So I did some digging around to try and round up the specs on the big 3 and was amazed to learn that there is no clear winner at all. Cummins seemed to have it's hayday with the 1st gen's, then powerstroke came on with the 99-02 powerstrokes, now dmax seems to be taking the lead. Now I am not talking reliability or anything, just power specs. I was barely able to come up with the 6.2/6.5 specs, I actually guessed on those a bit from the 983 different ratings I was seeing on 244 different forums. I used all the maximum power specs with all 3, so I used the HO 6spd specs for the 24V.. and ford didn't have a diesel in 1998, thats why theres a break in the line..

ThanksWish I could get more but it is such a PITA to find things to factor in. I got everything I can think of, now it's just down to stumbling on things from google. I might have to find an engine engineering forum or something and post the excel thing and ask what else I could factor in. Hmm, I might just do that today.

Go for it... At the worse that will happen is you'll learn something...

Nope, got kicked off the forum and dismembered before I could even see the posts. I got all the emails saying I had a million posts to it but the thread is gone, and I got kicked. No clue what I did wrong. I have posted on a few engineering ones before and haven't got anywhere. I might have to go to the bookstore and find those 1000 page engine design books or something. Can't believe how hard this is becoming.

I want to see a spreadsheet that compares the number of parts and cost of parts and service on each engine. I will guess that repairing a DMAX or Powerstroke is much more expensive than repairing a Cummins. My Cummins is easier to repair than my Magnum V6 in my Dodge Dakota IMO and they are both pretty roomy around the engine. The Powerstroke and DMAX just look cluttered.My dad always said that cluttered engine bays meant higher labor charges. So a good point to compare. Most buy diesels for long term durability and fuel mileage so maintenance is always a factor.

  cummins2k said:

I want to see a spreadsheet that compares the number of parts and cost of parts and service on each engine. I will guess that repairing a DMAX or Powerstroke is much more expensive than repairing a Cummins. My Cummins is easier to repair than my Magnum V6 in my Dodge Dakota IMO and they are both pretty roomy around the engine. The Powerstroke and DMAX just look cluttered. My dad always said that cluttered engine bays meant higher labor charges. So a good point to compare. Most buy diesels for long term durability and fuel mileage so maintenance is always a factor.

I could do that, but, how do I know how many parts there are on a duramax and powerstroke? How do I get a price on the parts when there will always be a place cheaper? How do I get a service quote when they will be all around on price too? If there was a solid way to do it then I could, but all of those factors are so variable that you can't really chart them and say, OK the duramax costs the most.. If you have an idea of how to do it then let me know and I will get a spreadsheet going

cummins vs. the others...six in a row makes em go...cummins has 40% less moving parts.a diesel was designed to be in the inline configuration...i always push this in the ford and chevy guys face...raise the hood on a peterbuilt....what do you see...not a v8...a inline baby!!!

  white01 said:

cummins vs. the others...six in a row makes em go...cummins has 40% less moving parts.a diesel was designed to be in the inline configuration...i always push this in the ford and chevy guys face...raise the hood on a peterbuilt....what do you see...not a v8...a inline baby!!!

Yeah but I am trying to figure out exactly what it is about an I6 that gives it the edge. I want statistical proof! I am almost to the point of buying an engine engineering book or something.

  ISX said:

Yeah but I am trying to figure out exactly what it is about an I6 that gives it the edge. I want statistical proof! I am almost to the point of buying an engine engineering book or something.

It is all in the physics, longer connecting rods, longer throw on the crank. Like I said in a previous post, turn a crank with a short arm, versus a long arm. Which crank is going to turn the load easiest? And that longer stroke is why the I6 runs at lower RPMs then the V8.

  flman said:

It is all in the physics, longer connecting rods, longer throw on the crank. Like I said in a previous post, turn a crank with a short arm, versus a long arm. Which crank is going to turn the load easiest? And that longer stroke is why the I6 runs at lower RPMs then the V8.

That previous post was where I got the idea for the thing I had in green, which clearly shows the I6 advantage. I have been trying to figure out other means of proving it statistically but have been at a loss in finding formulas.