The Ultimate Custom Truck

It's bound to happen. At least when you got a bunch of guys who all have a diesel truck, and everybody thinks that there's is the best. It always comes down to the Big 3, Dodge, Chevy, and Ford. Each can talk till he's blue in the face about why one is better then the other. You can do truck pulls, diagnostics, races, "dyno" tests, but no matter what, one can never really prove that ONE truck is the best. Honestly, it all comes down to the fact that each has it's pro's and con's, the good and the bad, and it comes down to personal preference on features and what it's going to be used for that determine which one is "best." So let's take a look at what would make the "best" diesel truck out there. Instead of trying to prove that one is better than the other, let's, hypothetically, take the good from each truck and put it together to build the ultimate custom truck.

So on the outside of our dream truck, it's gonna look something like this.↓

And the inside is gonna look something like this.↓

Now hold on! Just because those pictures are of a Ford, don't anybody start jumpin the gun! All you Ford guys who are thinkin "HA! I knew this guy was on our side this whole time!" you can just cool your jets, cause we haven't even talked about motors or transmissions yet. For everybody else, you have to admit, when it comes to building bodies, Ford's got a good thing going for them. On the outside, they look good, and most importantly, they hold together really well. I've driven Fords, Dodges, and Chevys, and of those Dodge and Chevy both have a hard time buildling a body that will hold up longer than a few years. They just start coming apart. Of the three, Ford seams to outlast the other two, if they've all been subjected to about the same amount of wear and tear.

And don't forget the interior! Ford knows what they're doin there! If anybodies ridden in a Ford King Ranch Edition truck they know what I'm talking about. Not to say Dodge and Chevy can't build a comfortable, practical, classy cab, just, Ford does it a little better.

Now everybody knows that all show and no go, is a bad deal. Just cause your truck looks pretty don't mean thing if you aint got a motor to back it up. The guts in this situation are more important than the cosmetics.

So now that we've gotten ourselves a nice truck body, and taken out that stock Powerstroke, we're gonna put back in a diesel engine that looks something like this.↓

That's right, the Dodge Cummins. Since Dodge started putting the Cummins in their trucks in 1989, they've been pumpin out some of the best diesel motors in the country. They've been leading the way for all diesels since then, and Ford and Chevy were just trying to keep up. Although in recent years, both Ford and Chevy have made a ton of improvements to their motors, and can be argued that the three are pretty neck and neck right now.

But for this custom truck, I want to put a 5.9L 12Valve Cummins. The motors dodge had in their trucks from 1989-1998. Why you say? Why not put a newer engine in their, wouldn't that be better? Well, not necessarilly. You see, the Federal Government started passing new emmissions laws, which meant that the auto companies had to change their motors, and modify them so they would release less pollution into the atmosphere. What did that do? The average MPG for each truck dropped drastically (so really that didn't help the environment, cause now they just burn more fuel) and their power dropped as well. Although all three companies are making progress to bring the power up even with the emmissions. But for now, we'll put in the 12V, which can get your truck anywhere from 20-28 MPG, if you drive it right. It also pumps out up to 215 Horse Power, and 450 lb-ft of torque! Not bad for stock, and for an "old" motor.

Another thing everybody knows is, even if you got all the horse power in the world, if you aint got a solid transmission to send that power to the wheels, then you got nothing! So for our truck, our transmission emblem would look something like this.↓

Chevy does have a choke-hold on this one! This is one thing that Ford and Dodge can't compete with. The Allison Transmisson which is in every Chevy Diesel truck. Now Ford does an OK job of buildling tranny's, and Dodge does to (as long as it's a manual, or new. Don't trust the old automatic tranny's though.) But when it comes to Heavy-Duty transmissions that will take any kind of abuse you can throw at it, and then ask for more, that's the Allison. It's so good that the U.S. government has started putting a different version of the Allison in their tanks! Also many heavy equipment companies like CAT have them in their machines to. I rest my case.

Ya I know that's what you're thinking. Cause in reality, this truck that we've just built, probably wouldn't be very practical to build. For one, all three of the big 3 auto makers are already pumpin out really good trucks. Sure some break down, or hold out better in some areas then others, but that's life. Plus, to actually build this truck, would cost tons and tons of dollars. Not only for parts, but for labor, it really wouldn't be economical. Unless of couse, you had a couple extra thousand kickin' around and you didn't know what to do with it, and a whole bunch of time on you hands.............. So if you happen to be a motivated individual, with a few extra thousand dollars kickin around, and a bunch of time on your hands, then give it a whirl! Just think you'd be the most popular guy in town, and be able to put to rest some of the arguments that go on in the average guys garage! Let me know how it goes!