Now there's a woman who understands a man's mind. Are you looking for another ex-husband?

 

Funny, never had that happen with any of the 3 7.3's in my family. I think the 6.0 can be a great engine, but there is no debate that more money is involved in achieving the same level of reliability.

But that's another topic entirely. The question is, gas or diesel. I'm solidly in the diesel camp. You will get significantly better fuel economy. Higher maintenance costs are often given as a large detractor, but when considering standard maintenance, such as fluid and filter changes, the decreased fuel consumption easily eclipses those costs. The diesels fuel consumption will be less than the 5.4 as mentioned, and it will have far more power.

In my book, the only detractor to the diesel is the repair cost if anything big breaks. It will likely be more expensive, possibly considerably so. That said, there are 3 7.3's in my family. One has 174,000, one 230,000, and the last 285,000. They are a '96, '01, and '97 respectively. All are on the original turbos, the original injectors, and the original high pressure oil pumps. Nothing expensive has broken.

In sum, I think the diesel makes the most sense dollars-and-cents wise. Now, you could be unlucky and pick up a troubled, poorly maintained vehicle. It that event, working through it's issues will be pricey, especially if you can't do the work yourself.

As others have mentioned, there are other, not so quantifiable benefits to the diesel. The sound, the feel and the way the power comes in is hard to match with a gasser. With the 6.0, you'll also get the Torqueshift transmission (5R110) instead of the 4R100 you currently have. Very popular transmission.

Both engines will get the job done, but one will leave you looking forward to the next time you get to drive it.

 

Damn it man; get out of my head, LOL!

While I do love my 6.8 4x4, I secretly crave a deezululululul . Say that a couple of times, and it sounds pretty good.

 

Bingo!

Bingo again!

I have a diesel Ex. It's my wife's daily driver. So when it came time to retire my Lightning from daily driver/work truck status to weekend fun, I started looking for a V10 powered F250 truck to use instead.

In a word, I disliked the power curve on the V10 engine. It was more than capable of handling my NEEDS, but it didn't satisfy my WANTS and DESIRES, so I bought another 7.3L powered truck instead.

Get what you want, IF you can afford to do so. Both of you will be much happier.

Stewart

 

I know Apoc has said his piece about it being the last rig he gets ever, but just in case something changes, God forbid - the diesel will hold its value WAY better than its gasoline siblings. The proof is all over the place, the newest one will be 10 years soon and they're still selling well into the $20k range for premium trim and good condition. Now, do NOT take that as me saying expect to pay $20,000 for his 6.0, that's not what I mean. They are indeed plenty of them for sale well under that, I was just using it as an example. Mine is a 2001 7.3 Limited and I bought it with 183k miles on it for $15,500 out the door everything included. The only issues I have had are due to previous owners' neglect, and even then it hasn't been bank-breaking work.

Main point revisited - diesels hold their value WAY better than gassers. Should something ever happen and you absolutely, LAST RESORT, have to sell it, you'll get a much better price.

 

Thanks for all of the insights, everyone. You've given me a lot of food for thought. We have multiple other expenses to work out first (several major home repairs, my vehicle needs to be repaired/replaced, etc), but after some of that gets resolved, I'm pretty sure we can work on upgrading.

Thanks again!

 

I am a new diesel Ex owner. Prior to this, I've owned three full size Broncos, three F-150's, and an F-250. I've also owned a handful of import cars.

I do most of my own maintenance and repairs. Everything from oil changes to engine swaps. I've saved thousands and thousands over the years by doing almost everything myself.

That being said, this is the most expensive vehicle I've owned. Maintenance and repair costs are out the window because absolutely everything is extreme heavy duty, which makes it well-built but expensive to replace.

An oil change will cost you about $100 and you can't skip them. The oil in a diesel engine also acts as hydraulic fluid and it actuates the injectors. If you don't change it often, you will ruin the injectors, which costs thousands to replace.

I recently went through the joy and expense of replacing my water pump and all the hoses. Of course, the water pump is 3x more than I've ever spent on a water pump in my life. The coolant is $28 a gallon.

Don't misunderstand me - I'm not complaining, just pointing out that these expenses add up, and if money is tight now, it's going to be a lot tighter when you are faced with a random $500 or $1000 repair bill.

However, if you are disciplined enough to do the maintenance, the vehicle will outlive you. They run FOREVER when taken care of. They are a blast to drive. I love the sound and the seemingly endless amounts of power still on tap even at 65 MPH.

Is it worth it? Yes (which is of course subjective), but only if you can afford it.

 

If the diesel will make him happy let him get it. You only live once...

 

Mrs. Apoc, drive a 6.0 diesel Ex and you will have your answer. And your husband will have the second best thing that has ever happened to him...

 

Yes, you need help

The brief short trips would be a big negative to the diesel, especially if in a cold climate.
In addition to possibly being harmful to the engine its uncomfortable waiting for heat that takes miles to start.
I talk my wife into driving the jeep all the time because her commute is so short.

 

Andym, your profile pic inspired this, I hope you are happy

 

Agreed, I am in the camp if you don't need a diesel then why pay all the extra for one, obviously he has absolutely no use for the diesel and it is simply a toy..Buy what you want but realize in this case its a toy...

 

It's a known side effect of testosterone

 

Agreed. No surprise, I'll give you that (as will my Bride).

This, on the other hand, had us cracking up. Speaking for myself now, I couldn't "whine quietly" with the help of duct tape & a sock. As for years-If I complained that long, she'd snuff me in my sleep.

My .02 to the OP...dont get caught beyond your needs or means (which includes if things go south).
Dont get a horse for a pet, when a dog will do the job. No offense intended, just some free, financial advice. TIFWIW.

 

My wife and I went through this discussion a few years ago. When we found out that baby number 4 was on the way we decided that an Excursion was the way to go for seating capacity, cargo capacity, towing capacity, etc. There were other vehicles out there that fit some of the needs but not all other than the excursion. The diesel option, for me, made more sense because of the length of my commute, about 50 miles a day, and longevity of engine. I know that the v-8 and v-10 versions also have a pretty impressive life span but I couldn't (or wouldn't) deal with 10mpg out of a daily driver fo rmy work commute.
Our family only has two vehicles so both need to foot the bill for fully functional family vehicles (not an easy feat when all 4 kids are still in car seats!) that didn't break the bank at the gas station. My wife drives an 08 Chrysler mini-van and I drive an 03 Ford Excursion Limited 4x4 with the 6.0 diesel. Have I had to do some work to it, absolutely but I have had to spend hours worth of time and hundreds of dollars on every single vehicle that I have ever owned. It is the nature of the beast. Stuff gets old, broken, worn out, no matter if it is powered by gasoline or diesel. Buy what you can afford to buy, and what you can afford to KEEP! Repairs on large vehicles are rarely cheap, repairs on aging vehicles rarely get cheaper. Gas or diesel buy what fits your NEEDS and satisfies the WANTS of the person who is looking. Best of luck with your decision and I am not going to lie, I still look for vehicles that are for sale just to see what is out there as a just in case.