Ok so I'm selling out and getting out of "older" fords for a while. I keep getting trucks that need body work and that is one thing I dont know about and I honestly dont think I have the patience for.

So... I have been snooping around CL for diesels and from what I see so far I like the SD but not so much the price tag. I really like the 1990ish body style and would like a reg cab 4x4.

What motors do I need to stay away from or look for? I know diesels will run for 200k and it not be a big deal, so what is "high" mileage for one? The most it might have to pull would be a 5,000 lb camper. Whats a good price on a good condition early-mid 90's truck? Never had a diesel but drove them for work before college and some after as well.

Yall care to give me some direction or pointers?

I was kicking the idea of a 88-95 Bronco around but I'd like the towing capacity of a diesel if I ever needed it. My Dad keeps trying to sell me his tacoma...

 

All right! Another one is converting to the darkside...Diesel power. In that time frame your talking 7.3L...if your looking between '90 & '94 it will be turbocharged...but still a mechanical fuel injection. It was '94 when the PowerStroke was introduced and the horsepower wars heated up. I'm not saying you'll never find one, but it won't be easy since we're talking about 20 year old trucks. There's good chance the ones you do find will have a couple of issues (oil leaks, worn injectors, etc). With a 5k camper, you won't have a problem in the weight department...but you won't blaze a trail like some of us nuts with WAY too much horsepower under the hood. Jeff might have tabs on something your looking for, he's one of those all mechanical guys.

 

Well dont get me wrong, I LIKE the later models but the owners seem to be way too proud of them for what my wallet will stand haha. Given my extreme lack of knowledge, if I you were to point me in the direction of a good year range, motor, trans, etc.. what would it be? I'd like to keep the total price down and 4x4 and AC are a must.

As before I'm not a body work guy, but I aint scared of a wrench (even though I know nothing about diesels). The motor everyone is after is the 7.3 right? the 6.0 is a dog?

All advice is welcomed!!!

 

Everyone is different, I shelled out the $$$ for my truck when I did knowing I'm going to own it for a long time (provided someone doesn't steal it....again). I use it as a daily driver as well as trailer dragging queen; so it's easier for me to justify the investment of the truck. It's hard to say one year is better than the other. The 7.3L power trucks have a lower maintenance cost compaired to the 6.0L; but the 4R100 tranny behind the 7.3L is a box of bolts compared to the 5R110 that's behind the 6.0L. To me, changing the oil & fuel filters on the 6.0L is allot easier on the 6.0L than the 7.3L (unless the '99 were completely different than the later 7.3L trucks). I guess it comes down to a couple of things...how long do you plan on owning the truck? Besides pulling the camper...what else will it be used for? Are you willing to pay the 30-60 cent difference in fuel prices? Yesterday morning when I left FSM I paid $3.74 a gallon for diesel; gas is/was $3.34 a gallon. Don't get me wrong, I'd love to see another guy buy a diesel powered truck...but there are some things you've got to think about that are specific to the fuel/engine.You've been talking Joe & Scott again? The 6.0L got a bad rap in the early days because of how much different it was from the 7.3L...there wasn't enough Ford Tech out there that knew what they were doing with it came to the 6.0L when it first showed up. Eight years later, there's allot of support available for the engine/platform and pretty much all the common issues have been solved. The difference between the 7.3L & 6.0L is several key things. You can neglect the 7.3L in a couple of area; the 6.0L you've got to be **** with the PM or you'll pay the price. On the 6.0L you've got to work it hard at least once a month to keep things like the turbo vanes free (able to move/sweep) and EGR happy. The 7.3L doesn't have vanes in the turbo or EGR system to deal with. But the 6.0L will make power at a lower RPM than the 7.3L. As much as I'd love to bash the 7.3L (apparently I'm the only 6.0L here)...it's a good engine, and I'm sure you could pick one up allot cheaper than a 6.0L power truck just because of the age of the chassis.Careful what you ask for/say around this bunch.

 

I wouldn't go that far, around here it seems like if you wanna get rid of a 6.0h-no, you gotta pay somebody to Steal it

 

(someone queue Homer Simpson) Duh!

 

Well the fuel prices dont scare me since the truck would only get driven on weekends or at night if I needed to run somewhere. I have a company car for my 8-5 driving

The camper pulling would be 1-3 times per year tops and besides a boat, that would be about the only pulling it does. I'm good at PM and keeping up with it (oil changes, grease, blah blah blah) but the only PM I know on diesel motors has been on heavy equipment and that stuff I'm sure is different.

There was a reg cab long bed 4x4 250 on a little sales lot here in town that I kept checking out. Very nice looking truck and it was a mid 90's body style. I am kicking myself for not at least talking to the guy about it.

Tell me this: What is "high mileage" for a diesel truck? Skimming CL I see anywhere from 89k to 400k. I just got wind of the diesel sub forum here so I'm gonna go sponge up all I can from it, but of the 3 trucks I had a week ago I have one left and it's getting plenty of bites so I'll be looking seriously pretty quick.

 

In that case, I'd say for sure look for a 7.3L; the 6.0L are not good for sitting for long periods like the diesels of old. Things like the vanes in the turbo can/will rust if the truck isn't driven enough. I know it sounds crazy, but it's one of those trade-offs for the horsepower.That's one of those moving targets. I'd say high mileage is 300k for most of them; though I've seen reports of several 7.3L & 6.0L with over 450k miles. Then I've seen folks that have neglected trucks that were a nightmare at 100k. I know of a '99 F350 that only got oil changes when it was at the dealership for some other issue (failed injector, toaster turbo, shelled clutch). The dispatcher that was a Chevy guy was constantly bashing that truck. I shut him up when I asked him if he treated his personal truck that way.

 

(some how my reply was "posted" twice...oops!)

 

After some looking I've seen that I can prob get a pretty decent truck for 13k-ish. The most the truck would sit unused would be a week and it wouldnt be THAT often.

I'm hung over right now from my buddies bachelor party last night so I'm not up for truck shopping online right now haha. I've been looking and hope to have one in the next few weeks.

Yall have a good night!!

 

If you want a regular cab you are almost certainly going to have to go with the older body style (94-97). There are regular cab Superduty's but they are only available in long beds, and since the proliferation of the larger cabs the reg cab SD's are almost non-existent..... and since they are almost entirely fleet trucks they mostly have the 5.4l gas hog.

Of the remaining choices, a 96 or 97 would best suite your needs. Engine mileage is almost a non issues if it has been properly maintained, but you will obviously want the lowest mileage possible. The auto tranny will be the weak link if it's over 200K miles. The manuals are nearly bulletproof in a stock or mildly modified truck, and clutches are easy....so that's how I would go.

 

Had to back up and regroup. Found exactly what I wanted. 1997 F250 Reg cab long bed 7.3L 4x4 5 speed with about 150k miles.

It's been a while since I financed anything and banks tend to shy away from anything older than 5-6 years. A friend reminded me of that so it's back to square one.

 

There you go, sounds like it should be a decent rig with that mileage on it. I figure the paint will be in the worse shape compared to the rest of the truck.Couldn't get a signature loan? Most banks I've dealt with will loan up to $6k-$7k just on a signature. Granted some collateral will grease the wheels with the loan officer.

 

I'll have to admit I just took my friends word for fact when she told me about older vehicles and banks not wanting to loan on them. Never tried for a signature loan but it might be just what the Dr. ordered.

Thanks for the advice. I'll holler at the bank tomorrow and see what they say.

EDIT: I ran across this one today and I really like it even if it's a heck of a drive away.http://www.connormotorsales.com/vehi...?vid=136104961

 

Good looking truck, looks like it may have been used for ranch or contractor work (goose neck ball). Sounds like a good reason for a road trip.