end parts, buy the 2008 parts. They have changed the geometry and it is great. for 300 bucks, most guys are just changing them to eliminate the loose feel. direct replacement even though its not listed as such. Steve white motors on EBAY 288 shipped to your door.

ironpony said:

when you have to replace the front end parts, buy the 2008 parts. They have changed the geometry and it is great. for 300 bucks, most guys are just changing them to eliminate the loose feel. direct replacement even though its not listed as such. Steve white motors on EBAY 288 shipped to your door.

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Kinda wish I'd known this 2 weeks ago. . .

I would avoid early editions of the ford 5.4.

O.K. lets just do this,
buy a ford chassis and body, 4x4 with dana 80 and dana 70
add a Cummins engine,
with an Allison transmission out of a school bus
and call it good

I think that is called a Fummins. The problem with Fummins is your wife's cousin Bob dropped that joker in for a case a beer. You know Bob, he worked 2 weeks at a dealership detailing cars, borrows money every Christmas, constantly on unemployment. There was that one time he put gasoline in a kerosene heater trying to save a few bucks, boy that was a close call. That is who will work on your Fummins when anything goes wrong.

You most likely want a newer and heavier truck but I just have to show off my $1000 1978 F150 I bought two years ago with 80% rubber and a good Ford 300/4.9 and the BW T18 granny gear 4 speed all original. It has some old truck problems here and there like old weather seals and some rust but I'm working on it slowly.

I here ya, a 3/4 ton would be the thing to have for a wood hauler.

To the OP is this going to be a daily driver or a wood hauler? When buying a truck over 15 years old you must expect and accept some issues. I find that some guy's are blinded by loyalty for a specific brand. For example Dodge has been accused of having a weak front end. This is partly due to a bad track bar design and weak ball joints which can be improved greatly with a better aftermarket parts.

Ford has it's issues with the TTB front axle in the F-250's.

GM trucks have a decent engine/trans combo. However, they have an IFS front axle and are generally wimpier than Ford and Dodge's from the same era. Plus they have lousy ground clearance from the low hanging frame.

Again I ask, is it a daily driver or work truck? Issue's like vague steering are easily overlooked on a dedicated work truck but if your driving it daily it can be annoying. A 15-20 y/o truck will have issues so find the truck with the least amount of rust that appears to have been well maintained. Fix the stupid little things and throw some wood in the back.

One other note on diesels: Trucks that have a Cummins or PowerStroke in good condition are commanding top dollar right now. Over the last few years a diesel craze has swept through the youth of america and hot rodding diesels is a fun sport/pastime. Unmolestered diesels from the 90's and early 2000's are getting hard to come by hence the price premium and the hot rodded ones are usually beat on pretty hard. Buyer beware.

muncybob said:

I have no diesel experience but I would not count them out.

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DO yourself a favor COUNT THEM OUT. I love those HD diesels ,but i wont buy one.My son has owned several and they are money pits. Iv had the same 1995 K2500 GM SIlverado for about 11 years now. It is just so dependable,rarely anything breaks, has about 175000 miles on it,zero rust and i use it several times a week. During that time my son has gone through several diesels and spent obscene amounts of cash on them. EDIT i forgot to mention that my SIlverado has a regular GAS ENGINE

Seasoned Oak said:

DO yourself a favor COUNT THEM OUT. I love those HD diesels ,but i wont buy one.My son has owned several and they are money pits. Iv had the same 1995 K2500 GM SIlverado for about 11 years now. It is just so dependable,rarely anything breaks, has about 175000 miles on it,zero rust and i use it several times a week. During that time my son has gone through several diesels and spent obscene amounts of cash on them.

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and I am 52 and have had several diesels ( CUMMINS) that the only thing I have done is change the oil on them. all had hundreds of thousands of miles on them. I would not own a gas truck ever again. Cummins 20 mpg and haul anything you need to.

ironpony said:

and I am 52 and have had several diesels ( CUMMINS) that the only thing I have done is change the oil on them. all had hundreds of thousands of miles on them. I would not own a gas truck ever again. Cummins 20 mpg and haul anything you need to.

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I do hear good things about those cummins, but every diesel breaks at some point and they are very expensive to fix. Plus most of my trips are very short,not good for a diesel.

ironpony said:

and I am 52 and have had several diesels ( CUMMINS) that the only thing I have done is change the oil on them. all had hundreds of thousands of miles on them. I would not own a gas truck ever again. Cummins 20 mpg and haul anything you need to.

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Yeah. . . I had a lift pump go on mine. Which took out the injector pump. $4500 by the time it was all said and done.

I love my truck. And I'm a diesel guy, but I wouldn't recommend one unless you're putting in a lot of miles.

Seasoned Oak said:

D

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Bigg_Redd said:

Yeah. . . I had a lift pump go on mine. Which took out the injector pump. $4500 by the time it was all said and done.
I love my truck. And I'm a diesel guy, but I wouldn't recommend one unless you're putting in a lot of miles.

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I could probably buy a whole replacement truck for my 95 for that much cash. That about all it books for.

heres a winner:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Ford-F-350-...588dc91e0&item=161209946592&pt=US_Cars_Trucks
if this guy is not a member on hearth, he should be!

Coal Reaper said:

heres a winner:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Ford-F-350-...588dc91e0&item=161209946592&pt=US_Cars_Trucks
if this guy is not a member on hearth, he should be!

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Damn near the perfect truck IMO...just missing a manual tranny (personal preference).

I know the fella who owns that truck , it's a well done conversion.

Seasoned Oak said:

I could probably buy a whole replacement truck for my 95 for that much cash. That about all it books for.

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I have a 2000 powerstroke ford diesel. It has been very good with no breakdowns. It's loud, stiff riding, and slow but has been very dependable. I am scared to death that it will just suddenly break on me and cost 4500$ which, BTW, is what a simple transmission replacement goes for.

Highbeam said:

I have a 2000 powerstroke ford diesel. It has been very good with no breakdowns. It's loud, stiff riding, and slow but has been very dependable. I am scared to death that it will just suddenly break on me and cost 4500$ which, BTW, is what a simple transmission replacement goes for.

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I have an '02 with a real xfer case. Only issue under the hood has been an alternator. Othere than that just balls joints and bearings. It aint that slow for 8500#s. runs a 16s 1/4 mile. Loud stiff and slow? Thats my other truck with a white engine. We wont call that a diesel tho.

As to the OP, i would stay away from engines with VGT. Thereabouts 2003 and newer. They dont work properly when carbon starts building upand turbo needs to be pulled apart to clean. Coworker is having issues with his LBZ right now. Told me cummins even now has a port to inject cleaner directly to turbo.

Im soon in the market to update. Ill be looking for the same thing i have now(1995 K2500 ex cab GM) only about 10 years newer. That would still make it 10 years old. Ill be happy with that 6.0L gasser that comes standard in that model. Id keep mine but its a pain with that 3" lift kit and big tires gettin stuff in and out of the back,plus just gettin in and out of it. It would cost too much to have the lift taken off and buy new wheels and tires.

I know I said stay away from diesel's but if you or anyone else reading this really wants a newer diesel consider this.

In my opinion if you want the holy grail of modern diesels look for a 2003-2004 Dodge Cummins with the HO Cummins. It produces 305hp/555tq and has no EGR, no catalytic converter, no variable geometry turbo, and it can be had in automatic or 6 speed manual. I had a 2004 Ram 2500 with the above mentioned engine and kick myself frequently for trading it on a Ford. Yes I've driven a Ford. A 2008 F-350 V-10 to be exact. BTW it was a shop queen so I drive a Dodge again.

Like I said in a previous post, they will command top dollar. But a clean 305/555 Cummins is the shizzle.

I can tell you what not to buy and that is a Ford 6.0 diesel. It was an expensive lesson for me. They put this junk in their trucks from 2003 to 2007.
I didn't do enough research but that is the last dollar Ford will ever get from me.

Get Wood said:

I can tell you what not to buy and that is a Ford 6.0 diesel. It was an expensive lesson for me. They put this junk in their trucks from 2003 to 2007.
I didn't do enough research but that is the last dollar Ford will ever get from me.

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Yup. The 6.0 PSD is a steaming pile.