ShifterKart

Hello all,
I have an expensive start to the new year, my trusty Jeep with 175,000 miles lost its transmission on the 1st. While the truck looked very good for its age, the mechanicals where on their last leg and I have junked the Jeep. So I now need a new vehicle to drive in the snow, leave at the airport (I travel a lot), tow my racing trailer (~3000lbs), and tow my boat (~4000lbs). I have been thinking about a truck because of the towing requirements and I have already done the SUV thing. My budget is 20,000 dollars but as everyone knows when you buy a car you usually over spend a little. Another requirement is that I do not want to treat this thing like I treat my S2000, if it gets a scratch I do not want to be extremely disappointed. So, with those things set, any suggestions? I have been thinking used and the obvious options come to mind:

Chevy/GMC - Silverado: I am not sure I like the looks and the interior is ugly but it is an option
Ford - F150/F250: I have heard that Ford makes good trucks and they are not bad looking, but they seem expensive
Dodge - RAM: Don't know much about them but the exterior is okay
Toyota - Tundra/Tacoma: Tacoma's seem small and their towing capacity seems to max right around the boat. Tundra's look okay but their HP seems low in comparison (I have heard it went to 285 in 05 but the used trucks have 245.)
Nissan - Their new truck: That thing is ugly in my opinion

I have learned that shopping for a truck is nowhere as near exciting as shopping for a sports car nor do they look quite as good and create that feeling of excitement. But, a sports car will not do what I need to do, so a truck it is. Anyone have suggestions on their experiences? Like the jeep, I will drive this for a long time so durability is a selling point. I am planning on getting this done on the 15th of January. Thanks for your help.
Kevin

mvf4s

i'm a tundra fan.

Slamnasty

My opinion:

Chevy/GMC: interiors suck, exteriors plain but tasteful, generally rated the most reliable and most MPG-efficient American make, probably your money-saver option

Ford: interior is best in class but the step in height is for Shaq only (I'm 6 ft and I had to practically leap into the thing), exterior tasteful but Ford bland for me, probably the priciest truck out there from what I've seen

Dodge: I'm not a D-M fan, so I'm a bit too biased

Nissan: I am a Nissan fan, so I'm too biased again, can be pricey but good value overall

Toyota: interior is one of the better ones around build-wise, exterior is attractive, best initial quality and reliability is a no-brainer, pricey for what it does (not nearly as strong as the others in towing/payload and fewer options)

Lice Locket

Budget is 20k? Are you buying a used truck? If you want a lot of towing capacity, you may need 30k for the markups and etc. I'm getting the new Tacoma 4 door 6-sp V6 4x4 (new engine for 05), and I think it has enough torque (280 ft lb). I'm also thinking of putting a TRD supercharger, which'll boost the peak torque by 70, and maximal gain of 100 torque! But, it was pricey. WITH employee discount, it cost 27k out-the-door. And this truck is for work reasons, and will get a lot of scratches.

If you want to tow tons of stuff, you can get the Titan (towing capacity 9500lbs, but you said your boat was 4000 lbs, so it may be more than enough), which has the the most torque of its class (390!), because it seems to be the least priciest of the torqy trucks (msrp 26k i think).

For last summer, me and my dad did some truck hunting, since we were in the market. Trucks cost a lot more than they used to, and the cheapest trucks are $14k w/ a i-4. IMO, you should either save up some more money and be willing to spend maybe 25k or more, or wait til a special promotion. Used trucks? They may not be dependable.

CG

We had a 2002 Chevy Silverado LT Quadrasteer and you should be able to find one of these for around 20K. We loved the truck and the Quadrasteer made it GREAT for towing. It was as easy to park as a small car and very stable for a truck. A quick search on Autotrader.com turned up one on a dealers lot with a $20,390 asking price. We traded ours in because we do a lot of heavy towing and needed a HD truck. While we're certainly enjoying our newer crew cab Duramax Diesel it's not nearly as good a daily driver as the quadrasteer was.

robb

I totally agree with you about the nonexcitement factor in shopping for a truck compared to buying a sportscar but it's something that some of us have to do. The fact that they are not cheap dosen't help.
My advice to you is no matter what stay away from Dodge. Most of the people I know who purchased Dodge trucks have had nothing but problems, constant problems. I work in the automotive field and have heard nothing but negative comments about the Dodge trucks. Fords and Chevy/GMC seem to be about equal in realibility not too bad mostly just occasional small problems. The Toyotas hold up well, the only problems I've heard of are head gasket issues with the earlier v6 Tacomas.

dut

- I like my parent's '05 trd tacoma double-cab... quiet and feels powerful

johnyboy32

I know you said you have done the SUV thing, but I have a 2003 Explorer and love it. It is plenty big without being unwieldy, it rides and handles great, the V8 + towing package can handle over 7000lbs. and...the resale sucks. Bad for me, good for you. A used 2002 or 2003 with low miles can be had for less than $20K.

steven975

I would only buy used. depreciation is not fun to watch when you own a new car.

2-3 year old domestic trucks are going for as low as half original MSRP.

I like the toyota myself. while it is down on power and torque compared to other V8s, the V8 is standard.

My dad got the Ram and he likes it (he felt he didn't need the hemi...phooey!). Dodge's are well backed in the powertrain area.

jankemi

Got an 01 Chevy 4wd manual transmission with 45K miles. It gets 20mpg on the highway & has been problem free. I'd have no problem buying another one. It has no rattles. Fit an finish are as new.

BTW - the interior doesn't suck, and the dash & guages are clearer & easier to operate than my S2000's by far. It actually HAS guages. I drove it 15 hours non-stop & was not as fatigued as I am after 2 hours in the S2000.