Ok fellas so I'm getting ready to upgrade trucks,I'm painting mine agian & selling I can put that money with some job money & buy a truck or..I have a few other options First off I have a customer who wants me to paint a old 50's powerwagon firetruck & upgrade the bushings under the body & he will give me a 2005 cummins laramie all options,leather 4 door 4x4 flatbed shorty when we first talked about it the tranny was fine now its going out.That dosn't really bother me,I'm not sure if it's a 5.9 or 6.7 only thing that bothers be is it's a shortbed & I have my heart set on a longbed the job is well worth it & if I didn't want the job I could buy it for probablly 6500-7k he has A LOT of cummins he's an older fella this truck is just a drop of water in a bucket to him it seems real nice fella so I'd like to do the job for him he's a hot shot jailer for the zoo.
My next options is a 97 obs 7.3 powerstroke all stock besides gears,exhaust & a tuner I belive is all it's a 4 door clean as a whistle 12 in lift 4x4 22 inch rockstars wrapped in 40s good price next truck is a 99 superduty 7.3 supercab 4x4 low miles under 100k 100% bone stock 1 owner then there's almost the same truck but with a 6.0.
Now here's where I'm @ the 05 I figure I could get god sell & buy a longbed but who knows maybe after a lift & tires it'll grow on me.Now the 97 is awesome & I also like the super dutys I've drove my buddys 05 cummins,& I've drove all of these fords what I like about the fords is the body style & the reliability of the rest of the vehicle besides the motor and trans unlike the Commons where you have the reliability of the best diesel out there but all of the problems with the suspension,trans,body etc I know if I get the super duty I have to addres the studs,oil cooler,egr & I know that it won't make as much power as the cummins but I have a drag car if I wanna go fast,I tow very little,I might pull a few customers rides in own a tow dolly or haul some bikes around to shows but that's about it.What I'm looking for is long term dependability with anything I expect that things are gonna need maintained & addressed that's not a problem.
I'd really like a 12 valve long bed but the problem with that is I need the backseat but I need one with the suicide doors& it's gonna be hard to find a 98 with em...or should I just go for a 24 valve I just know the 12 valve is supposed to be the best out there.My lifted gasser jusg isn't doing it for me.And the 05 is cost effective & all of the fords are @ really good prices a lot cheaper than the cummins.I know this is a dodge site but please try to be unbiased.Thanks fellas

 

I made this same post on another site &it was a bit of a headache so here's a skimmed down version as I skipped punctuation & made a big long sentence.I shouldn't of posted @ 4am after I've been up allday painting a viper. Basically I'm asking what's better a 05 cummins that I can do a paint job for has a flatbed all leather,4x4 but needs trans or a 97 obs 7.3 powerstroke 4 door 4x4 12 in of lift 22 in wheels with 40s or a 99 superduty 7.3 or a 2000 superduty 6.0?I like the 05 but its a short bed & I really want a long bed but maybe it'll grow on me.The fords seem to make less hp & torque but they seem to have better everything else.Id like a 12 valve but need one with suicide doors & since they wernt offerd till 98 & for only half of the year there hard to come by would I regret a 24 valve?
I'm just looking for something long lasting not worried about going fast.

 

Wow you're all over the place with what you want lol.

An 05 cummins with a bad tranny and a shortbed, with I'm guessing over 200k miles by the low price..not a fan. I'd just paint the guys truck, grab the cummins and resell. Then buy an 03-07 cummins, 04.5-07 duramax, or nbs 7.3 with lower miles and the long bed you want. Duramaxs and powerstrokes are much easier to find with a long bed than a cummins.

Not sure what's going on in your life, but I'd just take into consideration what kind of vehicle you'll need in the long run. Do you just want a new toy? Need something that's gonna last you the next 5-7yrs, just a couple yrs? Need a truck that can pull but also carry family, something really reliable? etc etc.

If you need to pick just one, the 99 7.3 is obviously the best choice on paper. Also a 2000 ford truck does not come with a 6.0 it's either a 7.3 or someone swapped in a 6.0(insert facepalm). 6.0s start at 03.5 to 08 or something. And you're second guessing a 24v cummins but don't mind a 6.0?! I think you need to do more research on your diesels.

Nothing wrong with the 2nd gen 24v. fuel pressure gauge and a good lift pump are your friends.

 

just looking for a new toy really,want a nice truck to lift that will be my daily driver but sometimes pile the family in for camping trips as we have a family car.Ill be doing maybe 5 tows a year but do plan on buying a Jon boat not much weight to that.As far as the 05 goes it has 142k I just double checked my email.I have a customer who's truck I did some bodywork on & painted it & I've done a few other jobs for him he says since I've always cut him deals he will rebuild it for 1k as he owns a trans shop said for a extra 500 he will convert it to a manual.I just really like the way the super duty looks & rides but I love those cummins I just can't make up my
mind.Part of me says buy the sd & then do a couple paint jobs buy me a beater 12 valve single cab & either keep it incase the motor ever takes a dump in the ford than do a swap to the 12 valve or maybe just build up the 12 valve to my liking.My wife actually would ne fine with me having two trucks she says I might need a back up one day.Ill keep you guys posted.

 

That gave me a headache.

 

Powerstroke with a 12 inch lift on 40s?? I would personally run far away from that, not a fan of lifts. And that is just ridiculous, basically useless for any kind of practical use. Family piling in that? Maybe if you like lifting them into it everytime. Would proabaly handle like complete crap on road. Like I said though, I am somewhat biased towards huge pointless lifts that ruin the usability of a truck.

As mentioned on the 6.0 (if it is indeed a 6.0) stay away. My dad had one for about four years, and always had a slight sweet smell when it was worked a bit. Never towed anything heavy, just two sleds and a heavy flatbed up the mountain usually. Turns out he had a cracked head all along. $3k to fix IIRC, they had a tendency to crack heads. he promptly traded in for a cummins. Ill give it credit though, it always seem to run well considering its condition.

 

I'd take the 05 Cummins 5.9 and rebuild the tranny. There's to much left on the table to not choose that option. K

 

maybe I have the year wrong on the other powerstroke but I know its a 6.0 the obs with the 12 in lift of 40's is nice Its my neighrbors.It has those electric steps on it so getting in & out isn't a problem.The family will usually be in the car for gas reasons but in my business I'm really starting to get more involved in bikes & I look for em all across the country & if I drive to iowa to pick up a bike like the last two times we had to take road trips to get em the family piled up & we made a mini vacation out of it so we will mostly only have em in there for that type of stuff.It actually rides pretty good.
The 05 I'm hoping will grow on me being a short bed it's a hell of a deal those things can get pricey so I'm sure one way or another Ill get it.I'm thinking get it put a lift & some diffrent tires & wheels.Take off the flatbed & put on a reg bed &I'll paint it if I don't keep Ill sell & buy a long bed & pocket some cash.Maybe buy one of the fords & if the motor ever takes a crap Ill do a cummins swap.

 

stay away from 6.0 power chokes...

horribly designed motor riddled with problems.

duracraps are a decent motor, but the IFS front end on chebbies are an accident waiting to happen.

dodges wonder like a blind dog but at least they don't break tie rods like the chebbies.

the cummins motor itself is bulletproof in the older 12v and 24v motors. the common rails need high quality fuel filters and quality injectors to be reliable... if they crack an injector tip, it can cause catastrophic failure for the engine... long as filtering is tight (2-3 micron) and rail pressure stays in tolerance, they should be reliable.

 

If the power stroke is newer than 2005.5, you won't have as much trouble but you may still have some. If there's a 7.3 power stroke you're looking at, it may be a good choice since I've personally seen 7.3's in perfect running order with 400k miles on them. And dodge didn't start putting 6.7 cummins into the rams until 2007.5. Before that, they were still 5.9's.