I came across a 1998 Dodge pickup in exceptionally good shape for Michigan, but it's got the V10 engine. I've no doubt it would pull my trailer with any load I want, but the prospect of 10 mpg (my guess) is scary. Anyone got one and can share real world gas mileage experience? I like the look of that model and it's really well equipped, just the one big "but" where the operating cost is concerned.
I can offer this:
http://www.lawnsite.com/archive/index.php/t-157021.html
8 unloaded, 4-5 pulling
Don't know about the dodge v10 but My ford is 14-17 unloaded and 7-10 pulling my 10000 trailer and two bikes in the bed. I can squeak 11.2 out of it towing if going south, minding speed(60-65) and no a/c windows up. Normally 8mpg hauling about the same i would get with a diesel but with out added cost up front nor with $150 oil changes and horse piss for the exhaust etc.
If its for daily use no if for towing and trips to HD yes.
Or you do what the guy who built my truck did: Find a rusted out Cummins p/u of similar vintage, swap over the dash (with required diesel VIN) and drivetrain, then sell the contraption to some poor unsuspecting schmuck (that would be me) for a tidy profit...
$150 oil changes? My 12V Cummins doesn't cost anywhere near that for an oil change, buying 6 gal cases of 15w40 from Sam's club and filters from Pep Boys. I change the oil every-other year (doesn't get driven much).
44dwarf, respectfully, the ford v10 is the biggest piece of E36 M3 I've ever had the displeasure of driving (a 2010 model at that). It's slow, gets terrible gas mileage, and requires revs to make any power. It is exactly what you do not want in a truck... And I doubt the dodge is much better
The problem with towing with the V10 Dodge is that you'll never know if you lost your trailer. You just don't feel it back there.
My pal Bob has had one since new. He swears it gets 12mpg. As in 12 city/12 highway/12 towing. Nothing but 12.
isn't just mentioning "gas mileage" and "V10" fall under the "if you have to ask; you probably..................." category?
EvanR,,,my son made the same comment about losing the trailer.
Pete.....Yes, but I thought I'd get confirmation anyway !!
Grtechguy... 2:1 on that forum for "it will suck" !
It is a nice looking old truck, but even 10 mpg would hurt,5 would just tick me off. Best that I pass on this one.
44Dwarf wrote: Normally 8mpg hauling about the same i would get with a diesel but with out added cost up front nor with $150 oil changes and horse piss for the exhaust etc.
Huh wha? My oil changes were less than 1/3 of that, and that's with quality oil and a Mopar filter. And where the heck are you getting 8 mpg with a diesel? Guess what a big rig gets? 8 mpg usually. My Dodge never recorded lower than 18mpg, ever. Since you mention horse piss, I assume you are talking newer ones. 8 mpg is still WAAAAAY low.
Upside: I am 99% sure that the viper V10 started out as this motor.
Soooo its sorta like a 1st gen Ram SRT 10 maybe.....
interesting these engines only get that kind of miliage. The one box truck we had at my old job.. a GMC W10 (same as the isuzu) was a straight six diesel with a turbo. It got 11mpg. It got it full up to it's GRVW, it got it empty, it got it downhill with a tailwind... it simply got 11mpg
mad_machine wrote: interesting these engines only get that kind of miliage. The one box truck we had at my old job.. a GMC W10 (same as the isuzu) was a straight six diesel with a turbo. It got 11mpg. It got it full up to it's GRVW, it got it empty, it got it downhill with a tailwind... it simply got 11mpg
Aerodynamics are a bitch.
Or you do what the guy who built my truck did: Find a rusted out Cummins p/u of similar vintage, swap over the dash (with required diesel VIN) and drivetrain, then sell the contraption to some poor unsuspecting schmuck (that would be me) for a tidy profit...
Wait.. how is this bad? Do you live in some kind of state where VIN nazis compare all the numbers on your car when you arent looking and then screw you over somehow? Because otherwise i dont see how the truck you had is significantly different from a factory diesel truck.
I'm not saying the build was a bad idea. They actually did a pretty good job. The underhanded part was not disclosing the truck's multiple VIN history. I would not have paid as much.
mad_machine wrote: interesting these engines only get that kind of miliage. The one box truck we had at my old job.. a GMC W10 (same as the isuzu) was a straight six diesel with a turbo. It got 11mpg. It got it full up to it's GRVW, it got it empty, it got it downhill with a tailwind... it simply got 11mpg
I drove across MI a few years back in my 4-banger Wrangler. The entire was I was driving into hurricane-force headwinds. My top speed was 60 if I was heading a little cross-wind or 55 directly into the wind. I got 8 mpg!!
Now, on the way home I opened the back window to make the Jeep a big sail. I got 1275.3 mpg on the way back
EvanR wrote: The problem with towing with the V10 Dodge is that you'll never know if you lost your trailer. You just don't feel it back there. My pal Bob has had one since new. He swears it gets 12mpg. As in 12 city/12 highway/12 towing. Nothing but 12.
This. My Great Uncle has one, nothing but 12 was what it got while he was working.
Any other time it was about 3mpg and new back tires every month. 
I say get it, keep the motor til you get sick of it, then swap a cummins in. Still probably end up being cheaper than buying a diesel version anymore.
They aren't bad with the tow package, my 360 powered 2500 could get 18 if I drove it right, so you could probably get 15 if you run around low rpm all the time*, or you drive normally and get, you know......12.
*My Ram did highway speeds at mid 2000s rpm wise, the V10 is probably lower. If the engine doesn't have to work that much, it doesn't have to drink that much.
Edit to add:
JohnGalt wrote: Upside: I am 99% sure that the viper V10 started out as this motor. Soooo its sorta like a 1st gen Ram SRT 10 maybe.....
Yep. If you do get it and swap to a cummins, keep the V10 for a shortbed 1/2 ton. 
'Nother question that I forgot to ask:
What's the price?
Oh, and when doing post-research about my truck, I found out the V10 and the Cummins used the same frame - the mounts bolt right on, so if you do want to do a swap, a V10 truck is the one to get. The V8 2500 trucks have a different frame.
I'm not saying the build was a bad idea. They actually did a pretty good job. The underhanded part was not disclosing the truck's multiple VIN history. I would not have paid as much.
Fair enough. Just wondering if there was any failure on the vehicle's part vs the seller or the govt. 
It's marked at $6900, but the salesman admitted to "wiggle" room being needed to move it off the lot. He wished it had a 318, because then it would have sold quickly. It's completely rust free, and only 62,000 miles, too. I wouldn't be surprised if it had been owned by a snowbird who wintered in the southwest, or something, because it is equipped with a 5th wheel hitch and doesn't have enough rust to have spent winters here..
DeadSkunk wrote: I came across a 1998 Dodge pickup in exceptionally good shape for Michigan, but it's got the V10 engine. I've no doubt it would pull my trailer with any load I want, but the prospect of 10 mpg (my guess) is scary. Anyone got one and can share real world gas mileage experience? I like the look of that model and it's really well equipped, just the one big "but" where the operating cost is concerned.
Wait. 10 mpg is BAD?
I would think 10-ish is about as good as you could expect to get. Heck, my neighbor with his F-250 diesel is getting 12. My antique C-30 dooley gets 9, 10 on a good day.
It's going to depend a lot on how heavy your foot is.
Vigo wrote: Fair enough. Just wondering if there was any failure on the vehicle's part vs the seller or the govt.
No. The dash VIN matches the engine, so it gets the emmissions exemption a diesel needs. Technically, being a '95, it should have a cat as well, but my inspection garage was willing to over-look that. They did insist I install some sort of muffler as when I bought it, it was straight-pipe from the turbo back, so I installed a 4" resonator type muffler, which did next to nothing as far and quieting the truck, but it's there. Mostly, it's just the ribbing they gave me: "Ian bought a steamer...."
DeadSkunk, the V10 you're describing sounds eerily like the story about mine. Pretty rust free (not anymore...) and supposedly wintered in FL with a slide-in camper. The frame has the hold-down tabs between the bed and cab. When I did a Car Fax on both VIN's, this story jived with the body/chassis VIN. The dash VIN indicated it lived in Ohio its whole life. Unfortunately, had I Car-Faxed the VIN prior to buying the truck, there was nothing that really would have flagged it as a reconstruction (1995 pick-up, diesel engine, 5 spd trans). But when combining the history of the 2 VIN's, it became obvious what had been done.
If I had more room, I'd love to find a rust-free long-bed, quad-cab truck and then swap over the cab and bed... But I'll probably just practice my rust-repair skills on it, since I don't really care much about how good it looks. It's a beater/work truck. Last week, I stood on the cab while cutting a broken branch off a tree in the yard. I don't want the truck to be so nice that doing stuff like that would worry me.
1988RedT2 wrote: Wait. 10 mpg is BAD? I would think 10-ish is about as good as you could expect to get. Heck, my neighbor with his F-250 diesel is getting 12. My antique C-30 dooley gets 9, 10 on a good day.
My Duramax Chevy gets 18cty/23hwy/13-16 towing a 22' enclosed car trailer so... yeah. 10 is bad. Really bad.
My 2000 Excursion with the Triton V10 got 10.5 non-towing. Didn't really tow with that truck. My 2003 Excursion with the 7.3L Navistar diesel (runs on biodiesel which typically costs about 1 MPG) gets 13-14 non-towing; about 11-12 towing (about 6K lbs).
Remember that macro trend for fuel prices is up, up, up. IMO within the next five years we'll be well above $5/gallon for good.
DeadSkunk wrote: It's marked at $6900, but the salesman admitted to "wiggle" room being needed to move it off the lot. He wished it had a 318, because then it would have sold quickly. It's completely rust free, and only 62,000 miles, too. I wouldn't be surprised if it had been owned by a snowbird who wintered in the southwest, or something, because it is equipped with a 5th wheel hitch and doesn't have enough rust to have spent winters here..
So cheaper than a diesel, will tow anything the diesel can, and unlike any other gas engines, the mileage wont go to E36 M3 once you hook a trailer up. How much cheaper is 87 compared to diesel where you live anyway?
I say get it and drive it.
Also, sounds like Viper with exhaust http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=diqPK1muVJI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yvRnhrH-8ws
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