Yet another diesel vs gas question

The "Other" repair costs of an older diesel pushers can hurt too,  a radiator and fan assembly failure can set you back about  $4000.00.

Many of the new diesels are having DEF control problems and they shut down or go into "limp' mode.

From what I hear it's rather expensive when you have to get a big motorhome towed a couple 100 miles into a town and find a shop that can repair a diesel fuel injector control problem.

As far as fuel gelling up, I own four pieces of diesel heavy equipment as well as a motorhome, and have never had that problem. Most of them run all winter as well. I think the potential for a problem would be higher with regular gasoline that has ethanol in it. If your coach sits for any length of time with a tank full of ethanol gas, I would be really worried. When I had a gasser, I would make sure the last two tanks of fuel I put in before storing it for the winter were premium fuel with no ethanol. The gas generator didnt like sitting with ethanol fuel in it either. If you can buy ethanol free gas you might be better off, but here in Ontario that pretty much means buying premium, which gets pretty expensive when you are buying several hundred dollars worth of fuel.

I turned a wrench 40 years ago, but technology has kept me out from under the hood for quite a while.  I will say however, my cummins 8.9L looks a WHOLE lot easier to work on than the Jeep that is towed behind it.    It may cost more, but I wouldn't hesitate the get in there myself.

SeilerBird said:

How well an engine was maintained has a lot more to do with how long it will last than the type of engine that it is.

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i agree - seems like there is a lot more discussion of engines and transmissions breaking than either actually breaking.  Especially for all the miles that are put on a MoHo.

OK, my final decision is we're going to pass on this coach. Not so much a diesel v gas issue but there isn't enough difference between the 03 Journey and my 02 Adventurer for me to change. I like the floor plan, and the chassis but the interior is very similar to mine and even lacks a few features that we already have. Plus with my home layout I can keep a 32' in the back yard but 34' would mean changing a fence and more hassle getting it in there. Add in the increased cost of maintenance over gas, and I think we'll stick with gas. As others have said, a lot of long distance driving is better with diesel but my monthly and weekend trips, one or two long vacations yearly, gas makes more sense.

All that said, who knows what will come along that I just can't pass up but for now I'm sticking with what I have. Thanks for all the input so far.

muskoka guy said:

If you rode in a dp, then went for a ride in a front engine gasser, you would HEAR one of the main reasons for getting a  pusher. The engine braking and towing power are just a bonus. Did we mention not having to shoehorn your coach into a gas station. Cheers

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The noise factor and poor fuel economy of our class A gasser were enough to convince us to trade it in on a class C diesel. FWIW after the decision has been made.

John Canfield said:

The Cummins ISX is an engine marketed to over the road tractors that will run hundreds of thousands of miles a year. Detroit Diesels are also very popular for long-haul tractors but bottom line is they will all run for xxxx hours before a breakdown.

My Cummins ISL engine was designed for regional applications - buses, cement trucks, etc. What the design differences are I have no clue, could be rebuild costs, i.e., wet sleeves. The sleeve gets replaced and the block doesn't need to be bored.

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There's a big difference between an engine that's in daily or continuous operation versus one that sits for days or weeks at a time, runs for several hours and gets shut down for an extended period once again.  The latter describes the typical motorhome engine.

A large portion of an engine's total wear happens at dry startup, in those few seconds between the time the engine starts turning and when fresh oil reaches the critical parts.

An engine that sits for days at a time will have oil drain off of the moving parts, so a motorhome engine will endure many more dry starts than an engine that's in over the road service.  Plus the motorhome will  average far fewer miles on each cycle.  Both of these reduce the "million mile" replacement to a much lower value.

Plus...that "Million mile" diesel engine is not exactly the same engine that is commonly used in many Class A motorhomes.

The over the road million mile diesel engines have drop out cylinders that are regularly changed out in an 'in chassis rebuild' as needed.

( and besides... most diesel motorhomes die at about 300k-400k  miles just because the are just too old anyway. )

TonyDtorch said:

Plus...that "Million mile" diesel engine is not exactly the same engine that is commonly used in many Class A motorhomes.

The over the road million mile diesel engines have drop out cylinders that are regularly changed out in an 'in chassis rebuild' as needed.

( and besides... most diesel motorhomes die at about 300k-400k  miles just because the are just too old anyway. )

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300-400K miles?  Does anyone on this forum have over 250K on their MoHo?????  I have a 2005 and it just turned to 18,000 (previous owner drive it hardly at all).  I will drive it probably to 50-70K and then be done with it.  By then my kids will have seen a good chunk of the drivable (per our vacation time) country and we will move on to something else.  I don't hold onto things when I am done.  I have seen too many boats, campers 4 wheelers and other toys just rust away.  Owners could have gotten rid of an eyesore and got a couple bucks for them if they admitted they were done with it!

I put 265,000 kms on our gas powered class B van in 8 years. Kept the oil and filters fresh, and put two sets of shoes on her, and everything else was regular wear and tear.  8)

Kevin Means said:

The "million mile" (or half million mile) engine is, in my opinion, largely mythical - little more than urban legend. A diesel engine's block may go that many miles, because they are robust, but the hoses, pulleys, pumps, belts, seals, turbos etc. won't. They'll wear out in about the same time they'd wear out on a gas engine. Modern RV gas engines do quite well, so I wouldn't be overly concened about wearing one out.
Kev

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Kev is overlooking a significant fact.  The average RVer drives maybe 3 - 5,000 miles a year.  So if he is going to live forever, he can easily do 1 million miles.  Of course, at 5,000 miles a year, it will take 200 years.  So any of you got long life in your blood, go for it. You need a million mile motor.  If not, maybe a gasser.      ;D ;D ;D