New truck needed; your opinions

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My partner is clamoring to get rid of his truck for all the ongoing problems it's had since new so I thought just for the hell of it I'll ask everyone here with pickup trucks what they like/don't like etc. Here's the story. He/we bought a new 99 Ford Ranger extenda cab fully loaded, back in late 99. It was bought to replace his old 87 Nissan King Cab which had been a solid and highly reliable little truck. I did the CR thing and from their mouth the Ford Ranger/Mazda was "the best of a bad lot" for all compact trucks. Right from the get go it's had ongoing brake problems, cooling system problems, electrical problems etc etc that carried on even after the warranty expired. We just spent close to 2 grand on it last month and it's overheating again, the brake fluids low, the valves are chattering. So it's going. NO more Fords he sez. Surprisingly though other people I've talked to with Rangers love them and have had no problems. From the get go back in 99 I told him to get a full size truck because they were probably more reliable but he won't have one. Now he's eyeballing a Dodge Dakota and I have nothing good to say about them having had them at work and they were always in the shop for something plus they were absolutely gutless. At work we also had an F150 newer very basic model and I thought it was ok, a little cheapish in the interior but then again it was a company work vehicle. The other thing I'm thinking about is that if'n when we might just buy a trailer and need something with enough guts to pull it but that's a big if yet.
 
Does it have to be a compact

truck?

The 1500 series Dodge full sized truck is a relative bargain. I had a 1997 1500 Sport Club Cab and it was great. I only had two problems, a squeaky steering column that was fixed under warranty, and I didn't like the way the leather wore on the console of all things. But man it was a nice truck.

Then in 2000 I traded in the 1997 for another one. This one was a silver version of the same model that had the towing package. It had a very nice color cloth interior that wore extremely nice.

Both had the 360 V8 which was very adequate. I drove them both over the pass to Bakersfield many times and they drove like big tall cars! The nice thing about the 6 foot standard sized bed is that you can throw all sorts of things easily in the back. You can tow with them and they have a nice wide stance.

I would NOT recommend the 2500 series/4x4 unless you need it. You loose the smooth ride--they ride more like the trucks they are. The standard 4x2 has a Dana limited slip rear end, drives smoothly. I believe the equivalent models now have the smaller Hemi in them. Dealers typically have alot of these in stock and are ready to deal. Take a look!
 
K

knitwits1975

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Messages
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My personal choice would be an F-250 powerstroke or a Ram 2500 Cummins Diesel. 3/4 ton diesel pickups get compact pickup mileage and unbeatable reliability. Of course, being 6 foot 8, I have yet to meet one compact pickup I fit in. As far as The GM duramax diesel, I don't know much about them and was hoping someone could tell me about them. Gotta be better than the 6.5 liter diesels made ten years ago. I have a Ford club wagon with the 7.3 powerstroke, and after having that, I could never go back to a gas rig. If he must have a compact truck, my personal recommendation would be a Toyota.
 
Ram Tough

My folks used Ford, for years, both gas and diesel. In the later years the brakes didn't hold up after asbestos was made illegal. In the past 7 years, Dodge motor company gives them two new 4 wheel drive diesal pickups each year because of the rodeo sponsor ship. They have had lots of transmission and rear end failures. The drive train isn't tough enough to handle the torque or power of the engines, when towing.
Just like we all say about washers. Pick the brand you like, but know, it is only as good as the service avaiable.
Kelly
 
I LOVE the looks of the new Ford F150, (MMMMMMM.. the HarleyDavidson edition YUMMMMM) don't rule it out because you've had problems with the Ranger. And even the new Rangers are much more advanced than they were. Also, you might consider the Toyota Tacoma (very butch) and a friend of mine just got the new Honda Ridgline (part Pickup, part SUV) and it is REALLY nice... just my 2 cents.
 
Dodge, good 'ol Chrysler Product.

I had never owned Chryslers, until 2000 when I bought my wife a Dodge Grand Caravan. We got rid of it two months ago(replaced it with a higher end Chysler Town and Country), it had 205K miles, and never a repair outside of regular maintainence. My neighbor has a 95 Dodge Ram with almost 200K miles, and no problems, then....................

My mother in law has a 94 Corcorde with 315K miles. The transmission was replaced at 200K, other than that, the car won't quit.

So, based on my experience, go with Chrysler(Dodge).
 
My general advice would be to get a full size truck regardless of brand... The compact trucks just make too many compromises. And in general I think the full-size ones get better reviews than the smaller ones.

I'm a mopar man, so of course I'd recommend a standard cab long bed Dodge 150 full size. Their V-8 motors are good and reliable. You can get a Dakota with a hemi now, but from what I've read the Dakotas may have other problems (suspension ball joints being a famous recall).

Toyota has made good trucks all along, but I'd prefer a Tundra over a Tacoma, on grounds of reliability.

What do I have? A '78 Dodge D100 with a 360 V8 I bought used about five years ago. I've had to do a lot of repairs (myself) and correct a lot of deferred maintenance, but it's good enough for short hauls of appliances and building materials. It has a square-tube lumber rack that's great for hauling lumber but which also sets up a wind vibration at speeds over 50 - for a long time I thought it might be due to wheel problems but then I discovered it vibrating by checking the part that hangs over the cab with my hand... bingo. Lousy mileage (about 13 mpg) but that's pretty much what one would expect for an old V-8 powered big truck with a lumber rack.

Were I to buy a new truck, I'd select a stripped down base model, long bed, with V-8 motor. Air conditioning would be optional. It is, after all, a pickup truck, meant for hauling, not for luxury.
 
I just got an 06 Toyota Tacoma SR5, V6 with extended cab. Love it. My second choice would have been the F150, but after the test drive on the Tacoma, I didn't need to look any further. Plus, the factory rebate and incentives were great.
Bobby in Boston
 
Actually I drive what is percieved as a chick car. A VW Beetle. So? I'm a hetero male that likes VW Bugs. What makes it MANLY is it's a diesel and makes 48mpg. I saw a rumor on the web that VW wanted to come out with a diesel/electric hybrid that would run 118mpg. Hybrid Beetle NOW!
 
My drivers are a 2003 Ford F250 Super Cab,and a 91 Dakota.The Ford I've only owned a year,but had a 97,and a 92 before it,with almost 100,000 trouble free miles on 'em when traded.

Dakota is a nice enough ride,a little gutless with a 2.5 4 banger5 speed,but also 26 MPG,which is why it's around.You get 2 washers in the back,and it's about maxed out!

kennyGF
 
Don't ever ask a bunch of men about trucks. Best case, you'll get a different opinion from each of them. Worst case, you'll get a small bar brawl.

So, my 4.6 inflation-adjusted cents:

Honda Ridgeline for "light" duty.
Toyota Tacoma for a heavy-duty compact.
Tundra for a midsize.
Chevrolet/GMC 2500 diesel if you need to overcompensate for your...ahem.
 
Chevy man here!

I'm suprised nobody's mentioned GM / Chevy pickups! Although GM cars have not been the best, their specialty is TRUCKS! The new Colorado / Canyon mid-size trucks have gotten very good reviews, and have been quite reliable. They feature all the way up to a 275 HP straight 6 engine. Its silky smooth, and extremely powerful (also used in the Trail blazer). The cabs have lots of room in them too, and a nice ride.

When it comes to full-size trucks, the Silverado & Sierra cannot be beat! My father has a 2500 Silverado with a Duramax diesel. A pricey truck, at over 34 grand, but quite a nice machine. The Duramax has 300 HP, and performs just as good as the Cummins Dodge trucks. The nice thing is that it's a MUCH quieter, refined engine, and is even a little more efficient (his truck has gotten up to 24 MPG's on the highway!) GM learned well from their diesel mistakes in the 80's. Gasoline Silverados are just as good, with the classic "small block" engines powering them. The GM trucks also have all sorts of amenities avaliable for them.

In reality, with fuel being so much, I don't recommend a full-size truck for daily driving. Paying all that money to maneurver around a big, bulky vehicle and having to deal with it's sluggish handling is not my cup of tea. A truck is a great thing to have for the occasional curbside find, or if you have stuff to tow, but I see so many people wasting money, and enduring poor handling commuting and daily driving in their truck. I like Jason L's diesel beetle ride. That's a great vehicle for the routine tasks. I've got two vehicles for myself. A nimble, efficient SAAB 900 for daily driving, and fun cruising, and then my big Chevy van for going on appliance runs, and towing around my RV and boat.

You might want to think about just keeping that little Nissan truck, and maybe spending a little money in fixing the mechanical issues. Instead, put the new car money into a new CAR that will give you good gas mileage. Since you won't be driving the truck on a contiual basis, and depending on it to run all the time, it won't be as much of an issue if it's not running
 
The cost of gas is a consideration, gas prices here are always higher on average than the US but still not at Euro levels. Which is funny to see all this kvetching going on down south and we'd be pleased as punch if our price dropped to that level LOL. Even so the gas prices here have put a dent in the market but to see how many SUVs and monster trucks are on the road you wouldn't believe it's made any difference at all. Most people have at least 2 vehicles if not 3 and a small car is becoming very common in the mix. I still and probably always will have a car, the other one likes his trucks, and with us both retired now a new bigger truck isn't going to be getting the daily back and forth commute as in the past.

I had the use of a big Ram Cummins diesel for about a year at work, fully loaded, very bijoux, but the thing was so noisy inside you couldn't hear yourself think with all that clattering. Wonderful truck to drive though. Then a co worker had a big Ford diesel quad cab, I couldn't believe how quiet it was inside comparatively speaking, but it didn't look as nice. I know, but still it's nice to have a vehicle you like the looks of.
 
I would go for the Toyota Tundra-that thing rides like my Mom's Lincolin-but the downside-since the Tundra usually has a V8 motor-it likes gas.I leased a Tundra at one time-beleive it was a 2002 model.
 
Well, yeah, if the truck is meant for all around driving chores, including commuting, then a mini truck makes sense. But if it's a second or third vehicle, then it makes more sense to get a full-size to avoid compromises in load capacity and reliabiity.

Plus with a full size truck you can slap on a camper shell or haul a camper trailer for fun vacations. That is more difficult with a compact truck, options are more limited.
 

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