truck selection dilemma

[Brantlyj]

I'm having a hard time deciding what to do about a truck.

long story to properly explain my dilemma.

I currently have the truck in my signature. It has 160,000 miles, burns a qt or so of oil every 5000 miles and the payload is roughly 2800 lbs.

I just bought an Arcadia 3940LT. Dry weight is 12,800 lbs and gross of 14,000. I don't have it yet so I don't know actual weight yet.

I'm either at or slightly over my payload. I'd probably keep the truck however we are going to Alaska in 2024. I'd really prefer to have a 1 ton.

I would go diesel however the truck hardly gets used. It's my personal truck but it is also used at our business. It used to be my daily until my wife passed away but since she did I have just been using her van as I have 3 kids and frankly the van is more convenient. So, since May I have put on less than 5000 miles. And when it does get used it's to go across the street to pick up product from our supplier. Literally 1500 ft each way. These short run times will kill a modern diesel with the current EPA garbage unless I purposely take it for a long drive on a regular basis. I really don't have time to just go waste diesel.

So I'm thinking gas. The new 7.3 from Ford. I don't want new. My dad seem to have a problem backing a 6-8 ft wide truck through a 12 ft wide garage door and has broken the right mirror and bent the left side of the bumper from hitting the frame.
I'd go used but apparently people are dumb enough to pay 10K over original msrp for 1-2 y/o trucks with 50,000 miles.

My current consideration is to buy a diesel next spring. Use it for the Alaska trip and then sell it afterwards.
I was also thinking about a 2011-2018 diesel and deleting the EPA garbage.
Also hoping the market corrects itself on used trucks this summer or next winter.