Repair-It

I think we've needed a correction for years now. Not sure we have the conditions where it will finally be right after you make a large purchase. If anything I thought the market was stabilizing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pycKfBkOiFc

There are better videos to explain why the "Allison" 10A is problematic but this is the latest related info. Dealers must sell all Allison branded inventory by June 29, 2026, after which, they must REMOVE the Allison branding/badging. I don't think Allison is happy with this licensing partnership. Evidently it is really just a scaled up 10L80. And that's not a good thing.

I would stick with the Allison 1000.

https://youtu.be/BAtLJWGhF8s?si=i0YXLYn_SHmYoVAR

May want to consider a gas...take a look at his fuel economy tests. No those weren't towing but I still don't think the modern diesel is better for operating costs if you do "normal or less" miles per year. 87 is usually cheaper then diesel which probably whopes away most of the advantage not to mention the increased purchase cost and likely increased maintenance cost. I see it as a luxury, not a necessity.

This guy has 600k on his 2019 L5P
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PUA5ZURqd4s

We need a video walking through what he did. I scanned the comments and there is some info:
- replaced inner and outer tie rods twice and idler arm once and upper control arms
- He does RV transport full-time. moves RVs all around the United States and Canada.
- Bought truck at 17k
- Replaced engine at 277k with a 28k mile junkyard engine because it was eating coolant (again) and didn't want to wait for the dealer to diagnose/fix
- "Yeah, I’ve had a few issues with it. HP4 injection pump was making noise one morning when I got up that led me down a path to end up putting a motor in it 70,000 miles later. Because it started to drink its own coolant two different times. Other than that just normal small stuff. The second motor has 375,000 on it. On that motor, I’ve only done a few injector plugs and an alternator that I can think of"
- "Emissions on these trucks are pretty robust. Long as you don’t use them as a grocery getter, they will last. You might have to put a few sensors in from time to time but long as you work the truck it’ll be OK. I don’t have any blow by on the truck."
- "yeah I think the saving grace for trucks like mine as we put them on the road daily and put on 500 to 700 miles while pulling. We make sure that exhaust gets really warm"

Granted you have said when you actually use your truck it is to do work but it also does a lot of sitting which probably isn't great for a complex, modern truck. It's nice that these systems seem to work best when you pour the miles on, but most people don't actually do that.

- michelin defender ltx platinum. I have 100k on them and they are still at 7/32.
- sounds like he uses a fuel additive
- "Nice to see the REAL Allison transmission not the FAKE 10 speed one that burns the fluid black by 50K miles"
- He changes the transmission fluid at a 100k interval in this video and it looks good

I usually use the truck somewhere around once every two weeks, so it doesn’t really sit. Hopefully an ok balance of use/not short trip only. Mine has about 226k now I think, so 75k miles in 17 years, 4400 miles a year. I’ll probably do more now with the VT property. Maybe 6-7k/yr? I think a modern gas truck both has cam/lifter complications that make it vulnerable and a non-Allison less reliable transmission. I think unless there’s a huge price premium it’s worth sticking with a diesel. I haven’t really looked ay ram hemi/trans combos. Maybe those aren’t as bad?

GM has NEVER put AFM in the 2500/3500 trucks. It's been that way since the beginning and continues today with the L8T (6.6L gas).

Hunh - I just assumed they had since even the larger displacement Yukon/escalades seem to have issues.

Companies make logical engineering decisions when environmental policy isn't forced on them. Fleets would appreciate fuel savings but GM correctly identified that skipping AFM was a better product result (minimal fuel savings does NOT offset increases in complexity and decreases in reliability), which benefits the consumer. Single variable optimization has been, and continues to be, a lazy temptation with predicably bad results. But I'll get off my soapbox.

Anyway, yes, AFM appeared on the 07 5.3 truck engines (I think earlier on the FWD LS4), and by 2010 was also on the 6.2. When the 6.0 was revised for 2007, it got variable valve timing but not AFM. They continued with variable valve timing as the only real "tech" on the 6.0 until the L8T in 2020 where it got a bump to 6.6L, kept the variable valve timing and also added direct injection. The reputation on all of the 2500+ gas engines is pretty damn good, and has been since 99.

I think as a pulling gas engine, the Ford Godzilla (7.3L) may be the segment leader but you can't exactly mix and match your own truck. Ford's version of the 10 speed, after the dust has settled, also appears to have fewer design issues than GM, who has a documented history of RUINING product by mandating cost cutting with catastrophic effects. I don't know if there was a 6 speed backed Godzilla offering at some point. 10 years ago I would have suggested to look into a GM 8100 + Allison combo, but at this point they are pretty old, because they went away with the GMT-800. So you'd have to buy another GMT-800....

FWIW, there are aftermarket solutions to most of the modern powertrain issues (like the CP3/4 thing). Or the myriad transmission issues across multiple brands.

I'd have to look into 6L90 reliability. Wiki says it was available through 2023 on various applications. There are various Sonnax and other aftermarket solutions for issues which mostly plague the valve body components. So they usually don't require R&R. And some improvements come from tuning, like disabling lockup in gears 1-4. Or not towing in 6th.

Back to the Ford. Looks like the Godzilla hit the market for 2020 and was paired with the 10 speed. Best bet would be a 20-22 (one gen prior to current) 7.3 with 10 speed. Maybe there is a high mileage one for a big discount like that L5P truck you found. Worth looking around.

Or, get whatever you want. But I still maintain the diesel is more of a luxury. You'd have to do way more miles a year (towing heavy) to get any kind of economy out of it. The torque is nice, the effortlessness is nice - but it's not actually the logical choice. Just the emotional one. Which is fine. But call it what it is. MAYBE you'd have a case with resale value. Use it for 10 years, sell it for a bigger chunk than an equivalent gas truck would be worth. Less depreciation? Possible. But comes at the cost of having more $$ tied up in the thing the entire time, as well, if the math even works.

https://youtu.be/b9RghryhunA?si=8cc2-m7B8BmSTP2M

LML but still. Too much hassle.

Here's a 242k mi one for $20k in ND. I think I like the $29k in FL with 180k better still for value?

https://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sal ... &zip=06371