6.7 Power Stroke vs 6.7 Cummins: What Texas Truck Buyers Should Know

Ask ten diesel owners in Texas which engine is better and you will get ten confident answers, four arguments, and no useful information. Ford people love the Power Stroke. Ram people love the Cummins. Everybody has a story about a buddy’s truck.

We sell both. We take both in on trade, we inspect both, we watch what comes back with problems and what does not, and we have no dog in this fight. So here is the version we give customers on the lot.

Both the 6.7L Power Stroke and the 6.7L Cummins are good engines. Neither one is a mistake. On a used truck, the specific model year matters far more than the badge on the hood. A well-chosen example of either will outlast a poorly chosen example of the other, and it is not close.

That said, the two engines are built on genuinely different philosophies, they fail in different ways, and there are a few model years on both sides where you want to check paperwork before you sign anything. Let us get into it.

Two very different designs

The Cummins is an inline-six. Cast iron block, cast iron head, 24 valves, one cylinder head instead of two, and a design lineage that traces back through the 5.9L to industrial and agricultural engines. Inline-sixes are naturally balanced and mechanically simple, with fewer parts to gasket and fewer things to leak. Cummins is also an independent engine manufacturer, not a division of Ram, which is why the same basic architecture shows up in equipment far heavier than a pickup.

The Power Stroke is a V8, and since 2011 it has been designed and built by Ford in-house rather than sourced from Navistar, which is a large part of why it is a better engine than the 6.0L and 6.4L that came before it. It uses a compacted graphite iron block with aluminum heads, and it has an unusual inboard exhaust layout with the turbo nestled in the valley of the V. That design keeps the exhaust path short and gets the turbo spooling quickly.

Practical takeaway: the Cummins is the simpler, more agricultural design, and it feels like it. The Power Stroke is the more refined and quieter one, and it usually feels stronger off idle. Neither of those facts tells you which used truck to buy.

The fuel pump question, which actually matters

If you remember one thing from this article, make it this section.

Both engines have used the Bosch CP4.2 high-pressure fuel pump at various points. The CP4.2 is efficient and makes big injection pressure, and it is also unforgiving. When it fails it can send metal debris through the entire fuel system, which turns a pump problem into injectors, lines, and rails. That is the difference between a repair and a very bad week.

Here is how the two engines line up on it, and this is the part most buyers do not know:

Cummins. From 2007.5 through 2018 the 6.7 Cummins used the older Bosch CP3, which has an excellent reputation and is the pump enthusiasts actively swap back to. Ram then adopted the CP4.2 for 2019 and 2020, and reversed course for 2021, going back to a CP3 design. Better still, Stellantis later issued a recall covering those 2019 and 2020 trucks to replace the CP4-style pump with the newer CP3.3.

That gives used buyers a concrete action item. If you are looking at a 2019 or 2020 Ram 2500 or 3500, ask for documentation showing whether the fuel pump recall was performed. A truck that has had the CP3.3 installed is arguably in better shape than one that never had a CP4 at all, because it has a fresh pump. A truck that never got the recall done is a to-do list item you are buying.

Power Stroke. Ford ran the Bosch CP4.2 from the 6.7’s 2011 debut, and for the 2020 model year introduced an updated version of the pump alongside a jump in maximum injection pressure to 36,000 psi. Those 2020 and newer trucks were later subject to an NHTSA recall over high-pressure fuel pump failures, which Ford initially attributed in part to degraded biodiesel sitting in tanks during the pandemic shutdowns. Ford has since moved to a different pump design on the newest Super Duty trucks.

So the honest scoreboard: Cummins spent more years on the safer pump and has an official path back to it. Power Stroke buyers should ask about open recalls by VIN, which takes about a minute on the manufacturer’s site and is worth doing on any used diesel regardless of brand.

None of this means avoid a CP4 truck. Millions of them are running fine, and aftermarket disaster-prevention kits and full pump conversions exist. It means know which pump is in the truck you are buying and price accordingly.

Known problem years, honestly

6.7 Power Stroke. The 2011 to 2014 trucks are the first generation, and they carry the most early-design issues, with turbocharger problems and cracking EGR coolers leading the list. Ford addressed the turbo for 2015. The 2017 to 2019 trucks are widely considered the sweet spot: updated turbo, refined emissions hardware, more power, and most of the early gremlins sorted out. Across generations, watch for EGR cooler flow, fan clutch, crankshaft damper, and the crankcase ventilation system. The 2020 and newer trucks are stronger yet, and they are priced like it.

6.7 Cummins. The engine itself is durable. Its recurring complaints center on emissions hardware rather than the long block: DPF regeneration problems and clogging, EGR cooler issues, and the turbo actuator on earlier trucks. Most Cummins headaches are exhaust-side or electronic, not bottom-end.

Notice the shape of that. On the Power Stroke, the questions are about the engine’s own hardware evolving through its generations. On the Cummins, the engine tends to be the strong part, and the conversation moves to what is bolted to it.

Which brings us to the real Cummins asterisk.

The transmission is the Cummins conversation

The 68RFE six-speed automatic behind many 6.7 Cummins trucks is the weak link in the package. It has been in service since 2007, and its reputation is earned: torque converter shudder under load, valve body wear, and internal clutch pack failures, especially on trucks that have towed hard. It is not a grenade, and plenty of them survive a long time in light-duty use. But if you plan to work the truck, it is the component most likely to cost you money.

The heavier-duty Aisin AS69RC, found on high-output engines and many 3500s, is meaningfully stronger and is the one to look for if you tow seriously. It is not flawless either. Owners report harsh shifting and gear hunting on early production units, and there was a run of K1 snap ring failures concentrated in certain 2022 and early 2023 build months. It is also heavier, pricier to service, and has fewer aftermarket tuning options.

Ford’s TorqShift automatics behind the Power Stroke have generally been the stronger, less-discussed half of their drivetrain. If you are comparing a Cummins truck and a Power Stroke truck at similar price and mileage, check which transmission is in the Ram before you decide. A Cummins with an Aisin and a Cummins with a 68RFE are not the same purchase.

Which one should you actually buy?

Buy the Cummins if you value mechanical simplicity, you like an inline-six, you want the CP3 fuel pump years, or you are shopping 2018 and earlier where the pump question is settled in your favor. If you are buying a Ram to tow heavy, hold out for the Aisin.

Buy the Power Stroke if you want the quieter, more refined truck with strong low-end response and the stronger factory transmission, and target 2017 to 2019 for the best balance of sorted hardware and sane pricing.

Buy either one if the specific truck checks out. That is the real answer, and it is why we say the year and the service history beat the badge every time.

The five things to check on any used diesel

Whichever engine you land on, do these before you buy. They apply to both.

1. Run the VIN for open recalls. Especially fuel pump recalls on 2019 to 2020 Rams and 2020 and newer Super Duty trucks.
2. Ask whether emissions equipment is intact. A deleted truck may run great and may also be a registration, warranty, and resale problem. Know what you are getting.
3. Look at service records for the fluids that matter. Fuel filters on schedule, transmission service on a towing truck, coolant on an EGR-cooler-prone engine.
4. Cold start it. Not warmed up in the back lot before you arrive. Cold, from a full stop, and listen.
5. Ask what the truck did for a living. A 120,000 mile truck that pulled a gooseneck five days a week is a different animal from a 120,000 mile highway commuter, even with identical odometers.

Any dealer who gets annoyed by that list is telling you something useful.

We stock both, and we will tell you the truth about either

We carry Ford Super Duty F-250, F-350 and F-450 trucks with the 6.7L Power Stroke, and Ram 2500 and 3500 trucks with the 6.7L Cummins, in stock configurations and custom builds. Because we sell both, we have no reason to talk you out of one.

Tell us what you tow, how often, and what you want to spend, and we will point you at the model years worth your money and tell you which ones to skip. No hidden dealer fees, no haggling, no pressure.

Browse our current used pickup truck inventory or come see us in Dallas, Austin or Houston. Looking for something set up beyond factory? Take a look at our custom truck builds.