I think DC is making a pretty wise decision. It is easy for a line employee to screw up a job if they have hump-teen million different combinations to build something, so the less that is available, is less that the guys and gals on the production line have to think about. Not saying anything bad about them or anything, but I work in the mobile home industry, and the more options you ahve for a house, the more service calls you get from dealers because of something that was added that was not supposed to be, or something that was supposed to be there that isn't. Anytime you have these problems, you cut into your bottom line when you have to pay for someone to correct your mistake out of shop. Just my .02.

 

At that point ("auto only") , I will stop buying them. If necessary, I'll move up in size, or rebuild/restore older ones.

Now that I think about it, I could always move to Europe, where people still enjoy driving, and manuals are readily available.

Michael

 

The Duramax with the 6-speed manual is a waste of a truck. I had two of them. Jerky shifting, and likes to eat clutches and flywheels. Less power than with the Allison, the trucks I had with the allison would run circle's around my 6-speeds loaded or empty, and were more reliable doing it, and any idiot could get in and drive them. Nobody who has much experience with both has any use for the 6-speed manual.

 

the front drive line vibration is just that! the factory drivelines had to be order, sent to a drive line balance shop and the installed to get rid of the vibration.....bad batch is right....right off the assambly line!!!!

 

I don't know about that, the 5K upcharge for the CTD is steep, and will buy a bunch of gas. I only run my rig about 10K miles per year, the diesel will never pay for itself in mileage alone. Now the factor is something else.

 

The big v-10s are not going to sell well these days, because of oil prices ,and the resale on a v-10 truck is less the than the v-8, at least around here anyway.

 

Dad has one of the last remaining 03' Duallys with a v-10. I've never seen gas millage above 7 mpg's. How in the world would you afford to put gas in the thing.

 

Everyone is diesel crazy. There are a lot of people who put less than 10k miles a year on a truck, and they could never justify a diesel. Especially with the lower mpg that the newer diesel's are getting, and soon to get lower with the jan-1-07 emissions looming. I have had two V10's, good engine's. We pulled our as hard as our diesels. I had one that was a 2wd that could get 12mpg empty. Not everyone needs or can justify diesel.

 

Spoken like a man that's never driven a Nissan VQ engine.....My Maxima sounds SWEET ripping to 6500 rpm!

 

Exactly. For my usage, a Tacoma or Frontier would work just fine.

So why did I by a huge solid axle 2500 when I only need a glorified econobox with a large open air trunk?


For me, it's all in the combination. I wanted a truck, yes. But I also wanted more HP (hot-rodability) and I also wanted decent MPG, AND I wanted a truck that was tough and would last awhile.

As a truck shopper with mild hotrodding dreams and hopes of decent MPG in mid 2002, there simply was NO OTHER VEHICLE that could deliver. I basically had no choice but to buy a CTD or I'd give up mpg, power, durability, or capability....

jmo

 

That Nissan VQ is one ripper...open 'er up and it sounds like it's ready for the track.
One of, if not the best V6 engines evr made.

 

Is that the 3.5 in the Murano, and Maxima?

 

If you like the 3.5 VQ, check out the new 4.0 VQ in the fronty and X.

 

3.5 NA engine? Puh-leeeze - haven't you guys ever heard a nice Grand National? haha

Chris

 

Smart marketing. You need more engines than a V-6, a V-8, a V-10, a CTD and an MB?

DC is just plain smarter than Ferd and Cheby/GMC. After Cheby gets in bed with Nissan & Renault, they still won't be able to decide which engine goes with which powertrain.