maintenence costs?

[2003Cummins4Me]

I have been talking to some people about getting a cummins diesel and usually the first comment out of their mouth is that they are expensive to maintain and they require more maintenence... is this true? i dont need a truck for towing, i want a nice daily driver that will last a long time... thanks in advance.

 

[ttreibel]

I don't know who is feeding you that hooey but I can assure you that the Cummins is the cheapest of the major three for cost of consumables. I do all my own maintenance so I can't vouch for what the dealers are charging but I have heard horror stories from Dodge, Ford, and GM users in regards to high priced oil and filter changes.



for one year here is what typical 15K of mileage



oil 2 changes= 6gallons total 45. 00

oil filter x 2=16. 00

fuel filter 1=12. 75

air filter 1=26. 50

 

[rbattelle]

The people who told you this were probably speaking about diesels in general. Yes, it's true that diesels are often more expensive to repair when they break. The up side is, they rarely break. The diesel is one of the most reliable machines out there, and the Cummins is particularly so.



If you're talking about just preventative maintenance, no they're not expensive at all. I change oil and filter every 3000 miles and I find the process very affordable. I do 95% of my preventative maintenance myself (I let the dealer change my fuel filter just in case I ever need to make a fuel system warranty claim!).

 

[y-knot]

They are absolutely right, RUN,GET AWAY WHILE YOU CAN! Just kidding, The trucks them selves are not high maintenance Items. On mine The only real maintenance done since 97' was a valve adjustment at 24,000 and oil and filter changes. Not one engine related issue, none. In fact the truck itself has never been out of service for a failure related issue. So the trucks are anything but, HIGH MAINTENANCE. What happens is they are contagious, just like the plague, and just as deadly, they will bleed your wallet dry. See these truck invite you to speed money on them, I think they must whisper it very low while you drive, one of those subliminal things. It must be true, every time I go some place, I come up with a new reason to buy something else for the truck. I need to attend a CTA meeting (Cummins Truckowners Anonymous), or a physiologist. Thu I believe my inflection to be terminal, so just set me behind the wheel and bury us together.

 

[TCDiesel]

Cost

V-8 Diesels have a much higher maintenance cost no matter what their in Cat,cummins,Detroit don"t even built one for OTR vehicles,Only Ford-Navistar/Gm-Isuzu do. A V-8 diesel has no more main bearing than a 4 cylinder . If you want longevity buy the ISB.

 

[bighammer]

They are MUCH more expensive than the gassers. First of all, it takes more oil at each change, (and more often oil changes) more costly filters, valve adjustments, etc. Of course with gas engines you have tune ups and other stuff that balances it out until you start BOMBing it. Then it gets really $pendy. Upgrade injectors, turbos, guages, fueling boxes, timing boxes, clutches, valve bodies, torque converters, tires and other parts worn because of enormous horsepower and torque numbers, etc. Need I go on?

 

[Moterhead]

Cummins has posted on their website, the following quote on oil changes (re, cost of ownership, meaning cost of maintenance):



"Service: Reduced cost-of-ownership. With cleaner combustion we’ve reduced the sooting of lubrication oil. Therefore we were able to double the oil change intervals to 15,000 miles for normal service and 7,500 for severe duty. (California, Maine and Massachusetts engines remain at 2002 levels). "



Take at look yourself here:



http://www.cummins.com/na/pages/en/products/dodgeram/cummins24vturbodiesel.cfm



Frequency of oil changes, kind of oil to use, etc are subjects that you can beat to death. Everyone has an opionion. IMHO when the manufacturer (and warranty provider) says 15,000 miles, that's is what's necessary for engine life and warranty protection. I don't really care how often someone else changes their oil, heck change it every 100 miles if you want to.



The topic is maintenance costs. Those go up if you change your oil more often, so YOU, the owner, control those costs to a great extent.



JOIBO!

 

[2003Cummins4Me]

thanks for all of the replies... yea the people that i have talked to are comparing gas to diesel as far as maintenence costs, i already know the cummins is the best diesel . so really there isnt much more to take care of on a normal basis on a diesel... its just when they break down it gets expensive... well that makes sense, gas breaks down a lot=cheaper to fix, diesel rarely breaks=costs more to fix... sounds like i would rather enjoy the better gas mileage, power, and longevity and deal with it when/if it ever breaks!