Which Engine to Select for Buying a Used Truck...

I've driven Freightliners with everything (worked for Ryder and slip seated). MB, Cats, Cummins, Detroits. Were I buying a truck, I'd have a Detroit Series 60, preferably pre-DPF. Power is good, and more is easy to get, and the biggest 2 pro's in my book...parts are cheap and they're good on fuel.

In order of preference based on my personal experiences, YMMV, blah:

1. Detroit Series 60, 14 liter, pre-DPF (the DPF 14 liters in the 2009's had LOTS of regen issues, I'd avoid)
2. Any Cat, again without a DPF. Seen too many problems with those also. Will be hard to find in model years later than 2006/2007
3. Cummins N14. You might not be able to find this at all given your model year specification, but my all time favorite Freightliner was a Century flat-top, short wheelbase, with a N14 460hp. Unfortunately I have no idea at all what year it was.

I'm sure there will be a crew of drivers along presently with more and better feedback, this is just my $.02

 

Take a look at each specific motor you are considering .. Know the year model and serial number.. then Google " Problems with XXXX year XXXX serial number Cat, Detroit, etc." ... look at the common problems each engine has, what it cost to replace, and what you can do to prevent it. Alot of the emmisions motors have problems.. many have solutions for them, find out what they are BEFORE you pick one. Rear end ratio, transmission, tire size will determine your RPMs at cruising speed .. you want the RPMs to be in the MPG sweet spot at your desired cruise. Aerodynamic Drag, Rolling Resistance of your tires.. they all add up to the Horsepower needed to power you down the road .. and all have a part in determining what MPGs you can achieve at desired speeds.

My 1st choice would be a ECM/Flashed 12.7/or 14L Detroit for its MPG, Tunability, and Parts cost. 2nd a C15 Cat pre Accert and a flashed ECM .... I drove a few C12 cats and I personally had good luck with them.. no problems.. but they've had head issues in both 3176 livery and C12 livery.

When Roger Penske designed the 12.7 Detroit .. he had his engineers at Illmor (CART/Indy Racing League racing engines) perform the work... the Detroit EFI package was several generations ahead of Cat Cummins by the time the introduced their EFI motors. Ford actually went to Detroit Diesel for help when they changed their 7.3 Diesels to Powerstroke config. Im a long time Cat guy.. I've had very good luck with them.. but I've also had good luck with Detroits, now that MPGs are so important I lean in the Detroit direction.

 

Detroit 60 series, built B4 2008

 

I'd personally go for a 60 series pre-regen. IMO, they are the small block Chevy of heavy trucks, easy to get parts for and easy to work on. I do not like the Acert Cats at all, we've had lots of intake actuator failures, injector harness's broken turbo studs and failed actuation pressure sensors. We've also had a few break rocker studs and cause a real mess, so we replaced all the rocker bolts on all our trucks with the new updated bolts to avoid failures. Something like $45.00 for 1 stud. Regen engine have a lot of problems. The 2010's have less because they run less EGR and fewer regens. They basically run a bit dirtier and clean it up with the SCR system int he exhaust.

My 2010 experience is limited to DD engines, which were OK. Less problems that the the 07-09's and better fuel mileage, but not as good at the pre-07 S60's. If you want a newer truck, I'd choose a 2010+ SR over an 07-09. The best mileage we got was from the pre-04 S-60's, but good luck finding a lower mileage one these days.

 

Buy a newer clean used truck that's aerodynamic. Like a T660 or Columbia. Yank that POS engine out that it came with between '05 and '10. Store it for now. Use fogging oil to prevent the pistons from rusting to the cylinder walls.

Then go find a Detriot Series 60 12.7L reman engine to put in it. Later on, when you trade trucks you can swap engines again with the original in storage. The cost to swap is cheaper than keeping a new EGR, DPF, SCR engine on the road if you are past the OEM warranty.

Just keep your mouth shut and stay the heck out of California. California rates suck anyway. With a newer used truck those rates won't keep you profitable unless you are hauling contraband.

 

As good as it sounds, it is illegal and not too good of an idea. Most shops and any dealership will want nothing to do with it and probably turn you in eventually. We had a dealer one time refuse to install an 05 engine out of a wrecked truck in an 06 truck. Same engine, but not legal to install and older engine in a newer truck.