5.7L tow good enough?

#1

Hey there,

For a tow vehicle, I’m down to deciding between a 133K miles 5.7L extended cargo van and a more abused ex-work truck 6.5L Chevy Diesel at 211K miles for $1500 more. Both are of the 1-ton variety with tow, but the 5.7L was a Jasper reman engine 16K miles ago (with receipts). I’d love to save the $1500 and have a newer engine, but don’t want to end up slugging up hills either. Seems folks are all over the place on gas vs. diesel, I’m leaning towards the gasser as 90% of towing will be within 3 hours and no mountain passes unless I go up to Reno, I expect to be towing up to 5000#. I would really appreciate thoughts on your experience towing with a V-8 gas engine - will it be strong enough, or would I be much happier with the diesel torque?

Thanks all.

#2

AJ get the diesel… I just went through this last year and the difference in mileage is incredible. My diesel gets 17 mpg towing and the gas truck got approx 7mpg and it was a 5.7l. Newer diesels are getting even better mileage than I am, mine is a 2003 Cummins Dodge.

#3

I think I’d vote diesel also. Better mileage and will be worth more when you sell it. Jasper engines aren’t anything special, BTW. Just a cheapie rebuild that you may or may not need their warranty for.

#4

Thanks guys, sage advice. I am really narrowing down my search now so I am just going to be patient and find the right one. There is lots of info on the 5.4 and 5.7 engines and they seem capable but clearly some people look for more torque dep on what they are towing, frequency and in what conditions/terrain.

I’ve spent a lot of time on RV.net, if anyone is looking for good towing info, that is a great place. I also found oilburners.net to be a good source of diesel info.

Cheers,
-aj

#5

I tow with my RV (so I’m RV.net quite often). At 5K, it really doesn’t matter from a towing perspective. I can tow my 5K setup with our 4.7L Lexus LX470 like it’s hardly back there.

Some things to consider:

  1. A diesel will last longer. A properly-cared for engine will outlive the chassis. Don’t know about the GM 6.5’s though, many of them are not really better than gas from a reliability perspective. Check the HP/Torque figures. You’d be better off with a Cummins but that’s a newer truck.

  2. You will definately get better fuel mileage from the diesel but with the limited tow distance you specified, this likely won’t be a real $$ factor long term if you pay a premium for the diesel truck.

You would want to go diesel if you were going to pull an enclosed but with an open setup, get the vehicle that makes most sense. Can you get more use out of the commercial van vs. a pickup?

#6

For what it is worth, I would go with a good gas engine if you are towing less than 8K lbs. I had a diesel and it got the same gas milage as my gas truck when towing. It didn’t matter whether I was towing 80mph or 65mph. Diesel costs more as well and if you have ever owned one you would know that they are disgusting to fill up at most places. You have to wear gloves and stand in a puddle of diesel fuel. I have a F150 5.4 and it tows my 20’ enclosed trailer with no problem.