TO DIESEL OR NOT TO DIESEL THAT IS THE QUESTIONS

[WVPOWERMAN]

Hello 2500 and 3500 fellers.

I am upgrading to a 2500 and selling 1500. My internal conflict is diesel or no diesel, and was just wanting some pros and cons of each from experienced 2500 owners if you guys dont mind supplying it.

Im getting a 2500 because i am buying a tractor next spring that ill be taking to a couple different states where I have property, and the wife wants to buy a camper in the next year or two...preferably a 5th wheel, so the amount AND frequency of my pulling habits is about to increase.

So what is everyones opinions on this? Thanks for taking the time to read and reply!

 

[Units]

I say get what tickles your fancy. I will say that the maintenance costs are higher with a diesel; 2 fuel filters, 3 gal of oil. Diesel fuel prices are almost a non factor since they are not much more than regular gas and factored in with the fuel mileage you get vs a big gas motor. I’ve had both and I prefer the diesel, way more power. I do use mine as a DD but be mindful with the diesel and the modern emissions equipment on them that you need to have a fair amount of hwy travel, higher temps help with passive regeneration of the DPF.

 

[oledirteh]

What mr @Units said. Also seeing your in West virginia you may like the diesel more than a gasser due to the hills/mountains as I've traveled to West virginia into kentucky often and i know the hills out there are long and a diesel just chugs up them. The exhaust brake is great to have as well.

however, if you are towing twice a year or something like that, v8 may be the ticket. but i personally love the power of a diesel.

What kind of tractor are you pulling? and what kind of weight are you looking at for a trailer? I assume 24ft deck over style? i know hitch pull they are around 4500-5k in empty weight for a built one. then if you're looking at pulling say a Farmall M or a H those are not light either. prob figure 8500 loaded with what ever. get the diesel

 

[WVPOWERMAN]

What mr @Units said. Also seeing your in West virginia you may like the diesel more than a gasser due to the hills/mountains as I've traveled to West virginia into kentucky often and i know the hills out there are long and a diesel just chugs up them. The exhaust brake is great to have as well.

however, if you are towing twice a year or something like that, v8 may be the ticket. but i personally love the power of a diesel.

What kind of tractor are you pulling? and what kind of weight are you looking at for a trailer? I assume 24ft deck over style? i know hitch pull they are around 4500-5k in empty weight for a built one. then if you're looking at pulling say a Farmall M or a H those are not light either. prob figure 8500 loaded with what ever. get the diesel

Honestly it could be feast or famine. There may be times where I dont tow anything at all for a few weeks. Then I may pull for a couple weeks straight.

I have deer property in ohio and NC so Id be pulling a john deere there quite a few times a year. And when we get the camper, the wife wants to take off for a couple of weeks at a time (as we both work from home and can work from the road).

And also, who doesnt love that power and sound of that diesel engine? lol

 

[nlambert182]

The costs difference in terms of maintenance are negligible. Sure, the diesel requires more oil and requires the fuel filters to be changed, but.... you change the oil half as often and the fuel filter change is roughly every other oil change. But, no coil packs and no 16 spark plugs to replace.

The differentiating factor is the emissions equipment. It can be expensive to replace if/when it fails. If you don't work it hard enough, eventually it will. You have to decide if you want to take the gamble with a diesel. As far as towing though, it's a night and day difference with the diesel.

In my PERSONAL experience with how frequent/infrequent I tow and that I daily drive mine, my rigs have all gone to about 120k miles before the emissions crapped out. I'm at 118k on this one now and am waiting for the dreaded light. I'm already preparing to fix it. Those who tow often have seen well over 200k miles on stock equipment. It's all a roll of the dice.

As an aside, if you plan of a fifth wheel with a 2500, make sure you're watching payload. 2500s have a low payload, and it's about 900 lbs less with the diesel vs the gas counterpart. You can run out of truck real quick.

 

[WVPOWERMAN]

The costs difference in terms of maintenance are negligible. Sure, the diesel requires more oil and requires the fuel filters to be changed, but.... you change the oil half as often and the fuel filter change is roughly every other oil change. But, no coil packs and no 16 spark plugs to replace.

The differentiating factor is the emissions equipment. It can be expensive to replace if/when it fails. If you don't work it hard enough, eventually it will. You have to decide if you want to take the gamble with a diesel. As far as towing though, it's a night and day difference with the diesel.

In my PERSONAL experience with how frequent/infrequent I tow and that I daily drive mine, my rigs have all gone to about 120k miles before the emissions crapped out. I'm at 118k on this one now and am waiting for the dreaded light. I'm already preparing to fix it. Those who tow often have seen well over 200k miles on stock equipment. It's all a roll of the dice.

As an aside, if you plan of a fifth wheel with a 2500, make sure you're watching payload. 2500s have a low payload, and it's about 900 lbs less with the diesel vs the gas counterpart. You can run out of truck real quick.

So essentially the more you drive the truck the longer that stuff lasts?

 

[oledirteh]

pretty much. i put 120 miles a day on my truck, and tow often, either a 13k toyhauler, 28foot enclosed, or a car trailer.

i personaly would get a 3500 HO with the aisin trans. but thats just my opinion. the 68RFE doesnt have a great track record lol.

 

[nlambert182]

So essentially the more you drive the truck the longer that stuff lasts?

Sort of.

The more you drive it with a load (and for longer distances), the longer it lasts. I drive mine about 50-70 miles a day, but 60-65% of my yearly driving is empty.

 

[nlambert182]

pretty much. i put 120 miles a day on my truck, and tow often, either a 13k toyhauler, 28foot enclosed, or a car trailer.

i personaly would get a 3500 HO with the aisin trans. but thats just my opinion. the 68RFE doesnt have a great track record lol.

Meh I drove a SRW 3500 with the Aisin before I grabbed this 2500. I was not a fan. It's a solid transmission but man are they clunky when it's unloaded. I don't disagree that they're solid though.

The 68RFEs are good transmissions as long as you don't turn up the boost. My last 3500DRW had the 68RFE and I regularly towed a 16.5k fifth wheel. Before that it towed a 43' gooseneck every day. Never had one hiccup with that truck. This one has been solid as well, though it only sees about 10-11k lbs when I tow with it. My 2012 was also a solid truck with a 68RFE. I towed a 11.5k fifth wheel with it everywhere.

 

[NotSoFast]

I have a 2500 diesel and use it mainly for towing. Because it's 4wd and I live in snow country, it tends to double as a daily driver sometimes in the winter. The DPF filter abhors that kind of treatment. 40 miles around town doesn't really heat it up enough. Even 100 miles at 70 mph and dropped down to 5th gear only sort of cleans it. What it seems to prefer is to tow a load at freeway speeds for at least 50 miles. That's what it's built for, and it does that really really well.
And as nice as it is pulling a load up a grade, it's even better descending. So get something small as a DD unless you are going to work it steadily.

 

[Tulecreeper]

As mentioned above, get the diesel only if you plan on using it as intended. I went with the 6.4 because this is my EDD, and I only put about 300 miles per month on it at 35 - 50 MPH most of the time. I would have killed the diesel by now.

 

[WVPOWERMAN]

Thanks all. Much appreciated info in here.

AS much as I love diesels, its sounds like gas might be the better way to go. I have a company truck they let me use freely as well so it wouldnt get driven every day. Now when we get the camper, we would be talking about multiple days of pulling but that would only be maybe once or twice every 8 weeks. Tractor pulling would be a few times a year.

Whats the difference in empty gas mileage between a gas and diesel?

 

[andymax]

As a couple folks stated...you REALLY need to consider getting the 3500 vs the 2500, in particular because there's a very good chance that even if the 2500 is payload rated for your first camper, it likely won't be for your second or third. Given the price difference, there's not a chance I'd get a 2500 given your usage case. Just my $.02.

 

[rzr6-4]

There may be times where I dont tow anything at all for a few weeks. Then I may pull for a couple weeks straight.

If you tow for two weeks straight on a rare occasion, the diesel may well be the way to go. Doing that several times a year with small trips every few weeks, diesel is the way to go.

 

[nlambert182]

I won't say that you NEED a diesel yet... I'd have to know what the weight of the tractor/trailer is along with what sized fifth wheel you plan to tow. You don't have to drive a diesel every day. You just have to plan to work it semi-frequently when you do drive it.

If you're towing a 10k lb or less load, I might suggest the 6.4 for your specific use case. I would absolutely suggest going right to a 3500 for a fifth wheel. The rear suspension is much more tuned for a fifth wheel, even if you get a single wheel 3500. You can get a 3500 gasser.


I won't speak for everyone on empty mileage, but I routinely see ~ 18.5 mixed (empty) and have seen as high as 22 mpg (hand calculated) with my Cummins and 3.42 gearing.

 

[WVPOWERMAN]

I won't say that you NEED a diesel yet... I'd have to know what the weight of the tractor/trailer is along with what sized fifth wheel you plan to tow. You don't have to drive a diesel every day. You just have to plan to work it semi-frequently when you do drive it.

If you're towing a 10k lb or less load, I might suggest the 6.4 for your specific use case. I would absolutely suggest going right to a 3500 for a fifth wheel. The rear suspension is much more tuned for a fifth wheel, even if you get a single wheel 3500. You can get a 3500 gasser.


I won't speak for everyone on empty mileage, but I routinely see ~ 18.5 mixed (empty) and have seen as high as 22 mpg (hand calculated) with my Cummins and 3.42 gearing.

"You don't have to drive a diesel every day. You just have to plan to work it semi-frequently when you do drive it."

So occasionally i go on a four hour drive probably once every 4-6 weeks unloaded to the carolinas or northern virginia. Would that be enough to "work it" to keep it in shape? This is outside of hauling the tractor and camper.

 

[nlambert182]

"You don't have to drive a diesel every day. You just have to plan to work it semi-frequently when you do drive it."

So occasionally i go on a four hour drive probably once every 4-6 weeks unloaded to the carolinas or northern virginia. Would that be enough to "work it" to keep it in shape? This is outside of hauling the tractor and camper.

It is going to vary for each person but by and large, the more you can work the truck (and by work I mean put a load on it and work it) the better off you are. Just driving it isn't enough. When it will fail is a crap shoot and a gamble that those of us who own a diesel have accepted.

 

[oledirteh]

Meh I drove a SRW 3500 with the Aisin before I grabbed this 2500. I was not a fan. It's a solid transmission but man are they clunky when it's unloaded. I don't disagree that they're solid though.

The 68RFEs are good transmissions as long as you don't turn up the boost. My last 3500DRW had the 68RFE and I regularly towed a 16.5k fifth wheel. Before that it towed a 43' gooseneck every day. Never had one hiccup with that truck. This one has been solid as well, though it only sees about 10-11k lbs when I tow with it. My 2012 was also a solid truck with a 68RFE. I towed a 11.5k fifth wheel with it everywhere.

my case may be different as im stock with a new trans on order. however i did get 99745 miles out of the 68rfe before it was done.

 

[oledirteh]

Thanks all. Much appreciated info in here.

AS much as I love diesels, its sounds like gas might be the better way to go. I have a company truck they let me use freely as well so it wouldnt get driven every day. Now when we get the camper, we would be talking about multiple days of pulling but that would only be maybe once or twice every 8 weeks. Tractor pulling would be a few times a year.

Whats the difference in empty gas mileage between a gas and diesel?

i average 20-21 mpg hightway which is most of my travel.

my toy hauler drops me down to about 10-11 depending on what toys are being hauled. 39ft camper with four wheelers on board. about 13.5k loaded pulling mountains

 

[mtnrider]

You need a 3500 diesel if you follow through with getting the 5th wheel.