for me the diesel swap is not worth the hassel. my truck sits alot and i mean A LOT. will you get better mpgs with the cummins yup cant disagree with that but you can increase the load or gvw no matter what. the old 6bt is a damn hard engine to kill but so are my old 360s and 460s. if you are building a ice cream runner then i would stick with the gasser. im build a work truck and i dont want the weight of the diesel dragging the truck down in the mud.

 

I need something that will pull 5 to 6 grand total good.

 

I run a '78 F250 4 wd. After I went through it very reliable. Can work hard and long when needed. I keep it that way with periodic upgrade/maintenance "projects". As mentioned above, plan on maintenance time. For towing, mine has done fine up to 6,500#. Its a stock spec 400, C6, 4.10 rear and 31" tires. Fuel consumption is higher single digits. Since I don't drive it daily or put a lot of miles on it, not a biggie.

I enjoy maintaining it and believe it is good value considering the cost of new PU's (!). Its loads of fun to drive and folks love seeing it on the road.

 

Thanks for all the info. I am seriously thinking about dumping my car lot and just get one or 2 old vehicles that are easy to fix.


I opened the hood today on a F250 6.4 Diesel and it looked like the space shuttle, screw that!

 

the 460 in my 78 3/4 ton pulls 5 to 6 thousand pounds just fine. we dont go any where in a hurry but it pulls it.

 

I pull slow as well, I read some of these threads where these folks have these jacked up diesels wicked up and pull like a darn Peterbuilt, I do not need that.


I have to admit the new modern diesels can do some damage when it's time to work.

 

I started with one,,, a long time ago,,, they are addicting, now I think I have 7 or 8 (pretty bad when you have to stop and Think about how many! and I KNOW I am not the only one who has to do that!!)

My 02 F350 Lariat/CC/4x/7.3/DRW only has 93k on it, because I love driving my older stuff whenever I can, used to be Shrek my 66 F100 was my DD before i changed jobs and have a company truck I drive all over. And on trips to fresburg he will get 18 mpg... course that is at 55 with a 240 I6 and a T18. I had a 76 with a 300 I6 and 3 speed and would get 15-18 with it. They can be as reliable as you want them to be if you put in the time and effort initially, like I did with Shrek, I just pull him in the garage every so often and climb around and over and under him and just check things out. But he got all new bearings, races and brakes and such when I first got him. But I wouldn't hesitate to jump in him and drive anywhere I wanted to go, best part is, if he breaks, find a NAPA and a few tools and you can be back on the road in no time!

 

How hard is it to get parts for these 70's trucks ? I know the 80 - 97 has to be the easiest to keep going on parts.

 

I personally use NAPA, just because the guys at my store actually know something about cars and mechanic-ing and they all have turned wrenches and busted knuckles for realsies. And I have yet to have a need they couldn't fill (knocking on wood!) When we first moved up here years ago, I went to kragen, I forget specifically what I was getting, but I had a 78 300 I6 in my 66 F250, with a 4 bbl Holley, and headers,,, I think it was a dist cap or something simple, and the guy just couldn't get it, so the next morning I went to NAPA, told them what I had and needed, he walks back to shelves, walks up with box, and I have been going there ever since. Like I said, even for parts for my 66 and 63, they have actual BOOKS at my NAPA, AND they know how to USE them!

 

I've daily driven my 73 f250 with a 390 for the last 2 years or so, never had to call a tow truck. I've had to tinker with a few things on the side of the road but almost every time my problem was a part I had already replaced. I've also been in and around the parts biz for the last 2+ years, pretty much everything is available for the 70's trucks, but you have to search around if you want good parts. Steer WELL clear of A1 Cardone (their calipers are sort of ok, but everything else they touch is junk), Wells ignition (even their "premium" stuff is junk), all of the parts store alternators and starters are done by BBB and have high failure rates, and any of the cheap grades of parts are junk. Dayco hoses and belts have a lousy reputation and Monroe shocks and struts are junk.

I can recommend Echlin and Standard Motor Products (their Blue Streak parts are nice!) for ignition parts, very few problems with them. MOOG is king for chassis stuff, never seen a genuine failure of one, Gates hoses and belts are nice, KYB shocks and struts are great, Fel Pro and Victor Reinz both make great gaskets and if you need a waterpump, buy the brand new one, even though they're made in China.

I hope this helps save someone some trouble, good parts are out there, you just have to search a bit.

Sam

 

Thanks, I am talking like junk yard body parts and things also ? That run from 80 to 97 was a long in the tooth series but to keep then going that is great.


I like the 79 look but it was only like 2years ?

 

I replaced the starter now it is stuck won't engage or turn the engine over

 

"I replaced the starter now it is stuck won't engage or turn the engine over"

..... and what troubleshooting have you actually done?

 

Actually, this is not the case, as the Tundra has not been the "big hit" that Toyota thought it would be.

2007 was the first year for the full sized Tundra, previous years were 'mid-sized.'

IMO they are ugly as sin, the 2007/2014 grilles looked like they were tacked on as an afterthought.

The 2015's are even worse, with a butt ugly two piece grille, the upper section of which mounts to the hood.

When the 2007's came out, I test drove one, then typed a thread here on FTE with the results of what I found.

 

The reference was about reliability. Not appearance.