5.7 hemi vs. 5.9 cummins

[eatmoresoma]

New to dodges (and trucks)
What are pros and cons for each engine.
Do most of my own wrenching.
Daily driver for work in trades.
Have a trailer that is ~2-3000lbs

Looking for some input from the community here. Cheers!

 

[2023RAM1500ds]

New to dodges (and trucks)
What are pros and cons for each engine.
Do most of my own wrenching.
Daily driver for work in trades.
Have a trailer that is ~2-3000lbs

Looking for some input from the community here. Cheers!

well depends.. how much driving do you do?
Diesels prefer to be driven HOT...if you're driving short distances on a daily basis not worth it...
depending on where you live diesel might be more expensive than regular gas....
Also diesel engines have to use DEF... after so many miles you have to refill every so often which is an additional cost.

On the opposite side they tend to last longer than the 5.7s..

with 5.7 hemi tick, if you dont do your oil changes regularly with good synthetic oil...
gas can be costly depending how you drive.. LOL (i have a heavy foot) but you can get good mileage if you dont floor it all the time!

rear exhaust manifold bolt issues that are prone to breaking

 

[crash68]

depending on where you live diesel might be more expensive than regular gas....
Also diesel engines have to use DEF.

None of the 5.9 Cummins use DEF nor do they have a DPF.
Depending on how it's driven and/or what tune the engine has, it will can put up fuel economy numbers to more than make up for the extra cost of the fuel. My buddies 04.5 Cummins once tuned out up similar 26-28 mph that my EcoD does.
If the OP is comparing HD trucks than it's almost a no-brainer to go with the Cummins unless it's needed for short trip daily drives

 

[Papa Red]

Welcome to the forum.

Red

 

[nlambert182]

None of the 5.9 Cummins use DEF nor do they have a DPF.
Depending on how it's driven and/or what tune the engine has, it will can put up fuel economy numbers to more than make up for the extra cost of the fuel. My buddies 04.5 Cummins once tuned out up similar 26-28 mph that my EcoD does.
If the OP is comparing HD trucks than it's almost a no-brainer to go with the Cummins unless it's needed for short trip daily drives

Agreed.

Even if it did run DEF, I don't really factor the cost of DEF into the equation. It costs about $20 to fill up a DEF tank and it will last anywhere between 10k-20k miles depending on driving/towing habits. Not really much to consider. Emission systems, sure... but not DEF in general.

Even if I were short tripping ~50% of the time, if there were enough instances of longer trips or a lot of hauling I would still consider the 5.9 over the 5.7. Maybe not the 6.7 due to the emissions (unless they fall off), but the 5.9s literally run forever and turn out some really good economy numbers. Buddy of mine has an 06 3500 SRW with over 400k on the clock and 95% of that is local driving and less than half is pulling an enclosed cargo trailer for his business. No major work on the engine at all. Just maintenance.

 

[Fake-Account27]

I change the oil and fuel filters myself. Expect to pay about $250 for a complete oil and fuel filter change. I have a diesel over a gas truck because it makes towing my 33 ft camper a lot easier. My wife and I are both teachers and full time during the summer. It is much easier to get diesel fuel on long road trips as I just go where the trucks go. With gas it would require some research as to what gas stations can fit my trailer. Exhaust break is great too.

In your case with a small trailer it is going to depend on how often you need to fill it up while hooked up. If its not very often I would just get gas. Your trailer is pretty light so it does not need a diesel.

 

[NCRaineman]

If you don't know anything about trucks and aren't going go be doing a lot of HEAVY towing, like 6000lbs+ on a regular basis, you don't need to mess with diesel. It's a whole nother can of worms versus gas engines.

 

[nlambert182]

Pre-emission diesels (like the 5.9) are no more cumbersome than a gasser. There's not much of a downside to them. If we are talking post-emission diesels, then I wholeheartedly agree.

 

[NCRaineman]

Pre-emission diesels (like the 5.9) are no more cumbersome than a gasser. There's not much of a downside to them. If we are talking post-emission diesels, then I wholeheartedly agree.

Good luck finding a pre-emissions diesel that isn't beat all to pieces by now. Those trucks are 15+ years old. The ones that remain in good condition are extremely hot items on the used market. Preppers love them and they sell for nearly the price of a new truck.

 

[nlambert182]

The title of the thread is 5.7 Hemi vs 5.9 Cummins.

I'm just answering his question.

 

[Harley Harrold]

 

[5150Eddie]

I have both, 5.9 diesel and 5.7 hemi. For road trips with the trailer or heavier loads, I always take the diesel. It handles heavy loads much better, and my mileage is better even with the fuel being higher than gas. I drive the hemi daily and the diesel sits til I need it, mostly in the warmer months. I pick diesel for the torque and power every time.