It really isn't going to matter what you get a whole lot. They are all good trucks. I am biased towards Ford. I used to own a '96 Powerstroke Diesel. It had 200,000 kms on it when i sold it and was like brand new. Awesome engine. The new Duramax sounds awesome but I am leary of the aluminum block. Not a good idea on a diesel. (That is how they get the motor so quiet.) If you are going to put on a lot of miles get a diesel. Otherwise go gas. Still waiting for Chevy and Dodge to introduce some overhead-cam engines. Ford is miles ahead in gas engine technology. The new Chevy motors put out lots of horsepower but not as much torque per cubic inch. Excellent fuel mileage out of Ford's V10 also. BTW - the electronic shift-on-the-fly is an option on the superduty's but even with it they have the manual/automatic hub combo. You just choose between a floor-mounted lever and a dash-mounted dial. Also buy a 1-ton. Do not get a 3/4 ton because on the 1-ton you don't have to pay luxury tax like you do on the 3/4's. It will save you money (at least it does here in Canada.) Also go to offroad.com and look in the Ford section. THere is a test of an F-350 Crewcab powerstroke and they say it is in a class all of its own with now competition. (that includes Cummins and Duramax.) There is a reason Fords are the best selling trucks on the road but it isn't that Chevy or Dodges are junk; they are good trucks. Ford just builds a better truck in my opinion. They also are miles ahead now in fit and finish, (they own Mazda so they learned from the best, the japanese.) If Nissan, Toyota, or Mazda built fullsize diesel trucks i would never buy american again. There is no comparison.