Not talking about the guys who tow over 10,000 pounds on a weekly basis. These folks will always benefit with a diesel. But what about the other 90% of drivers? I priced a diesel option in a Super Duty, it was $9,200. And here in Tennessee diesel averages about $1 more a gallon than 87. Then you have the increase maintenance costs. And pray you never have a repair bill out of warranty. All of this to get maybe a 15% improvement in mpgs?

I wonder what will happen to the price of diesel fuel in 2020 when the mandate goes into law all ships must use low sulphur diesel fuel?

My previous Super Duty was a 7.3. It treated me great as I towed heavy boats often when we lived in Alaska. Over 100K miles without a repair. But this time around I opted for the 6.2 gasser with 4:30 gears. Rumor is Ford is also bringing out a new 7 or 7.3 gas motor in 2020.

Do you think diesel will lose customers in the next 5 years in the HD pickup line? Did you switch from diesel to gas? Or gas to diesel?

I looked at the same size engines.Problem being they all required hi test gas.Some are running 87 octane in them but get better performance on the hi test. Here at higher elevations the 87 octane won't cut it. Kind of shoots the saving gas money idea down.Then the 4:10 runs about 13 MPG.

I thought about it real hard , but then found a 2019 Chevy Duramx and I save enough on it that the diesel option zeroed out.I got it for about the same advertised price as a comparable loaded gasser with the 6-6.4 L engines.However , there weren't any gassers around for at least 900 miles..None on lots.The first few tank fulls, I averaged 15mpg empty.

I probably won't be pulling as much as I use to, but when I do it will be in the 16,000 pound range GCWR. (truck, camper horse trailer)

I figure at 75 years old, I won't need a big truck in 4-5 years and I can sell this one as a low mileage truck and get a better than average price for it with it still having a partial warranty on it.

I don't think diesel will lose that many customers. I think when more start running those 4:10' s they won't be happy when they need to do some heavy pulling on occasions.

I thought the higher the elevation the lower the octane gas that was required? At least thats what I was told the 2.5 years we lived in Colorado Springs. 85 was the "normal" regular. Running 87 at 5-7,000 feet would be like running 89 at sea level. My Super Duty requires 87. But the manual does state 91 might give better performance when towing heavy loads in hot weather if the engine starts to ping.

Higher cost of purchase, higher cost of maintenance, higher repair costs, and higher fuel costs.

Where do I sign up?

Modern gas engines in trucks (5.7,6.0,6.2,6.4) will all go 250-300k miles if taken care of properly. I went from a 3500 cummins 6.7 to a 5.7 Tundra because I only tow 6-7 times a year and its 7-8000 pounds....Don't have one regret.

Next HD I get will be a gas one. I have a duramax, a 6.0 GM. Tired of the endless emissions bs out of the diesel and the $0.80 per gallon premium on diesel.

I live in an oilfield town, and work in the oilfield. Historically the Industry has utilized diesel pickups extensively. I’ve seen a shift away from that in the last two years. My company has followed suit and we are conducting a study with a brand new dodge with the 6.4 liter hemi that we put into service January first. We have the yearly cost on a new dodge Cummins that we deployed January first 2018. So it will be interesting to see the results.

Yes they’ve been losing customers for at least 8-10 years. It all started around the time of the recession. Municipalities and utility companies really put the kabosh on that kind of spending. The big super turd Ford 6. uh oh had a lot to do with it also.

At one time I believe Navistar was in the works of a new medium duty gas burner line of trucks. Medium duty gassers were pretty much the norm anyway up until the late 80’s for your average bucket truck, small dump, or heck even 1 ton farmer guy. I’ve done the diesel thing and got it all out of my system. After the death of the 5.9 Cummins, there’s not a diesel engine in a new pickup I’d want to have to own.

Old perceptions of diesel and hard starting still scare people and mainly the EPA who has [bleep] diesels over here so bad with all the emissions bs they force manufactures to comply with. How much of the US typically sees below 0 temps for several months out of the year and you force manufactures to use UREA basically which freezes around 10-12 degrees. There are a lot of issues with various emissions equipment on diesels these days and it's mostly in colder climates.

Add all that up with what they've done to the price of diesel and it's amazing we even have any options.

The Problem with diesel truck. They put crap parts on the rest of the truck. Drive Shafts with crap U-joints, 600ftlb torque motor, Bolt a 400ftlb capable transmission on it. Put a diesel in a half ton, Make the block out of Powdered metal casting that fails. The 6L Ford with terrible resale value. Front drive axles designed for aluminum block gas v8 motors, drop a big cast iron Diesel motor on it.

Don't know about there, but here diesel is definitely on the ascendence...particularly with regards to cars, a lot more cars are diesel here now and gaining in popularity.

I love my GMC Duramax pickup. My next one will be a 1/2 ton GMC or Ford.

I'll have a diesel as long as my 2006 5.9 lasts, after that, I'll switch. Too much of a premium on fuel, too high entry costs, and too high mx cost for my uses, but I mine is our 3rd vehicle/tow vehicle. Actually, I suspect the 5.9 will last a lot longer than the Dodge around it.

I’ve got a 1998 dodge diesel. It’s got 385k on it & still pulls my gooseneck, empty it’ll get 22 mpg. It’s relatively cheap to work on if it breaks but it rarely does. When I bought it diesel was $1.20 a gallon and gas was $1.40.

Today diesel fuel is almost a buck more than gas and the trucks get 14 mpg. If the high pressure pump goes you can be in for a $10k repair bill. Diesel pickups have gone from the cheapest to operate to the most expensive.

I can’t see myself buying another unless I decided to buy something really big to pull. They’ve gotten too expensive to purchase, too expensive to repair, and too expensive to operate. Thank the EPA. By all rights diesel should be cheaper than gas and the trucks should get 25-30 mpg.

Around here diesel fuel prices posted are at the price of 92 octane or not much more.

140K on my '11 6.7L Ford and it's probably my last diesel. I intend to run it another 5-6yrs to 250K at least assuming nothing catastrophic happens to it between now and then. Evaluate again @ 250K. If things are still dependable then Ill continue to run it, if not I believe I'll be looking for a gasser. I've said it many times and will continue to say it. If I had to use this as my daily driver living in town as I do, there's no way in heck I'd have a 3/4T or a diesel. As is, my pickup is a 3rd vehicle for us that I use for pulling (though nothing really heavy), hunting, or long family trips when we want more room than momma's car or my Murano.

-19F ambient here right now and I must say that I don't look forward to those days and running a diesel.

I have a Dodge 2004 -2500, buying another. Then I will have two.

Just bought a 3500HD, compared the diesel to a gas and I'm thankful I can afford the torque.

Now that there are some very nice large gas engines with torque, folks around here are running away from diesel pickups as farm trucks. Too cold too often, and with diesel emissions requirements the engines don't seem to be worth the hassle anymore.

I’ve seen the same thing here DakotaDeer. Gone are the days of the 12 valve and the Ford IDIs that got great mileage and lasted seemingly forever with minimal maintenance. Also gone is diesel for 2/3 the price of gas and weak sister gasoline engines. Even the 454s and 460s were gutless by modern standards, heaven forbid you were stuck with a 351 or 360 even with EFI. The new 6.0, 6.2, and 6.4 gassers from the big three produce the same or better numbers than the old time diesels and burn cheaper fuel, albeit more of it.

I’m working for a utility computer now and they got completely away from diesel in the 1 ton and lighter trucks about 10 years ago. They have recently bought some F550 and Ram 5500 diesels but more or less on a trail basis to see how they’ll hold up. They idle a lot but also pull 20k or thereabouts on a regular basis, so I guess we’ll see how they shake out. Seems like they get both extremes of what they’re best at and what’s worst for them on a regular basis.

I drive a 06 Chevy 2500 with the 8.1 gas engine and Allison trans for the last 7 years. I get 13 miles empty and no worse than 11 mpg towing no matter how heavy! I can tow with any diesel 3/4 ton out there without all the maintenance costs and high priced diesel. Also when I bought it I paid about 10K$ less for it than the same truck with a Diesel engine. Never had any issues, I just keep my oil changed and fluids and filters fresh.

Better look again. The 2019 Ram 2500 can tow up to 19 800 lb, the 3500 maxes out at 35 000lb. Unless I'm mistaken, I'm not sure any '06 truck, whether 2500 or 3500 could tow that much.

There is absolutely no rational argument to say any gasser (especially older ones) can pull and compete with modern 6.6 and 6.7l Turbo Diesels in the Big 3. These trucks are putting out 900-1000 pounds of torque - stock. On flat ground, you may think you keeping up - going over mountain passes out west is a whole different ball game.

The argument is if the cost/maintenance/need of a diesel compared to a gasser is relevant. I tow max 8500 TT 8-10 times a year - for me a 390 HP/400 Torque Tundra is all I need. For my Hunting Partner that is a Horse guy and will tow 6-8 pack animals and gear in a long gooseneck - a diesel was a no brainer no matter the extra costs.

Dutch: Since I purchased my 1996 Dodge Cummins diesel 4x4 extended cab 5 speed stick shift new in 1996 I have not paid one penny - not one cent - not a dime in unscheduled maintenance or repair costs!
I have close to 140,000 miles on it and it just keeps torqu'in on!
It is BY FAR the MOST reliable truck I have ever owned - and I have owned a lot of them!
By the way I have a cab high camper shell on mine and I get 22 to 23 M.P.G. on the highway - off roadin is less of course but when I tow my camp trailer (and all the goodies in the back of the Dodge) on the highway I have gotten as high as 20 M.P.G. (I drive slowish).
I went with the diesel for reliability, low maintenance costs and peace of mind - that decision has worked out in spades for me.
IF.... I were to ever replace my wonderful Dodge diesel (and I probably won't EVER have to!) it would be with another Dodge diesel 4x4 stick shift (6 speeds now!) with the Cummin diesel engine!
My good friend Ben from Big Sheep Creek, Montana has a 1994 Dodge 4x4 with standard transmission with the Cummins diesel engine that has been totaled out not once, not twice, but THREE times!
He has 370,000 miles on his engine - which has never had a bolt turned on it internally, by the way!
He just keeps takin the insurance money and rebuilding that trucks body and the engine runs as good today as it did new!
On an Antelope Hunt a few years back I was getting a tire repaired in Miles City, Montana. There was a fellow there at the tire shop with a Dodge diesel getting a set of new tires on it.
We got to talkin and his Dodge Cummins diesel had 400,000 miles on it! It was the same year as mine and I asked how he got that many miles on it. Turns out he was a civilian contractor for the United States Postal Service and his contract was to drive from Miles City to Billings, Montana every day and back to pick up and drop off mail and packages (he had a big closed custom made higher than cab canopy on his truck).
Six days a week he did this then for the Christmas season he made the round trip TWICE a day!
His comment was a gas truck would cut into his profits and the down time with the gas engines he would be penalized.
He also relayed how he had never had a bit of engine "trouble" in all those miles with that Dodge diesel!
Long live the ultra-reliable Dodge Cummins diesel engine option.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

Biggest worry on that truck is fresh fuel, condensation in the fuel, and rust. 6K Mi/yr pfffft!!

Wow, I bet you're feeling lucky that none of the emissions stuff on your trucks has failed yet....

You, sir, are daft.

Good truck. But the question is would you replace it with a new diesel if you needed another truck?

I have about 155,000 on my 98 Dodge. I have had over $10,000 in repairs . $5,000 this year alone. They were not considered normal maintenance. I bought a 2019 Chevy Duramax . Hope I have,better luck with it.

saddlesore.......you had rotten luck with that Dodge

Thats' for sure

I bet this will persuade even more potential diesel owners to stay with gas.
https://youtu.be/fNMVdAXn0Xo

I have owned a Chevy 6.5 diesel, 2- Dodge 24v diesels and a Ford 7.4 powerstroke. I used to tow heavy loads everyday long miles in the mountains. The powerstroke was a joke, that thing could hardly get out of it's own way and ate a/t for lunch at $5k a pop, fug that. The first Dodge has a 5 sp manual and was a workhorse with virtually no problems for the 100k I drove it. The 2nd Dodge was an automatic and ate tranny's like the powerstroke. The Chevy 6.5 was my favorite, most don't think much of them but mine was powerful, trouble free, comfortable and fun to drive, it only lasted 300k though.
I no longer pull heavy loads on a regular basis and am happy with a gasser. Hell I could replace the whole motor for the price of a diesel injector rebuild. My 6.0 chevy gets 16mpg and starts on cold mornings. It gets 8-10 mpg towing and the fuel cost less.
I wish Chevy would bring back the 8.1 big block , I would buy one. The new Ford 7.3 looks pretty good and may convince me to try a Ford again, after giving them a couple of years to work the bugs out and prove itself.

Chevy needs to bring back a Big Block, Ford is coming out with a 7.3 liter Big Block.

I own a 2006 Chevy 2500HD Duramax/ Allison truck its a brute for sure, the newer ones are even more powerful. It will eat about any gas engine truck for breakfast, lunch and dinner as far as towing. I have towed stuff with the small block gas V-8's and they were a joke. The same mountains that I went up towing a 3800 pound camper, the gas motor would have to drop down in 2nd gear (four speed tranny) and rev out of its mind. The 2500HD would go up the same mountain in 5th or 6th gear and not even break a sweet. Empty I have gotten as high as 22.8 MPG on the open road with the Diesel, towing can be 12.5MPG to 14.5MPG, according to how hard I run. Only downfall to the diesel is of course higher fuel prices and repair cost. Where I live gas is 2.24 a gallon right now and Diesel is 2.89 a gallon. If the diesel needs injectors or a turbo its going to cost a chunk of change, the normal maintenance is not real bad. Since I only tow heavy occasionally, I would trade in a heart beat if Chevy or Ford could get serious with a big Block Gas Engine with about 500 Foot pounds of torque.

Ya BIGR you have one of the good diesels before all the emission crap. Still if something goes wrong bring a big check book. Diesels used to known for reliability before the goobermint regulated the crap out of them.

Another old argument was diesels would last hundreds of thousands of miles, but nowdays gas engines do also. So I stand by my premise if you are a frequent or full time hauler get a diesel otherwise gas makes more sense'

Lots of very wonderful built in opinion here!

One that is not an opinion - there is NO emissions on a 1996 or my 1997 Cummins!! Nothing!!

the Chevy 8.1 is a beast, I have towed over 28K pounds with my 2500 and haul a gooseneck full of cattle on a regular basis. There is no chance I trade it for a modern diesel truck!!