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Truck Worries, Woes and Considerations


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#1 Wandering Sagebrush

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Posted 29 April 2020 - 02:05 AM

A few weeks ago, I hijacked a thread to offer my opinion why the new owners of XP (now Nimble) are going to a gas engine  instead of diesel.  Here’s that post

 

    “After putting 3 turbo chargers, an EGR cooler, MAP sensor, and now a turbo down pipe in my truck, I think I understand the reasoning behind a gas rig.

 

    To be honest, I love my 6.7, but I want it to work correctly.  The first replacement turbo failed after several hundred miles.  I get that stuff happens.  The second turbo, according to the service manager was bad (extremely noisy )from the box and I didn’t get to drive it.  The third turbo was also noisy at startup, but quieted when warmed up.   I put 1100 miles on it per a request from Ford, then took it back in. I suspected an exhaust leak  because of the behavior of the problem, plus a slight diesel exhaust smell on occasions.  My guess is the original down pipe was damaged in all the wrenching.  FWIW, the truck runs great, good power, good mileage, just the initial turbo/exhaust howl and smell.

 

i hope the down pipe is the fix, but as much as I love the truck...  it will probably be my last diesel.  I’ll go slower on the hills, and I’ll save $10,500 at the start if I replace it.”

 

The down pipe was not the fix.   The dealer put a fourth turbo on the truck, plus various exhaust components from a similar used truck on their sales lot, all to no avail.

 

Monday (4/27), I talked with their service advisor to find out what their plan was, or whether or not I should consider taking the truck to another shop to have a fresh set of eyes put on the issue.  They put their heads together, and it appears they finally got Ford’s attention and assistance. 

 

This morning, the service advisor called and told me that Ford had relented and authorized installation of a factory new turbo charger instead of the previous four remanufactured units.

 

I’m not sure when the factory new turbo will be received.  I’m hopeful, but not confident this will fix it, but it seems like progress.  The issue has been dragging on since October of last year.

 

For me, there are some lessons learned.  I’m out of pocket about $6,400, and have not been confident in my truck.   I tend to keep my vehicles at least 10 years, well past the normal warranty period.  Given the complexity of new vehicles, an extended warranty that is at least 10 years on anything new.  Right now, I would be roughly $2,000 ahead if I bought an extended warranty on this truck.   Another lesson that I previously mentioned is the new vehicle will probably be gas.

 

That’s my tale of woe (up to this point).  Hopefully not everyone will have a similar experience, but I thought I’d toss this out for your consideration.


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#2 WjColdWater

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Posted 29 April 2020 - 11:46 AM

Sage, sorry to hear your vehicle troubles. I don’t know much about diesel motors other than fuel difference and they can pull anything. Since 2010 I have purchased three Ford F-150’s /2010-5.4/2017-3.5 and my current and last 2020-5.0. The 5.4 was a puller but tough on gas but a great truck. The 2017 with the 3.5 eco 10 speed excellent power, mileage and overall one of the best trucks I’ve ever owned. The 2020 with the 5.0-HDP-10 speed is yet to be determined only 1K with 700 miles with a Grandby and 4000 lb boat. So far so good,  to early to give a performance/ mileage report. Good luck on getting to the bottom of the issue and ending the pain. 
Wayne


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#3 dorocks

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Posted 29 April 2020 - 01:50 PM

Back a few years ago a friend of mine in the auto business warned me about modern diesels. First it was the smog problems. Then complexity as you mentioned. Then the lessening of sulfur in diesel fuels. So I bought a 2005 Ram 2500. It has been a decent truck. Been adding an additive to increase lubricity, since low-sulfur diesel decreases injector cleansing. I have wanted to update the truck, since it is getting old looking and terrible door seals. My friend still warns me about them - Ford Chevy or Ram. To top it off I went on our local Ram dealer's site to see the price (yikes) of trucks and found they had none available. Called my long time salesman friend there and he said FCA stopped selling the 2020 tracks " to replace the transmission valve body separator" that could lead to a leak and fire. Sad that modern vehicles are problems from the git-go.

 

I am sticking with my old fart truck for now. Not sure what the future holds when it dies.


Edited by dorocks, 29 April 2020 - 01:51 PM.

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Keith Barnes El Cajon CA 2021 Ram 3500 Diesel with 2016 Lance 650


#4 Wango

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Posted 29 April 2020 - 04:59 PM

i have three super dutys. One is my old work/camper rig, mostly just a "valley car" in oregon. 2003 F250 with a 5.4. Has been great vehicle overall.

Current work truck is an 2016 F350 dually plat. Got on a deal from a friend, great truck, plush but constantly worry about all of the headaches that come from modern diesels.

My personal/camper truck is a 2016 F350 that has been modified a great deal. While i admit to being a bit of a redneck, i don't drive like a maniac and roll coal on people. i need this setup to last at least 5 more years. So far so good, shocks are a pain, but it is kind of heavy.

 

Looking down the road at my next/dream camper setup, i am pretty sure these two diesels will be my last. The modern engines are just too complicated and in my opinion handicapped to justify what i use them for. i have been reading/watching alot of the stuff on the new 7.3 gas engine, supercharging might be a way to go if i need the extra power.

Think i will stay with the Fords though, have family that works there, my buddy has a fleet of ram trucks, another drives chevy, all are about the same.

Engine alone has me thinking of buying an older pre def cummins and building an old truck, but reliability is a concern. 

Makes me wonder if it is worth trying to build my own expo rig. That and articulating beds, yeah those are another headache altogether. w


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#5 klahanie

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Posted 29 April 2020 - 07:25 PM

I'm leaning toward gas for next truck (if there is one). Prob Ford with the 7.3L. I think power will be fine. Only downside I see is the fuel economy, which creates three concerns for me. I figure for us: diesel would be about 40% better, reduced fuel range meaning jerry cans likely, and consumption would be around 10mpg - not sure if I could stomach that in this day and age.

 

For us, wanting to do longish road trips and sometimes remote, reliability and confidence in the truck is paramount. We had a truck before that eventually got old and started to have issues - that was enough for me to terminate our outings until the vehicle was replaced. This one will get old too (10-15 years was my target range) or it might develop issues. It's been good but we've had the dpf expire and the pcm fail, both times far from home. Last time we stopped for a number of years, next time I might not be so willing.

 

I look at it this way: you have to guess at how long your window of opportunity to do something might last and whether you have what you need to take advantage of it. We only get a few kicks at the cat.

 


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#6 ckent323

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Posted 29 April 2020 - 07:42 PM

I had a long conversation with my local diesel mechanic.  He primarily services fleet vehicles but also individual vehicles like mine (1993 Dodge W250 with 12 valve Cummins).  

He said he has seen a lot of reliability problems in the the newer diesel pickups as well as in the newer fleet vehicles.  He compared the problems with the newer model diesel vehicles and their new emissions equipment to the addition of emission equipment to gas engines in the 1980's.  A lot of those 1980's engines were very unreliable.

I am sure the issues will ultimately be worked out but as with the gas engines it will probably take a couple of generations of emission equipment improvements.

The mechanic said that diesel trucks in California up to about 2007 are good.  After that is when he thinks the major reliability issues begin.


Part of my decision to keep my 1993 and refurbish it was the result of reading a lot of reviews on the 2007 and newer trucks and their reliability issues.  So far I am happy with my decision and I think far ahead dollar wise.  At 400,000 miles and counting my 1993 Dodge remains the most reliable vehicle I have ever owned.  A lot of folks think the 1991 - 1993 Dodges were the most reliable.  Some folks think the 1994 - 1998 model years were just as reliable with a more comfortable ride and a quieter interior.  I am not as familiar with Ford and Chevy diesel pickups.

P.S. We did an 8,000 mile round trip drive to Anchorage and back in that 1993 Dodge W250 during late summer and fall of 2018 towing a 16 foot enclosed trailer weighing around 5500 pounds with two railroad track inspection cars in it.  I would be comfortable doing that trip again with my truck.

 


Edited by ckent323, 01 May 2020 - 12:20 AM.

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#7 Vic Harder

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Posted 29 April 2020 - 07:44 PM

I can't help but smile at the different tone of this thread compared to this one - https://www.wanderth...72-a-milestone/


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#8 JHanson

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Posted 29 April 2020 - 11:21 PM

One of the biggest problems with the 6.7 is that addressing any issue beyond the extremely basic requires removing the engine. That automatically quadruples a repair bill. I'm not sure about the equivalent Chevy and Ram engines.


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#9 Wandering Sagebrush

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Posted 29 April 2020 - 11:25 PM

Jon, per my friend the retired Ford Service Manager, the cab comes off in about 2 hours, which still ain’t great, but quite that expensive. .


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#10 Optimistic Paranoid

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Posted 30 April 2020 - 09:32 AM

The people at the Long Long Honeymoon YouTube channel had their diesel truck "bulletproofed" and documented the whole thing.  They show the cab lifting rig at around 5:00 minutes into this video:

 

 

It was quite interesting to watch.


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Regards

John

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