Pickup Philosophy Question

[Paddy]

I just have an old Chevy Suburban 4x4 and an asortment of trailers. A one ton for mulch and stuff and a duel axel 16' for long lumber/tractor. The Chevy is enclosed so I can lock the tools in. Also 4x8 plywood fits nice. I never have the seats up!

 

[chkntrktr]

What do you haul your fuel in? If nothing else, a truck is way better than a car or suv for hauling cans of gas for lawnmowers or cans of diesel fuel for tractors. I've known a couple of people who spilled gas in their car trunk. The whole car stunk and the smell never seemed to go away.:2cents:

 

[dave1949]

It's hard to see paying extra for a diesel engine unless you really, really need the towing power. The fuel is higher, the initial price is higher, repairs could be higher, gas engines last a lot longer now and don't usually need a lot of maintenance. The traditional advantages of the diesel are getting smaller or have vanished.

If I were looking for something to reduce the price of a new truck, choosing between 4X4 and a diesel for example, is a no-brainer where winter counts. The only reasonably priced new pickups are the base model, standard cab, 8' box - which few people want or can use as a family vehicle.

 

[LBrown59]

Hard to say...I've been driving one for 30+ years.....just don't care for cars much.

There are some really good deals out there on decent used trucks....shop around.

I have been driving picks ups only since 1989.
One of them is the 1989 Nissan I bought new in 1989 .
I plan on putting antique license on it 2014.

 

[Cat_Driver]

First question you need to ask is WHY a pickup truck? I had a DMC Dually Duramax that I would use for hauling tools equipment etc. Then I realized every time I went to Home Depot I had to unload my truck because there were so many Illegal visitors in my area who love to see expensive tools in the open.

I went with a Sprinter Van. Its' diesel so I doubled the fuel mileage of the Duramax, everything is enclosed, I can tow, but not as much as the one ton. The benefits out weighed the pickup. That was 5 years ago and I've never regretted a minute of it.

With the van I can load it up with bikes and sleep in it for week end trips, stand up straight in it and walk around. I Could have purchased a CAP but the van is still better for accessibility.

So take a hard look at WHY you need a pick up.

Ford is coming out with a full size Sprinter clone.

Sitemap - Autoblog

 

[RoyJackson]

A pick up truck is like a gun...better to have one and no need it then not have one and need it.

That said, it is nice to have a smaller, more fuel efficient vehicle for day to day trips, as well.

 

[dave1949]

What do you haul your fuel in? If nothing else, a truck is way better than a car or suv for hauling cans of gas for lawnmowers or cans of diesel fuel for tractors. I've known a couple of people who spilled gas in their car trunk. The whole car stunk and the smell never seemed to go away.:2cents:

I used to think who the heck would buy a Ford Sport Trac or the Chev. equivalent? Now I own one. :laughing:

The little bed in back is great for hauling fuel cans, it will handle a 4x8 sheet of plywood (tipped on a wheel well), for <$100 you can get a hitch receiver bed extender and haul 10' and 12' boards. Rear seats are comfortable, 4x4 works good. Mine has a removable/lockable hard cover for the bed, that's handy for locking things up out of sight. No savings over a pickup in purchase price. More wife-friendly to drive.

 

[Pete Judd]

We have 2 trucks. A Ranger XLT 2wd, and a F150 XLT 4x4. Both extended cab short bed. The ranger is my everyday driver as it get's 24 mpg. The F150 is for hauling bigger stuff and pulling a dual axle 16 ft car trailer. The wife drives a Volvo wagon as a commuter, and we will take that on trips as it gets 28 mpg. Seems I am always hauling something in one of the trucks. Used the trailer twice last week for lumber runs as some of the boards were 12 and 16 ft long. As well as hauling 20 pier blocks, roofing, ect, to build a wheel chair ramp for the in-laws.

 

[newbury]

How many times per month do you have to need a pickup, before it makes sense to buy one?

Once - When that EXPENSIVE item you REALLY needed became available REAL CHEAP or FREE if you could go pick it up NOW but it REQUIRED a pickup.



I got by without a pickup for 40 years. But I always had a full size van, and for the last 24 years an E350 maxivan (to the right of the tree in the pic).

When I went to get that load of pallet rack the guy I was buying it from started going thru math over the phone. 30 times 50 plus 10 times... and I interrupted with "F350 dually". When I got there I had more than enough spare capacity to throw in the rest of his uprights and another 10 beams. Weight was about 3,000 lbs.

 

[bcp]

How many times per month do you have to need a car, before it makes sense to buy one?

 

[Bird]

Aah, how things have changed over the years. Some of us are old enough to remember when pickups were cheaper than cars; didn't have all the bells and whistles of course, but considerably cheaper. I think I gave a little over $3,300 for a new 1968 Roadrunner, but then in the Fall of 1969, right after the 1970 models hit the dealers, a local Chevy dealer ran a newspaper ad for a new 1969 Chevy pickup for $1,948. I bought one. It did have a heater, rear bumper, and a spare tire, but no power anything, no radio, not even a cigarette lighter but it ran great and got good gas mileage.

One of my sons has been a homeowner for a couple of years now. He has borrowed my truck several times, and recently wanted to get a small trailer to pull behind his wife's car ...a Honda Fit. They actually make a hitch for those!

Yep, that seems a little odd now but my first showroom new vehicle was a 1962 Austin Healy Sprite and I had a local shop make a trailer hitch welded to the frame to pull my Dad's 16' boat. And I once rented an enclosed U-Haul trailer to tow behind it to move from Dallas to one of the suburbs. I don't think U-Haul would even let you rent one of their trailers for something like that now.:laughing:

If nothing else, a truck is way better than a car or suv for hauling cans of gas for lawnmowers

Truer words were never spoken. I hated putting a gas can anywhere in a car. Even if you don't spill any, it seemed that you always had that aroma.

And now . . . it's easier for me to get in and out of my old 2001 Ford Ranger than the wife's 2002 Ford Crown Victoria.

 

[Jstpssng]

Aah, how things have changed over the years. Some of us are old enough to remember when pickups were cheaper than cars; didn't have all the bells and whistles of course, but considerably cheaper. I think I gave a little over $3,300 for a new 1968 Roadrunner, but then in the Fall of 1969, right after the 1970 models hit the dealers, a local Chevy dealer ran a newspaper ad for a new 1969 Chevy pickup for $1,948. I bought one. It did have a heater, rear bumper, and a spare tire, but no power anything, no radio, not even a cigarette lighter but it ran great and got good gas mileage.



Yep, that seems a little odd now but my first showroom new vehicle was a 1962 Austin Healy Sprite and I had a local shop make a trailer hitch welded to the frame to pull my Dad's 16' boat. And I once rented an enclosed U-Haul trailer to tow behind it to move from Dallas to one of the suburbs. I don't think U-Haul would even let you rent one of their trailers for something like that now.:laughing:



Truer words were never spoken. I hated putting a gas can anywhere in a car. Even if you don't spill any, it seemed that you always had that aroma.

And now . . . it's easier for me to get in and out of my old 2001 Ford Ranger than the wife's 2002 Ford Crown Victoria.

Are you kidding me? I recently looked into renting a trailer from them to bring my 8N home behind my half ton Silverado... They said I needed AT LEAST a 3/4ton.

 

[Bird]

Are you kidding me? I recently looked into renting a trailer from them to bring my 8N home behind my half ton Silverado... They said I needed AT LEAST a 3/4ton.

Yeah, I know. A few years ago my brothers were going to move a portable storage building and were going to do it with a 16' tandem axle trailer pulled by a Chevrolet Suburban. At that time, it was 50 miles to the U-Haul rental place and one of my brothers was by there in his little Chevy S10, so he thought he'd go ahead and pick up the trailer. No go. He told them he'd just be pulling it empty that 50 miles and then use the Suburban, but nope, they refused to rent it to him until he took the Suburban to get it; just an extra hundred miles for the Suburban.

But in 1962-63, the only thing U-Haul required was money; the rental fee.:laughing: I think they'd have been happy to rent it to you if you had a donkey to pull it.:laughing:

 

[WilliamBos]

Hard to say...I've been driving one for 30+ years.....just don't care for cars much.

There are some really good deals out there on decent used trucks....shop around.

Don't care for cars either. Berm driving trucks most of 21 years, had a couple of cars for second vehicles. Now strictly drive a truck, won't go back to a car.

 

[k0ua]

Just a thought. If and when you decide on whether or not to purchase a Pickup Truck, rest assured that people and friends that you know, that don't own a Pickup, will ask to borrow yours. The chances are even greater that they will ask you to help them also. The scenario is somewhat like winning the Lottery. Everyone wants a piece of the action.

Boy that is the truth.."can I borrow your truck?..I am moving." worse than a "wheel-borrow"

James K0UA

 

[wedge40]

For me the truck is like a sawzall. I don't need it all the time but it sure comes in handy when I do.
Wedge

 

[WilliamBos]

Just a thought. If and when you decide on whether or not to purchase a Pickup Truck, rest assured that people and friends that you know, that don't own a Pickup, will ask to borrow yours. The chances are even greater that they will ask you to help them also. The scenario is somewhat like winning the Lottery. Everyone wants a piece of the action.

Here is my reply to that...learn to say NO!!

 

[Uncle Doug]

Back about 25 years ago when I was building my house, I could aford lumber or a truck but not both. I hauled many a load of plywood and lumber on a mid 80's mid sized station wagon. Times are a little better now days and I have not been without a pickup truck for about 10 years. But then again I live in Texas where most families have at least 1 truck

 

[s219]

If I were looking for something to reduce the price of a new truck, choosing between 4X4 and a diesel for example, is a no-brainer where winter counts. The only reasonably priced new pickups are the base model, standard cab, 8' box - which few people want or can use as a family vehicle.

That's where I was having trouble -- I live in tidewater VA, where a 4x2 truck will cover my needs. However, I drive into the mountains 20-25 times a year to ski, so I need 4x4. I also need a place to lock up ski gear and "tailgate" when changing into ski boots/etc in the morning and evening, so that means a cap (can't easily do it in even in a crew cab). A V6 would actually cover my needs for light use most of the time, but those 2-3 times a year I'd be towing something big push me into a V8 and lower gears in the rear end. And so on Suddenly, I'm ending up with an expensive truck that still doesn't do everything well like an SUV would.

My best scenario would be to have the room and budget for a basic 4x2 work truck in addition to a daily-driver SUV. Or, if I could talk my wife into driving an SUV and truck, then I could get the truck and we could trade off as needed. But she's a small-car person.

I'd still jump at a pickup if it worked out sometime, and I regularly shop them (the local Ford salesman knows me by name). Hopefully someday...

 

[dave1949]

That's where I was having trouble -- I live in tidewater VA, where a 4x2 truck will cover my needs. However, I drive into the mountains 20-25 times a year to ski, so I need 4x4. I also need a place to lock up ski gear and "tailgate" when changing into ski boots/etc in the morning and evening, so that means a cap (can't easily do it in even in a crew cab). A V6 would actually cover my needs for light use most of the time, but those 2-3 times a year I'd be towing something big push me into a V8 and lower gears in the rear end. And so on Suddenly, I'm ending up with an expensive truck that still doesn't do everything well like an SUV would.

My best scenario would be to have the room and budget for a basic 4x2 work truck in addition to a daily-driver SUV. Or, if I could talk my wife into driving an SUV and truck, then I could get the truck and we could trade off as needed. But she's a small-car person.

I'd still jump at a pickup if it worked out sometime, and I regularly shop them (the local Ford salesman knows me by name). Hopefully someday...

Well, a Subaru outback or Forester are not big cars, and with the AWD will probably take you skiing with no problem. Add a ski rack or case on top and you would still have room in the back for other gear. The downside is, although small, they don't get great mileage. They are very popular as daily drivers around here with our snow and hills.

Anyways, if you can take the skiing requirement off the big SUV/truck, you may have an easier choice, maybe get by with 4X2 which saves a bunch.