chancecasey

I'm thinking about picking up a 1999 F350 4x4 crew cab with 155,000 miles. It's the 7.3L turbo diesel. Leather interior, clean carfax. couple of minor dings on tailgate and one of the quarter panels but not bad at all. They're asking $12K.

Just wondering, how many guys here drive a rig similar to this "often" or daily, and what I can expect maintenance-wise. Obviously it's going to be more upkeep than a Civic (my other choice, and probably the smarter one), but I'm wondering just how bad could it be especially if I'm pretty mechanically inclined.

Tim

I drive an '03 F250 PSD 4X4 as my daily driver..... the only maintenance is oil changes and fuel filter changes.. other than that it bullet proof. I'm due for ball joints/discs/pads though my truck does have 90K on the clock

kgorman

I drive a 2006 F350 PSD 4x4 as my daily driver. Miles don't matter to it, maintenance is simple and you can do it yourself, and it gets reasonable mileage. There really isn't all that much maintenance, just oil changes mainly. These vehicles are die hard.

That 99 sounds like an excellent choice. Get yourself an extra cam position sensor in your glove box.

ltc

+1.
Here is my bride's daily driver (and family tow vehicle and dog hauler), an 05 Excursion Eddie Bauer 6.0L Powerstroke 4x4. It replaced her 00 Excursion Limited 7.3L.
About the only thing you get used to is backing into parking spots sometimes (it's easier with a vehicle this large).
Comfortable, long range (800 miles unloaded on a tank).

Veloce Raptor

I never thought I would use a truck as a daily drover, but I really enjoy it (and its 39 gallon tank) now:

Gary R.

A real man drives one of these...

Veloce Raptor

I figured you for more of this, when you said "real man":

Gary R.

I would have, just couldn't get used to the tobacco....

Sean F

I think part of the equation is what daily driver means. I have an 05 Excursion PSD and daily driving for me consists of driving 1.5 miles each way to the train station to commute into NYC. I drive it on the weekends as well and I actually really like driving it around town.

Veloce Raptor

LMAO...

chancecasey

Currently I do 45 miles round trip for work - though that could change before long. The "carry an extra cam sensor" comment is kind of what I was looking for. I browsed the diesel forums at ford.com - of course there's nothing but bad news there, and that cam sensor thing is a common theme. I hear about some outrageous parts and labor for these trucks and it scared me a little - but then again, I guess the same would apply to a 964 daily driver if you didn't take the time to learn how to DIY. I suppose I'm a little hesitant because 2 of the things I don't yet have any experience with - turbo and diesel.

cooleyjb

I've driven a 1 ton truck around town and it sucks. A 99 F350 no less. However it was the Gas version.

I hate driving bigger vehicles around town. I lived in San Jose and commuted to Palo Alto one summer in a Toyota pickup and it was just about the most unfun commute for so many reasons, one was the fact that I was in a truck.

For daily drivers I like smaller stuff. Right now I switch between a mini-van when I need to carry stuff and a WRX for my DD and everytime I'm in the van driving through town I think about how much nicer the WRX would be for getting in and out of parking lots, side streets, etc.

Everything is just easier in a smaller car getting around town. Why increase the nuisance level if you don't have to. If I were to get a 350, i'd probably get a cheap beater car to drive around and keep my sanity.

penguinking

+12345

I drive my suburban daily and parking is always a mess. sometimes in traffic i can boss people around cause i drive a huge truck, sometimes i get the bad end cause im too slow. its a toss up. sure makes driving the porsche feel a whole lot more fun though. if i drove a wrx daily then the porsche wouldnt seem so much faster

ltc

Are you referring to the CPS (camshaft position sensor)?
IIRC, that was an "issue" with 7.3L Powerstrokes, I haven't heard of any issues with 6.0 and the new 6.4L.
It is a bitch, like a DME relay....when it fails, you stop. My wife's failed at ~70K on her 00 Excursion (70K = just about getting the motor broken in), Ford replaced it for free.

Crazy Canuck

We have a '00 Ford F-350 PSD here at work and we're thinking of trading it. We also have an '02 GMC 2500HD Duramax and the GMC is a much easier truck to drive and uses about 1/3 less fuel than the Ford.

When towing the Ford is a pig on fuel.

Given the choice I will pick our GMC to drive every time over the Ford.