Well, I am getting the itch to try something new yet again--but will make the relationship a bit more permanent this time. No ifs, ands, or buts... I need something that pulls better than a gasoline engine of the same era and a heavier duty truck that will stand up to a heavier trailer.

I'm considering the purchase of a '91 F-250 diesel. 4x2, automatic. Can anyone tell me a little about the reliability of these trucks in general? What should I look out for?

Hoping to find something for about $7k.

Auto preferred, unless manual towing capacity will be equal to that of an auto. Might be the case in these heavy-duty trucks. I dunno.

What maintenance is required, and how much does maintenance usually cost? What about fuel mileage?

Thanks,
-Mike

 

Mike: Before my current truck I had an F150 4x4 4.6 V8 5speed (I perfer the manuals) I towed a small 6x10 covered trailer or a flat open bike trailer w a full dresser on it. The truck towed those just fine but when I went to towing heavyer trailers, I could feel the strain. I've now moved up to the Powerstroke Diesel and it will pull Anything I hitch behind it I completely love it. I don't know anything about the older ones except that they still seem to fetch a good price. So that should tell you something. I do have a friend w/an older Ford diesel dooley. I was talking w/him about miles on the engine and he mentioned that it had already tripped once and was still running very strong. The best place to really get some info on these older diesels is to check out www.ford-diesel.com As far as auto vs manual. I would say that it depends on how good you are with the clutch. If you're good then go for the manual. I've always heard that with these heavyer trucks the manual is better than the auto.
Maintainance can be your biggest problem w/the older truck. It's gonna depend on how well the previous owner kept the truck. Try to find a truck that wasn't driven by every employee in the company and also has all it's maintainance documented. At every oil change, I also pull an oil sample and have it analized. It wouldn't hurt to do that with any truck you're looking at. Major maintainance items shouldn't even show up until you've got lots of miles on the engine. Like maybe over 150k. The only maintainance I have to do on my new truck is oil changes. Good luck on your search and do check out the other site I listed. Post back when you find something.

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2k F250 CC SWB 6 speed 4x2 Diesel XLT Super Duty, Woodland Green
Power Mirrors, 3.73 LS, Captains Chairs, ARE tonneau top, rear privacy glass
TT Pkg, Class IV hitch, sliding rear window, running boards, mud flaps
265/75/16 AS OWL tires, am/fm/cassette/cd, rechargable MagLite
Clarion APA 5240 amp, Memphis speakers:Components front, 5x7 rear, 10"sub
SuperChip, Stepshields, Ventshields on windows, rubber bed mat
rugged liner bedliner on tailgate, quick disconnect jumper cables
unaFORDable (decal on tailgate)