will a caterpillar ever be available in a pickup? that's the only diesel i would consider owning.

 

If you get a F-650 or 750 you can order it with a 3126B Caterpillar. Comes cab and chassis but a late F-250 or 350 bed I think matches the cab body lines.

 

those aren't pickups

 

All 3 : ford, gm , and dodge provide diesels that will pull far more weight than the GVW's that the manufacturers certify the trucks for now. So why , would you want an engine that would pull 2 1\2 times what the truck is rated for. It, doesn't make any sense. Atleast , im my mind it doesn't , anyway. s.kuteman

 

The other problem you run into is the transmission. The cat that Ford uses in the F650/F750's are governed at lower rpm. You would need to use a much different transmission than the ones currently offered in the F350. This engine also weighs a lot more and takes up a lot more space. There's no way Ford would put the money into a joint venture with cat when they already have a contract with Navistar. It isn't a good economic choice to offer more than 1 diesel in pickups when they already offer the highest rated diesel in a pickup now.

Just because an engine is successful in commercial applications doesn't mean it's the best choice for a light duty truck. Although noone would argue that cat's are great diesel engines, they are not the best option for a pickup. In order to work successfully in a pickup they need to reach higher rpm to work well with the torqshift or 6 speed transmissions. The Power Stroke is the best option in this case because it develops torque early in the torque curve, increasing steadily to the peak at 2000 rpm, and MAINTAINING a high level of torque all the way up to 3300 rpm, unlike the commercial engines that peak in torque very early and drop off at much lower rpm. Sure, you could retune the engines, but does that really make sense?

bassdude, what on earth do you want to tow that you can't already tow with a Power Stroke?

 

I wish all pickup owners would stop talking about what they can PULL, and start talking about what they can STOP!

Good luck, and be safe.

BobJonesSpecial

 

Good point. Even if Ford squeezed in a Cat engine and a heavy duty transmission it wouldn't raise the GCWR of the vehicle. The rest of the truck would have to be upgraded, and by that time it's no longer a light duty truck. Actually, due to the added weight it would lower the available GCWR and GVWR.

 

after driving trucks with detroit, catapiller, and cummins(come-alongs). i have found cat's to be the far better motor. a 550 cat through 6" straight pipes idles smoother and quieter than one of these come-alongs they put in the dodge pickups. you diesel pickup guys are missing out on a great motor. i'm not saying put a 3406e in a f-250. if there was a cat motor offered in a pickup thats the one i'd buy. in my opinion cats are an all around better motor. it doesn't matter what i need to pull. i bet over half the diesel pickups sold never pull anything more than a sack of groceries home from the store. in case you havn't noticed they have become kind of a yuppie status symbol.

 

Werent Cat's in some of the older model Fords. From what I remember, they were at tight squeeze.

 

No, not unless you mean the F650/750. There is currently a Cat offered in those trucks now.

 

I have a brother-in- law that has a cat in a 6500 chev roll back truck that has had a boat load of trouble with the injectors. only had just over 100,000 when the trouble begain. injector wires keeps going south. wouldn't own a chev or a cat in a pickup.
gseeders

 

I really hate to say this but there may be an answer to your problem. I've heard that for a few grand more than the cummins option, you can have a 3126B in a special order d*dge (I dont like to use that word) . Just something i've heard. Just for reference though, you can buy a few year old pete 379 with a 3406B (14.6L) for less money than you can buy a brand new pickup of any brand. There's no replacement for displacement!!!!!!!!!!!

Just a little more info.

Tony

 

Shyguy;
3208 cats were available in the bigger (F600 & up) trucks in the 80's. Not sure of the time frame, but I use one at work sometimes & after a fuel rate increase and governer increase-it's a pretty peppy truck for being 30,000 pounds. Lots of old timers don't like the 3208's...for some longevity reasons I guess. Also use IH DT466's and a Leaktroit. Out of those 3 engines, the Cat is a real torque monster.

 

The 3208 was definitely not the best diesel engine made - by anyone.

I agree with some of the other posts, the Navistar/Power Stroke is a great engine with more than enough power for your pickup.