I'm not trying to sound negative in the subject, but what's the overall quality of these newer ~2000+ HD's? I love the looks, but does the rest of the truck hold up to the task? I'm thinking about buying another truck, a used truck, after I get my current one payed off. Debating on whether to get a '04 Dodge CTD, '99-00 Ford "PSD", or a ~'00 GM D/A. Trying to compare trucks right now. If I would get a Ford, I would opt for the regular cab. If I would get a Dodge, I would opt for the Quad Cab. Seriously, is their any problems with these GM trucks, and if their is are they worked out? What would I face if I would purchase one of these. If I would purchase a D/A, it would be used for daily driving and maybe some drag racing. Obviously that isn't as aggressive as pulling, but I thought I would ask about their dependability.

Thanks, Trever

Have my 2004 and nary a problem so far. Only time its been to the dealer is for oil changes.


:cool:

if you want dependability, stay as far away from dodge as you can!

as for the GMs, the earlier models (00-02 i believe) has injector issues and GM extended the warranty because of that. as with the case of any new motor, the "2nd generation" is always better because they work the bugs out and make improvements. given that, if i bought a DMAX (which i wanted to, but couldnt afford), it would be an 03 or newer. as for the rest of the truck, these things are freaking solid. i have not heard of a single person breaking something unless they were being stupid or just pounding on the truck (ie: breaking a diff from doing donuts on pavement).

research the fords, ive heard they have lots of issues with their new powerstroke as well.

Don't be afraid of any of them, but the 2002 LB7 would be my pick. By prepared to upgrade the allison to go faster than mid 14's.

Get one that has some factory warranty remaining or one that has a transferable extended warranty. You can get a good truck from any of the manufacturers as well as a turkey. Run it thru Carfax to get some idea of its history as well as checking any maintenance records with the vehicle. I've had good luck overall with GM products. My Son has had just the opposite. It can be a crap-shoot.

Love my '02...I would buy another if I found the right truck...and had $$$ ):h :ro)

Thanks guys! Keep the suggestions coming!

I've had good luck with my '97 3500 CTD that i've had for 24k miles. No problems whatsoever besides the usual auto trans that went out after I did the mods, and misunderstood that there was only one check valve in the cooler line so I never let the trans charge when I took the valve out of the new line. I think that toasted my OD, which was the symptom right before my trans went out, and contaminated everything else. So that was a misinterpretation. I really believe I could still be going with the stock trans right now if I drove like I did before I rebuilt the trans.

I was looking at the 3rd Gen Dodges with the 48RE or NV5600. I'm not sold on the new body style though, or the interior. The interior is nice and big compared to what I have, just not sold on the styling. I would like to try out the new engine though. :) I wouldn't mind another Cummins, they are nice ):h, but i'd like to mix it up a little with a different brand. With my '97, I find myself wanting to cruise or race all the time. I love the truck in town! :ro) I get bored driving on the highway. The interior is all right, but with my long drive each day I find myself getting tired easy. Maybe some stacks would help that!

I don't mind the sound of the 7.3L PSD's some times, preferably with the non-intercooled 7.3 injectors (not sure if those are the split-shots or the straight-shots). They sound cool with big injectors when you let off the throttle, reminds me of our V-8 Perkins slowing down. But I think they blow headgaskets easy with upgraded injectors. Also don't like the sound of them accelerating, sound too much like a gasser. They also sound bad when wrapped up and sound like they have a compression leak or something. If I would get a Ford, it would be a 99-00 Regular cab, also a work truck. I don't mind the old body style PSD's, decent interior and dash, but I see a lot of them.

Now to the GM D/A. I'm very new to this area. I admit that i'm lost in all of the hype of the injector problems, the cylinder head design, the over-rated Allison transmissions, etc. But I would like to here everyone's side of the story from here. What are the problems, how common or broad are they, how strong is this engine, what does the transmission shift like, what is the rest of the truck like? I am just not sure of the overall quality and durability of these trucks. Not too sold on the sound of these engines though. Just something about the automotive V-8 diesels. Quiet is alright, but when given throttle they are obnoxious sounding, IMO.

I would rather stuff a V-8 Perkins with some real noise in an old truck and sacrifice the horsepower, but unfortunately their power and torque ratings are low since they are an ag & ind. engine. Although, they did use the 6.354's in the older Dodges.

What's your suggestions, guys?

It's a crap shoot.

We could recommend a Ford, you get one and it might be the best truck you ever had or vice versa.

I got like 17,000 on my CTD and so far it's been reliable. No showstoppers. The GMC I had gave me some hiccups early on with defueling that GM never fixed. Had to buy a Juice to fix it. Had some major repairs on the GMC later but I haven't had the Dodge the same length of time/mileage so it wouldn't be fair to compare.

Oh, I should say the exact years of the trucks i'm looking at. '99-00 Ford--'02 D/A--'04 Dodge

Thought about another '97 Cummins, but that would be a waste of money
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for what I would use it for :D . :ro)

Well, I have an 01 with 92K on the clock, my only major problem was a torque convertor that cracked and leaked from a bad factory install. I was past warranty so it turned out to be a handy excuse to upgrade to a Suncoast kit.

Other than that it has been a great truck. My year is the "newbie" year and things have been great. They have only gotten better with model year.

It comes down to taste and purpose. I like the interior of the GM vs. the other two. The motor noise is something I have grown to enjoy. I have not heard of any problems related to the aluminium heads. Head gaskets have blown but not in a large number of trucks and not more so than other manufacturers. The injector issue seems to be hyped more than it should be, but regardless GM stepped up and extended the warranty to 200K on injectors.

The Duramax is a very strong engine hooked to a VERY strong driveline. I have not heard of grenaded diffs or torn up transfer cases even on trucks that drag in the 12's. The allison does need some valve changes to handle big TQ numbers, but nothing outrageous.

Tie rods could use a little help.......:rolleyes:

I wouldn't hesistate to hook any load to this truck. It is the best pickup I have owned.

Thanks 403turbo for the honest opinions. That's what i'm looking for! ;)

Can anyone describe what the engine sounds like at idle and speeds, also in relation to the PSD? I'm sold on the body of the truck, the interior :), probably the suspension too :confused:, but the engine and drivetrain are the major factor for me, basically the big part of my decision.

Also had a question about the body styling. How come I see some trucks with the badges on the doors, and some without? Also some trucks with clearance lights, and some without? HD and non-HD? And what are the body changes each year?

Thanks