AMEN to that.
Here is my two cents worth anyway-Our fiver is a 36' foot full profile 12k (scaled it last year to check trailer GVW) and depending on what we are bringing with for camping it will get towed by my 7.3 powerstroke or my mother in laws '05 6.0 gas GMC 2500HD. Mine pulls it without drama and gets 13mpg setting the cruise at 63mph. Hers gets about 7mpg and a light breeze will cause a downshift. Hills are downright painfull. Unloaded it struggles to hit 13mpg. My diesel will get 17 without trying. I personally feel your answer lies in how far and often you go camping. Either way the job will get done.

 

To be honest if I had to do it all over again I would have bought the 6.2L gas engine instead. Both my 6.4L and 6.7L trucks scared me to own after the warranty period was up. Sure the fuel economy and towing experience were better with the diesel, but the cost once the warranty is up can be absolutely devastating. Of course anything can break but a modern turbodiesel is much more likely to require enough cash to buy a new compact car to get back on the road.

On top of that, just like ruschejj said, the 6.2L will pull just about anything the 6.7L will. I've seen how the 6.2L does loaded to the max up a steep hill, and I was really impressed. If I remember right it was within 3 MPH of the 6.7L truck we had out that day. Really sweet running engine, and the bonus is that you get to hear it sing in all it's glory!

 

I'm having the same dilemma. Currently have a 2000 F250 V-10 and haven't had a bit of trouble with it until 3 months ago I blew out a spark plug. Hopefully the helicoil fix won't be a problem. I tow a 4 horse gooseneck trailer with it and when fully loaded weighs around 10,000 lbs. It has no problem handling it. I have been looking to trade it in for a diesel for the last 5-6 years but have friends that had problems with their 6.0 and 6.4's so I just kept it. Then I started reading about the 6.7's coming out and thought maybe Ford finally got it figured out. Then I came here and read the problems about that one starting to spring up. If I'm gonna spend 50-60k on a truck it better be reliable and I'd better be confident they will warranty the truck. I'm mainly looking now for better fuel economy especially since they are expecting $5-$6 gas this summer. The 6.2 isn't any better than my V-10 for mileage. If Ford would ecoboost their 5.0 V8 I'd be all over that.... about 10-20 percent better fuel economy and about 500hp/500tq and probably alot cheaper option than a $8000 diesel option. Hey Ford are you listening????

 

I'll be putting my cash on a 6.7 this summer though. The tech under the hood doesn't bother me- I would be comfortable fixing it out of warrenty as well and I have never had an insurance company here in Michigan deny water in fuel damage on my customers vehicles(Sprinters and Benz cars). Rarly will the gas station owner fess up. Had one customer put gas in and destroyed his CP3 pump and got it covered, so I have my doughts about the info some of our fellow members are getting from the pretty face at the front desk.

 

It's funny...my wife asks me why I torture myself on these forums talking about a truck I can't perchase yet...and try as I may I cannot get her to realize I have to do my homework! Not to mention it is fun to talk about a vehicle you are interested in and of course the learning from these forums and the experience of the people in them.

I always get the..." You on the FORUM again?"

I just have to make an informed purchase when it is time. I really do appreciate all the answers from everyone and yes it is obvious I WANT the 6.7. I guess I should also test drive the 6.2L and see how it feels just in case...lol

 

Try and test drive one with the 4.30's if you can.

Also, you should try and make an Ohio meet for some first hand knowledge/experience of both trucks. If you do make it, you can rip my 6.2 around Mike's neighborhood.

 

Wouldn't that be fun! I can just imagine the conversation now..."Babe...I am going to fly to Ohio to test drive a few trucks I am thinking about purchasing. I will be back in a few days"

 

These trucks are pretty big investments/money pits, would be worth it in my opinion. Plus Mike makes a good burger.

 

Ive got people on both sides of me with the 6.2 and the 6.7. And to be honest every 6.2 guy wishes they would have gone to the 6.7. sure they didnt need the extra power but it woulda been there for them when they wanted. And with the towing using the 6.7 you would get about the same mpg as the 6.2 unloaded. My brother in law uses his as a DD because he is pulling over 18 mpg, while my freind has the 6.2 that sits there with a tarp on it because it will only average 12 for him. Id honestly consider the 6.7 because it really would save you money in the long run and youd have the power too pull your trailer up a steep grade with out putting it to the floor, just my two cents

 

Wow, that's an awfully broad statement.

 

now hey before you get a bunch of 6.2 guys on my back i was talking about the ones around here that i know, ive gone a while without having a FTE argument and i wunna keep it that way lmao

 

I drive gas because I like to keep my money. I put a lot of thought into a 08 F250 XLT 6.4 8 speed with 18k miles last spring. Then came the 09 F250 XL 5.4 6 speed and although it had 49k miles on it, it was over $12000 less than the diesel truck which was a year older. There have been HPFP failure repair prices quoted for more than I paid for a 2 year old gasser. I also keep a truck a long time so trade in isn't an issue. You trade the truck at 2 years old the extra money for diesel will come back to you.

Sure everbody says the 5.4 is terrible but my 3.73 5.4 truck has done some tractor hauling and I intend to buy a gooseneck for it. Not quickly, but done it. Some day I'm going to put 4.30s in to help. I don't care how fast it is, it's a truck. The towing is a little slow but for a dozen times a year I don't care,

I like the idea that I could buy [not have installed] a reman long block for less money (LITERALLY) than my brother spent getting the FICM and 4 injectors replaced on his '07. Also, in my state, diesel is consistently 40 cents more per gallon which hurts the miles per dollar.

I don't dislike diesels. I love my diesel Dodge. It gets 17-19 mpg in mixed driving and 22 mpg at 58 mph highway without trailer. It will also run without a battery if you tie up the stop solenoid. It also has so much more beautiful rattle that is nearly non existent with pilot injection.

If this was 1995 again and I could buy a pickup with a mechanical diesel engine and manual trans for $4500 more than gas I'd do it without hesitation.

Today I think you spend the money on a diesel because you want to. Few people need to. The first poster who tows heavy needs to. The poster (I forget his name) who put 103k on his 6.7 (before it's unfortunate demise) needs a diesel. The person who tows at the top end of the weight scale above the gas rating needs the diesel. Everybody else just wants it. If you tow a 12500 5er to camp and back twice a year you don't need the diesel. It won't kill you or the truck to climb a few hills at 45 mph and 4500 rpm a couple times a year. If you want to go uphill at 70 mph those few times buy the diesel but it's going to run you an extra couple hundred dollars each trip. There is nothing wrong with buying diesel because you want to. Just be prepared to pay a lot more up front, more per gallon at the pump, more for PM, and a lot more if you break it.

 

I have the same dilemma right now as the OP. I have a '97 F-250 crew cab P-Stroke with 168k on it and it is absolutely bullet proof. The problem is rust. The bottom side looks like it's been soaking in a salt bath its entire life. I just had to replace a couple of the steel brakes lines. Even the oil pan looks like it is at risk of rusting completely through. Not sure if that happens on the 7.3s, but I know it wasn't uncommon for the 4.6s of that era. If it weren't for that, I'd drive this truck forever.

When I bought it I compared costs and mileage to the 460s I had. With fuel being cheaper than gas I needed to tow 85k miles to make the break even point money wise. Considerably more than that if driving empty. Those numbers worked at the time and the first 125k miles were pretty much exclusively used to tow an 8k pound trailer.

Then I went to a motor home with the v10 and the P-Stroke became my daily driver ever since. I'm happy with the performance of the v-10. Mileage is none existent but I didn't expect that anyway, and it took a long time to get used to a screaming motor after a slow turning diesel.

Now I don't race anymore and only tow a small 5k pound trailer occasionally, but do need something to hang a snowplow on. I haven't run the numbers for real cost comparison between the 6.2 and the 6.7 yet. Since I will only put about 8-10k a year on a new truck driving to work and back I am pretty sure the 6.7 will never pay for itself like 7.3 did.

I drove a 6.2 yesterday and it seemed OK. The exhaust note was great and reminded me a little of my wife's GT Mustang. I haven't driven the 6.7 yet and wasn't really planning on it but I might now after reading the responses here.

I'm still leaning towards the 6.2 because of price and the sweet exhaust note. I choke at the pricing of the diesels, and I can buy A Plan.

Bottom line is I am hoping to buy another truck that will last me another 15 years and be as problem free as my last one has been. I am taking a 'practical' approach to this rather than an 'emotional' one since I am not a fan of the looks of the 2012. Both the exterior and interior seem a little too Buck Rogerish to me and I think my '97 looks three times as tough as anything sitting on a new dealer lot today. If I loved the looks as much as my '97 it'd be easy to throw down $40k+. And I'm a smoker. I think I will miss my wing windows. Don't mean to offend anyone with a newer body style here. It's only my opinion.


I will be subscribing to this thread.

 

If you have not driven the new 6.7 you owe it to yourself to at least do it. I drove my friends F250 and I was really impressed with the power of that diesel! It is just an amazing feeling to say the least. The problem is that once you drive it...it will leave you longing for it just like me.

I really want to thank everyone for the great replies. Although I am not ready to buy just yet...it sure is nice to hear others stories. I find myself looking at trucks and trailers daily...talk about your long drawn out torture window shopping!! At least it passes the time for now.

 

You know we don't camp as much as we would like to. If I get a truck it would be quite some time before I would be able to afford a trailer. So I guess even in saying that...if we did have a trailer I think she would be more up to camping more often. I guess I just need to win the lottery...yeah that's it!