Long story short, looking to start towing a 7000lbs fairly often in the near future, and I don't think my 1500 Hemi is going to like it for too long. So i'm looking into the possibility of getting a 2500 with the 5.9L. Is there anything I need to know right off the bat? any year better than others??? what transmission is the best for towing/performance??? Thanks in advance!

 

the 5.9 is superior in just about every way compared to others, the strongest trans... if you plan on towing and perfromance modding, get a manual, the 03-07.5 engines are strong, the older 94-98.5 is my favorite, and very cheap to mod, the 98.5-02 are the weakest link but still not a bad choice, just seem to have the most issues...

 

Are the manuals much stronger??? what kind of milage can this trucks be had and still be considered to be in good shape...is 100k mile truck too old to buy??

 

both of mine have over 300k on the clock and get beat to death daily, 100k is just getting broke in, for the engine anyway, manuals are way stronger then the autos, especially when adbused, if buying high milage, the only real concerns will be the front axle ball joints, just check it over really well

 

Well my 06 mega cab auto has 107xxx thousand miles.. An my friends 07 quad cab has around 55,xxx and mine runs just as good as his. If not better..

 

Transmissions are a weak link on the 5.9's (if buying auto). If the truck saw any kind of work (hauling, towing, plowing) make sure you get the tranny inspected (again if it's an auto). The manual transmissions are far more reliable than the auto's but what it comes down to is if you want to drive a manual day in and day out.

Aside from the weak automatic transmission the 5.9's are in my opinion hands down the best diesel motor in the North American market.

 

Ford 7.3 powerstrokes are good engines too - just don't expect to be able to get a lot of power out of them. They're tanks, but not fast at all. Avoid the 6.0/6.4, and the jury is out on the new 6.7.

Chev/GMC - Meh.

Dodge - first gen 12-valves are workhorses, but they lack a certain pizaz. The 2nd gen 12 valve are stupid easy to make power out of. The 2nd gen 24 valve got fancy new fuel pumps which tend to fail a lot. 3rd gen 5.9s got fancier new fuel pumps that seem to work just fine, and better trannies. The 3rd gen 6.7 got a WAY better tranny, but it also got EGR and DPF and some other crap.

If I were to get a 5.9 auto, I'd plan on dropping $3k on a decent aftermarket trans, plus plan on putting an airdog or FASS lift pump/filter on.

 

I'm currently looking at this 2 trucks....any advice??

http://trucks.gibsontruckworld.com/I...fl%2F&index=15


http://trucks.gibsontruckworld.com/g...A38C14G150992/


Obviously the Mega cab / newer model is "nicer" but is it worth an extra $6k in your opinion???

Yours,

 

You do realize that both of them are 2wd? Is that what you are looking for?

 

Yeah all i'm looking to do is tow in open roads, I dont really need extra traction for ice / mud etc. Just the pulling capabilities. and if the trucks weight less is also slightly better gas milage