If you are passionate about diesel performance but are tired of the cost, perhaps there are other way to enjoy this industry. We come across trucks all the time that have 50 thousand dollars worth of add ons and upgrades. Then you add the original cost of the truck and you are looking at a 100,000 dollar truck. At what point, do we take a step back and say, there must be another way?

Video and photos courtesy of 1320 Video

Just because some people don’t have the financial means to dump that kind of money into a rig, doesn’t mean that they don’t feel the same way about their ride. Most of us dump way too much money into our trucks and then only keep our trucks for a few years. By the time we sell them, we are getting pennies on the dollar back on the upgrades. What if instead of upgrading your daily ride, you took a look at something a little older? Maybe even something a little rough?

Take Troy Gubser’s rat rod in the video above. This is a ’40 Chevrolet pickup with a 7.3l Power Stroke engine backed up by a ZF 5 speed. Rat rods offer the opportunity to enjoy a ride, enjoy a diesel, without the worry about emissions, having to go that extra step to stand out among a crowd and really embrace the “Fun” aspect of things.

Gubser says that he is getting 21 mpg in his truck. He is driving it all over the country and just having fun. More people should be worried about having fun and not so concerned with their huge truck payment or credit card statement.

Gubster still has some go fast parts since he is laying down 505 horsepower. He is able to tow a gooseneck and the truck draws a huge crowd whereever he goes. Sure it isn’t perfect, but that is the whole point.