I want a diesel, but is it good as a daily driver.

I won't be hauling enough to warrant a diesel, but as a family hauler and a boat hauler and of course the grocery getter, is a diesel better than say a F-150?

 

Go with the F150. The EcoBoost is great. It gets wonderful mileage, can tow plenty and the F150 ratings are pretty high.

 

If you want a diesel, get a diesel. I don't haul anything, I have just always wanted a diesel King Ranch. Just realize that the maintenance costs will be higher. I wanted a diesel because I am a tinkerer and wanted a new challenge. If you just want a pickup that gets good mileage and can tow some stuff... get an ecoboost. My dad has one and is getting 24MPG hand calculated consistently.

 

You will kill a 6.0, 6.4,6.7 if they are driven as a grocery getter. Those newer diesels need to be run to burn all the carbon out of the exhaust and the turbo. If you want a diesel go 7.3. Like others said the ecoboost F150 can still tow alot compared to the older models

 

How heavy is the boat?

 

Just because he said daily driver doesn't mean 'grocery getter.' My daily drive is a 53 mile round trip. I have no worries about my carbon build up, I deleted the EGR and DPF! And the turbos work fine as long as you actually work them every once in a while. Even straight tow vehicles won't work the turbos enough if they are babied all the time (not that you will baby anything with a tuned 6.4, it's real hard to keep your foot out of the skinny pedal!)

I am getting tired of all this 7.3 is awesome and everything else sucks tho. Yes the 6.0 had some issues but if you know those going into the purchase you can have some money set aside to correct those as soon as you purchase. And if the 6.4 was rated at 190hp like the 7.3 it would last forever too!

 

Mine is a daily driver. I did get it to tow my 5th wheel and to a lesser extent, my boat, but 95 percent of the time, it's a daily driver. If you want it, and can afford it, go for it.

 

Mine is a DD. I needed a truck with its capabilities, but I couldn't justify having a 'couple times a year' vehicle. So I traded the S-10 in on it and never looked back.

 

Countryaggie.

How did you delete the EGR and DPF?

 

go with what you want, just keep in mind diesel has different requirements than gas... the 6.0L requires a little more diligence in monitoring your engine systems, but if you do it properly they're workhorses and will last 300K + miles

 

Woah take a chill pill. I never said they were bad motors, they just have their issues. But had the op stated more about the uses that would change. And my opinion is the 7.3 in terms of reliability Is a superior motor, they are not rated at 190 hp. It just seems foolish to me to buy a truck and have to put more money into it to make it reliable. It's not my decision or my money. To The op, whichever you get don't be afraid to get on it every once and a whle they like a good beating

 

I got a Spartan tuner and DPF delete kit from Rudy's. Another popular tuner is H&S. For the EGR delete there are a lot of kits. I have a FloPro. There is also Sinister and a few others.

 

Didn't mean to come across as biting your head off (this whole 4 hrs of sleep max a night for 2 months is wearing on me)... So sorry for that.

As far as power it depends on the year. The 7.3s range from 235-275 but you are probably rolling closer to 190 at the wheels by now.

And yes I agree why buy something you have to spend money on right away, but the 7.3s are still stupid expensive (because of this outlook). My roommate is thinking about selling his 2000 CC 7.3 with 274k miles and everything comparable I see out there is stil in the $12k range. Whereas you can get a decent 6.0 and do the egr delete, studs, and tune for the same price as the 7.3. 6.4s are much more expensive but they are a whole different animal. And I believe, tuned and deleted (and driven responsibly) they will be just as reliable as the 7.3 is.

 

Did you consider something in the middle, say 2011+ F-250 with 6.2L gas? You get a larger vehicle than F-150 for towing duties without the fuss of diesel. I considered buying a diesel but I live in an emissions test county in GA so I couldn't get away with removing all the troublesome emissions stuff. I just bought a new F-250 6.2 for towing a 30' 10K# travel trailer & commuting 80 miles round trip to work. Its perfect for me.

 

No worries CountryAggie! I also agree that 7.3 's are very overpriced. OP: no matter what truck you decide on you try to get an oasis report and most importantly get what You want. I have no need for a diesel excursion, why do I have one? Simple because I wanted it!