1998 Chevy 6.5L turbo diesel

[Clevy]

Hey guys.
So I totalled my hemi last week and I see countless 98 chev turbo diesels for sale and what seems to be low cost. What am I missing? I've spent the past few hours on google looking into them. Can anyone please comment and fill me in on everything I need to know.
I'm considering a 4x4 dually for winter use and summer camper hauling. I'm also negotiating with a couple local RV dealers to pick up and transport stock from the manufacturer. So it's roughly a 3000km round trip.
Basically I'll be putting a driver behind the wheel and will be an contract hauler.
So what do I need to know about these trucks and engines. I don't want to have catastrophic failure on the maiden voyage.
And of course oil,tranny fluid and anything specific in relation to these trucks.
Anecdotes,personal experience and my cousins wife's brother comments are welcome.

Thank you

 

[2004tdigls]

http://www.dieselplace.com/forum/63-gm-diesel-engines/21-6-5l-diesel-engine/

 

[supton]

Don't know much about the GM diesels, other than I think the later 6.5's had electronic pumps.

But a dually for snow duty? Sounds iffy, even with 4x4. Can you get good snow tires for those sorts of setups?

 

[tig1]

If you are looking for a diesel I would not buy that truck. My son in law had one and it was short on power and high on repairs.

 

[SwampSurvivor]

Originally Posted By: supton
Don't know much about the GM diesels, other than I think the later 6.5's had electronic pumps.

But a dually for snow duty? Sounds iffy, even with 4x4. Can you get good snow tires for those sorts of setups?


There are some good high-siping tires available in LT215-85R16. A good set of tires (like Dura Tracs) and some weight in the back and it would be good in the snow.

 

[apwillard1986]

We still see some in service once in awhile at the dealership. It was fairly bulletproof if not very powerful. It is ancient by today’s standards and was designed as a fuel efficient alternative to GM’s small and big-block gas offerings in the eighties and nineties. It was not really designed to compete with the diesels offered by competitors in terms of power or enhanced capability. It was designed during a time when a diesel truck was a fuel efficient alternative to a gasoline powered truck.

 

[Clevy]

Thanks guys. I was already reading threads in the diesel place forum and I thank you for the link.
Basically I'm going to see if this whole business is viable and self sustaining,and I'd like to give it a shot but still keep my start up expenses as low as possible until the business is generating its own revenue then look at the numbers and if it is viable then look at the business buying a better truck for itself and not draining my personal funds.
I don't however want to set myself up for failure by buying a hunk of junk and it needing major service right off the bat.
I'm seeing these trucks for 3000-5000 bucks. Each run pays a hook up,a drop off,then x dollars per km.
They are 3000km round trips. The company can return my investment on a truck in that range in 2-3 runs however I don't want to neuter it's cash flow in case there is some form of catastrophe.
I've just found a 98 24V cummins,also a dually with 4wd with 300000 kms on the truck. It's listed at 5500.
Has anyone got any experience with that model.
And as far as snow and a dually I will keep chains on the truck. They are legal in the mountains under blizzard or extreme snow conditions.
After looking into the turbo chevys they really aren't that remarkable as far as stock power levels go.
Roughly same tq as my hemi and less hp,which means I'd have to build more boost,and of course whatever supporting mods that go with building more boost. So I'm not completely abandoning the chev idea yet however if that dodge is a better drivetrain I'd lean that way.
So forum,what have the collective to say about a 98 dodge 24v as far as towing and durability.

Thank you

 

[RMM]

I think that most here will tell you that while the Cummins 24v is a fantastic motor, that truck has two weaknesses: (1) The 24 valve lift pump is known to go bad which then toasts the injectors (this is easy to remedy before a problem occurs); and (2) Dodge automatic transmissions or that era are not good, especially when used for heavy towing.

 

[DrDusty86]

Clevy, I had a 98.5 3500 4x4 24v. It was by FAR the biggest pos I've own. The lift pumps are prone to failure unless you get a performance pump, the AC compressors are known to fail, the timing cover cracks do to the killer dowl pin, YES the 24v was affected by it. Mine leaked a quart of oil every 20 miles. The electrical systems are iffy, several I know have had a short for the key in the steering colum requiring you to go up and down with the tilt wheel about a dozen times before the key will provide any accessory power or start the truck. The front ends can eat tires at the rate of 20,000 miles, I even had my front end rebuilt and it as marginally better.
I'd pass on the Dodge
RMM, you forgot about the KDP, the front ends, the electrical systems etc....Minus the KDP the Cummins MAY be a great motor but the shipping crate is not so much

 

[Clevy]

Alright.
Thanks for the info guys. I was basically trying to get this all going with my rainy day money,and not having to acquire anything that I can't pay for up front however I'm beginning to see that if I want to give this the best chance of being even remotely successful I need to spend substantially more money so I can acquire equipment that isn't on it's last legs,and potentially putting me out of business before I go into business.
I just hate payments but I'm not in a position to drop 20k or more on a lower mile diesel.
It's funny. Once you get into the 15-20k range the trucks get a whole lot nicer.
What should I be looking for? It doesn't need to be a dually but it does have to be 4wd. And what models were built without all the new generation(complication)exhaust hardware,and should I be leaning in that direction or would it be smarter to get a used unit with all the pollution controls.
Ultimately fuel economy is priority,and I will be driving thru the mountains for 1600 of the 3000km round trip kms,so power is also a feature I'd need some of.
And manual or automatic in respect to durability and reliability.
Any and all suggestions are welcome.

Thanks again

 

[DrDusty86]

Manual-whatever the brand if you are buying used. The manuals in the Ford 95-10 were often a lot cheaper to run than the auto boxes. The Dodge of 94-02 had such a POS auto that they detuned it's power and it was still weak. The GM's NV 4500 was solid as was the ZF6 starting in 01'
If you can drive a manual correctly and use the transfercase "low" whenever possible, the manual transmission should last 500k miles or more including the clutch. The Dodge NV 4500 needs 5th gear welded at some point but it is a lot cheaper then an auto box rebuild.
I got 331k miles grossing over 40k 97% of the time. The trans AND clutch were still factory. The 4r100 would have cratered about 6 transmissions under my use in that time. The manuals ALSO put more power to the ground. Someone, now tell me that that's wrong.. I DARE YA. lol

 

[tig1]

Clevy,
By the way are you alright from the crash? We overlooked that most important point>

 

[pennzoil_guru]

Why not a 2003 7.3 L Powerstroke? Not too expensive especially with a nanual. Not too many emissions, decent power and torque, and none of the 6.0 shortcomings