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re: good for the long haul, AND newbie "into"
For the thread asking about these being durable trucks, I have to say yes...regular maintenance by the fleet owner of the 97 F250 I bought last year has kept it in fine running condition with just one lil nit-problem. Its a 2wd, plain-jane standard cab PSD, and had 280K miles on it. The first couple of long trips (to and from CA from CO) were somewhat laborious, but after driving a full-time 440 Power Wagon for 15 years, it was still a welcome relief. Anywho, the dual mass flywheel completely grenaded up on I 80 somewhere west of laramie (elk mountain.)
Enter Diesel Stop...after reviewing the forums I decided to go with a LUK conversion clutch setup with a standard one piece flywheel. When I pulled the inspection plate to drop the tranny two large handfuls of crap fell out, thats how blown the dual mass setup was. At the same time I did the clutch I also put in a 4" downpipe. What a world of difference these two changes made! The clutch action is as easy as on some rice car, vibration, noise all improved. I'm sure the trashed DMF wasn't really even "use-able" when I bought the truck, but I STILL managed 8000 miles before it just totally crapped out.
I gotta tell you that my last trip to CA (via NM and AZ) this time was a joy to drive! 21-22 mpg unloaded, 16-17 with a full trailer on the way back. I'm sure the topper I got from the pennysaver ad ($125) helped a bit, and this time I was pulling my flatbed rather than the enclosed box, so we'll see how that goes next month when I head out again. The truck has 302K miles on it now and is very strong and reliable. I see no reason why it shouldn't go another 2-300k with proper care and regular maintenance. Best damn 5000 dollar truck I ever owned! This summer money may be a bit tighter than usual, so the truck will get the low-cost/high-labor treatments, mainly in attempts to get a little noise reduction. Some sound deadening stuff in the cab mainly, but I also want to put in one of those high pressure crossover oil lines. I was toying with the idea of a different air filter system but decided against it for now, as I don't really see where there's a mileage benefit and cannot fathom sucking hot underhood air from a more open system. Maybe Bilsteins if I get a good lottery ticket, can anyone PM me with your thoughts on those for a (relatively) light truck that also does periodic heavy hauls?
Thanks to you all for a GREAT site, I have to say that in 15 years as a netizen this is the bar-none best automobile-related group of users and site I have ever come across!
Best Regards,
Dale Phelps,
Northern CO
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