Truck questions

[fabiodriven]

If you add the contact patch of four skinny wheels you come up with the same as 2 fatter ones. The sum is = to the whole.

I was thinking about that for a long time after I wrote what I wrote. I'm gonna have to agree with you. For whatever reason though, my dual wheel pickup seems to go better in the snow than my single wheel pickups did.

[Mosh]

Doug, i am not going to try to sway your opinion here in either way. But working in a shop I will tell you what I see the most.

Diesel, unless you are towing close to 10000 lbs, I dont see the pratical use for it. They are expensive to fix when they break and the cost of fuel is high.
2002 and up to say 2009...
Chevy 1500's have weak trannies for any heavy towing capacity.
Chevy 2500's have a beefier trans, 6.0 gas engine and can tow quite a load, and that # goes up with 4wd models. But they get about 12MPG maybe 14 unloaded in the city.And you wont find one with 5 speed in any easy fashion. I would stay away from the duramax..Tons of raw power but they have quite a few issues, especially with injectors.

Dodge, weak frames IMO..I dont even consider them and they are about the worst for fuel mileage out of any of them.

Ford F series with gas engines..Ok I guess, if you dont mind blowing spark plugs and threads, out of the heads, and putting exhaust manifolds on them at 50K miles.. You will aslo want to keep coils in the glove box.Strong trannies, but what does that matter if your plugs are hitting the hood? And these repairs are not cheap nor easy to do, and the engines are just a plain PITA to work on. The v10 is gutless for what it is and worthless IMO.

Chevy's..You will do fuel pumps(800$), water pumps and brakes alot on more than other trucks.
I have driven and serviced all of them, with the exception of the diesels.
The Chevys gas models are in for far fewer repairs, and are generally cheaper when they do brake.
IMO, the Chevy's ride nicer with better interior than any of them.

I could go on with a list of little problems with each model, but your are talking repairs that cost less than 200$ in that category of small repairs.

[fabiodriven]

It's funny to see that you have the same exact issues I see with these trucks every day Rob. The only thing I'll disagree with is the Ford V-10 being gutless. You hit the nail right on the head with everything else though!

[Mosh]

Yeah that v10..I drove a few of them, and they dont torque no where near what the 6.0 chevy gas engine does IMO. I guess maybe it is just the whole (V-10) idea subconciously making me think it should pull harder than what they do. But those REALLY suck to work on.
I am bias for Chevy's though..I will say that.
We serviced a county fleet account that consisted of F series and Chevy's. They had no Dodges. Some of those f-250s were dropping ball joints in the realm of 30-40K..Along with the manifolds and spark issues.
The chevys were just getting front wheel bearings and brakes for the most part, a few water pumps and some check engine light repairs which usually was a evap vent valve.

[The Goat]

Can I be the black sheep and say the 5.7 tundra is a pretty nice truck? Towing isn't what a diesel is, but it is miles beyond what their last v8 was. They still use proper metal pistons in their calipers too, unlike this newer cheap plastic junk.

"import" truck yeah, but you can find one built in Texas, and it'll have less Chinese parts on it than any new ford, dodge, or chevy. It has it's problems, but when pulling apart the interior to run wiring for a friend I was Pretty impressed with build quality. A little higher initial price used, but resale will be outstanding, 4wd is an option, and it'll hit 200k miles with just oil and filter changes.

For me, the 96/97 7.3 is where it's at. Though I have criminally fallen in love with the new dodge cummins combo. Very fine truck, but a little too new for my tastes.

[atc200xkid]

a 460/454 will burn your wallet dry. my friends got a 97 x cab long bed 2500 with the 454, he gets like 9 to 10, as a daily driver pulling nothing. diesels have a lot of power but are more expensive to buy and maintain but will last for a lot longer than any gas will, 400k+ with good maitance. `a 2wd has more gross towing and load weight cause it weighs 300 to 600 lbs less, so it can tow more right? unless you need a 4wd, dont get one. i have one but i live in wisconsin and i use it alot. id suggest a 00-07 chevy 2500 with the 6.0. good motors, ok milage, good power and parts are every where and easy on the wallet. youll probably never find a 4 door long bed with a 5 speed. and dont get a dually. they are wider, more tires and unless you tow 99% of the time its pointless to have one. they look stupid imo and i hate the super trucker that have a huge truck and say they need it, but my half ton has done 100 times more work than that truck ever will. just my opinion

[dcreel]

Just to narrow things down some.. The bed needs to hold a 4 X 8 sheet of plywwod.. My parents F150 has that little bed that is in my opinion worthless.. I still have an affinity for duallies... Like this one..

I hate to say it, but I'd rock this like nobodies business..





The reason why I would like a dually is someday I would like to own a toy hauler, and don't want to worry about gvwr's and whatnot. I know that lowering and airbags will lessen how much you can tow safely.

[code200k]

I love the way a slammed daully looks..The gm 6.0 motor gets about 12mpg loaded or not from what I recall,Finding a 4 door 5 speed can be done but most likely there gunna have the BIG motor..

[Lil Earl]

FORD, FORD, FORD, and did i mention FORD hahahahaha