Diesels - Dodge vs Chevy 2500 older models

   / Diesels - Dodge vs Chevy 2500 older models #1  

michellesc7

Silver Member
Joined
Jun 11, 2006
Messages
117
Location
Western SC and Eastern SC
Tractor
John Deere 5410 4wd Cab w/ loader, Mahindra 6500 4wd Q/A FEL, John Deere 4120 4wd w/ FEL & John Deere 1050 4wd
Hi Y'all

I have a need to pull my tractors and equipment across the state (3 hrs).
My 93 2500 Chevy gas engine with gooseneck ball is for sale, it has 160K on it.
The heavest tractor i have is my Mahindra 6500 that weighs 9500 with loader and mixture in the tires, excl equipment. I have not pulled it with this truck, only my lighter tractors.

I have been looking at diesel trucks - 2001 to 2006, mostly from the affordability point of view - lower mileage.

My mechanic says to stay away from Dodge and gave me one example of a fuel pump/ injector pump (think i have this right) $2500 cost. And stated he works on more Dodges than Chevys. I see alot of Dodge and Ford Diesels around, not very many Chevys in my town.

I need a good reliable diesel truck that i can pull my equipment back and forth to a new farm i am purchasing and need to be able to pull the big tractor.

I am also researching the 5 speed vs 6 speed automatic GM transmissions pros and cons. Found a couple of 2500 2wd Chevy Diesels, 5 sp auto witrh 12K mileage on them in the low 20s. I'll go more mileage, but I'd like to stay in the mid teens purchase price.

What are your opinions of the Chevy and Dodge trucks in this era of manufacture? Do I need a 3500?

I am also looking for a used gooseneck trailer.

You all have come through before and I value your inputs,
Thanks,
Michelle
 
   / Diesels - Dodge vs Chevy 2500 older models #2  
I own a 97 3/4 ton Dodge...Cummins of course. Love it. Your mechanic is probably referring to the 98 to sometime in the early 2000's before they switched to common rail fuel injection. If the fuel pump went out on these the truck would still run, but the injector pump would be starved for fuel and possibly get cooked. The 94 to 98-1/2 trucks are the best. There's no computer control on the engine, they're all mechanical and very reliable.
A 3/4 ton truck should be just fine. The Chevy Duramax is also very reliable from what I've read. I'm not sure about Ford. I know the Ford 6.0 diesel was a dud, not sure about the new ones. The older Fords with the 7.3 diesels are also good trucks.


M.D.
 
   / Diesels - Dodge vs Chevy 2500 older models #3  
I too have 97' Dodge but mine is a 3500. You would have more stability with the dually but looking at your tractor weight, the single wheel would be fine. Go with 3:73 gears for better fuel milage.

There are aftermarket cures for the 24V Cummins fuel pump. Up until around 03' I think it was, Dodges are notorious for track bar replacement and the 5spd transmission would "loose" fifth gear. There are cures for these issues as well.

GM, Dodge and Ford all have their issues. I would argue that the Cummins engine is the strongest of the three but that Ford has a better truck otherwise. I simply find that I cannot sit comfortably in the GM.

There are some good forums on each that you can find on the net. I see mostly Dodges where I live along with plenty of shops to have work done if need be though I do most of my own work.
 
   / Diesels - Dodge vs Chevy 2500 older models
  • Thread Starter
#4  
thanks guys
i was going to look at a 2wd ext cab 24V cummins 2001 next weekend. would you advise not to? the asking price is about $15K with 74K on it. what kind of mileage do you all get with and without a load?

older diesel trucks for sale are scarce.

michelle
 
   / Diesels - Dodge vs Chevy 2500 older models #5  
Two wheel drive trucks are scarce up here,because of winter months and plowing. I see a lot of trucks on ebay from Texas,midwest ,setup with goosenecks,bullbars aluminum flatbeds. The trucks have high mileage but running on flatland must be better then hilly states. Ihave an older diesel,it is the 6.5,I bought a 2500 HD gasoline in the meantime,the 6.5 needs a headgasket or/ and heads. It is going to be my plow and local truck. You're smart looking for used,the costs difference for diesel new is 8000.00 over buying a gasser [at least for a GM] Be better if the trucks you are looking at are setup with the tow package stock. Mine has extra coolers,160 Amp,double batteries and a built in brake contoller. I also have the plow package for snowplowing,that has extras built in. plowking
 
   / Diesels - Dodge vs Chevy 2500 older models #6  
michelle.
If I were looking for a diesel powered truck today, I'd look for a 2005 or 2006 Dodge/Cummins.5.9 The fuel (lift) pump is located at the tank were it gives no problems (not sure if 04's are or not). The automatic transmission is the bullet proof 48RE (albiet only 4 speeds), the engine produces over 600 pound/feet of torque and you can count on around 20 mpg average when empty. The truck itself is the newest generation and in my opinion is much nicer than older models, and should last far longer than you may wish to keep it. No one wants diesel trucks (their mistake) today and an 05 could probably be purchased for a good price. I don't think, neither do I believe I could be convinced, that there is a more dependable truck out there. You have many choices from other brands, you just don't have a better choice
 
   / Diesels - Dodge vs Chevy 2500 older models #8  
michellesc7 said:
thanks guys
what kind of mileage do you all get with and without a load?
michelle
I bought my 97' used with 60K miles on the odometer. I was getting 17 and change but had too much smoke so I had it gone over. The shop I used got rid of the smoke but had me down to about 14. I got to messing around with it, putting in 370's, etc. I got it to around 15.5mpg.

That was over 100k miles ago. I suppose I should be looking at it one of these days given the price of fuel and all....
 
   / Diesels - Dodge vs Chevy 2500 older models #9  
I have a 2004 Dodge 3500 Cummins. I wouldn't trade a Cummins for any other one out there. The thing is a work horse. I haven't had any major issues with mine. If I were to get another truck for some reason, I would be looking at a 2004 again. If you would like, I can be more specific as too why.

Just my $.02


Good luck
 
   / Diesels - Dodge vs Chevy 2500 older models #10  
I've had a Chevy, a Ford and a Dodge diesel pickup. I honestly liked the way the Ford rode the best. Now, to make this a bit more clear, I landed on the truck I like best about 10 years ago and was buying used then. The Chevy was the 6.5 and it wouldn't pull the hat off my head. I really liked the 7.3 Ford, and it seemed to have the most power stock, but it kept having injector issues of one sort or another and it just didn't want to start in the winter. The keeper was a 4X4 extended cab dually Dodge that is a '96 model. It was 100% stock and had about 80k miles on it when I bought it.

What shocked me was looking on eBay for used diesel pickups was that I saw dozens and dozens of Dodges with the Cummins 5.9 listed with well over 500k miles on them. Two had over 1 million miles on them! :eek: For the Chevy and Ford, it seemed that every one I saw from them with more than about 250k miles or so was advertised as "newly rebuilt" or "fresh rebuild". Anyway, in the stock configuration my old 12 valve 5.9 really wasn't all that strong. Fortunately it only cost me a few hundred dollars to really up the power. It has dyno'd in the mid 400 hp range and just over 1000 ft. lbs. in torque. And, that's about all she wrote for my auto tranny. After a bit of research it cost me over 5k for a complete tranny designed to take that power. Since then, all has been fine....well, I do have a front rotor sticking now, but otherwise she's been great. Without using the brake, I can leave 4 dark black marks on the road if my right foot becomes heavy. I can also tow my 20k trailer rig up to 100 mph.

This Dodge has been this way for the last 7 or 8 years now. I never have to use the heater grid (it doesn't have glow plugs) to start it in the winter, and I've never plugged in the plug sticking out of the grill. If I didn't use the glow plugs on my other pickups, they flat wouldn't start; no matter how warm it was outside. I can't recall using the heater grid on this truck. If you read much on hot rodding them, you'll learn that there is a certain dowel pin that can come out and drop into the timing gears. That has been fixed. I bought the pillar post gauges, but have never had to adjust my driving due to any temperature. My main concern is that the truck will just get too old for parts to be had long before it dies; especially since my truck hasn't sat outside at night in over a decade.

I really don't know how the new trucks do. Mine fires over each time I turn the key and pulls like a beast. Besides, mine was paid for the day I picked it up. I'd hate to buy a new, or much newer, truck and have any payments. Good luck!
 
 
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