Which old engines??

It probably looks a lot more appealing to me because of my shop.
And your 100% right about the surprises that show up some trucks they never end

 

I think partly too you have to enjoy the challenges that come with doing it
That's just my opinion though

 

My B and C don’t cause me near the headaches the electronics do. I’ve got 2 E’s and a BXS, they’re relatively painless compared to new ones but still a pia compared to the 2 mechanicals. I’ve got an ‘89 W900B with almost 4m on it thats only been towed once since Nov ‘88. The C is in a ‘91. It’s been on the hook a few times, but it has an RTO15 with a 1241C auxiliary and 4:33’s. That one tends to assassinate power-dividers and cripple itself now and again.

 

The engine's only 1 part of a vehicle. I would never base my decision to buy a truck solely off of engine make/model/year. Honestly a re-rail, complete re-plumb/re-wire of an old truck would be more appealing to me in making a choice than what's under the hood.

That said, pretty much any engine pre-EGR is decent. EGR was what tanked longevity and reliability IMO.

 

EGR actually cools them off a bit, the big problem is heat related failures from all the junk they’re putting in the exhaust systems. I had an idea that might happen, after spending 30 years beating baffles out of mufflers and straightening bends in pipes to get them to stop trying to melt the turbo off themselves. But what do I know, I’m not an engineer.

 

The soot from EGR is what's killing the engines though. Less oxygen to start a fire = less heat but the particulates going back into the intake are what's causing the issues. Sticking rings, clogged sensors etc.

 

12.7’s used to soot up manifold pressure sensors even before they had EGR on them.

 

EGR made it much worse though.

 

A lot of it’s the fuel. I don’t know why they ship all that clean stuff to Europe and sell us #3 with 10% water in it. My buddy buys and exports used vehicles. All of them, Powerstroke, Duramax and even that bs little V6 in the Dodges run forever with few problems over there. He can’t get his hands on enough of them to ship, even the EGR/DEF engines. The only difference is the EU fuel standard.

 

Yeah and you figure most everything except an inflame should be $5 k or less to fix or replace. You can strip and do all new or refurbished interior, new carpet or wood
floors, buy a nice Bostrom wide ride seat etc. for the money of one monthly payment on a new rig.