A thought in diesels

Lowest Bidder.

I know for quite some time they were using the stroke in the lighter trucks but in the heavier they used the Cummins. Don't know if that is still the case.

Roy

i really think that low bid has a lot to do with it. ford is very aggresive about fleet bids. neither gm nor dc is anywhere as close. ford gets a lot of their numbers off of fleet bids. they bid a ton of public service vehicles and bid very low.

also, please understand that i'm not trying to trash ford. they made a huge mistake with the 6l diesel but ford isn't stupid. they have always stepped up to the plate when it comes to warranty support. i think that their warranty support is better than dc. their truck is laid out very well. the interior is the best around. again, on tdr you hear people (ok, you read people) say all the time that if they ever put a cummins in a ford body it would put gm and dc out of business.

I don't think that you are trashing Ford. I agree with you that Ford seems to have the best all around interior layout. Being in the 12 volt electronics installation field, I crawl(ed) around in, under and through them all and the F-250 had so much room in it that I was able to lay completely down on the back seat floor (fronts all the way back) and do all the work I needed to. I couldn't do that on a gm or dodge with the seat all the way forward.

i agree. the ford has a lot more room inside. i like it. i wish they would buy a 6 cyl cummins. that would be a very nice truck. the rumor a year or two back was that cummins had this 6.7l diesel in r&d because ford wanted to buy it. wish that would of been the case, but now we find out it will be in the dodge. the dodge body is ok though, i have no real complaints about mine, the ford is just a little better, imo.

I feel the same way. Dodge gives you an outdated but rock solid drive line and Ford gives you a better body. The 6.0L Ford Diesel is already out. Look at the new 2007's when you can.

The 6.0 revs a lot higher than a Cummins. If you drive a CTD Dodge and you jump in a Ford, the power band will surprise you.

Al

I have driven an '03 Ford decked out with the Banks Big Hoss package and it had the PDA tuner in it too. Man what a RUSH!! From what I have heard, please correct if I am mistaken, the biggest problem with the Fords is the turbo itself. If this is the case, changing it out with say a Garrett (sp) would fix the problem and all, correct?

Scroll down the page to the trucks segment:

They have had problems of one kind or another. I think I'm in the same boat as the other's. If the Cummins were in a ford or a Chevy, I'd probably be driving one. Having said that this 05 hasn't been bad, it is damn quick, comfortable on long trips, just a couple of warranty items, one that was a little strange but all in all I have no complaints. Ya have to go with what you are comfortable with. For me it was the Cummins, we use them at work and they get a beating that you wouldn't believe. They are like the "bunny" they keep going and going.

Roy

Let's keep Denny out of this, OK?

Reflecting (you like that word, bro?) on my years here as a CTD lurker, it seems that a pretty high percentage of CTD owners are not necessarily dodge fans, it's just the truck that the Cummins is wrapped in..

I know that when we were looking for a 3/4 TD a few years ago, Dodge and Ford were so close in price, etc. that it was a real "pickum" between the 250's comfort and the Dodge's CTD... Both retailed at just under 40k fully loaded, I think.. Sorry, I didn't even consider Chevy's durasmoke... too many horror stories.. Mac

Funny, that's exactly what I said about Dodge when I bought my Chevy three years ago. I had one warranty issue in the first 500 miles, and a seat motor problem at 15K, otherwise perfect...

Buying a whole truck just for the engine is like marrying a fat ugly chick 'cuz she's got nice eyes.

DJ

When I purchased my Ram CTD, I also looked at the F-250. However, and this maybe a regional thing, the BEST the Ford dealer could do was still $5K above the comparibly equipped Dodge.

Frankly, I like the interior of the Dodge better anyway ... not to mention the superior performance and reliability of the Cummins powerplant. And ... I know this is a minor thing, but the Ford sounds like it is grinding up tin cans. Sharp and raspy. Clak clak clak.

:-) Good one.

Craig C.

I didn't say "wide assed bunny"

I'm impressed.

Roy

Sounds like the voice of experience

Roy

On the 6.0, the Turbo, injectors and PCM system were the problems, which rapped Ford with $5million in warranty claims above the normal warranty budget.

Problems were turbo disintegration, hydrolocked injectors causing cylinders to follow suit, and a PCM system with major bugs. Apparently when it worked, it worked very well, when it didn't, it was almost impossible to fix. Navistar and Ford are at odds over this engine, and Ford has restructured its warranty backing to cope with the losses.

BTW, the Ford chassis and cab aren't as great (in my opinion) as I've heard many claim. However, I'd say that about the 2003 and newer Rams as well. Glad I got one of the good ones.

Buying a whole truck just because it has a bowtie on it is sorta like marrying a chick because she has a nice dress. (generally those are the ones with some sort of.... padding.... to the actual package)

Buying a truck based on name alone is sorta like marrying a chick because she has a good name. (generally those are the ones that are insane but ya put up with them because the family is cool.)

Chevy's record in styling sucks (the 07's finally look.... good? ok, maybe not....) the diesel is a joke, regardless of HP (if its got aluminum heads, its gonna need head gasket attention) because of its high revving design, among other things. Suspension has always been geared towards being a large Caddy, rather than a truck.

Ford's PSD has turned into the "Piece of Shit Diesel", the styling is... well... better than Chevy, and the suspension has long been the stuff of nightmares for alignment guys.

They all seem to have the transmissions sorted out, finally.

But lets face facts..... if you want a TRUCK, not a work vehicle with "overstuffed chair from the home theatre" suspension, ya go with a Ford or a Dodge. If ya want an engine with a proven track record (B series has been around for over 30 years), proven longevity (testing puts it at well over

300,000 for ALL varients of the B series), and better overall design (inline six vs V8 is no contest), and one that has a decent name behind it (Cummins), Dodge is the only game in town.

Beyond that, its what you are willing to put up with in terms of interior. My '00 has perfect seats. In the end, thats what counts as much as anything.... because if the drivetrain will take me anywhere, I better be able to sit long enough to get there.

"Some" bunny's sit on their asses and make smart ass jokes about other folks seat prefeences.

Mike

Denny

yeah? yer mom wears combat boots!

:^p

M