my 6.5 makes me wish the man who built it that his wifes legs would grow together
cummins all the way. nothing is indestructable. so proves my last years repair deductions

 

the only thing this site is doing is how to start a fight i drove all 3 trucks ford dodge and chevy was a very nice truck good body style great ride ford also was a great truck lots of room just like the chevy the ride was a little stiff tho dodge cab is shorter than both chevy and ford that is why thay make all three ford chevy dodge every truck has there shure of problems and all three where crew cabs

 

either one would be good. dont go to the 6.0 tho you would be asking for problems. if you want cheap power go with the p-pump 12valve. 7700 seems like a lot though for that truck if you could get it for bout 7000 id run with it if not id keep holdin out. in my opinion you wont go wrong with either one but id recommend the 12v dodge

 

Let me add something else here.

I took my family on vacation to Louisville. On the way back, we were going 80-85. Was cruising at like 2800rpms (). My wife and 3 kids were with me. I was getting 19.33 mpg going 80-85 in my 1-ton dually 12v 5spd.

 

As a Diesel Mechanic I've seen my share of both engines...own both, repaired both and so on...personally, the 7.3 Powerstroke has always had more horsepower and torque than the Cummins 12 valve...however, the Cummins 12 valve has it's peak-torque at a lower RPM range, the Cummins 12 valve is also more reliable and more fuel-efficient, another very important difference between the two are their means of injection, Powerstroke is electronically controlled, direct injection turbo diesel...the cummins 12-valve is also direct injection, turbo diesel but it's main difference is the Cummins 12-valve is not electronically controlled and from 1994-1998 the Cummins 12-valve had a factory-installed After-Cooler/Inter-Cooler...But to sum things up...for a truck thats gonna haul heavy weight, do farm work and be reliable choose the Cummins 12-valve...if you want a truck that has good highway passing power, choose the Powerstroke...Hope this helped

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7.3 Powerstroke (1994.5-2003) is an electronically-controlled direct-injection turbo-diesel
6.6 Duramax is an electronically-controlled direct-injection turbo-diesel
5.9 Cummins 12-valve (1989-1998) is a mechanically controlled direct injection intercooled turbo-diesel.

7.3 Powerstroke= not very fuel efficient, not a whole lot of torque but plenty of horsepower and very reliable-good highway manners but not good for everyday heavy pulling...all around a great Diesel engine

6.6 Duramax= somewhat decent fuel efficiency, lots of horsepower, plenty of torque (at a higher RPM range than both Powerstroke and Cummins), good for hauling *** on the highway, and light-duty pulling every now and then but not very reliable...all around a poor Diesel engine.

5.9 Cummins 12-valve=excellent fuel-efficiency, decent horsepower, lots of low-end torque, extremely reliable, excellent for extreme duty, excellent for pulling very heavy loads very often...all around the most reliable, best Diesel engine, a real work horse...

 

X10 what ronald said!!!

 

So this thread is old, but has been searched and read A LOT. There are lots of folks wanting to know about Powerstroke vs. Cummins. So I will throw in my .02

In my driveway I currently have 4 perfectly running diesel trucks, none of them have any issues what so ever (keep that in mind)

1986 F250 6.9I Diesel 4sp manual w/granny (378xxx)
1995 F250 7.3 CC LB AUTO (288xxx)
1997 2500 12V QC LB 5sp (98xxx)
2003 F250 CC SB 6sp (141xxx)

So I have quite a plethora of diesels to choose from to drive. They all came to me as toys and have all become very good trucks, and have seem to become good in there own way for certain specific jobs. The 6.9 is a great garbage hauler, the 95' 7.3 is the work horse, 2003 7.3 is shiny, and the 1997 12V is the DD hands down.

Every day when I get up and go to work, I like to enjoy my drive by a lot of SOP driving, and everyday I am always gravitated to the Dodge. I personally am a Ford fanatic, and after playing with all these Fords for power and torque (and gobs of money) I just had to give a Cummins a go. I bought the 12V with 90K on the clock and bone stock. And right out of the gate it would give my 2003 7.3 a run for its money. The 2003 is my 'show' truck, 8" lift 40" tires, chip, exhaust, bigger turbo & injectors, BHAF, etc., and mind you she boogies, but when I brought the Dodge home I found a new different animal. With just a minimal amount of work to the Dodge, its a frikin Maniac.

Something about that Dodge though I really love, and drive tend to drive it more than any other of my trucks. Also does get the best mileage of the 4 as well. Hope this might help someone in they're decisions.