Time for a diesel truck

[WK2008]

So I am going to be in the market in the next few months for a diesel dually and would like to get some input. I for sure want a dodge but I'm not sure if I should buy a crew cab or mega cab. I'm planning to haul a fifth wheel as well as I being my daily driver so there will be no major mods to be done other than an AFE intake and a quiet flow aftermarket exhaust. My main question is because I am towing should I be going for the longer box or am I okay with the shorter box in search of more cab space. I will get a roll and lock cover and my fifth wheel will have a full basement so I'm not so worried about using the box for storage. I appreciate your input and look forward to your comments.

John

[JackstandJohnny]

what bout the WK?


or is that the 'other' reason you need a tow rig   custom 8" lift and 35s? :d

[Spinalguy]

Why a dually? It will suck daily driving it. A Ram 2500 will do all you need for towing. The dually being wider makes it a pain to negotiate city traffic. It will be a target when you park it in parking lots with people banging their doors against the dually portion. i see duallys quite often with chunks of the dually portion missing.
Personally, i prefer long boxes as i can fit dirtbikes and motorcycles straight in.

[cLAY]

Agreed. How big is your 5th wheel going to be? Will you REALLY need a dually or will a SRW 3500 be enough? Personally I use my truck for all sorts of things(its a 2003 Dodge long box dually) and find an 8ft box really handy. The dually portion is a pain parking, in traffic and smaller trailers disappear behind it. I have a crack in one dually flare from jack knifing my tractor/quad trailer while backing up in a tight area. However my 5th wheel with the jeep on it(aka Redneck toy hauler) is 16,000lbs loaded so a dually is a must.

The only person that would enjoy a mega cab is whoever sits in the back. My kids have lots of room in my regular crew cab. Unless you have big teenage kids or buddies that ride in the backstreet often I would opt for a regular crew cab long box.

Short box trucks can also have issues with cab clearance towing some 5th wheels. Different hitches can help this but are more money.

Are you going stick or auto? 5.9 or 6.7? I'd really like the new 6spd auto. The new 6.7 is said to be pretty awesome once the excess pollution crap is yanked.

This is a good  newbie site for learning about Dodge Diesels.

http://www.dieseltruckresource.com/dev/index.php

BTW I really hate the look of a mega cab/short box dually.  GHEYYYYY.....

[Unknown303]

My father-inlaw has a 3500 Megacab SRW and it's an amazing vehicles.  More interior space than anyone should ever need and they haul cattle and farm equipment on a daily basis.  He's brought it to Calgary a few times and I usually drive them around in it and have no issues getting around Calgary in it.  I'd definitely go SRW if it's a daily driver, I did the same with my Duramax and it was a boat but at least not dually wide when trying to get around the city.

[WK2008]

Thanks for the input guys.  I am going to drive the dually and the SRW and see which I like the best. I have no intention of buying a long box as I have a parking lot full of work trucks if I need to use the box. The mega cab is still in the air as but I really think they look sweet. I guess time will tell what I end up with.

PS Johnny my WK will not be on the auction block anytime soon buddy sorry lol

[Black Betty]

I have no experience myself, but heard that the mega cab has limited options on fifth wheel hitches due to a shorter box.  I've rode the back seat in my dads quad cab 1500 and being 6'2" had plenty of space.  I'm curious to hear responses too as this will be a decision I have to make in a couple years.

[Bnine]

I for sure want a dodge

John

I really think you should reconsider the dodge. The dodge is not all the truck it is hyped up to be. Aside from the motor, those trucks are virtually the cheapest peicest of crap there is on the road.

The transmissions constantly fail. Electrical issues are non stop. The front ends are weak and prone to death wobble. The oil coolers fail regularly. The steering system is undersized and constantly burns up the fluid.

My buddies 06 that he bought brand new and has babied 70k on it is virtually falling apart on everything but the motor. Luckily he has a standard, so at least that still works.

My 06 mega cap was the worst lemon I've ever owned. The automatic transmission would not hold together (with a stock engine). The heater and related electrical started failing at 80k. The oil coooler went twice. The power steering fluid was burnt every 20k. I had a push rod fall into the oil pan after the second time the injectors were done in less then 40k.

By the time I traded it at the dealer it had started to throw PCM codes.

Brand new the clear choice right now is the chev. Dodge is still a peice crap built around a motor. Ford is relatively unproven.

Ford are good in the 6.0 years as long as the EGR delete and head studs are done. They are proven to outlast the 7.3's in various fleets when those mods are completed.

The chevs are fairly reliable throughout most years, just be mindfull of the cost of servicing and repairing the alison transmission.

The dodges are best in a manul trans configuration, and pre 24 valve.

Personally, if I ever plan on another long term truck it will be a manual transmission regardless of what brand it is.

Anyways, some food for thought.

[johnbou]

I really think you should reconsider the dodge. The dodge is not all the truck it is hyped up to be. Aside from the motor, those trucks are virtually the cheapest peicest of crap there is on the road.

The transmissions constantly fail. Electrical issues are non stop. The front ends are weak and prone to death wobble. The oil coolers fail regularly. The steering system is undersized and constantly burns up the fluid.

My buddies 06 that he bought brand new and has babied 70k on it is virtually falling apart on everything but the motor. Luckily he has a standard, so at least that still works.

My 06 mega cap was the worst lemon I've ever owned. The automatic transmission would not hold together (with a stock engine). The heater and related electrical started failing at 80k. The oil coooler went twice. The power steering fluid was burnt every 20k. I had a push rod fall into the oil pan after the second time the injectors were done in less then 40k.

By the time I traded it at the dealer it had started to throw PCM codes.

Brand new the clear choice right now is the chev. Dodge is still a peice crap built around a motor. Ford is relatively unproven.

Ford are good in the 6.0 years as long as the EGR delete and head studs are done. They are proven to outlast the 7.3's in various fleets when those mods are completed.

The chevs are fairly reliable throughout most years, just be mindfull of the cost of servicing and repairing the alison transmission.

The dodges are best in a manul trans configuration, and pre 24 valve.

Personally, if I ever plan on another long term truck it will be a manual transmission regardless of what brand it is.

Anyways, some food for thought.

Thanks for the information i really appreciate it. I am still having a hard time with the chev as its not such a great puller with the stock suspension.

[Bnine]

The suspension weakness in the chev is the front end. The back is the same as all the other 3/4 and 1 tons out there, and if hauling heavy, they all benefit from airbags out back, which is only a 200 touch.

hth

Also, both the dodge and chev weak front ends are easily upgradeable, just costly.

[hps4evr]

I really think you should reconsider the dodge. The dodge is not all the truck it is hyped up to be. Aside from the motor, those trucks are virtually the cheapest peicest of crap there is on the road.

The transmissions constantly fail. Electrical issues are non stop. The front ends are weak and prone to death wobble. The oil coolers fail regularly. The steering system is undersized and constantly burns up the fluid.

My buddies 06 that he bought brand new and has babied 70k on it is virtually falling apart on everything but the motor. Luckily he has a standard, so at least that still works.

My 06 mega cap was the worst lemon I've ever owned. The automatic transmission would not hold together (with a stock engine). The heater and related electrical started failing at 80k. The oil coooler went twice. The power steering fluid was burnt every 20k. I had a push rod fall into the oil pan after the second time the injectors were done in less then 40k.

By the time I traded it at the dealer it had started to throw PCM codes.

Brand new the clear choice right now is the chev. Dodge is still a peice crap built around a motor. Ford is relatively unproven.

Ford are good in the 6.0 years as long as the EGR delete and head studs are done. They are proven to outlast the 7.3's in various fleets when those mods are completed.

The chevs are fairly reliable throughout most years, just be mindfull of the cost of servicing and repairing the alison transmission.

The dodges are best in a manul trans configuration, and pre 24 valve.

Personally, if I ever plan on another long term truck it will be a manual transmission regardless of what brand it is.

Anyways, some food for thought.

the sad thing is currently dodge is the only option if you want a stick with a 3/4 or 1 ton. sure manual sucks in traffic, but everywhere else its more fun and keeps that left leg in shape id love to drive the new ford built diesel trucks. see how they feel. but time will tell on their life spans.

[Vinman]

I really think you should reconsider the dodge. The dodge is not all the truck it is hyped up to be. Aside from the motor, those trucks are virtually the cheapest peicest of crap there is on the road.

The transmissions constantly fail. Electrical issues are non stop. The front ends are weak and prone to death wobble. The oil coolers fail regularly. The steering system is undersized and constantly burns up the fluid.

My buddies 06 that he bought brand new and has babied 70k on it is virtually falling apart on everything but the motor. Luckily he has a standard, so at least that still works.

My 06 mega cap was the worst lemon I've ever owned. The automatic transmission would not hold together (with a stock engine). The heater and related electrical started failing at 80k. The oil coooler went twice. The power steering fluid was burnt every 20k. I had a push rod fall into the oil pan after the second time the injectors were done in less then 40k.

By the time I traded it at the dealer it had started to throw PCM codes.

Brand new the clear choice right now is the chev. Dodge is still a peice crap built around a motor. Ford is relatively unproven.

Ford are good in the 6.0 years as long as the EGR delete and head studs are done. They are proven to outlast the 7.3's in various fleets when those mods are completed.

The chevs are fairly reliable throughout most years, just be mindfull of the cost of servicing and repairing the alison transmission.

The dodges are best in a manul trans configuration, and pre 24 valve.

Personally, if I ever plan on another long term truck it will be a manual transmission regardless of what brand it is.

Anyways, some food for thought.

C'mon now Bill, you must be mistaken. Ask any Cummins owner and they'll tell you that their truck is, by far, superior to any other truck on the market.
In fact, they usually tell me they expect to get a bajillion miles out of them.

Vince

[cLAY]

Agreed! No sersiously. I fix Fords in Fort Mac for the oil sands but I own a Dodge. I'll never own a Ford diesel one. NOTHING is easy on any of those motors.  I'd rather put ball joints in my Dodge every other year than have to do ANYTHING on a Ford diesel motor. The stupid thing is crammed in there so tight you cann't do anything on it. The cab has to come off to do a turbo or head. Yes ok, you CAN do it with the cab on but its REALLY not fun.

If you plan to work on the truck yourself then stay with Dodge. You can darn near rebuild the motor with it in the truck.  Water pump replacement involves removing the belt and two 12mm bolts. Easiest pump change ever. No gasket, uses an o ring. Takes longer to get the belt off than it does to change the pump.

I'd rather have a truck with a solid engine and rebuild the truck around it than have a truck with a troublesome/hard to work on motor.

[Immortal]

I had a push rod fall into the oil pan after the second time the injectors were done in less then 40k.

That does not sound like a solid engine......

[cLAY]

Somebody fudged up the injector install for the pushrods to fall in. Only way that can happen is if the rockers come loose or WAY out of adjustment. The rocker pedestals have to come off for the injector to come out. I'm betting that something didn't get put back right after the injectors were done.