Blue88Comanche Posted July 23, 2013 Share Posted July 23, 2013 I have decided I can no longer get by with out a F-250 or 2500 (or larger) any more. There have been so many time since we sold the F-250 that we have needed a truck that can safely tow heavy stuff. I may be selling my Grand Cherokee and put that money into savings for the future truck. I have looked at a 02 Ford with a 7.3L, it was if good condition with normal wear and 180K miles, they where asking $12K for it. There was a 06 Dodge 2500 with the 5.9L Cummings motor as well, Manual tranny, and just over 100k miles, they where asking $15K. Our F-250 was a 07 with a 6.0 Power Stroke, Auto tranny, 2wd. it was awesome. What are your personal experiences with the Dodge 2500 and up with the Cummings motors and Manual vs Auto, and the older 7.3L F-250 and up trucks, towing a heavy load. A manual tranny won't bother me at all, as long as it has cruse control lol we have a 36 foot camper that I have towed a few hundred miles several times with our 07 F-250, before we sold the truck. so I have an idea how that year model runs under load thanks in advance for your insights and advise Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onlyinajeep726 Posted July 23, 2013 Share Posted July 23, 2013 Never owned either of these myself, but a couple different people I know have the Dodge with the Cummins 6bt (the 5.9 you mentioned) and love them. Powerful, reliable and best of all a diesel inline 6. If you can't Dodge it, Ram it. You don't want to be Found On Road Dead... lol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blue88Comanche Posted July 23, 2013 Author Share Posted July 23, 2013 I have heard a lot of good stuff about the Cummings motors, the Dodge auto trannys on the other hand, thats where it gets iffy.. the F-250 we had (the 6.0L turbo Diesel) we never had an engine or transmission related issue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mpace6a Posted July 24, 2013 Share Posted July 24, 2013 Dodge manual trans are good, autos, not so much, but with a diesel I'd rather have the auto anyway. And the 6bt was the first gen cummins, with a p-pump and 12v. The second gen 5.9 was called the 5.9 ISB (24v). The 06 dodge would be the 5.9 ISB, which has EFI live and is preferable to the 6bt's p pump. Great engines, bullet proof, can be tuned well (cousins 01 ISB is soon to be pushing over 800hp). As long as you get a manual trans, it should be a great towing rig, though I would opt for 4x4 as well, just preferece. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oddmodman Posted July 24, 2013 Share Posted July 24, 2013 Friends don't let friends drive fords my friend :rotfl2:. The Cummins 5.9 is by far the better motor. Personally, I would never ever ever in any circumstance buy an automatic vehicle and actually use it. I might buy it and sell the tranny...but that's besides the point. In this case (towing), with a manual, you'll get much better power and mpg since you won't have slippage like an auto, don't have to worry about torque lockup, and you have the gear's entire powerband at your disposal. Plus I believe the Dodges come with 6 speeds nowadays, very nice. I have a neighbor with one, never had issue, had a friend who chipped his and loved it, and my dad has an old one whose body is rotting around it but the engine is still as bulletproof as an anvil, though it uses a bit of oil. And yes if you live in a snowy latitude or plan on driving it into one, 4x4 is a must (dad's in 2x4 and getting unstuck in winter = not easy). Go Cummins :thumbsup:. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HKB3 Posted July 24, 2013 Share Posted July 24, 2013 It is "Cummins" btw. And a 6bt would be a 12valve pre 98(in a dodge) IMO I would steer far away from any 6.0L ford unless you know it's complete maintence/repair history AND it has had the egr cooler and head gasket issues taken care of. For dodge make sure you go over the front end with a fine tooth comb, you will also want to have the injector pump checked especially if you are looking at a truck with the vp44 pump. And look for rust on the dodges also, the doors and rockers like to rot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mnkyboy Posted July 24, 2013 Share Posted July 24, 2013 I would take a 7.3l powerstroke in a second over a 24valve cummins. Also IMO engine aside the Ford is a much better built truck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H3RESQ Posted July 24, 2013 Share Posted July 24, 2013 I have never owned a Powerstroke, but have watched my friends ruin my drive way with oil. So I can't say much on that. I have owned 2 cummins Dodge's. One was a 12v with auto trans, reg cab long bed. (97) I LOVED that truck. Very comfortable interior, great motor and that one would get 21mpg running around. My second was a 01 24v H.0. manual transmission ext. cab long bed. It was a beast, loved that truck. Both trucks were flawless when I owned them, Neither got anything but regular maintance while I owned them. My buddy has an 02 ext. cab dually 6 speed manual with an exhaust brake and 4;10 gears. One of the greatest tow rigs I have ever used. Hauled two rigs to Moab and back with a 5th wheel, hauled my jeep more times than I can count, all the way back to when I had my grand Cherokee. He is actually going with me to Rubicon/Fordyce next week and we will be towing the Comanche with it rather than my Yukon xl 2500. The only problem he has had in owning it over 10years and 120k miles is the injector pump going out. I can't say enough about the Dodge with a Cummins. As far as how one would hold up over the other, well I believe that honestly has more to do with how you treat your vehicle. Ya you might see a few more "Thrashed" dodge diesels on the road than fords. I honestly believe that is because when it comes to hard core labor the dodges are the ones used, and well there seem to be more still on the road and running, were by the time the fords are beat up that bad they have been put to pasture. THIS SIMPLE,....the number one diesel (and almost the only swap) swap into a early chevy or ford is a CUMMINS motor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ftpiercecracker1 Posted July 24, 2013 Share Posted July 24, 2013 The older 7.3 are amazing motors. My brother just sold his regular cab, short bed, 4x4, f-350 and it had 430k of the hardest most abusive miles ever but on a ford. Sure it only got 12mpg by the time he sold it, but the point is that it is one hell of an engine. All that aside i agree with the majority, buy a Cummins with a SIX speed (fives have a bad rap), you won't be disappointed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mpace6a Posted July 24, 2013 Share Posted July 24, 2013 The trans your looking for is the NV5600, very sought after. Best thing dodge ever did, started using it in 99. And I have heard the 7.3's are good motors, never been a ford fan though so couldnt tell you anything about them. 6.0 powerstrokes (again hearsay) are not a good engine, and are not worth any money. don't ya know ford didnt need the obama bailout because of the revenue from 6.0 repairs? :yes: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blue88Comanche Posted July 24, 2013 Author Share Posted July 24, 2013 So far I am leaning towards Dodge, with the 6 speed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dakal Posted July 25, 2013 Share Posted July 25, 2013 cummins all the way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dedaw Posted July 25, 2013 Share Posted July 25, 2013 I haven't driven a Cummins, but have researched diesel trucks a LOT (my next truck will be a big, loud diesel) and it's clearly the better choice. My dad has an '01 Powerstroke and while it's a decent truck, I feel the Cummins is still much better. Especially if it's manual. Mid '90s to early '00s are the best, imo. Easy to tune (if you want more power, especially the older ones) and the motor will run forever (and one). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
87Warrior Posted July 25, 2013 Share Posted July 25, 2013 Having ridden in, helped work on, spoke with owners and diesel mechanics....it boils down to what you want to do with the truck. The GM Duramax trucks are like a tough Cadillac. Very comfortable equal fuel mileage (stock-stock) to a Cummins with plenty of power on tap. They have an automatic that is tough as nails, very few manuals were ever built. Easy winter starts without plugging it in. Would be my first choice in a truck if it is to be a daily driver and used to pull a Jeep to Moab. Dodge (as with most Chrysler) has a mediocre interior. The body/frame on these trucks will rot away long before the motor quits. These rigs are certainly trucks and built as a truck. Rock solid manual transmission with a mediocre automatic. Also has that classic diesel truck exhaust note. Would be my first choice as a work truck and to pull a Jeep to Moab. Ford... The local diesel mechanic has made a lot of $$$ pulling the cab off the frame to do basic repairs or turbo replacements. I am also not a Ford guy. Last choice in diesel pickup. Here is my buddies 5.9/6 spd: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onlyinajeep726 Posted July 25, 2013 Share Posted July 25, 2013 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onlyinajeep726 Posted July 25, 2013 Share Posted July 25, 2013 On a side note, I found this in the interwebz and thought this was awesome... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terrawombat Posted July 25, 2013 Share Posted July 25, 2013 I own an '04 Cummins with the auto transmission (48RE). Very mediocre transmission with of minor issues that can turn into major ones if left untouched. If I could have found a six speed in my price range, I would have been all over it. The Cummins six speed owners know they have the best engine/trans combination of any of the big 3 and they price it as such. I saw manual trucks going for 20-25K with 200K+ miles on them. BTW, I picked up my '04 2500 with 198K miles on it for $8200. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blue88Comanche Posted July 25, 2013 Author Share Posted July 25, 2013 My biggest thing will be finding something in my price range. The dodge I really wanted (4 door 5.9L 6 speed) sold in a hurry for $15k. I found a 2003 7.3L 4 door lariat for $15,000 and it does not have a ton of miles on it like some of the other trucks I have seen it its year range. Still looking however. Maybe a dodge will pop up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AZRick Posted July 25, 2013 Share Posted July 25, 2013 I had a 97 2500 Cummins, engine was awesome and after rebuilding the transmission with DTT parts the auto was bullet proof. I now have a 2004.5 3500 with the NV5600, awesome combination and a towing dream, couldn't be better. With that said, DO NOT BUY A 2004.5! I have experience in this area, trust me. The 2004.5 was the first iteration of the 325 hp engine and it has issues. The most common internet rumor, there is not enough ring gap and the rings are to brittle. Anyway mine had broken rings on #4 and #5 pistons, the cost to rebuild, don't even want to go there. :doh: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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