Pick Up Truck

[laurazone5]

First thing on my list of things to buy is a house.......

BUT my lifestyle really demands, a pick up truck.
I used to have a Toyota, and it was a mule. Ran forever.

I sure would love to hear opinions on pu trucks, what's good, what's not, etc.

[Deleted]

Get another "mule" - I've got 6 of them; 8 if you count the other 2 that got caught in the runaway fire a couple years ago.

Now granted....they aren't all running at the moment; some are in different stages of being brought back to that position,

but once going again, they run and run and run.... In case you weren't clear on where I stood - I'm voting for another ToYotA!

[Ozarks Tom]

They seem to be a rarity now, but a full sized bed can be a real help. When we were wanting to get my wife a PU, since she doesn't need the extra seating of a stretch cab, the extra room of a standard bed allows her to carry a lot more cargo.

[farmrbrown]

You'll be happy with a Toyota. I won't part with mine. At 350,000 miles and counting, I'll have to drop in a transmission soon......and keep rolling.
I think pulling out tree stumps, hauling tons of lumber and doing it at 80 mph may have shortened the tranny's life, lol.

[Deleted]

I had 2 '85 Ford F150, 300 CI Straight 6, 4 on the Floor, 4WD.

Sold both great Pickups.

Now have a 2005 Dodge 1500, Crew Cab, 4WD. It don't like being Loaded, nice to drive around just don't haul anything.


rebelman

[Jolly]

What kind of gas mileage do you need? They don't get good gas mileage, but the guys down here who have Tundras really like them. The biggest gripe I hear on them is the cost of parts, but they don't break that often.

The Ford's get good mileage and power with their eco-six, but I'm scared of turbocharged engines concerning longevity. I'm also not wild about all the aluminum in Ford's now.

The GM trucks with their cylinder drop out technology die early. Lots of guys have to redo motors in the 100-130,000 mile range. People tell me you can deprogram that feature. The gas mileage will suffer, but the engine lasts longer...Or so I've been told.

Dodge? Maybe just me, but I've never been a Dodge guy. Parts cost more than Chevy or Ford and Dodges seem to have more niggling problems as they get older. They do have a new Italian diesel that doesn't have the power of their Cummins, but gets outstanding fuel mileage.

Nissan had a rep for bad engines, but I'm intrigued by their new Cummins.

All theses opinions are worth exactly what you paid for them...😁

[Jolly]

Speaking of trucks, just had a friend buy one of these with a 2.8L diesel:

www.chevrolet.com/trucks/colorado-mid-size-truck

I think he's nuts to pay the money he did for a small truck...

[Deleted]

If I was younger and needed one for working I've seen an old Ford F150 for $1,500. I would be doing some serious looking. As matter fact my Son just bought an Old Ford and never been happier.


rebleman

[joebill]

A lot depends on what you are gonna do with it. My 2 current trucks are a crew cab dodge 1500 I bought new in 01 and has gone nearly 300K with NO repairs except a set of front brake pads and a throw-out bearing. Nobody wanted to do the bearing without putting in a whole clutch, so I did it myself, on the ground. The first 200K+ was on the freeways, mostly passing lane, 79 MPH, which makes you safe from the cops, and you can run I-10 for over 100 miles at a stretch without kicking out the cruise control around here. The last few years it has been an "around the place" shop truck, but still runs like new, which means it goes just fine but idles like it has a high-lift cam in it.

The other truck is a '98 single cab long bed GMC 3500 series with a 454 in it, no duals. Driving it up and down mountains with the cruise kicked in is fun, because it never bogs down, and will pass anything but a gas station. It only has about 135K on it, and I inherited it from a friend. Only addition we made on it was to add the fold-up tonneau cover, and THAT is a wonderful feature! That cover and the cruise control are features I would not want to be without.

If I all of a sudden won the lottery, I would not replace either truck....maybe just have them both painted AC orange or JD green... but then we also have the little jeep compass for economy driving, so the lousy truck mileage is not that important. If I were putting on a LOT of truck miles monthly one would need a newer truck with better mileage, but if I were buying a truck today and using it for modest mileage I would look to past models, not a new one....Joe

[DEKE]

I have 2, a 2008 F450 for towing farm equipment and DW uses a 2005 F250 for our daily truck and hauling her horses. The 03 - 07 Ford diesels have a terrible engine unless you get the $3000 "bullet proof" kit to fix a number of internal issues. Once we did that to the F250, mileage went up from 13 to 15 MPG and it has had no engine troubles in the 20K miles since.

The F450 pulls anything, but it is geared so low it only gets 9 MPG and that can fall to about 6 MPG when I'm hauling the backhoe (36K lbs including truck, trailer, and backhoe with implements). So at 10 years old, it has only about 55000 miles on it. The worst thing about the Fords since around 2008 is that if it needs any serious engine work, the body has to be lifted off the frame. To change head gaskets costs about $7000.

I was considering changing to the RAM diesel next time I purchase, but if they are no longer using the Cummins, I'll have to do more research.

[Jolly]

Sept 1, 2018 17:41:50 GMT DEKE said:

I have 2, a 2008 F450 for towing farm equipment and DW uses a 2005 F250 for our daily truck and hauling her horses. The 03 - 07 Ford diesels have a terrible engine unless you get the $3000 "bullet proof" kit to fix a number of internal issues. Once we did that to the F250, mileage went up from 13 to 15 MPG and it has had no engine troubles in the 20K miles since.

The F450 pulls anything, but it is geared so low it only gets 9 MPG and that can fall to about 6 MPG when I'm hauling the backhoe (36K lbs including truck, trailer, and backhoe with implements). So at 10 years old, it has only about 55000 miles on it. The worst thing about the Fords since around 2008 is that if it needs any serious engine work, the body has to be lifted off the frame. To change head gaskets costs about $7000.

I was considering changing to the RAM diesel next time I purchase, but if they are no longer using the Cummins, I'll have to do more research.

You can still get the Cummins, 2500 and up. The Eco-diesel in is the 1500:


www.ramtrucks.com/ecodiesel.html

[fordy]

..........I purchased a 2001 Suburban 1500 with a 5.3 small V8 with 116,000 on it . I was able to do a car fax and printout a complete set of service records so I felt secure about it's condition . It has 122,xxx , now and I had some basic maintenance done right after I purchased it . This is my first Sub and I absolutely love the vehicle . I would have been buying them way back had I owned one earlier . It is a joy to drive and I can load it up with my 'Stuff' and still have 2 seats left over . Milage is about 14 which is acceptable . I may take a short vacation later on in the fall if my money holds out . I wanted 2dr. as 4x4 has lots of Xtra mechanical stuff that will need to be replaced and lotsa $$$$ to fix it . , fordy

[joebill]

I owned 2 suburbans, one was early 70's with a 250 6 cylinder and it had 3 doors not counting the rear one. Only one back side door on the sidewalk side. 3 speed on the column. A bit underpowered on the takeoff, so it used up a clutch plate from time to time, but it was a great truck! Had no headliner nor door liners, just painted steel, and you could keep it really clean with a shop towel and a squirt of soap and water. They should make them like that now.

The other one was a 4WD and already had a LOT of miles when I got it. I drove it for a distance with only one front wheel touching the road, since the LR wheel and hub broke off and I ran over it with the bottom of the body, tossing the left rear side of the truck up in the air. I was in the passing lane and made for the median when it sat down again, and the hot grease burning set the median weeds on fire, which I put out with the floor mats. Impact with the ground broke every single piece of glass in the truck and prob'ly made my cheeks touch my shoulders, although I don't remember that.

Those old roller axle bearings sometimes wear a groove in the axle, since they use it for an inner race, and then the axle breaks off. Easy to check for, because you can jack up the rear end and see if you can lift the rear wheel and tire up and down a bit, loose, without moving the axle housing. Kind of a rare problem but I have had it twice, the first time on a 1968 chevy station wagon.....Joe

[Ozarks Tom]

Since I swore never to by GM again after the bailout, I'm making this Suburban last. 263K miles so far and still going strong (knock on wood). This is my fourth, I've run them all well over 200k.

[tarbe]

This thread reminds me....I need to start a tractor thread.


Edit:  Stick with what you know and love....Toyota.  That's my $0.02.

I sure have had good luck with the brand.

But maintenance matters...try to fine one that has been loved.  It will cost more, but probably save you money in the longer run.