New addition to the family, What do you think?...

[Fixxer99TA]

So after 4 or 5 years of plowing on the side for someone else, and working my way from shovel bitch to driver.... I have decided to run my own truck this season and see what I can work up from there, and I have put enough cash aside to pick up my own truck for this task (Most likely going to be selling the Dakota though, great truck but there really is no space for it here).

So Im going to be plowing ALOT of accounts this season, and have plans for much much more next season. I will be plowing something in the area of 50 for my friends father (one of his routes, apartment complexs AND driveways) and a small route of my own (about 5 are family for free, and about 10-20 other accounts that are paid). There is also potential for me to pickup another list of 20-30 or so accounts if I think I can handle it (that he cut down on last season, due to not wanting to do that many).

So my question is this, and this is open to anyones suggestion but I would really like some opinions from people who actually do what I do every year. I am in the market for something to this effect, and this will also be my DD for this winter and next summer until I pickup some little shitbox to beat on again :D

Diesel :
- 2000-2002 Dodge 2500 w/ Cummins 5.9L
- 2003-2005 Dodge 2500 w/ Cummins 6.7L (Maybe?)
- 2000-2003 Ford Powerstroke 7.3L (very relyable from what I hear, contrary to most Ford products)
- 2002-2005 Chevy/GMC 2500 w/ 6.6 Duramax

V10/8 :
- Chevy/GMC 8.1L V8 or 6.0L V8
- Ford 2002-2003 Triton V10
- Dodge 2000-2002 V10 Magnum 8.1L

Leaning more torwards the diesel for longevity/relyability (which is MOST important) and the more powerful motors as this truck needs to handle whatever I can throw at it for the next 5 seasons. Which could include streets around town or gated communities if I talk to the right people.

What do you gearheads think? I myself was leaning torwards the 2000-2002 Dodge 2500 5.9 Cummins OR the Ford 7.3L Powerstroke.... But I used to work on the Duramax motors sometimes and you cant go wrong with one of those either... This will be my first diesel but I have worked on many, so I will be doing all the work/mait. to this and know my way around them pretty well.

As a side note, this truck will also be pulling my trailer to KS for the Shootout and to NH for track days :D

Sorry for the length of this post, but I wanted to get the general idea across so I can get some good opinions.... Thanks guys!

[Z28pr0jekt]

I don't do what you do but I have alot of experience with hiring people to plow at my house back in NY and one big thing I found is you dont want a truck too big.

Idk how the houses are set up in MA
but my house and a large chunk of other houses in my area had the driveways running alongside of the house that were only a little bigger than the width or a normal vehicle.
It became a problem for plows to manuever once they got behind the house as there was limited room to turn without hitting the garage or porch.

[Fixxer99TA]

Well, what I am plowing with right now is a 2500 rack truck (Big box on the back, high back for roofing) with the single cab and the usual 8' HD Fisher plow. Now the truck is pretty much wider than what I am looking at, and about the same length and we dont have any issues... Most of the driveways that I look at/currently do are straight shots, so navigating a decent sized truck wont be a problem. If it was tighter and I had alot of places that I had to go behind like you describe, then I would be thinking a little smaller.

Most of the reason I picked the trucks listed is because I have the oppertunity to get some actual commercial accounts (apartments/parking lots/and maybe even streets/gated communities) rather than all driveways. I will still be doing alot of driveways, but hope to eventually have it mostly commercial accounts.

[KissMyWhtSS]

I'd just pick up a '01ish 2500HD with the 6.0L I'd rather have the truck paid off to maximize profits.

[Fixxer99TA]

What do you mean? Whatever I buy will be paid off anyways, I am trading my truck in (02 Dakota) plus using what I have saved up to buy it up front. No financing, No BS. So really its a question of which truck is going to last the longest, and be the most relyable in the long run. Fuel costs arent an object, diesel gets way better gas mileage doing the things I will be using it for + everyday driving around town and any trips I take. OK maybe the fuel cost difference would be .50-1.00 more than gas (right now anyways, usually diesel is less) but the diesel lasts longer, goes longer on oil changes, and gets the described better fuel mileage to boot. So you pay the little extra each oil change for the fuel filter/more oil/oil filter, but it pays you in the long run.

I really like the idea of 300-500k rebuild..... Have seen a dodge cummins myself with over 1,000,000 miles on the clock. Sure its been rebuilt, but what.... Once?

[KissMyWhtSS]

]You know the differences between the two... so it's up to you. What's your price range? I just figured there's not much reason to spend $20-30k on a truck when a $8-9k truck will get the deal done.

[BluBeaSSt]

The Old 7.3 IHC Diesel's are HOSS's! You cant kill them, and they will pull a house down.

I would just say away from any other ford Diesel (6.0,6.4) and we dont have any problem's really with the Duramax.

The Dodge likes to eat some Tranny's (imagine that!)

if your thinking about buying a V10....DONT buy a Diesel!

[Fixxer99TA]

]You know the differences between the two... so it's up to you. What's your price range? I just figured there's not much reason to spend $20-30k on a truck when a $8-9k truck will get the deal done.

Well, I know what I want out of it... Seems only the diesel will give me that. I dont mind paying now to have the more solid engine/more power and have it pay off longevity wise later on.

Trucks I have been looking at are between 15-20k.... So I would say my price range is somewhere between 15-22 or 23k... Id like to stay under 20 if possible but might budge if the truck is AMAZING. Staying under 23k will still allow me enough to get the plow installed (If it doesnt have one to boot, most trucks I saw at 18-20k already had em' and were low mileage diesels). So if it comes with one, I have a good chunk leftover.

[Fixxer99TA]

The Old 7.3 IHC Diesel's are HOSS's! You cant kill them, and they will pull a house down.

I would just say away from any other ford Diesel (6.0,6.4) and we dont have any problem's really with the Duramax.

The Dodge likes to eat some Tranny's (imagine that!)

if your thinking about buying a V10....DONT buy a Diesel!

Those old 7.3s being bulletproof is what made me think of a newer 7.3. Same engine family, newer and better. Cant go wrong with that, right??

No other Ford diesels are considered, the 6.0 and 6.4 are trash. (Notice I was pretty specific about the years, I know their track record :D)

Dodges do like to eat trans, yes. I myself have not had a problem with them though, but I do baby everything with wheels that I own :D (This includes the snowblower in the garage thats older than me and still runs, plan on taking that one out this season with maybe a backup just incase it finally bites the big one!)

The V10 was a small thought, but again the diesel is MUCH more efficient with almost the same engine size and it (the V10) wouldent last half as long. I would really be an idiot to buy a V10 knowing those facts...

[BluBeaSSt]

Those old 7.3s being bulletproof is what made me think of a newer 7.3. Same engine family, newer and better. Cant go wrong with that, right??

No other Ford diesels are considered, the 6.0 and 6.4 are trash. (Notice I was pretty specific about the years, I know their track record :D)

Dodges do like to eat trans, yes. I myself have not had a problem with them though, but I do baby everything with wheels that I own :D (This includes the snowblower in the garage thats older than me and still runs, plan on taking that one out this season with maybe a backup just incase it finally bites the big one!)

The V10 was a small thought, but again the diesel is MUCH more efficient with almost the same engine size and it (the V10) wouldent last half as long. I would really be an idiot to buy a V10 knowing those facts...


For the Most part a 7.3 is a 7.3, the old one's are N/A in the ford trucks untill....95 I think.

"Built Ford Tough .... With the heart of a Combine" :D

[Camaro_94]

A few people in my Family snow plow. My Father used to use his 96 Tahoe to plow driveways, but sold it a few years ago to buy a new 05 Silverado 2500HD. Its not a diesel either. He says that overall it works good.

My cousins use Ford F-350's that are diesels, and i'm pretty sure they also have a few F-450's too that are diesels. They do a lot of commercial work, while my father does mainly residential work. They live in Springfield, Massachusetts though, while were in Rochester, NY and have a lot of Lake Effect snow which is even harder to plow.

Like I said, my father goes out and snow plows with a 05 Silverado 2500HD, that isnt a diesel, and doesnt have any problems with it. Lake effect snow is much harder to plow because its a lot heavier than regular snow (gotta love Lake Ontairo!), so you should be safe using either the 00-03 Ford Powerstroke 7.3L or 02-05 Chevy / GMC 2500 6.6 Duramax Diesel.

- Mike

[Fixxer99TA]

Thanks for the input guys, still considering mostly diesels because of the fuel mileage advantage when working. Still not totally sure though.

Going to look at some next week sometime. Have only really been able to find 7.3L 250/350s around the mileage (40-60k) and condition (just decent, I dont want to have to work on it right off the bat) that I am looking for. Found some real good prices on those fords too, between 16k-18k for right in the area (40-60k, good cond., leather, everything). Minimal dodge 5.9Ls for sale for some reason, maybe everyone bought em' :D.

I will still try to test drive both a few times (different trucks) to see what I really like best, but right now its looking more like a Ford 7.3L simply due to no selection at all in the Dodge department.

[KissMyWhtSS]

I hate dodge trucks, but the only experience I've had is with 5.2/5.9L 1500 Rams. Shitty transmissions and terrible gas mileage.

[IronOutlaw]

I drive and 01 dodge 2500 evryday that is my boss's truck. so i guess its got teh smaller motor.

All i know is that it will pull a house but it is slow as hell. My buddy has the last yer model powerstroke before they went tt and it is a lot stronger than the dodge. I would go for the newer cummins if your gonna go dodge.

[Fixxer99TA]

Yeah I have actually been looking at the newer dodges more than I thought I would, they are very nice.

Only thing that keeps me away from the newer trucks is all the extra emissions BS.

[Fixxer99TA]

SO considering there are NO 5.9L dodges for sale (that are decent, anyways) right now near me, I have been giving more thought torwards the 1998-2002 7.3L Powerstroke OR the revised (and apparently pretty solid, from what I have heard) 2005-2007 6.0L Powerstroke.

The problems on the early 6.0Ls were tuning issues (bad from the factory, but fixed before 2004) and the Variable Vane Turbo/EGR getting gummed up from the earlier diesel fuels (NOT ULSD, they are designed to run on ULSD). People have also been killing them with aftermarket tuning... The 6.0L comes with a VERY aggressive tune from the factory, so a tuner really isnt needed to "get the edge". But people used them anyways, and blew head gaskets as a result.

Does anyone think looking at the newer 6.0Ls is a bad idea? The fixes for the problems are simple, if it even has them (Those EGR/Turbo clogs are a simple take apart/clean deal). So anyone else? Going to test drive some 7.3s/6.0s this weekend and will report what I find/like. Hopefully this thread might help someone else too in the future.

[Camaro_94]

SO considering there are NO 5.9L dodges for sale (that are decent, anyways) right now near me, I have been giving more thought torwards the 1998-2002 7.3L Powerstroke OR the revised (and apparently pretty solid, from what I have heard) 2005-2007 6.0L Powerstroke.

The problems on the early 6.0Ls were tuning issues (bad from the factory, but fixed before 2004) and the Variable Vane Turbo/EGR getting gummed up from the earlier diesel fuels (NOT ULSD, they are designed to run on ULSD). People have also been killing them with aftermarket tuning... The 6.0L comes with a VERY aggressive tune from the factory, so a tuner really isnt needed to "get the edge". But people used them anyways, and blew head gaskets as a result.

Does anyone think looking at the newer 6.0Ls is a bad idea? The fixes for the problems are simple, if it even has them (Those EGR/Turbo clogs are a simple take apart/clean deal). So anyone else? Going to test drive some 7.3s/6.0s this weekend and will report what I find/like. Hopefully this thread might help someone else too in the future.

So you are only looking for diesels right now? If so, I'd get the 98-02 7.3L's over the 6.0's.

- Mike

[Speed Kills]

I'd just pick up a '01ish 2500HD with the 6.0L I'd rather have the truck paid off to maximize profits.


Hell, for what you can buy an '03-04 for, I'd go that route.....


but yeah, what he said.