Ah the old gas deisel debate ! I shall jump in, Firstly, there are some RV forums on the web that dissect this argument pretty good. I have a 1 ton utility bed gmc w/ the 8.1L gas currently and have had deisel work trucks before. The big thing people don't look at is that while deisels can give you some phenomenal mpg, this is unloaded. Load the truck down and/or drive faster than 70mph and that deisel mpg drops more dramatically than a gas. My 8.1L gas pickuper got about 12mpg then I added another 5000 lbs and I'm down to around 10 mpg. Guys I know that have deisel work trucks got up to 20 mpg empty but when they added the utility bed, pipe racks and all the parts they are down to maybe 14mpg. Everyone wants a deisel and the dealers won't discount, nobody wanted the big gas and I got a really good deal. Deisel engine in a pickup is at least $5000.00 more plus the dealers won't deal. The way I figger you have to drive at least 100k miles to break even, but I always get rid of my trucks just before 100k. Used to be that co's w/ large fleets of trucks bought deisels because there was less maintenance, just replace oil and fuel filters but it's the same way w/ gas now, most don't need anything until 100k. I say you are either a gas man or a deisel man, just don't try to say that deisel's make more sense economically. You need to do the math, also consider more stopping for fuel w/ a gas, so check the tank size. Also deisel is not as readily available as gas, when I had a deisel I had to make sure to keep it filled because the stations that carried deisel closed down after 10 p.m. Shouldn't be a problem touring out on the interstate however.Ah the old gas deisel debate ! I shall jump in, Firstly, there are some RV forums on the web that dissect this argument pretty good. I have a 1 ton utility bed gmc w/ the 8.1L gas currently and have had deisel work trucks before. The big thing people don't look at is that while deisels can give you some phenomenal mpg, this is unloaded. Load the truck down and/or drive faster than 70mph and that deisel mpg drops more dramatically than a gas. My 8.1L gas pickuper got about 12mpg then I added another 5000 lbs and I'm down to around 10 mpg. Guys I know that have deisel work trucks got up to 20 mpg empty but when they added the utility bed, pipe racks and all the parts they are down to maybe 14mpg. Everyone wants a deisel and the dealers won't discount, nobody wanted the big gas and I got a really good deal. Deisel engine in a pickup is at least $5000.00 more plus the dealers won't deal. The way I figger you have to drive at least 100k miles to break even, but I always get rid of my trucks just before 100k. Used to be that co's w/ large fleets of trucks bought deisels because there was less maintenance, just replace oil and fuel filters but it's the same way w/ gas now, most don't need anything until 100k. I say you are either a gas man or a deisel man, just don't try to say that deisel's make more sense economically. You need to do the math, also consider more stopping for fuel w/ a gas, so check the tank size. Also deisel is not as readily available as gas, when I had a deisel I had to make sure to keep it filled because the stations that carried deisel closed down after 10 p.m. Shouldn't be a problem touring out on the interstate however.Ah the old gas deisel debate ! I shall jump in, Firstly, there are some RV forums on the web that dissect this argument pretty good. I have a 1 ton utility bed gmc w/ the 8.1L gas currently and have had deisel work trucks before. The big thing people don't look at is that while deisels can give you some phenomenal mpg, this is unloaded. Load the truck down and/or drive faster than 70mph and that deisel mpg drops more dramatically than a gas. My 8.1L gas pickuper got about 12mpg then I added another 5000 lbs and I'm down to around 10 mpg. Guys I know that have deisel work trucks got up to 20 mpg empty but when they added the utility bed, pipe racks and all the parts they are down to maybe 14mpg. Everyone wants a deisel and the dealers won't discount, nobody wanted the big gas and I got a really good deal. Deisel engine in a pickup is at least $5000.00 more plus the dealers won't deal. The way I figger you have to drive at least 100k miles to break even, but I always get rid of my trucks just before 100k. Used to be that co's w/ large fleets of trucks bought deisels because there was less maintenance, just replace oil and fuel filters but it's the same way w/ gas now, most don't need anything until 100k. I say you are either a gas man or a deisel man, just don't try to say that deisel's make more sense economically. You need to do the math, also consider more stopping for fuel w/ a gas, so check the tank size. Also deisel is not as readily available as gas, when I had a deisel I had to make sure to keep it filled because the stations that carried deisel closed down after 10 p.m. Shouldn't be a problem touring out on the interstate however.

Sorry about that don't know why it printed 4 times, anyways my 8.1L gas has tons of torque and is smooth, quiet and fast, certainly quicker than a diesel.

beaglebuddy makes some good points about possible "gotchas" of owning a diesel pickup. Another consideration is that, right now at least, diesel fuel costs about as much as gasoline (it used to be much cheaper in the past). OTOH, even at the same price and even with a load in the back, you're still getting better mileage than you would with a gas engine. Whether you ever earn back in unspent fuel money what you spent to buy the diesel in the first place is another question.

Right now, in today's market, the purely-financial payback is pretty long. However, almost any diesel you buy nowadays is good for a few hundred thousand miles if the rest of the truck is good for it. The better mileage also comes with plenty of torque down low where you need it. And modern diesels can run biodiesel (some gas pickups might be able to run on ethanol); alternative fuels like those help keep money out of the pockets of some very corrupt people in this world.

Gas engines built nowadays also have the ability to go 200k miles, the fuel injection makes them run cleaner, I have 2 friends who are truck mechanic for large contracting co's, both co's have all gas vehicles as they have found no advantages to owning diesels. A large gas will pull a heavy load just as well as a diesel. My 8.1L also has the feature that will shut down the engine if for instance you lose coolant and the engine overheats. I say you are either a diesel man or a gas man, diesel's probably more macho.

Gas engines built nowadays also have the ability to go 200k miles, the fuel injection makes them run cleaner, I have 2 friends who are truck mechanic for large contracting co's, both co's have all gas vehicles as they have found no advantages to owning diesels. A large gas will pull a heavy load just as well as a diesel. My 8.1L also has the feature that will shut down the engine if for instance you lose coolant and the engine overheats. I say you are either a diesel man or a gas man, diesel's probably more macho.

beaglebuddy, you certainly seem to be repeating yourself a lot lately! Time to clear cache on your Web browser and look for spyware? :-)

It only does it on the cars forum, all the other garden web forums give me no problems, anyways , come on all you diesel owners out there, try to convince us why diesel is worth the extra expense, hope this doesn't repeat, I will apologize in advance.

Thanks for your responses. I guess it looks like I will get a gasoline engine. Anyway,I was concerned about the way you have to keep the deisel engine plugged in overnite during cold weather. What if it was below freezing and you didnt have access to electricity?

I believe it would have to get well below freezing for it to be a problem. Come on, aren't there any proud diesel owners out there to carry on this debate.