Advice needed..Keep old truck or get a Tundra

[Diamondpilot]

I traded my owned '05 Ford F150 Lariat with 25,000 mi. in on my '07 Tundra and have never regretted it.The only thing I regretted, was buying the Ford in the first place; took a wicked financial hit. The 150 had to have been the most anemic tow vehicle I've ever owned. It was supposed to be the "cats' meow" with the 3valve 5.4, 3.73:1 gear ratio and towing package, but turned out to be a total bust, so I traded it;Done. The Tundra does everything I've asked of it while producing 18+ mpg during the summer mths, empty. For some reason, mileage falls off to 16ish during the fall/winter.I've never owned a Nissan, but read numerous reports before I traded from un-happy owners reference rear differential problems; like blowing them up. I occasionally tow loads in the 10,000+# range, and the last thing I wanted was a soft rear diff. See my posts in "Please educate yourself"

The Titan with the rear end issues were the 04 and earlier. They switched to Dana Axles and the problem went away. I really like the Tundra when I was looking back in 08 but they just would not come off the price and when I crawled around under it the frame looked awful light to me, especially rear axle back. If it were not for that and the price its what I would have bought.

I get no where near the Tundras MPG but I drive my Titan about 260 miles per week at its current use. It now has 33,000 miles and not a single issue. It averages 14.6 unloaded so that sucks but does about 12 pulling. This summer it got 13.1 average of which each tank was about 260 miles of which 150 was pulling 7,000#.

As for the Fords, I have had 3 with the 5.4 and 3.73 gears. I have never had a issue pulling upto 10,000#. It was not as good as the Titan but only once would it not get the load rolling up a 25% grade or so at a boat ramp so I had to use 4x4.

I currently have 3 trucks. 04 F-250 4x4 Diesel, 06 F-350 4x4 Diesel, and the 08 Titan and all do what is needed with no complaints.

Chris

 

[RobertN]

So I found a couple things, part I mentioned above.

On my old truck, I put the Rancho adjustable shocks on. Worked great when I put the camper on the truck, or hooked up the horse trailer. They were easy to adjust. I was able to get a nicer ride out of that 3/4 ton.

The other thing is, you can run lower pressures in the tires when not towing/hauling. The rears on 85psi rated E series tires on a 3/4 ton, do not need 85psi for every day driving. My truck has a "soft ride" tire pressure not in the manual. I think it dumps about 20psi(my wife is out in the truck right now, or I would get the exact figure). I run them low unless towing/hualing. This has been a pain once or twice, cause I was not around a spot to air up right away.

Over the years, there are two things I have found. No way you could take my 8' bed away... And it is nice to be overtrucked than under trucked. I would not let go of my 3/4 ton unless I sold my trailers and moved to town. My flatbed has seen it's full 7000lb GVWR. My 5th wheel is lighter, at 7500GVRW. That is within the ratings of the new 1/2 tons. I would not give up my 3/4 ton for one though. I like a nice margin. 3/4 tons are just built stouter, bigger brakes ect ect ect.

BrierPatch has some very good thoughts to consider. Also, RobertN has some thoughts about suspension. I'd be inclined to keep the Cummins and de-rate the rear end a bit, run softer shocks and lower tire pressures. But this comes with various warnings that you better understand what you're doing, and it still won't equal a 1/2 ton in ride. I'm not sold on any of the half tons, but if you go that route, get a beefy one with the best axle available.

 

[Patches]

I hear ya on the frame issue. It's the old argument of ridgedity vs compliance, and I'm not an engineer. I can only state what I've experienced personally, and would not attempt to suggest what anyone should purchase for an intended purpose. I stated in the (educate yourself) post that I've towed the weight stated, except I'm not sure of the trailer weight(16 ft, 12,000 GVW Bri-Mar tandem axle flat bed) with 9,000# of tractors on it. I've towed this arrangement several times and have inspected the frame/ hitch interface, for my own peace of mind, and found no issues

 

[MESSMAKER]

I would say you should spring for a new or as least different truck. The dodge is a heavy duty machine and is not vary agile or smooth riding. It does get great mileage. Any of the new 1/2 tons will be enough truck for a bit of hauling and be tons of fun the rest of the time. 300-400hp is almost twice what you found 10 years ago.

 

[crashz]

Just to throw my 2 cents in and confuse the issue a little more:

Since you have the last of the coveted Cummins trucks and since you have a taste of effortless towing, I suggest (as another posted did) getting a decent mid-size car for your daily driver. Get a newer Camary or Accord, something comfortable, economical and you'll have the best of both worlds. Garage the truck when not using, and it will last forever. The additional cost of having two vehicles will be offset by not replacing the truck nearly as much as if it were a daily driver. Replacement costs of a used sedan is much less that the typical new or newer diesel pickup truck. The additional mpg gain of a sedan will also offset costs (18 mpg vs 28-32 mpg).


For my personal story:

I have a 1/2 ton GMC daily driver that does pretty well. 18 mpg empty. Full to drive, rides nice, but works hard when towing or plowing snow. I bought it because I wanted a truck and needed a car and could only afford one. Its a jack-of-all-trades, but master of none. Too big for city traffic, too light for work on the land.

As much as I want a new GMC 2500HD or F350, I'm not going that route. I'll give my truck to my father, and buy a new Honda CRV. The money I save in commuting, paid mileage and such will offset my two project trucks - a 1987 GMC 1 ton dump and my 1983 GMC K2500. But I'm slightly obsessed with the old GM trucks.

 

[RobertN]

This brings up a few thoughts...

- The OP said he had an '07 Cummins Dodge. I would take a guess and say it must either be paid for, or close to it. I, for one, really like not having a truck payment

- Not agile how? My long bed xcab Ram is not as maneuverable as my CJ-5 was, but I have taken it a lot of places hunting. We're in hill country here; my truck hooks up and scoots down Highway-49 curves pretty well.

- If power was the desire, it is easy to get 400hp out of the OP's truck, and better fuel mileage. At the rear wheels, not the crankshaft.

- You are right, a 3/4 ton will never ride like a 1/2 ton, especially the car like 1/2 tons. But, as mentioned earlier, the right shocks, and the right pressure in the tires, they are not too bad.

I would say you should spring for a new or as least different truck. The dodge is a heavy duty machine and is not vary agile or smooth riding. It does get great mileage. Any of the new 1/2 tons will be enough truck for a bit of hauling and be tons of fun the rest of the time. 300-400hp is almost twice what you found 10 years ago.

 

[hawkeye08]

So how did I become a wizard? As to the axle expert, nothing beats a 2.76 behind a PowerGlide or maybe a fifties Buick Dynaflow.

When I was typing the message, I was thinking your avatar looked like a wizard, but now that I look at it carefully, just an animated worker. Sorry about that.

Cars are like software, new versions have some nice features, but new bugs are introduced and some useful old features are often dropped. We get sold a bill of goods that the new version is going to fix all the things wrong...

 

[RobertN]

Good things cars aren't like Windows

Cars are like software, new versions have some nice features, but new bugs are introduced and some useful old features are often dropped. We get sold a bill of goods that the new version is going to fix all the things wrong...

 

[timswi]

Just to throw my 2 cents in and confuse the issue a little more:

Since you have the last of the coveted Cummins trucks and since you have a taste of effortless towing, I suggest (as another posted did) getting a decent mid-size car for your daily driver. Get a newer Camary or Accord, something comfortable, economical and you'll have the best of both worlds. Garage the truck when not using, and it will last forever. The additional cost of having two vehicles will be offset by not replacing the truck nearly as much as if it were a daily driver. Replacement costs of a used sedan is much less that the typical new or newer diesel pickup truck. The additional mpg gain of a sedan will also offset costs (18 mpg vs 28-32 mpg).


For my personal story:

I have a 1/2 ton GMC daily driver that does pretty well. 18 mpg empty. Full to drive, rides nice, but works hard when towing or plowing snow. I bought it because I wanted a truck and needed a car and could only afford one. Its a jack-of-all-trades, but master of none. Too big for city traffic, too light for work on the land.

As much as I want a new GMC 2500HD or F350, I'm not going that route. I'll give my truck to my father, and buy a new Honda CRV. The money I save in commuting, paid mileage and such will offset my two project trucks - a 1987 GMC 1 ton dump and my 1983 GMC K2500. But I'm slightly obsessed with the old GM trucks.

With you on this

 

[firemech]

Have had Tundras since 2000 have put over 200,000km on two while pulling boats daily down many back roads and hilly areas and have never had a problem. My 1999 Dodge pretty near broke me, my 1999 GMC had cronic brake isues and sorry just won,t own a Ford. Currently have a 2010 Tundra with the 5.7 and six speed and love it.
Larry