Maintenance costs

[stepside454]

Country fit , your never goi g to be able to make a apples to apples comparison between the two using your hitch ratings .
Someone had mentioned how much oil is used in a DP vs how much in a gas engine .thats all.

[Triker56]

I traded a gas MH that got 6 MPG or less for a DP that gets 10 MPG. The fuel savings $$ has paid for all maintenance on the DP. That I do myself.

Over 164 months Maintenance average is $23.77 a month($285.24@year) for fluids & filters for engine, transmission, air dryer, front hubs, rear end & grease zerks.

[mel s]

Originally Posted by mel s

stepside454
RV repairs on a DP are not any more expensive than on a gasser...but engine, chassis, drive train and engine repairs usually are.
Mel
'96 Safari, 147k miles

Originally Posted by normandlegra

Come on man... any house parts is the same for a gassers or a DP but mechanical repairs on Freightliner or Spartan chassis and diesel engine like CUMMINS or CAT are 5 times more expensive then gassers, agree to that !

normandlegra
??
I though that's that what I said.
Mel

[CountryFit]

back to the topic - the cost of maintaining gas vs diesel engine (the rest such as coach and travel mechanism is the same or difference negligible) - i have to ask:

1) is diesel life span shorter than gas engine? (no)
2) does diesel have more electronic built-in than gas engine? (no)
3) is diesel prone to failure than gas is? (no)
4) does mechanic labor rate higher on diesel than on gas engine? (yes and no)
5) does diesel use more oil? (yes)
6) does diesel require changing oil more frequently than gas engine? (no)
7) is diesel fuel cost more than gas? (no)
8) is diesel mpg less than gas'? (no)

what else am i missing?
among all of these questions, the only one favorable to gas engine is #5. is it a big deal?

you draw your own conclusion.

[stepside454]

Is the lifespan of Diesel engine longer than gas ? Generally yes
However , I don't see myself running either one much past 100k miles, so not sure that's s factor.

[stepside454]

Does diesel have more electronics than gas? I'm not sure I know the answer to that. But I do know diesel has mew components , turbo, inter cooler, injector pumps etc .

[stepside454]

Is diesel labor rate higher ? On average , I'd say yes. But no not always

[stepside454]

Does diesel require more oil changes ? No , however the diesel oil change is a lot more expensive than the gas oil change .

[stepside454]

Is diesel fuel cheaper than gas ? Right now it is & hopefully it stays that way . However in recent times diesel was more expensive than gas

[69Stang]

Originally Posted by stepside454

Is diesel fuel cheaper than gas ? Right now it is & hopefully it stays that way . However in recent times diesel was more expensive than gas

Still more expensive here. $1.89 for regular and $1.98 for diesel. That's the closest I've ever seen the prices to each other.

I'd love to someday have a DP, but an engine or major component failure on a DP scares the bejesus out of me.

[CountryFit]

in oregon coast area where i am at now, the lowest i can get for diesel $1.69, gas $1,91.

[stepside454]

In St. Louis today I'm seeing 1.99 for both gas & diesel

[Triker56]

Originally Posted by stepside454

Does diesel require more oil changes ? No , however the diesel oil change is a lot more expensive than the gas oil change .

Gas usually change oil at 7,000 miles.
My Diesel calls for every 15,000 miles
Gas 2 changes 14 qt.
My Diesel 1 change 17 qt

So my oil change expense is 3 qt more.
Paid for with the extra MPG savings.
And those extra 3 qt $ is worth the smooth quite ride.

[stepside454]

Triker, I totally understand all the nice advantages of a DP. I'm just looking at real world honest costs comparison , mostly to give me an idea if I can afford to have a DP or not.