Growing up I always wanted to have a diesel pickup that I could take care of and make last for half a million miles because that’s what diesels do, they last. To me, there is nothing more appealing than a well-cared for truck that is put to work every day of the week, yet still manages to run and look brand new a decade or two later.

I’ve never agreed with the idea of trading off a used diesel every year for a newer one. Not that I’m against people with money, or someone having the ability to drive a brand new truck every year, but to me, trading in a diesel-powered truck every year with only 5,000-30,000 miles on the odometer just doesn’t seem right. In a way, the owner of that truck cheated himself. One, he didn’t even give the truck a chance to actually get broken in. Trading off a truck that only has a few thousand miles on the clock is crazy to me because the truck, for all intents and purposes, doesn’t even know it’s been driven off the dealers’ lot. Two, his decision to trade in goes against everything a diesel stands for—longevity. The owner cheats himself out of seeing how long a diesel really can last. Not to mention that fuel mileage often increases after a diesel is broken-in and settles in for the long haul. My own Power Stroke’s mileage increased 2 mpg after I bought it used with 87,000 miles on it. Here’s to all the diesel fans out there who are in it for the long haul.