Hello to all,

DISCLAIMER: I am sure this has been discussed in detail many times before. I figured to ask alot of questions in one thread instead of many!

I am a collage student on a shoe string budget that is going to be towing a 12-13K LBS trailer about 6,000 miles per year. The rest of the time the truck will be used for light grunt work and as a daily driver. I know this suggests a gas truck right off the bat.

Like I said, I only have at MOST 12K to spend and will end up with a 150K miles+ on it.

Will the 5.9 gasser pull that kind of load? What about around town MPG's?

Previously I have been using a friends Cummins for the job and cannot say enough good things about it (obviously!) So a oil burner would be my preference. WHat kind of MPG's with the cummins around town or towing?

I would like to pick up a standard tranny if one was available to avoid any other little problems...

How much life is left in a 2500 or 1 ton with 150K miles on it?

Any advise is greatly appreciated!

Thanks,