:help: I am a newby who needs help.

I am with a church which has a volentear Desaster Relief team.
I have a Ford 1/2 ton gas I use for chain saws and other equipment. It works fine but gets 10mpg.
The Church has a 3/4 ton gas I use to pull a skid steer loader. It works fine but gets 10 mpg.
Both trucks are purty old.
I am going to buy a new truck with crew cab or at least extended cab.(might be new or low milage used).
The truck I buy will be used to replace the other two and I will use it as my private transport.I wont good gas millage and low maintenance cost. ( don't we all).
Now for the questions.
Do I go gas or diesel?
GM, Ford or Dodge?
What mods should I consider considering my objectives?
Off roading, Hot dogging, Ego satisfying, not an issue.
Just :grd:
Alot of the post I have read show that you folks have alot of smarts. Please pass some along to me.
johnnie

The question is what are you hauling and how many miles are you putting on the vehicle? If it's only equipment and towing under 7k and don't need one of the best tow rigs go gas. If you are looking for a stump pulling 200 thousand mile engine that can give you a smile ear to ear until you pull up to the green pump go with the DMAX.

The question is what are you hauling and how many miles are you putting on the vehicle? If it's only equipment and towing under 7k and don't need one of the best tow rigs go gas. If you are looking for a stump pulling 200 thousand mile engine that can give you a smile ear to ear until you pull up to the green pump go with the DMAX.

Why gas?
Total wt including passangers, equipment and trailor should not excede 10,000 lbs.
Local driving is less then 8,000 a year.
Desaster relief driving can be another 8,000 a year.
Thanks for your remarks.
I can still find diesel locally the same price as 87 octaine. How long will that last?
Johnnie

New to the diesel world, i will never ever ever go back to gas in a truck. In my opinion, I feel your best way to go is the 2500HD Duramax diesel. If your not having a lot of passengers in your truck go with the ext cab, you can still put people in the back just a little more of a hassel. If you plan on having a full cab go with the crew. I prefer the crew cab myself. For hauling and towing you just can not go wrong with the duramax 2500HD. better to be safe than sorry. I would rather have more towing power than less for just in case.

As for which brand of truck to get. It depends on what you like. I am a chevy girl all the way, you will never catch me owning a FORD or DODGE ever. Go test drive them all and pick the best truck for your needs. If you like loud engines where you have to scream when you talk go with Dodge or Ford. If you want a nice quite ride and a smooth ride go duramax all the way.

Just so you know I hauled my two horse trailer fully loaded with the back of my P/U filled with hay and shavings 340 miles round trip and was just about empty. Couldn't be happier best mileage yet on my truck and I just turned 31,500 miles.

Hope this helps some and best of luck to you.

Also you need to think about the disaster releif operations and the availability of fuel. You will most likely need to carry your own fuel in with you especially if you are a first responder. Diesel will store and transport a whole lot easier than gasoline. I wouldn't think twice about 100 gallon tank in bed of truck for diesel, not so sure I would want that much gasoline in the bed of my truck. If it was my choice I would go with diesel, you also need to remember you are asking this question on a diesel board where most members are running diesel.

Which church organization are you with?

You have to consider what your budget is. If you can affford a Duramax then, go for it! My last truck was a 2500HD 6.0 gasser. It pulled my tractor just fine. The MPG were not much worse than I'm getting now with the DMAX. (I'm hoping that will improve.:confused: )

I haven't had the DMAX long enough to really put it through it's paces but, there is no doubt it is a lot tougher truck:cool2: . I have heard the estimated pay back on a diesel upgrade is 4-5 years. If you plan on keeping the truck it will eventually even out. I personally had a hard time finding any decent pre-owned diesel trucks. They all had over 100K miles. Most would say that's nothing for a diesel. I'm new to diesel so I didn't want to take the chance. So, I did my research and waited for the LBZ. I was raped on my trade in but I have NO REGRETS!

I personally had a hard time finding any decent pre-owned diesel trucks. They all had over 100K miles. Most would say that's nothing for a diesel.


Just a little off topic but I have heard this as well. my argument is there is a lot more to the truck than just the diesel engine. sure the engine will run well past 100,000 but what about the trans, differentials, suspension componets etc etc

Also you need to think about the disaster releif operations and the availability of fuel. You will most likely need to carry your own fuel in with you especially if you are a first responder. Diesel will store and transport a whole lot easier than gasoline. I wouldn't think twice about 100 gallon tank in bed of truck for diesel, not so sure I would want that much gasoline in the bed of my truck. If it was my choice I would go with diesel, you also need to remember you are asking this question on a diesel board where most members are running diesel.

Which church organization are you with?

I am with Christ Fellowship in Palmetto Bay FL. We are part of the Florida Desaster Relief which is part of the Southern Baptist Convention Desaster Relief. Anyone intrested in further info you can email me at jreaves@cfmiami.org or check out this link to learn more.

[http://www.namb.net/site/c.9qKILUOzEpH/b.238541/k.E3FB/2006_Fleet_and_Activity_Reports.htm[/URL]

I know what you mean about first responders and living off of what you bring or simply put "roughing it". But even that is a blessing.

Again thank you everyone for your responces. I need your imput.

Keep it comming.

Johnnie

The #1 factor in mileage is vehicle weight.
Next comes aerodynamics.

The SRW Dmaxes get about 17-20 mpg hwy unladen. A modern Chevy 1/2 ton gasoline pickup will get the same mileage or better unladen.

Where the diesel shines is mileage when laden. The heavier the load, the more the advantage for diesel. In my case, I went from 7mpg with a gasser, to 11 with the diesel.

From a practical standpoint, evaluate your usage, do the math, and make a decision based on that. I love my Dmaxes, but they are NOT to be mistaken as economy cars. 7000lb pickups use some fuel.

Johnnie
I have sent you a Email;)

Cosgr:D ve