You're right, my bad. They don't "OWN" them. Ford Motor Company sold Cummins back 1.3 FREAKIN' MILLION of their own shares back to them that they had held since 1990. So they only partially held Cummins for 7 years (or at least a pretty big minority of it).

Kinda like the whole Hughes owned by MacDonnell Douglas owned by Boeing, or the Winchester --> Browning Arms --> Fabrique Nationale / Herstal bunch.

Hey, don't get me wrong, I LOVE Capitalism. Just don't get pissed when all of our trucks are all made in China by illegal Mexican immigrants who were really good swimmers but had a really bad sense of direction! Or all of our weapons are made by Belgians or, for the love of GOD, Croatians (thanks, Springfield Armory), and the only things we export is our oil and your grandchildrens inheritence!

Sorry, I guess I was off on a tangent there for a few moments... Honestly, diesels are pretty new to me. They are #3 on my list of "knowledgeable" subjects. Now, if you want to talk #1 Guns and #2 Aircraft, I'll give ya a run. But when it comes to diesels, I'm all ears! I didn't join this sight to be an expert, I joined to learn. Teach me Obi-won-DieselBombers, you're my only hope!

 

Wrong direction here. This is politics and she wants to know about which truck will suit her driving needs. So back to the subject we go.

 

Yeah, my bad. I'll keep the train on the tracks from here on out. All I can say about the subject I believe I already have. Except maybe to add after two brand new Ford trucks, my last two trucks have been used Dodge trucks. And the Cummins is hard to beat for pulling, that I can attest to. Even in this months "Diesel Power" magazine, under the title "The Perfect Truck" there was a Ford that was De-Stroked, replaced with a good 'ol 5.9L Cummins. Good article, maybe that might help her. I seem to see one re-occuring theme with the Ford/Dodge thing, and it is this; People who buy a diesel truck for the "truck" seem to buy Fords. People who buy a diesel truck for the "diesel" seem to buy Dodges.

 

A 7.3 is what, 250 horsepower? A common rail cummins HO is going to be 305 or 325 depending on what year it is. So, a stock newer Dodge is going to feel like that Ford does with the chip set on low. Better yet, go with a 6.7 and have 350 horsepower stock. Of course a Ford 6.0 is 325 horse also I think?

My point is, it's time to get a newer truck. A gooseneck with two horses is gonna be noticed behind you no matter what you pull it with. Don't buy into the "can't even tell it's back there" you'll here a lot when you talk diesels. Also, If you're on the front range, you're at least 5000 feet high. These trucks are affected by altitude despite having a turbo. Don't believe me, take your same truck to sea level and figure out where the extra 70 horsepower came from.

 

6.7L Vs. 5.9L Cummins Diesel Engines | Diesel Power Magazine Article at Automotive.com

Unless you are willing to throw Bombs right off the bat at the new 6.7 Dodge Cummins (and you have a checkbook that can support a new Dodge 6.7 and some Bombs), you may want to find a good used CTD CR 600-610 series ('05-'07.0). Not dependent on the Ultra-Low Sulfer Diesel (not a big problem anymore unless you are driving the AL-CAN Highway and getting only what you can take), and they're a tried and true, last you 'til the Second Coming engine design. And I'm not just saying this (entirely) because I own one. They are huge sellers up here for people pulling campers, toyhaulers, and travel trailers through the mountains. In the summer time every other vehicle on the road up here is pulling an RV. Of those vehicles, at least every other one is a Cummins.

 

Hooker, I'm inclined to agree with ya here. I haven't seen anything yet on the new 6.7 engines that gives me any desire to own one. They get lower fuel mileage, have less power, more problems and much harder to work on then any of the 5.9 ever produced. Can't blame Cummins for this though since they are working within the standards set by the EPA. Within the new standards though as bad as they are they are still proving to be in better shape then the competing motors. So if I had to have a new one it would still be the choice but I wouldn't want any of the new ones myself.

 

I checked what it was running at today and going at about 40 its at 1 pound of boost and about 380 degrees exhaust. When I boost it up to about 5 lbs its at around 600 degrees. Does that seem about normal? I put fuel injector cleaner in it today to see if that will help anything.

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I went and test drove an 06 cummins 3500 today and loved it.. of course the bank is not helpin me out so much right now. I am trying to see what I can do to my current truck to make it stronger.. Im fearing that the engine might need to be overhauled in the near future. I will check the cat to see if that might be causing any issues.

 

personally the cummins is a great motor and no body will argue that but the dodge trucks just don't hold up. I couldn't imagine why your 7.3 would be acting that way the 7.3 is prolly one of the best diesels ford ever had in them. Have you ever thought about going towards chevy? the dmax is a good motor and the bodys and transmissions hold up well and it doesn't seem like your out racing around and hard core offroading so dont let anyone scare you because of the ifs front suspension it makes for a nicer ride.

 

How hard are you on the pedal to get to 5 pounds of boost? Or better yet when you floor it how much boost can you get, and how high is your egts at full throtal??
From what I am making out of this so far you probably don't have a exhaust problum (cat).

 

I can not believe no one has told him to put a Cummins in his truck. It was brought up others have done it but no one told him to do it. I agree the SD is a nicer truck and the Cummins is a better motor. Go buy a wrecked ram or just find a used 12v and get to swapping. Might run you about 5-7k depending on the mods you want to do. Sell the PS to recoup a few dollars. If you can not swing the whole cost at once start saving up and buying parts little by little.