Time for a New Truck

[buck12]

Might even be surprised how much it would bring as an outright sale.

I agree. No way I would trade his truck. I would sell it my self. No sense letting the dealer make an extra thousand or more. I have never traded a vehicle. I figure I maintain our vehicles well and we take good care of them. I want to reap the reward.

 

[Martian]

Call them Gov't motors, gummint motors or whatever you like but I LOVE my GM vehicles. IMO, Dodge has the best engine, bad tranny, Ford good tranny, troublesome engine (good for some bad for others), GM has the best engine/tranny combo. I have a 4500 Duramax with an Ally automatic. One beast of a truck.

All trucks are excellent though and you could get something like a Tahoe or Yukon SUV's. I have a Yukon Denali and it tows excellent as well - like a 1500 but is a lot more practical in terms of hauling people and groceries. But for you I'd say no more than a 1500 to 2500 if you go truck max - and I'd see 1500 as the better option of those two also. Save on the fuel and a lot more agile.

 

[D7E]

I agree with the SUV vote . have a tahoe and trailblazer that do all the towing that the 1/2 tons do and maybe grip even better than a truck . I have never had trouble with ford engines and my personal everday driver is a 99 f150 4.6 v8 with 298'000 , electrics would be my grudge with ford, trannies in dodges and diffs in chevs ,again all higher milers but patterns do form !
Buying new i'd go ford used chev or diesel standard dodge.

 

[Dmace]

Dmace:
Any particular years to look for or to avoid...I know they have made some strides with fuel efficiency over the past few years, but not sure at what cost. I think the GM dealer lead me to believe that their strategy is to turn off two cylinders on their V8 when the power is not needed...

Starting with the RAM, you will want to stay to the newer body style 02+ for a half ton truck. People like to think they still have tranny problems like they did in the early 90's but it's had the same 5 speed (actually 6) trans since 02 and proved to be very reliable. In 2008, the 4.7l V8 got a big power increase from 235hp/295lb.ft to 310hp/330lb.ft plus it's FlexFuel which means it can run E85 (85% Ethanol) if you have a station nearby. Only the HEMI 2006+ has the MDS (multi displacement system) which shuts off 4 cylinders when under 50% throttle for 20+ highway mpg's. A good friend of mine drove from NH to FL all highway with very little traffic in a 07 Ram 1500 HEMI reg cab 4x4 and averaged 22mpg.

The GM 5.3l got revamped in 2000 so stick with that or newer. The thing I never liked about my old GM trucks was the 4 speed auto. It could never find the right gear and was either over-reving or lugging. The 6 speed Allison is a better trans but only available on diesel and big block V8 8.1l. The Active Fuel Management was available 2004+ but wasn't the most reliable system and many found it more problematic than helpful. The AFM system shuts off cylinders 1, 2, 6 and 7 but keeps some air/fuel in the cylinder to act as a "spring" for the piston but this system of leaving unburnt fuel in a cylinder causes problems in long highway drives. For a GM truck, I would stick with an engine without it. If you can deal with the 4-speed auto, they are very good trucks.

For the Ford's, I stay away from them because of the poor reliability of the V8 5.4l and auto trans. I've fixed 3 Ford 5.4l trucks that spit out the spark plugs and required a new thread to be drilled into the head. I'm pretty good at it now but it required a $300 tool and the confidence to drill into a head still installed on an engine. I've also had many trans problems with my old Ford's (94-98) E4OD. Mostly electronic with the computer going bad and keeping it in "limp mode". If you go with a Ford, stick with at least a 2004 for the redesigned chassis plus they seem to have less engine problems. Also if you want the FlexFuel, the 5.4l got it in 2006. I've never got more than 15 mpg out of an F150 since they are typically under-powered and working harder. Then again, I don't buy trucks for grocery store runs either...

 

[Diamondpilot]

I have to agree that a small V8 would be the way to go. Yes, they are not up to the big task but will do all he needs and more plus they are plentiful in the used market and bring a much lower price than the big V8.

The Ford 4.6, Dodge 4.7, and the Tundra 4.? all come to mind as very good capable trucks.

Chris

 

[flusher]

Don't guess--get that trailer/load weighed at your local truck stop. Then start shopping for that new truck.

 

[RobertN]

When was that? Dodge had tranny issues years ago, but recently?

Call them Gov't motors, gummint motors or whatever you like but I LOVE my GM vehicles. IMO, Dodge has the best engine, bad tranny, Ford good tranny, troublesome engine (good for some bad for others), GM has the best engine/tranny combo. I have a 4500 Duramax with an Ally automatic. One beast of a

 

[jeffsw6]

The GM 5.3l got revamped in 2000 so stick with that or newer. The thing I never liked about my old GM trucks was the 4 speed auto. It could never find the right gear and was either over-reving or lugging.

I have a 05 Suburban K1500 with the 5.3 and I'm really pleased with it for towing. I think GM claims something like 7000# capacity and I feel that is an honest figure. I have the aux trans oil cooler.

The only time I have been underwhelmed with mine is towing a pretty good load with a bunch of passengers and cargo in the truck also, doing highway speed ~75MPH on hilly kentucky state highways, it would go into 2nd gear and scream at 5000 RPM all the way up the big hills. I just put tow/haul mode on, set the cruise control, and turned up the radio. If there was heavy traffic and I had to put my foot to the pedal instead of use the cruise control I might have a different opinion about those trips but usually those highways are not that busy.

 

[ededic]

I bought this truck in March and have averaged 16.6 mpg. I have pulled trailer most of the summer hauling my JD 2210 w/various attachments. It has the 6.2 liter with the Borg Warner 6 speed transmission, 460hp and AWD.



My wife has the 6.0 liter in her 02 Yukon Denali and averages 18mpg. She said she could get that or better with my truck if she drove as I am a fast, hard driver.

 

[Martian]

I bought this truck in March and have averaged 16.6 mpg. I have pulled trailer most of the summer hauling my JD 2210 w/various attachments. It has the 6.2 liter with the Borg Warner 6 speed transmission, 460hp and AWD.

View attachment 243409

My wife has the 6.0 liter in her 02 Yukon Denali and averages 18mpg. She said she could get that or better with my truck if she drove as I am a fast, hard driver.

That's a good looking truck:thumbsup:

I see you got the Denali - love my Yukon Denali, definitely the way to go!