Do you Need a Diesel ?
How much do you tow ?
How much do you haul ?
How much do you want to spend on the upkeep of your truck ?
If your truck is a daily driver , around town ... No ! you do not need one .
Do you pull a heavy trailer daily ? If no , You do not need one .
Do you load the bead till the wheels can not be seen on a regular basis ? If not , You do not need one !
Do you want to spend countless money on fuel adatives ? No ? you do not need one .
Do you want to know how to reach the mechanic after hours , on the way to an outing ? No ? , you need a gasser !
Do you want to drive , not Work on your truck ? Save some $ on upkeep ?
Get a Gasser for daily needs .
Diesel is cool , till you have to pay to fix it !!!!

 

I like both of my diesels.
2015 F450
2002 F250
Both have been great, and have not needed a whole lot of service, other than normal maintenance. (DEF is a pia)
This year I bought the E450 with the V10, and I have to say, it pulls as hard as both diesels, and is just as good on fuel economy.
I used to use the 1989 F350 with the 4,9 to pull the equipment trailer, and it did the job, but you didn't need to be in a hurry. You also needed to make sure both gas tanks were full when you left the shop

 

If we only drove what we needed, most of us would have a Smart Car as our primary transportation.
But I digress.

 

Admittedly, my diesel is older (it's a '96) so it doesn't need as much babysitting as a new one does. But I do enjoy the daily driver aspect of it with as much highway running as I do. I can get better economy overall from it than my gassers. Although, I am looking for a nice Mustang to do some commuting in too...

 

I have been on the fence as to what to replace my 150 with when the time comes. I do not need a diesel for towing purposes and for the fuel economy advantage, it does not make sense for me. My current commute back and forth to work is about 20 miles round trip. With the additional cost of maintenance and fuel, a gasser makes more practical sense. The reason why I am considering a F-250 is for hauling capacity. It is amazing how far a F-150 will squat when loaded with a face cord of fire wood.

 

Let me follow my post up with in the end, the next truck whether it is a 150 or a 250 will be a gasser. Plain and simple.

 

I liked my 05 F-250 6.0 until it went all to hell... I'll probably never get another diesel again, I do need at least an F-250, I really push my F-150 now. Mileage doesn't really concern me because I have a car to ride around in, about any time I'm driving my truck I'm towing or hauling something...

 

Diesel here. I pull a big 5th wheel in the spring/summer/fall months. An oil change for me with filters runs around $250.00. I can sometimes get fuel at my local station for less than regular. I like my diesel, I don't think I will part with it any time soon. Plus it goes fast and is fun to drive.

 

Chris, I think that the fun to drive part is all that matters.

 

True that Neil.

 

If I were to buy a new truck, it'd be a gas. I hate to say that, because I like diesels! But the extra cost of running and maintaining one, I couldn't justify that. My 02 is about to be rebuilt within the next month. It has just under 150,000 miles on it, but it is rusting away. This past week, I had a cab and bed painted that will go on the frame in a few weeks. The guy doing it for me will likely be posting a build thread on Facebook. I will link to it when it is done. While the body is off the frame, the frame will be sandblasted and chasis saver applied, as well as applying it to the bed and cab. Actually will do the entire engine bay instead of painting it. My not be as pretty to look at, but it won't rust? Also going with hybrid injectors, a 38R turbo, Hutch and Harpoon mod, new waterpump and oil cooler, and fix all the leaks that are present, which is only the front of the oil pan. The interior will be as sound-proofed as possible. I get around 15mpg's with this truck driving around locally. I have gotten over 18 on trips though. I will have way more in this truck than it would be worth, but it is what I want. I have seen some 7.3's go for ridiculous money. Mine won't be for sale though, unless someone comes up and offers me some stupid amount of money for it.

 

For light duty it doesn't really matter... the motor is just a power generator, at X rpm it'll do Y HP and Z lb-ft. The transmission and gearing translating that power to MPH is what matters most. As a crude example, I'd rather have a 5.4L with the new 6 speed transmission and 4.56s than a 6.7L with an E4OD and 3.05s.

Plus, like everything else on a truck nothing stock is perfect for everyone. If you want to tow at a certain speed (CA has a max of 55pmh still right?) or if you're 100% loaded at all times, going deeper than stock gearing is probably a good idea. If you're a pipeliner and need an F-450 for the hauling RGAWR capacity and never tow, 3.31s behind a 6.7 are probably better than 4.30s. Is a grand an axle to regear the most expensive things we do to our trucks? Heck no, we'll drop $1000 on a tuner and $3000 on tires/wheel combos. It's just like any other mod.

 

Sorry to say but I had one of the 6.0 good ones. A 2004. As said above never filled a tank without the additive Stanadyne. Once a year HSS. Towed my enclosed to Bonneville with no problems and one hell of a push truck. Replaced it with a 2013 ECO Max-tow. Pulls just as good but even with an EZ lift high I had to add air lift to the back. This one won't however ever see the salt. My 96' and 04' never had body rust but everything cast iron turns to rust and aluminum looks like Alka-Selzer after the first trip. El Mirage Dry Lake will be the place do it's pushing off. If buying right now I would by a 5.0 with 3.73's and get adequate performance and save a few bucks on the Turbo option. Ford spent some good $$$ on improving the 5.0.