New Pickup Truck Advice

[Cajundaddy]

Well I have been buying and running a fleet of PU trucks since 1974 and have no emo attachment to any of them. I have owned around 40 of em and my last new one was 2014 so I am a bit behind the curve, but these are the questions I will ask before every purchase. (my current answers)

* How many miles/year and percentage of street/hwy miles? (20k, 50/50)
* How many seats do we need? (5 maybe)
* How often do we need to tow in excess of 5000 lbs? (never)
* How important is reliability? (very)
* How important is gas mileage? (somewhat)
* How do we plan to keep it? (10 yrs +)
* How often will it see snow? (never)

With these answers you can see that I need a pretty basic truck. No diesel, no super duty or 3/4T, no 4x4, no bigazz V8. I do want one for general hauling and light towing that will not leave me stranded and not leave me broke from excessive car payments, gas, or maintenance. Ford, Chevy, and Toyota all have different flavors of these for around $30k new or $20k in good used condition.

In these brands I like the Chevy Silverado LS, Ford F-150 XL, and Toyota Tacoma SR5 longbed for my purposes. Drive em and see if you agree.

[crb07]

Originally Posted by pavulon

If it would work for you, I'd wonder about a diesel Colorado. I'd also like whatever I bought to have some sort of limited slip rear differential and 4 wheel disc brakes. Lastly, I'd buy used.

My next car will be a diesel Colorado.

[jdlowery]

Originally Posted by Cajundaddy

Well I have been buying and running a fleet of PU trucks since 1974 and have no emo attachment to any of them. I have owned around 40 of em and my last new one was 2014 so I am a bit behind the curve, but these are the questions I will ask before every purchase. (my current answers)

* How many miles/year and percentage of street/hwy miles? (20k, 50/50)
* How many seats do we need? (5 maybe)
* How often do we need to tow in excess of 5000 lbs? (never)
* How important is reliability? (very)
* How important is gas mileage? (somewhat)
* How do we plan to keep it? (10 yrs +)
* How often will it see snow? (never)

With these answers you can see that I need a pretty basic truck. No diesel, no super duty or 3/4T, no 4x4, no bigazz V8. I do want one for general hauling and light towing that will not leave me stranded and not leave me broke from excessive car payments, gas, or maintenance. Ford, Chevy, and Toyota all have different flavors of these for around $30k new or $20k in good used condition.

In these brands I like the Chevy Silverado LS, Ford F-150 XL, and Toyota Tacoma SR5 longbed for my purposes. Drive em and see if you agree.

Everything you wrote makes sense. I definitely only need a basic truck. My towing needs are minimal (motorcycle trailer) and all I really need is room for 3 plus a big dog. I love V8s but a V6 may be the way to go. I plan on dropping by the Ford and Chevy dealerships tomorrow to test drive a few. I'll let you guys know what I like.

[vash]

Parking a full size truck in San Francisco takes incredible good fortune.

[Jim Bremner]

I bought a 2002 Silverado on 2/2/02 that I drove EVERYDAY til June 2006 I ran it 200k Sold it with 247k miles. I didn't service it til it had 100k on it due to needing it daily. I towed 30k plus miles drove dirt roads, taught 4 boys to drive it. by the time I sold it I replaced the fuel pump at 147k the brake pads at 174k and the right front bearings at 225k I will buy another Chevy.

[Cajundaddy]

My last Silverado LS was a 2005 with 5.3L. She was a peach and I drove her 10 years and 180k with very few mechanical issues. I do note that my current Tacoma V6 is quicker all around due to a favorable hp/wt ratio even with a smaller motor. It is also much easier to navigate tight streets, alleys, and driveways.

[motion]

Originally Posted by jdlowery

Everything you wrote makes sense. I definitely only need a basic truck. My towing needs are minimal (motorcycle trailer) and all I really need is room for 3 plus a big dog. I love V8s but a V6 may be the way to go. I plan on dropping by the Ford and Chevy dealerships tomorrow to test drive a few. I'll let you guys know what I like.

Can't speak for Chevy, but you're gonna fall in love with the F150 EcoBoost. They are amazing. You should be able to score $11K off of MSRP on an XLT or XL without any problems (2017 model). $8K off should be do-able on an '18.

[nota]

11k off is nice but I can remember when you could buy 3 trucks for 11k new
yes 6 stick no ac or radio strippers at 3500 each but fullsize chevys
I wonder if you can even buy a similar truck out side of fleet sales

[dad911]

Originally Posted by nota

11k off is nice but I can remember when you could buy 3 trucks for 11k new
yes 6 stick no ac or radio strippers at 3500 each but fullsize chevys
I wonder if you can even buy a similar truck out side of fleet sales

3 on the tree? First manual trans I drove..... as a 12 year old, on the jobsite.

I converted a few of the column shifters to floor shifters in the early 70's for my father.

[Jim Bremner]

I don't want turbos on a truck, more heat, more problems and saw a alloy body ford truck after a fire and I really want a steel body.

[onewhippedpuppy]

Originally Posted by Jim Bremner

I don't want turbos on a truck, more heat, more problems and saw a alloy body ford truck after a fire and I really want a steel body.

LOL, I’ve never purchased a vehicle based on how well it burns.

[1990C4S]

Originally Posted by onewhippedpuppy

LOL, I’ve never purchased a vehicle based on how well it burns.

He's on the hunt for an asbestos bodied F250.

[Jim Richards]

Originally Posted by onewhippedpuppy

LOL, I’ve never purchased a vehicle based on how well it burns.

Living in tornado alley, do you look at how well it flies?

[jdlowery]

My son and I made it to the Ford and Chevy dealerships today to drive some trucks. The first stop was Ford. We drove a LS configured truck 4x2 with 2.7L V6 EcoBoost. We did some freeway and street driving. I liked the way it felt. A lot different from some of the older trucks that I've driven in the past but, it's brand new so it should feel good. I also wanted to drive the 3.5L V6 EcoBoost. The only one they had on the lot was configured in a very high end package ($66K, who pays that for a pickup?). But we drove it anyway. I could feel the difference in acceleration and grunt between the two engines. Of course the question is do I really need the 3.5L. The answer, probably not. We talked numbers a little and I will probably not be able to find a 2017 the way that I want it configured. I may not be able to find a 2018 the way I want either. Here's the problem with dealerships. They configure these trucks the way that they want which will give them the biggest profit. The more basic models are setup as work trucks. They're usually white and minus some creature comforts. They were able to find a truck with almost everything that I want, in white, that is a 2018. I asked them to do some more digging for a different color. The price offered was $34.5.

Next stop was Chevy. Chevy had no 4.3L engines on the lot ready to test drive. The 5.3L they had was blocked in by several rows of cars. I didn't bother having them dig it out. I asked them to give me ring when both engine types were available and ready to test drive. Hopefully, I'll get to drive them sometime this week.

By the way, I don't mind ordering and waiting to get the exact configuration that I want.

[URY914]

Originally Posted by onewhippedpuppy

LOL, I’ve never purchased a vehicle based on how well it burns.

[MMiller]

Originally Posted by URY914

Apparently that one burnt well...

[MMiller]

Originally Posted by jdlowery

By the way, I don't mind ordering and waiting to get the exact configuration that I want.

If I was buying new that's what I would do....get exactly what I wanted.

I would also caution you about being too conservative about power. Default to more than you need not less. For me nothing more frustrating than wishing you had more HP and it really was not that much more dollars.

Also I'm surprised there is not more love for the Dodge/Ram trucks in this thread... Nice styling, leaps and bounds above the Chevy for me. Power plant wise I'll take the Hemi or the Coyote, the big ecoboost I'm sure is sweet as well. I also like the coil springs in the rear of the Ram.

[Jim Bremner]

Originally Posted by onewhippedpuppy

LOL, I’ve never purchased a vehicle based on how well it burns.

Turn it on it's side or top the steel body will offer more protection .when it slides on blacktop

[enzo1]

[enzo1]

GM Reportedly Moving to Carbon Fiber Beds in the Great Pickup Truck Arms Race - The Drive