The way to fix it is for good honest folks to run for office.

The biggest thing needing fixing is how we run campaigns (way too long) and how we finance them, (too much corporate money).

Once elected changing the seniority system is the next biggest thing on the agenda.

The only way to change it is by working within it.

BTW, Larry, IMHO, Craig has been yanking your chain a bit about the superiority thing and the Texas thing.

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[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

You armchair politicions can ruin any thread just so it can be about you right craig Having owned several Dodge 1st. gens with a 12 valve Cummins I would say, speaking with experience of owning both engines in question, the Cummins wins my vote along with the Dodge it's attached to, hands down over a Mercedes any day.

Talking about body and chassis and comparing the two,Brand to brand ,Mercedes wins .They designed, engineered and built a great motor ,body and chassis into a winning car design .Dodge had Cummins sell them a motor and put it in their truck .I maybe wrong but didnt they have frame problems with the first few years of that truck.Too much motor ,not enough truck under heavy towing .Anyone else hear this.

OMG! A thread comparing OM617 v 5.9L Cummins has broken down into a political jabfest. Who'd a thunk it?!

I own a '99 Dodge 2500 4x4 and an '84 300SD, used to own a 300D. Also currently own a 2001 Jetta TDI. The TDI is amazing for the sheer driveability. The 5.9L is a power horse. But the MBs are just plain fun to work on. It is higher maintenance, but it's not hard maintenance, and it's like bonding. Everything is just designed better on the MB for maintenance. And the ride in the MB is much better than the others as well. They all get you from one place to another, but I just enjoy getting there in the MB more. Doesn't make the engine better, just different.

YMMV.

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mjk

'84 300SD 119KMi (Liesl der Diesel)
'84 300D 326KMi when the oil left (former parts car)
'82 300SD 253KMi (new parts car)

I take your point, the problem has more to do with the structure of the campaign system than the individuals who run for office. The is much to much money involved, even at the local level. If there was less need to raise huge amounts of money to run for office, it would attract different types of people. The major hurtle seems to be the court's interpretation that campaign donations are a form of free speech that can't be limited by law. I don't know how to fix that problem.

Honestly, I don't know how well-intentioned people have the patience to participate in the current process; it appears incredibly frustrating. I'm used to being able to identify problems and getting them corrected in a relatively short amount of time. I guess "working from the inside" of politics requires a different skill set than mine. Not to sound less than humble, but I'm very good at what I do and I would suck at politics; I intend to spend my time doing what I'm able to do well.

BTW, Larry's comments are interesting; telling someone they should run for office has become an insult in some segments of this country. I don't know how the political process is supposed to overcome that much cynicism. Many people assume that everyone seeking office is doing so for financial gain of because they have an enormous ego. Although that may be true in some cases, I doubt it is true in the majority of cases; but being extemely cynical has become fashionable in recent decades.

There's nothing wrong with TX, I will be spending most of the next two months working there. I know a couple of dozen people who live and work there, they are very nice folks. It is entertaining to make fun of some of the local culture, they can be a little "over the top."

I do think the whole "truck culture" is very silly and I would like to see non-commercial trucks regulated like cars. In many parts of the country, these types of trucks are used as cars and should be subject to the same safety and emissions standards as cars. It is very silly that Benz and VW have to jump through hoops to sell diesel cars while we are surrounded with these useless vehicles. I have no problem with "real trucks" that are used for work, but these things should be gone. Rant over.

The solution isn't regulating teenagers' modified trucks, it's DEregulating the cars so that Mercedes, VW, and all the others, can sell their diesels with as little difficulty as the truck people do. More rules isn't what is called for here; let people do whatever they want to. But this includes removing the regulations that are giving the German sedans such a fit, and just letting them fall into the same category as the trucks. "The government is best which governs least."

And now, a thread-relevant comment:

Just to add yet another thing into the mix, I think that rather than a Cummins with a Dodge wrapped around it, I'd rather own a late 80s, early 90s, Ford F250/350 with the 6.9 and later 7.3 IDI diesels. Those things are pretty much just jumbo Benzes with a Ford body instead. Simple engines, reliable, would give a 617 a reliability run-for-its-money if you ask me. I'd buy one if I had the cash just to add to the fleet and have something besides a sedan.

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~Michael S.~
Past cars:

1986 300SDL
1987 300SDL
1982 240D
1982 300SD


Current:

1987 300SDL

Obviously, that's not going to happen.

It not just teens' modified trucks, let's make truck manufactures meet the same requirements for "light trucks" as cars and these silly things will disappear. As an alternative, let the cost of gas/diesel reach a reasonable price (maybe double the current price) and the problem will take care of itself.

I know my 12 valve Cummins runs cleaner than any early 80's mercedes.

Those trucks are coming under some very stringent regulations. Most have some variant of a common-rail system, I know the Powerstroke diesel has been a HEUI engine since it's inception in 94. All have complex electronic controls, and post-2007 have DPFs and now 2010+ gets this "diesel exhaust fluid" stuff.
The only reason why there are still diesel trucks is because the people who buy trucks put up with the noise and smoke for more power and mileage back in the late 80s. People who wanted cars wanted a living room on wheels and a rattling diesel doesn't give that. If diesel cars had been continuously sold since then, they would still be as widely available today as diesel trucks are- Look at VW for an example of this.


And now, a thread-relevant comment:

I have a 7.3 IDI with a Banks Power Pack and a ZF 5speed going into my 69 F250 later this summer- Power, durability, simplicity and mileage all rolled into one good looking package.

Doubt it. I was continually amazed when diesel was near $5/gallon around here, and gas over $4 and people would still let their big pickup trucks idle in the parking lot while they went in the store or the post office and bs'ed for a half and hour.

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1976 Mercedes 240D, unknown mileage
1977 Mercedes 240D, 225k
1992 Dodge/Cummins 4WD, 284k
1990 Subaru Legacy wagon, 330k
1991 Subaru Legacy wagon, 225k

before you put a 7.3 in anything be sure and rebuild all the o-rings on the turbo and the hpop...
when they leak it's fun...

Probably true.

Later 7.3 IDI= 185hp 385lbs torque with no turbo, with the ZF 5 spd a great package. Mine is the lariat with pwr locks, windows, a/c and a working cruise, can't imagine what more a person needs.

The IDI has no hpop or turbo, gives my 240 a run for simplicity.

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1982 240d "butternut"
1991 F350 4x4 7.3 5spd

The 6.9 and 7.3 were very good in their day, and they do have the simplicity of the Mercedes. However, they both have relatively troublesome glow plug systems, and they will not start unless the system is virtually 100%, espescially the 7.3- the 6.9 was a little more forgiving. That's the advantage of the Cummins- no glow plugs, will start in virtually any weather. It also does not require cooling system SCA treatment.

Ha, this is an amusing, convoluted thread - good for a holiday weekend! I've got a '97 Ram 2500 with the Cummins 12V and have had a small fleet of MB's. It's definitely apples and oranges but they all deliver the benefits of diesel. More low end torque and better mpg than a gasser. Of course, I can throw my 210 or a 123 on the car trailer, hook it to the hitch, and for fun put 275 gallons (nearly a ton) of SVO in the back of the Dodge and still get at least 15 mpg at highway speeds. Shame about the rattling Dodge truck that the Cummins is bolted into, but that's not Cummins' fault .

For the record, the 12V Cummins B series (as well as the current 24 valve engines) do not have replaceable liners.

Maybe the fact that both the 617 Benz engine and the 12V Cummins run great on SVO is the best thing they have in common. Bring on the $5.00 and $6.00/gallon diesel - see if I care! Whoops, that gets too close to the political discussion... Happy Fourth, all.