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 BHW Cougar of the Year
Posts: 15992
   
Location: NM | Has anyone gone from a diesel back to a gas truck? After driving Jay's truck last weekend, I want to blow it up. It's a 3/4 ton Chevy diesel. The best we got was 14.8 mph with an empty trailer. On the way back, for most of the trip I got 10 mph. The wind was really blowing. Then on the last leg, I was getting 13 mph. I'm not seeing the payoff for having a diesel. They cost more to fill up, maintenance is more, and the price tag is soooooo much higher. The power is great, but, I don't think worth it. I'd love to hear how your all trucks do and what you use. | |
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 Good Grief!
Posts: 6343
Location: Cap'n Joan Rotgut.....alberta | i have a 3500 dodge diesel...mine doesn't seem to bad on fuel(the read out says 18 loaded).......and a gas truck wouldn't pull my trailer......so i need the diesel power............;)
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 I Want a "MAN"
Posts: 3610
Location: MD | The price isnt that much higher for a dually and I can get 22 mpg empty highway. I have 2012 chevy 1 ton
ETA I have diesel
Edited by CE's wrapn3 2014-01-28 10:19 AM
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BHW Cougar of the Year
Posts: 15992
Location: NM | CE's wrapn3 - 2014-01-28 8:16 AM The price isnt that much higher for a dually and I can get 22 mpg empty highway. I have 2012 chevy 1 ton
ETA I have diesel
DANGIT! Our's is a 2011. Maybe we have a dud. It didn't seem to matter how fast I drove either. | |
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The Advice Guru
Posts: 6419
| Pulling weight for weight, my 3500 diesel dully got better fuel mileage then a 2500 gas Chevy
Ratio was 1:3, 1 gallon of diesel to 3 of gas | |
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 Expert
Posts: 2457
| I suggest looking at your set up. Where do you haul the most often (mountains or mostly flat lands), how heavy is your load, the size of your trailer, etc.
Growing up, we showed livestock and crossed the Rockies often, there was no way we were going to pull a double decked 20 ft trailer full of stock, tack, feed, our stuff, etc without doing serious work on a gas engine. We did pull with a standard transmission gas 6.0 GMC, but honestly, it didn't end well for the truck. Changing to an allison tranny Duramax, there was a significant difference in mileage, power, and upkeep on the truck but it was a better haul for us as a whole. Granted we were pulling large, heavy loads up and down mountains in a 1 ton dually.
I now pull, depending on the load and the trailer, with either a gas Chevy half ton or a diesel Dodge 1 ton dually. It depends what I'm pulling, where I'm going, and how far.
Definitely evaluate your situation and your needs ... you may not need a diesel. | |
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I Want a "MAN"
Posts: 3610
Location: MD | Coug - 2014-01-28 10:25 AM CE's wrapn3 - 2014-01-28 8:16 AM The price isnt that much higher for a dually and I can get 22 mpg empty highway. I have 2012 chevy 1 ton
ETA I have diesel DANGIT! Our's is a 2011. Maybe we have a dud. It didn't seem to matter how fast I drove either.
I pull a 24 ft alluminum eby when it's loaded down I only get about 12-14 but when I'm empty (and not in a hurry) I can get pretty good mileage. | |
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BHW Cougar of the Year
Posts: 15992
Location: NM | lindseylou2290 - 2014-01-28 8:37 AM I suggest looking at your set up. Where do you haul the most often (mountains or mostly flat lands), how heavy is your load, the size of your trailer, etc. Growing up, we showed livestock and crossed the Rockies often, there was no way we were going to pull a double decked 20 ft trailer full of stock, tack, feed, our stuff, etc without doing serious work on a gas engine. We did pull with a standard transmission gas 6.0 GMC, but honestly, it didn't end well for the truck. Changing to an allison tranny Duramax, there was a significant difference in mileage, power, and upkeep on the truck but it was a better haul for us as a whole. Granted we were pulling large, heavy loads up and down mountains in a 1 ton dually. I now pull, depending on the load and the trailer, with either a gas Chevy half ton or a diesel Dodge 1 ton dually. It depends what I'm pulling, where I'm going, and how far. Definitely evaluate your situation and your needs ... you may not need a diesel.
We do have quite a bit of hills, and, our road in is pretty steep and dirt. Sigh. Guess I just need to suck it up. Sounds like it's right where it should be. Plus, we only have 15,000 miles on it. Supposedly it should get better? | |
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 Tough Patooty
Posts: 2615
Location: Sperry, OK | I have a 2006 Dodge (last year for the 5.9) Megacab. I get over 20mph driving and depending on the load and length of the trip anywhere from 12-18 pulling. I mainly have a diesel because there is no way a gas motor would stand up to what my husband puts one through! He believes if the truck can move, your not loaded yet.. add more! | |
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 Reaching for the stars....
Posts: 12704
| The theory of why you haul with diesel vs gas is the longevity. Diesel engines should outlast gas burners by 3 to 1, worst case 2 to 1.
We used to have an F150 gas burner that I hauled with when I roadraced my motorcycle. It got 9-10 mpg with a tiny trailer and 2 bikes. Our F250 with my 3H lead sled with 3 horses gets 14-15 mpg. The F150 started its death throes at 105000 miles. Yes, we've had injector issues, but our F250 still appears on track for a much longer life than 105K miles. I plan on this being the only hauling truck I ever need, barring lottery and all that. The F150 cost $18K or so, the F250 was $35K. As long as the F250 goes past 200K miles I'll feel it was the better deal. It's taken 11 years to put 80K miles on it, and realistically I may haul another 11 to 15 years. | |
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Tough Patooty
Posts: 2615
Location: Sperry, OK | lonely va barrelxr - 2014-01-28 11:09 AM The theory of why you haul with diesel vs gas is the longevity. Diesel engines should outlast gas burners by 3 to 1, worst case 2 to 1.
We used to have an F150 gas burner that I hauled with when I roadraced my motorcycle. It got 9-10 mpg with a tiny trailer and 2 bikes. Our F250 with my 3H lead sled with 3 horses gets 14-15 mpg. The F150 started its death throes at 105000 miles. Yes, we've had injector issues, but our F250 still appears on track for a much longer life than 105K miles. I plan on this being the only hauling truck I ever need, barring lottery and all that. The F150 cost $18K or so, the F250 was $35K. As long as the F250 goes past 200K miles I'll feel it was the better deal. It's taken 11 years to put 80K miles on it, and realistically I may haul another 11 to 15 years.
Holy smokes it took you 11 years to put 80k miles on your truck... I have 180k on mine in 7.5 years...LOL!!! We also had a F150 with a straight 6 cylinder in it (1990 model).. when we sold it a couple of years ago, it had 400k. The people that bought it don't live far and I still see that truck going up and down the road, and sometimes pulling a little bumper pull stock trailer. | |
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BHW Cougar of the Year
Posts: 15992
Location: NM | Great. Thank you all for your input. I really appreciate it. | |
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Member
Posts: 25
| I have a 2006 Dodge Ram 2500 MegaCab Diesel and I absolutely love it! From what I understand gas engines are not nearly as powerful and their longevity is pitiful compared to a diesel.
My truck gets about 22-25 miles to the gallon unloaded and anywhere from 18-21 miles loaded (depending on how many horses are on the trailer) and I haul and aluminum 3 horse slant load with a dressing room. LOVE IT LOVE IT LOVE IT!!! 
I struggled with the gas vs. diesel when I was truck shopping as well, but very happy with my choice! | |
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Tough Patooty
Posts: 2615
Location: Sperry, OK | SCS89 - 2014-01-28 11:27 AM I have a 2006 Dodge Ram 2500 MegaCab Diesel and I absolutely love it! From what I understand gas engines are not nearly as powerful and their longevity is pitiful compared to a diesel. My truck gets about 22-25 miles to the gallon unloaded and anywhere from 18-21 miles loaded (depending on how many horses are on the trailer ) and I haul and aluminum 3 horse slant load with a dressing room. LOVE IT LOVE IT LOVE IT!!! I struggled with the gas vs. diesel when I was truck shopping as well, but very happy with my choice!
Just can't beat the 5.9.. such a shame they had to change it. | |
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Red Hot Cardinal Fan
Posts: 4122
| CE's wrapn3 - 2014-01-28 10:16 AM The price isnt that much higher for a dually and I can get 22 mpg empty highway. I have 2012 chevy 1 ton
ETA I have diesel
Hubby has a 2012 1 ton Duramax, and it gets 11 mpg whether it is hooked up or empty. Did you have anything done to yours?
I'm wanting to trade in my 05 3/4 ton Cummins, but not sure if I want to downgrade to a gas or not. The fuel milage on the newer trucks are sure not appealing compared to what I am currently getting. | |
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 Expert
Posts: 1440
Location: Texas | My husband has a Chevy 1 ton with a 8.1 gas and it maybe bet 10 empty so I don't even want to fathom what it gets loaded. I haul with my 2010 ram 2500 and it get 10 loaded to the max. I had a 2007 5.9 which got 15 loaded and I loved it. Unfortunately the newer the diesel the worse mileage they seem it get. Due to emmisons stuff. So NO WAY would I go back to gas unless I was just pulling a small bumper pull. | |
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Expert
Posts: 2457
| Coug - 2014-01-28 10:54 AM
lindseylou2290 - 2014-01-28 8:37 AM I suggest looking at your set up. Where do you haul the most often (mountains or mostly flat lands), how heavy is your load, the size of your trailer, etc. Growing up, we showed livestock and crossed the Rockies often, there was no way we were going to pull a double decked 20 ft trailer full of stock, tack, feed, our stuff, etc without doing serious work on a gas engine. We did pull with a standard transmission gas 6.0 GMC, but honestly, it didn't end well for the truck. Changing to an allison tranny Duramax, there was a significant difference in mileage, power, and upkeep on the truck but it was a better haul for us as a whole. Granted we were pulling large, heavy loads up and down mountains in a 1 ton dually. I now pull, depending on the load and the trailer, with either a gas Chevy half ton or a diesel Dodge 1 ton dually. It depends what I'm pulling, where I'm going, and how far. Definitely evaluate your situation and your needs ... you may not need a diesel.
We do have quite a bit of hills, and, our road in is pretty steep and dirt. Sigh. Guess I just need to suck it up. Sounds like it's right where it should be. Plus, we only have 15,000 miles on it. Supposedly it should get better?
I don't know about better ... take a look at the forums on working truck world . Those guys will be able to answer your questions probably pretty easily ... | |
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BHW Cougar of the Year
Posts: 15992
Location: NM | countrygirl2006 - 2014-01-28 9:42 AM CE's wrapn3 - 2014-01-28 10:16 AM The price isnt that much higher for a dually and I can get 22 mpg empty highway. I have 2012 chevy 1 ton
ETA I have diesel Hubby has a 2012 1 ton Duramax, and it gets 11 mpg whether it is hooked up or empty. Did you have anything done to yours?
I'm wanting to trade in my 05 3/4 ton Cummins, but not sure if I want to downgrade to a gas or not. The fuel milage on the newer trucks are sure not appealing compared to what I am currently getting.
Nope. We barely drive it, so we haven't done anything to it. | |
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BHW Cougar of the Year
Posts: 15992
Location: NM | lindseylou2290 - 2014-01-28 9:45 AM Coug - 2014-01-28 10:54 AM lindseylou2290 - 2014-01-28 8:37 AM I suggest looking at your set up. Where do you haul the most often (mountains or mostly flat lands), how heavy is your load, the size of your trailer, etc. Growing up, we showed livestock and crossed the Rockies often, there was no way we were going to pull a double decked 20 ft trailer full of stock, tack, feed, our stuff, etc without doing serious work on a gas engine. We did pull with a standard transmission gas 6.0 GMC, but honestly, it didn't end well for the truck. Changing to an allison tranny Duramax, there was a significant difference in mileage, power, and upkeep on the truck but it was a better haul for us as a whole. Granted we were pulling large, heavy loads up and down mountains in a 1 ton dually. I now pull, depending on the load and the trailer, with either a gas Chevy half ton or a diesel Dodge 1 ton dually. It depends what I'm pulling, where I'm going, and how far. Definitely evaluate your situation and your needs ... you may not need a diesel. We do have quite a bit of hills, and, our road in is pretty steep and dirt. Sigh. Guess I just need to suck it up. Sounds like it's right where it should be. Plus, we only have 15,000 miles on it. Supposedly it should get better? I don't know about better ... take a look at the forums on working truck world . Those guys will be able to answer your questions probably pretty easily ...
Great. Thank you. | |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 823
Location: East Texas | My 3/4 ton gas dodge gets 15/16 empty and 9/10 loaded. Put a pencil to it with the extra cost of Diesel engine and extra cost per gallon and extra maintanance cost... Divide that by the miles you drive and see if that extra 5/6 mpg you get with diesel is cost effective. | |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 1119
| My mom has a gas 2008 F-250. This past weekend she drove 400 miles from her house to mine pulling an empty 2 horse bp Sundowner and got 5 mpg. Then on the way home she picked up an empty 3 horse Elite gooseneck. Still got 5 mpg. Granted, there were some crazy winds this weekend....but 5 mpg is pretty horrible! | |
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 Expert
Posts: 2258
| Coug - 2014-01-28 10:54 AM
lindseylou2290 - 2014-01-28 8:37 AM I suggest looking at your set up. Where do you haul the most often (mountains or mostly flat lands), how heavy is your load, the size of your trailer, etc. Growing up, we showed livestock and crossed the Rockies often, there was no way we were going to pull a double decked 20 ft trailer full of stock, tack, feed, our stuff, etc without doing serious work on a gas engine. We did pull with a standard transmission gas 6.0 GMC, but honestly, it didn't end well for the truck. Changing to an allison tranny Duramax, there was a significant difference in mileage, power, and upkeep on the truck but it was a better haul for us as a whole. Granted we were pulling large, heavy loads up and down mountains in a 1 ton dually. I now pull, depending on the load and the trailer, with either a gas Chevy half ton or a diesel Dodge 1 ton dually. It depends what I'm pulling, where I'm going, and how far. Definitely evaluate your situation and your needs ... you may not need a diesel.
We do have quite a bit of hills, and, our road in is pretty steep and dirt. Sigh. Guess I just need to suck it up. Sounds like it's right where it should be. Plus, we only have 15,000 miles on it. Supposedly it should get better?
We had a 2003 duramax and it had 60,000 on it when we bought it and was getting 12-14 when we hit 80,000 it started getting better mileage we were running around 25 empty and 16-19 heavily loaded. It now has 250,000 miles on it and still runs in the 18-20 empty. We bought a 2012 Ford diesel just before Christmas it is only getting around 15 probably 13 or so loaded but I have a pretty big trailer loaded with tack and threw 5 horses on the other day, didn't even know it was behind us. I am sure out mileage will go up some as it gets more miles on it. It only had 15,000. We have big mountain passes to go over to get anywhere so I love the power otherwise we are crawling over the mountains. | |
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I Am a Snake Killer
Posts: 1927
Location: Golden Gulf Coast of Texas | Besides longevity the resale is WAY better also! | |
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 Undercover Amish Mafia Member
Posts: 9991
Location: Kansas | I have a silverado 2500HD (gas), extended cab, leveling kit and all terrain tires. It hauls my trailer with ease, I get about 15 MPG when hauling....wind will make me get less.
I like my truck, but I've been considering getting a diesel lately | |
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Expert
Posts: 3147
| One more thing to consider-how often and how many horses will you be hauling? We had a diesel-loved it, but when we replaced it we went with a gas truck. I have a four door single axle three quarter ton Ford with less than 200,000 miles on it and it pulls my four horse aluminum (one or two horses) as fast as I want to go. It's over ten years old (I only use it to pull trailer) so you can see I don't haul a lot. | |
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Gas vs. Diesel