I'm thinkin about getting one of these trucks with the 4x4, crew cab and the diesel. And in the future I would like to lift it 4" and throw on some 35's.

It will not be used for towing (only my 225 pound frame), it will be my daily driver especially in the winter (here in Winnipeg Canada 6 months of the year it's well below 0'). And I want the diesel for performance (after I chip it). The gasser is'nt an optoin cuz I think its ridiculous to get less than 12mpg (with diesel I'm hoping for 17-21 mpg).

Do'nt get me wrong I've driven these trucks before, I deliver ice for a living in a 97 powerstroke with 120000km, thats always loaded to the max, 5-7 thousand pounds of ice including the freezer, and it drives perfect and still has ***** to boot. I'll admit it, the work truck is'nt mine, so I abuse it pretty bad (I got a leadfoot), but it seems its all in days work for the truck.

So thats whats sold me, the toughness and the mpgs. But I'll be driving mine with almost no load and more stop and start city driving,
will it be fine, or is it really not worth it. Hey man I just like the look of tough trucks, and cuz theres only 1 or 2 lifted superdutys in my town I figure what the hell why can't that be me.
Right, or wrong?

Thanx

 

What exactly are you asking?

 

>(with diesel I'm hoping for 17-21 mpg).

>(I got a leadfoot) :-X23

>But I'll
>be driving mine with almost no load and more stop and start
>city driving,

>(I got a leadfoot)




>Right, or wrong?



You tell me

 

I think you should RESEARCH the mpg issue more completely. Go to www.ford-diesel.com and search for mileage threads. You'll find that anyone hot-rodding their PSD is NOT getting the kind of mpg you are looking for. Basically, you have to keep the RPMs below 2000 to see 17+ mpg. And only a few get those numbers. Seems to be the "luck of the draw" as to whether you'll get an economical PSD or not.

 

Sorry I was in a huge rush when I typed that. All I'm saying is that my style of driving is perfect for a honda civic, but I want a superduty diesel. I realize its not that practical, I know diesels are mainly used for long distance hauling and I want mine for a city driver with the odd commute out to the lake. AM I just going to swamp myself with diesel problems in the end (realisticly, there will be a lot of ten minute drives to a freinds house in the freezing temps), or should it be problem free.

 

10 minute drives aren't good for any engine unless you can get that engine up to operating temps in that amount of time. Do you need a diesel, no. Neither did I. I only tow 3-6k and once in awhile 8 or 9k but like you, after driving these trucks for so many years and so many miles it's hard not to want one. I bought mine because of the reliability, mileage(yes mileage) and power out of the box. I'm getting 15-18mpg depending on driving conditions, how much is towed and how often my foot is in it.

Les

 

[updated:LAST EDITED ON 12-Mar-02 AT 09:41 PM (EST)]I had a F250 CC 4x4 with the PSD and 3.73 gears. I put 285 AT's on it and I drove highway miles only with no load and average speed of about 70 MPH. I never got better than about 15 MPG. I get 13.9 with my new V-10. If you are concerned with the cost of fuel, I'll help you some with the math. If you figure the cost difference of gas vs diesel, about 20 cents (for 87 octane) with a fill up of about 32 gallons. The diesel will cost you approx. $43.84 while the gas will cost you $37.44 or $6.40 MORE for the diesel. Since you are giving up 1 MPG for gas you will have to buy 2.3 gallons more gas @ 1.17 / gal that is $2.69 more per fill-up for a total of $40.13 for gas. That is still a SAVING of $3.71 per fill up with gas. The average person fills up once a week, that will save you $15.95 per month. Now, let's figure the cost to drive a diesel. According to www.edmunds.com the PSD option invoice is $4114. The rule of thumb for payments is $20 per thousand financed, so $4114 equates to about $82 per month in payments. If you change your oil about every 6 weeks an oil change for diesel costs about $60 so figure that at $10 per week or roughly $43 per month. This doesn't take into account the extra fuel filters that you HAVE to do every third oil change, the amount of driving you will do trying to find a quality diesel pump, or the added insurance premiums. So let's review.... Gas will SAVE you $15.95 in fuel expense and $125 per month in vehicle expense. So, if you are buying diesel for fuel "efficiency" it will actually cost you $140.95. You can buy an additional 164.9 gallons of gas for that and have a whole lot more fun doing it. Hope I didn't lose you with all that.

Ed

 

My opinion is reflected in the order I placed for an 02 F-250 SD V-10. I was so close to ordering it with the PowerStroke but after a test drive through the city I said forget it. Like you, I plan on using it for at least 50% city driving and when I drove that diesel in the city it was just too loud and too slow of the mark (that is unless you stomp on it and leave the 20 drivers behind you sucking in diesel fumes for the next mile). I'd love to get better gas mileage but the added initial cost of the PSD and the poor city driving performance didn't justify the diesel. I then came very close to ordering it with the 5.4 but after reading the opinions in this forum I changed it to the V-10. I'm very grateful to all the posters in this forum for the time they take not just posting opinions and answers but as well for posting the reasons backing up those opinions.

PS: Expecting the truck in a week or two.

 

>>I never got better than about 15 MPG.
>>I get 13.9 with my new V-10.
>>cost difference of gas vs diesel, about 20 cents (for 87 octane)
>>gas @ 1.17 / gal


Lemme see if I got this straight...

Gas 1.179 per gallon
Diesel 1.379 per gallon.

V10 = 13.9 average (outstanding BTW)
PSD = 15 average

OK so far?

Let's make it easier...(maybe a bit more accurate)

V10 - $1.179pg / 13mpg = .09 per mile
PSD - $1.379pg / 15mpg = .092 per mile

Fuel cost is virtually the same.
Oil changes & filters are more and are recommended at the same frequency.
Fuel filters, etc. etc.

So, whatever...

Get the truck YOU like best and what you are willing to maintain. This arguement NEVER works when trying to justify it with the numbers. Too many variables.

 

I tend to push the accellarator down a lot, so if I had the V10 I would see a whole lot less in the mileage compared to the diesel.

I'll compare it to two differant E350 buses
our '98 V10 gas 55 gallon tank

and our '93 7.3 diesel 35 gallon tank and also pulling a little more weight

they both fill up after the same number of miles every other day.
and we do less maintenance on the diesel

right now our V10 gets around 6 to 7 stop and go miles, and I know if I was driving it on a regular basis it would be more like 5 to 6.

 

I was pretty much in exactly the same boat. I likely won't ever use my Superduty to anything near its capability. My driving consists of 70% city, %30 highway, with a few hunting and fishing trips, and a fair bit of gravel roads, but I live in a large city.

I bought the Superduty for a number of reasons:

1- Size - this truck has a large, full size crew cab that'll seat 4-6 adults comfortably and a 6.5' box

2- Durability - I figure by buying a truck that is WAY OVERBUILT for my purposes, it should last as long as I want it to with proper maintenance.

3- Ruggedness - I don't worry about blowing trannies, breaking an axle, bending stuff, etc... point the truck where you want to go and it'll go there. The same couldn't be said for my 96 chebby.

4- Appearance - I hate the look of the Ford 1/2 tons, and being as I bleed Ford blue, they really left me no other choice. The Superduties are big, powerful, and intimidating. I know, after driving my mom's little Escort for a while, I never want to be on that side of the equation again. That brings me to my last point.

5- Safety - Let's face it, you're king of the road in one of these rigs. Barring heavy trucks, you're gonna come out on top (maybe literally) in any collision.

Like you I wanted a diesel, but went for the V10 despite initially thinking the 5.4V8 was the way to go. The guys on this board basically convinced me to go for the V10, and I am VERY THANKFUL for that. (I'm currently getting 10-11mpg in city driving, and the truck only has 300 miles on it, should get better)

I chose not to buy the diesel because of my experience with diesels in heavy trucks. I know that they MUST to be warmed up and cooled down. This means that for max engine life that 2 minute trip to the corner store in cold weather takes 20 mins. There's nothing harder on a diesel than a cold start run for 5 mins, shut it off. If your travel consists of a lot of short trips, you'll burn out a diesel in a hurry. Unfortunately, letting the truck idle is just as hard on it.
A good diesel mechanic is hard to find, and repairing diesels is a whole new ball game cost wise compared to a gasoline engine.

Sorry about the long winded post, just thought I'd give you a little bit of the rationale behind my decision.

I love my truck, and have zero regrets about the V10 or buying a Superduty as a daily driver. As for mileage, like they say

"You gotta pay to play"

Waxy

 

Here in my neck of the woods, Nebraska, diesel is 10 cents cheaper than gas. Not that it affects the argument much, anyway all the posts back and forth may actually help someone make a choice on what to buy. Real world experiance is invaluable, keep up your opinions please!