What are the advantages to having a diesel vs gas/ or vise versa?

[Grandpadave]

Am kinda new ( 1 year) to rving, and have never figured out what are the advantages to having a diesel engine to a gas engine? I know the diesels cost a whole lot more. I have a 2004 gas seabreeze by national and absolutely love it. But what is it with the diesel? I know the gas costs more, and the motorhomes cost more, so where are the savings? Appreciate any feedback from either side.

[OneRVer]

When I had my gas, V-10, I was lucky to get 6 mpg. With the diesel I have now my average is 9.5. I like the diesel. I like the torque and running at low rpms, 1800. With that being said the gas was a whole lot cheaper to maintain. But I stll like the diesel the best. Having an exhaust brake, to me, is worth the extra cost.

[HD4Mark]

No savings really. They are much more expensive to maintain. The difference is in the ride and power. Most of the DPs have air ride suspension, very nice. The also have loads of power and will outlast a gasser if properly maintained. They are very quiet when driving since the engine is way behind you. We found the mileage wasn't much different from the V10 gasser class C we had even though the DP weighs almost twice as much.

Hey, if you are happy with your gas powered MH that is all that counts.

[shortlance]

A diesel will run forever and has a lot of torque--power is almost never an issue. When you hit the mountains the higher the elevation the more horsepower you lose with a gas engine where alitude does not affect a diesel. The first time you hit a hill with a diesel you will never consider going gas again. This is a very bias opinion from a die hard diesel fan.

[Monacoach]

we have done the virginia mountains several times with a gasser and a few times with our current diesel. I will never go back to gas.

[Sequim Guy]

I would love to have a Diesel pusher for all the reasons listed above.
However, if I bought a DP, I couldn't afford to go anywhere in it. It would take all of the money I have for RVing to make the payments and the maintenance. We just returned from a 3 month trip in our gas rig.
We bought a used gas rig because that's what we could afford, would I like to have a DP, you bet I would.
I think the best rig for anyone is the one that they can use and enjoy, whether it's a tent trailer or a 45' DP.

[Grandpadave]

So what your collectively saying is, if you drive a lot in the mountains, a diesel has more power and is the better deal. But is that worth the difference in price? I have noticed looking at used MH's on EBay etc that the used diesels still be worth more than the gas. I remember after buying my gas v10 motorhome and having the front end aligned, 6 new tires and some anti sway bars installed the Rv tech who drove it again after all the work had been performed, commented " this thing now drives like a diesel pusher" whatever that meant? I get around 7.3 mpg on my motorhome which I thought was pretty good. I also thought there might be gas stations out in the boonies who wouldn't carry diesel gas........

[BCooke]

DP are a long term investment if you are looking at pay back.

[Mr_D]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Grandpadave I also thought there might be gas stations out in the boonies who wouldn't carry diesel gas........

"diesel gas"?
Don't ever mix diesel fuel and gasoline!! Diesel engines can go "BANG" when you do that and gas engines won't run very well on diesel!

[Grandpadave]

Oops, I meant diesel fuel.....

[Warden]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Grandpadave Am kinda new ( 1 year) to rving, and have never figured out what are the advantages to having a diesel engine to a gas engine? I know the diesels cost a whole lot more. I have a 2004 gas seabreeze by national and absolutely love it. But what is it with the diesel? I know the gas costs more, and the motorhomes cost more, so where are the savings? Appreciate any feedback from either side.

I also have a National Sea Breeze which gets 8.9 - 9.8 mpg if I keep it at 60-65 MPH......... Now going into the Mountains that is a total different story, I went to Tenn. and the Mileage was all over the place.... 6.8 - 7.5, the hills in PA , WV, VA, TENN was my main killer for mileage, I was told by my Dealer / Salesman that if we were not going to be traveling alot or even full timing..... it would be a waste of money for us to purchase a diesel. The Maintenance is higher ........... I think each person has to decide what they need and what they want...... but I love my Sea Breeze.

[Mekanic]

Diesel:
the Good: I can buy all(air,oil,and fuel) the filters for my diesel for less then $50 at napa. That and 4 gallons of good oil will run me less than $100 per year,....from now on. maintance on MY diesel is cheaper than i would have to spend on a gas engine.
NEVER any spark plugs or labor to change them. no ignition timing checks ever. No pcv valve to clean or replace.....
Add that to the fact that the resale value of a deisel is better.
Per mile operating cost the diesel wins hands down.
The bad: More money to buy new. that is it.

Gas:
The good: Gas is less to buy new.
I see NO other good side to a gas unit.

[Elkhartjim]

There are a lot of posts about the diesel being much more expensive to maintain. Other than routine oil/filter lube changes what other maintenance expenses are you eluding too. There are no tune-ups, chassis brakes go forever, etc. In four years I've spent about $1200/year on average and that includes the Freightliner M services (at Gafney) on maintenance. Is that the dollar amount that is being talked about? If a gasser is maintained by a Ford or Chevy dealer I wonder what the cost would be? How much does it cost to routinely change the brake fluid on a Workhorse chassis?

As far as finding fuel in the boonies, remember that in the boonies (farm land) most engines run on diesel.

BTW, I wouldn't give up my diesel for any gasser on the road. I like the weight, the air bag suspension, the handling, the ride and most of all the power. Even though I live in the flat lands of Texas, we travel the US and I've had gassers sitting on my rear bumper coming down hills and lose sight of them going up the next one as I'm holding a constant 65mph speed only to have them catch up at the bottom running 80 so they can get up the next hill.

To each his own and like its been said, buy what you can comfortably afford to use and enjoy.

[bigmichael]

Quote:

Originally Posted by BCooke DP are a long term investment if you are looking at pay back.

The only thing you can be absolutely sure about, is, whether its deisel or gas, an RV will never be able to be considered an investment. Use it, enjoy it, and realize it is losing value every day you own it.