Gas vs Diesel Cost of Ownership

unit · April 6, 2021

No question that the a gasoline engine is less expensive to buy and also less expensive to run, however, I wouldn't give up my Duramax for the the difference. Diesel fuel is $0.20/gal cheaper where I'm at and generally stays that way. The power of the diesel and the 10 speed trans are a great combination if you can afford it. I don't really drive it enough for the extra fuel efficiency of the diesel to make a lot of difference but there isn't a gasoline engine in a heavy duty pickup that can approach it for fuel mileage.

nards444 · April 6, 2021

On 4/5/2021 at 10:26 PM, Red_5 said:

Does the 6.6 gas engine require premium fuel like the 6.2? On our trips towing last summer through CA, OR, NV, UT and ID the premium fuel required for my 6.2 was the most expensive at every stop, I looked. From memory diesel was around the price of regular unleaded which was often $.50 a gallon less than the premium I was buying. Also, the direct injection gas engine needs frequent intake valve cleaning. You can do it yourself for less than $15 or pay over $100 at the dealership. I do it myself now before each oil change. An oil catch can might help too.

I also noticed that no one mentioned resale value. You will definitely make up a nice chunk of the $10k diesel premium when selling/trading in down the road. Resale value and fuel economy together can certainly reduce the cost gap. Unfortunately, the emissions crap have made diesels less reliable and expensive to repair. The Ford 7.3 gas seems like it might be a good way to go since it's port injected and runs on regular unleaded. I'm shopping for an HD currently. I've always wanted a diesel but I'm still not sure.

Have to remember a lot of the stuff you hear online is all the bad. For every horror story there are 10 trucks out there probably more where there is no issue. With that said I think you have to look at how long you will own it. I live in the North with salt, some people keep things forever but typically a realistic life span of a vehicle up here is 10 years max. For me its roughly 4-5 years max, with that mind I get a bumper to bumper for 3 years and have another 2 years after that for power train. I have owned some diesels past warranty have purchased the manufactured branded warranty for like 1500 bucks. With all of those things my risk is very minimal in paying big for repairs.

Like I said upon resale you will get a portion of that 10k and with improved gas mileage on the diesel, your overall cost of ownership over 5-10 years is probably very similar. Unless your the guy that gets a new truck every 1-2 years, those guys are nuts and only see things in the terms of what their payment is.

Edited April 7, 2021 by nards444

Ray Pickle · April 6, 2021

I have heard a couple of folks mention that you recover some front end cost at resale. That is not the case according to Edmunds or Kbb. In fact the gas depreciates slightly less than diesel variants. Possibly due to relatively fewer available and the percieve potential of major repair expense of diesel due to inability of major manufacturers to sort emmission controls out dependably to date.

Another JR · April 7, 2021

Hi Ray,

I think you may be confusing depreciation percentage with depreciation actual dollars. Let's say you buy a diesel for 80k and sell it 5 years later for 60 k, versus you buy a gas truck for 70k and sell it after 5 years for 56k. While your simple capital cost of ownership was 20k for the diesel and 14k for the gas, the diesel owner did still get 4k more for their used truck. They don't fully lose that extra 10k they paid at initial purchase. That 4k additional money back at resale is what people are talking about when they say you recoup some or most of the cost of purchasing a diesel at resale. However, as you point out, the gas truck actually held its value better in that hypothetical example, and that is what the KBB data you mentioned apparently shows.

Jon

Edited April 7, 2021 by Another JR

nards444 · April 7, 2021

11 hours ago, Another JR said:

Hi Ray,

I think you may be confusing depreciation percentage with depreciation actual dollars. Let's say you buy a diesel for 80k and sell it 5 years later for 60 k, versus you buy a gas truck for 70k and sell it after 5 years for 56k. While your simple capital cost of ownership was 20k for the diesel and 14k for the gas, the diesel owner did still get 4k more for their used truck. They don't fully lose that extra 10k they paid at initial purchase. That 4k additional money back at resale is what people are talking about when they say you recoup some or most of the cost of purchasing a diesel at resale. However, as you point out, the gas truck actually held its value better in that hypothetical example, and that is what the KBB data you mentioned apparently shows.

Jon

Yeah when I compared like trucks the diesels were commanding 4-6k more. Because of the market Ive actually seen diesels go for 10k more than a gas lately.

Ray Pickle · April 9, 2021

What would the 10 k difference be worth if you held it instead of spent it during ownership length of truck? In other words , carrying cost?

nards444 · April 9, 2021

6 hours ago, Ray Pickle said:

What would the 10 k difference be worth if you held it instead of spent it during ownership length of truck? In other words , carrying cost?

All in the eyes of the owner. Bigger gun, faster car, etc. Cheaper or more expensive dont always provide context. My house cost twice as much as my neighbors and twice as big, he still has a house and lives just fine, but its not a better house

Edited April 9, 2021 by nards444

Ray Pickle · April 9, 2021

Topic was gas v. diesel cost of ownership. If the gas truck will perform the needs of poster it will be cheaper to own. If someone wants a bigger, house, bigger rv, boat, et.al. its the great american way. At least it used to be! But it is a want not a need and based on the posters question he is looking to fill a need.

nards444 · April 10, 2021

12 hours ago, Ray Pickle said:

Topic was gas v. diesel cost of ownership. If the gas truck will perform the needs of poster it will be cheaper to own. If someone wants a bigger, house, bigger rv, boat, et.al. its the great american way. At least it used to be! But it is a want not a need and based on the posters question he is looking to fill a need.

I get that. You asked worth, and thats subjective. The gas motor is cheaper to buy and most likely cheaper to run at least in the short term. You asked what the 10k would really be worth, and many have answered. I think the OPs question is answered one engine is better than the other, one engine is probably cheaper. What does the owner want? Cheaper isnt always better, nor is spending more money

unit · April 10, 2021

You know, there is precious little going on in this forum. There are times that we go for days without anything new being posted, so I say let's dive in and talk it up. We need to encourage more discussion to keep this thing alive.

CRApex · April 10, 2021

14 hours ago, Ray Pickle said:

Topic was gas v. diesel cost of ownership. If the gas truck will perform the needs of poster it will be cheaper to own. If someone wants a bigger, house, bigger rv, boat, et.al. its the great american way. At least it used to be! But it is a want not a need and based on the posters question he is looking to fill a need.

More to the cost discussion than what a calculator shows. It comes down to how you define "cost or price". Strictly dollars wise I think the gas owners can make an argument. But for me the true cost/value of the diesel is the far more satisfying experience every time I drive it either empty or loader. If I have to crunch numbers because that difference is so tight, the diesel is an absolute no brainer. I always hear about the emmissions horror stories too that are way over blown and very isolated plus the Duramax combo has 40k more of drivetrain warranty than the gas. The gas trucks get the job done but when asking about gas vs diesel cost of ownership there is much more to it than just the $$$, its the overall experience. Also don't over look the 10spd tranny, its absolutely awesome if you haven't experienced it..

Point being for the original question posted or anyone else asking the same question, There are intangibles beyond the numbers that should factor in.

itsnotlookinggood · April 10, 2021

depends on miles, driving habbits, towing and maintenance. I can say from me, I usually do my own maintenance and I use the truck for towing/work . I wanted diesel, but the math # and seeing as I use the truck as a truck, diesel would have been cheaper based on mpg and driving if I kept it for 14 years... i still paid over 50k for a gasser and it didnt even come with a volume control on the wheel. i have serious doubts it will still be running after 5-6 years so my math and reasons are out the window. ill update when I sell it

nards444 · April 12, 2021

On 4/10/2021 at 12:43 PM, itsnotlookinggood said:

depends on miles, driving habbits, towing and maintenance. I can say from me, I usually do my own maintenance and I use the truck for towing/work . I wanted diesel, but the math # and seeing as I use the truck as a truck, diesel would have been cheaper based on mpg and driving if I kept it for 14 years... i still paid over 50k for a gasser and it didnt even come with a volume control on the wheel. i have serious doubts it will still be running after 5-6 years so my math and reasons are out the window. ill update when I sell it

Volume on the steering wheel is a package not a motor choice, but I get you. I think if you were to legit put 14 years on a vehicle and tow a lot there would only be on choice and that would be the diesel.

For me I dont think I would own anything past 5 years, but think in general most trucks should give somebody between 5-10 years of good service before it becomes non economical to own. Like I said before with a diesel if your going for cost savings you will probably have to drive it close to decade maybe more to say you saved money.

Ive owned both, and there value in a diesel hauling up hill both ways while eating your lunch, talking on the phone and breaking a sweat vs something that just completes the requirement.

Hobbypro · April 24, 2021

On 4/4/2021 at 7:57 AM, nards444 said:

Heres the deal, you will never save money with a diesel, bottom line anybody else tells you otherwise they arent telling the truth. But there are a few caveats. 1. Commerical usage or if you are high mileage, you may get to the point where you break even or potentially pull ahead, but you are talking hundreds of thousands of miles or hours to get there. 2. Its like anything else, you are buying capability, and the other bottom line is that diesel motor will out haul that gas motor any day any time.

As to some cost

1. DEF fluid probably an added 100-200 bucks a years

2. Oil Changes dealers charge anywhere from 120-200 bucks an oil change vs 50ish, also need fuel filters yearly at another 30-40 bucks

3. Initial cost of the engine is 10k more.

4. Diesel fuel cost on average 20 cents more a gallon, some places more some less, around here its closer to 30 cents more. Although you will likely get 20-30% better MPG with diesel maybe more. Ive done calculations here at 15k miles a year between the gas engine and diesel, and with the better MPG of diesel your literally at like 10-15 years maybe more on breaking even with point number 3, with an average 15k miles a year. Could speed up that break even point if you live somewhere where diesel is the same or cheaper or haul a ton of miles, but the bottom line is you will probably never see that break even point

The only diesel I could a break even point to make sense was the dodge eco diesel in the half ton, engine was only a 3-4k upgrade and the mileage bump made it so the break even point was like 4 years. But with that said that motor was less capable than many gas engines on the market, so really didnt make sense unless you were crusing long miles in the truck.

4a. Diesel cost more up front, but you will hold value better at trade or selling time, so you will get some of that back. 4-5 year old diesels still command 40k plus and you simply wouldnt see that in gas truck.

5. Break fix maintenance will be more as well. Personally I would never own a diesel without some sort of warranty on the power train.

With this all being said I am currently in a gas truck and just ordered a diesel 2500, and have owned diesels in the past. Nothing pulls like a diesel it just doesn't. And dont forget throwing a big load on a gas engine and getting 10mpg or sometimes less, sucks having to shell out at that pump at an already expensive trip. Theres hauling with gas and RPM, slowing down etc, where the diesel will just keep going.

I always find the resale value point humorous. People will mention that an old diesel will go for 20K while a gas from the same year with similar miles and condition will only go for 10K. Well yeah you paid 10K more for the diesel so that makes sense. It’s worth more but that doesn’t mean it held its value any better.

unit · April 24, 2021

If an older diesel sells for $10K more than a gasoline version, then it did indeed keep more value than the gas engine truck. $10K would be a 100% return on the investment and that's unheard of with used vehicles. The argument that diesels don't hold their value any more than a gas engine may be legitimate but the analogy above is wrong.