F150

[Vic99]

If buying 2013, Toyota Tundra has a 6.5 and 8 ft bed with back seats. Having an 8 ft bed for almost 5 years, you just get so many more options open to you. Get a liner, too.

I test drove one 5 years ago with the wife. We thought we could sublet the back cabin to supplement our mortgage payment . . . . this from us not ever owning a truck before, though.

http://autos.aol.com/cars-Toyota-Tu...Cab_Long_Bed_8_ft._box_164.6_in._WB/overview/

Consumer Reports recommend them: http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/toyota/tundra.htm

 

[Vic99]

I would second not getting new.

If you want I can give you info from where I bought mine. Used car/truck dealer not far from where you live, actually. One sales guy is fair, other is stuff I scrapped off my shoe. Their mechanic is dynamite. Let me know.

Also, here's a hybrid if you want to boost mileage: (broken link removed to http://www.gmc.com/sierra-hybrid-pickup-truck.html)

I'll spare you the excessive links, but there are some plug-in hybrid trucks scheduled to come out within a year as well.

 

[Adios Pantalones]

I've poked through Autotrader for used F150's, and I have to say- not so much cheaper if you're buying something a couple/few years old IMO. They don't lose $5-10k as soon as they drive off the lot any more. Sure, I could find a 10 yr old truck for cheaper. It looks like they focus on loaded trucks, however. "The Donald Trump Edition"

 

[Vic99]

My truck was 9 years old when I bought it. As you know, not loaded. 4x4, 8 ft bed, Towing package, bed liner, and power locks baby!

Put 3k a year first year. Almost doubled that when I started working part time and driving on my own. Maybe you'll put more on.

 

[fossil]

"The Donald Trump Edition"

Yeah, nice, but that brush-over paint job just doesn't do it for me.

 

[USMC80]

I got mine for 22k with 16k miles on it (2 years old) but you wouldn't even know. You will find the similar trucks running at or around 32k dollars. It took me a month of research and searching to find the right deal.

 

[firefighterjake]

I've poked through Autotrader for used F150's, and I have to say- not so much cheaper if you're buying something a couple/few years old IMO. They don't lose $5-10k as soon as they drive off the lot any more. Sure, I could find a 10 yr old truck for cheaper. It looks like they focus on loaded trucks, however. "The Donald Trump Edition"

When I bought my truck in 2010 I found that to be the case as well . . . the used market wasn't much cheaper than the new vehicles. In the end I ended up going brand new (only the second brand new vehicle my wife and I have bought in our lives) as it just made more sense to go brand new for not a whole lot more. I'm not quite sure why this is the case -- perhaps used vehicles are holding values better? Folks' finances are still pretty tight and a few thousand dollars makes a difference so demand for used is greater?

 

[Ashful]

What year was the Dodge, Joful? I literally "chuck" wood into the bed of mine and was just commenting on it a couple of days ago at how well the bed has held up.

Not was, but is... 2005. It's still my daily driver. I literally steam-rolled the ribbing out of the bed, when I rolled a 1200 pound-ish safe into the bed on a 4-caster dolly. Gently tossing splits into the bed has resulted in a few dented wheel wells. Knocking on the sheetmetal, you can tell very clearly that it's thinner than the bed on my 1995 Chevy.

Another buddy with a 2001'ish Dodge 2500 had the same trouble. He punched the rear cab corner (between driver's door and rear window) one time, and it caved like it'd been hit by a baseball. We were both amazed, thinking that tight radius should be one of the strongest parts of the truck. I think he should've broken his hand, if it were any other truck.

Not ripping on Dodge, since, well... I drive one. Just stating facts, as I've seen 'em. It is the nicest looking and least expensive (adjusted) 1/2 ton extended cab v8 pickup I've ever bought.

 

[flyingcow]

I wouldn't hesitate on the ford eco boost. they make a heavy half ton that does a nice job. Think the heavy half is rated 11,500lbs or so. I came close to buying anew one. Nice comfortable ride.

You might want to look at undercoating too. More and more are doing it. This new brine mix is horrendous on our vehicles. Not all undercoating applicators are equal.

 

[Ashful]

I've poked through Autotrader for used F150's, and I have to say- not so much cheaper if you're buying something a couple/few years old IMO. They don't lose $5-10k as soon as they drive off the lot any more.

This is how I ended up buying my first new truck in 2005. I was looking for something clean, used, perhaps 4 years old and reasonably low miles (40k'ish). Everything I found was at least 70% the cost of new, with no warranty, service plan, etc. They were running the "employee pricing" and very nice service programs at the time, making new pretty attractive. It was really a no-brainer to go new, at the time.

Of course, I paid $26k for a quad-cab (4-door) 1500 SLT with 6.5' bed, 4wd, tow package, and upgraded interior. I think that package has a STARTING price over $35k now.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

I drive an 04 Ram 1500 with 4 doors. It's been a good truck. The body is in great shape except for the area above the rear wheels where there is some rust. If you look around you'll see all Rams rust there. With the 5.7 I regularly get about 19 driving up into the mountains and about 14 or 15 city driving. I don't speed on the highway and don't jump light to light, but don't go slow either. I don't know if I'd go looking for a Hemi again. The power band is too high for being useful, that said, I've never needed more power down low. The 4.7 might be all the power I'd need. Oh, it's a 4x4 also. It's hard to imagine that a 6Klb 4x will get the mileage it does.

I really liked the 92 Dakota I drove before I got the Ram. It had a Magnum 318 in it and all the power came in by 2500rpm. I couldn't put a baby seat in it though.

Matt

 

[Ashful]

I drive an 04 Ram 1500 with 4 doors. It's been a good truck. The body is in great shape except for the area above the rear wheels where there is some rust. If you look around you'll see all Rams rust there. With the 5.7 I regularly get about 19 driving up into the mountains and about 14 or 15 city driving. I don't speed on the highway and don't jump light to light, but don't go slow either. I don't know if I'd go looking for a Hemi again. The power band is too high for being useful, that said, I've never needed more power down low. The 4.7 might be all the power I'd need. Oh, it's a 4x4 also. It's hard to imagine that a 6Klb 4x will get the mileage it does.

I have the 4.7L, and it's great for daily driving, but a little under-powered when pulling a trailer over 2k pounds. What really pisses me off about it is that I only get 14 mpg on a good day, and several buddies at work with 5.7L hemi's get better than that. I drive manual, versus their automatics, and perhaps with a little more "spirit" than them... but I do wonder if I made a mistake in buying the 4.7L, my sole interest in the smaller motor being (supposedly) better fuel economy.

I will say that the other '04 Ram 1500 I see at work is badly rusted above each rear wheel, and along the bottom of each door. My '05 is still clean, though, minus many faint brush scratches from being in the woods.

 

[Retired Guy]

Just an unscientific observation, but in upstate NY I see a higher number of rusted Rams than any other makes. Could be because they last longer, but I don't think that's the reason.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

I have the 4.7L, and it's great for daily driving, but a little under-powered when pulling a trailer over 2k pounds. What really pisses me off about it is that I only get 14 mpg on a good day, and several buddies at work with 5.7L hemi's get better than that. I drive manual, versus their automatics, and perhaps with a little more "spirit" than them... but I do wonder if I made a mistake in buying the 4.7L, my sole interest in the smaller motor being (supposedly) better fuel economy.

I will say that the other '04 Ram 1500 I see at work is badly rusted above each rear wheel, and along the bottom of each door. My '05 is still clean, though, minus many faint brush scratches from being in the woods.

That's interesting about the 4.7. I didn't expect that. Any trailer I tow is at least 3K. Probably the most weight I've pulled with it was a double axle uhaul weighed down with firewood and then I filled the bed to where the suspension only had an inch of travel over the snubs. I wish I had a manual. I miss driving a 5 speed. I keep telling myself the next vehicle will be one, but I keep my vehicles so long it's probably wishful thinking. The way transmissions are going I'll need to get a Wrangler to get anything like a truck with a 5 or 6 speed, and they are useless to tow with since they have such a short wheel base.

Just an unscientific observation, but in upstate NY I see a higher number of rusted Rams than any other makes. Could be because they last longer, but I don't think that's the reason.

I see lots of older rusty Rams on the road. If I knew what the older Chevys and Fords looked like I might recognize older models of them too. Since 99 I've been driving Dodges, so that's primarily what I pay attention to.

Matt

 

[Ashful]

That's interesting about the 4.7. I didn't expect that. Any trailer I tow is at least 3K. Probably the most weight I've pulled with it was a double axle uhaul weighed down with firewood and then I filled the bed to where the suspension only had an inch of travel over the snubs. I wish I had a manual. I miss driving a 5 speed. I keep telling myself the next vehicle will be one, but I keep my vehicles so long it's probably wishful thinking. The way transmissions are going I'll need to get a Wrangler to get anything like a truck with a 5 or 6 speed, and they are useless to tow with since they have such a short wheel base.

I've towed many trailers well above 3k lb. with my 4.7L, and it does the job okay with the manual trans, but I wouldn't want that motor if I were towing trailers that heavy on a daily basis. It's fine around town, but really dogs going up hills at highway speeds.

On the manual trans, you cannot buy a 1/2 ton pickup with a manual trans anymore, excepting Chevy's "work truck" with standard cab and v6. Add anything beyond a vinyl bench seat, and that manual trans option disappears. You're forced into 3/4 ton with diesel engine, if you want manual these days.

 

[Adios Pantalones]

Thanks, all. We are talking about testing F150 and Tundras this weekend. I did the "build your own" thing on the Ford site. I was confused about the pricing on the axle ratio options.

 

[JDC1]

I have a 2011 supercrew 4x4 lariat f150. Only thing I dislike about the truck was the Pirelli tires that came on it and the 5.5 ft bed is too short. It has the 5.0l and I use it mainly for city mileage and average 15mpg with the 3.55 gears. Highway goes to 19mpg if i behave. I have towed 7500 lbs regularly and have been extremely happy. It took awhile to get used to the 6 speed hunting for gears in traffic but now I don't notice it. If you read on the ford and f150 forums the ecoboost v6 isn't doing anything that they claim for fuel mileage. I tested both engines, the ecoboost was impressive but I liked the exhaust tone and lack of turbos on the 5.0. The 3.7 liter v6 is getting good reviews if you don't need the hp.

My dad has same truck but 2012 and we both got about $8500 off of MSRP. If I had to do it again I would have went with max tow and payload package with 6.5 ft bed.

Good luck.

 

[timfromohio]

I guess I'm the only one that would hold off on the Eco-boost. Depends on how long you keep vehicles - I got rid of my last truck (an F150) after a decade simply b/c I needed more than just the regular cab. I'd personally wait a few more years to see how the Eco-boost motors perform after having been in service for 5 years or so.

 

[JDC1]

I guess I'm the only one that would hold off on the Eco-boost. Depends on how long you keep vehicles - I got rid of my last truck (an F150) after a decade simply b/c I needed more than just the regular cab. I'd personally wait a few more years to see how the Eco-boost motors perform after having been in service for 5 years or so.

That's why I didn't buy the ecoboost. Having a bad experience with the turbo diesel I traded I was looking for a naturally aspirated engine. That being said, the ecoboost is awesome. The majority of the torque comes in at 2500 rpms and holds flat throughout. The owners that I have spoken to have not been impressed with the ecoboost mileage. The hp and torque are closer to the 6.2l and when compared to that engine, mileage is impressive.

 

[Dix]

Ya, I need better than 6' at least. I have shelving that is that long that I haul around on a regular basis. A full 8' bed is less than a $1k option, but then it gets harder to manage. Ford has a 6'5" or something option that could be ideal.

Sorry I'm late to the party, AP !

Give that bed length more thought (I haven't read through this thread yet) An 8' bed is an awesome thing to have, parking be damned !!

 

[Adios Pantalones]

I read that the eco-boost engine gets better torque then the V-6, not better mileage. As long as it does not create a reliability problem, it looks like a good trade off.

 

[Dix]

Thanks, all. We are talking about testing F150 and Tundras this weekend. I did the "build your own" thing on the Ford site. I was confused about the pricing on the axle ratio options.

For what you want the truck to do, this isn't too much of an issue in my book. Step it up a notch or two and you should be fine. (Haven't read the new specs)

That being said, get the most muscle you can. You won't regret it.

I agree with the 4WD, get it. It's on the fly, under 40ish for high 4, dead stop for low 4.

MY F250 has suicide doors. They're OK. Had I given this more thought, I would have gone for the full back doors, but I can live with mine.

Go for a sliding back window, if available. I crack mine about 1/4 open during the summer, leave the front windows open a touch, and don't run the AC most of the summer. This is semi rural driving. You're mileage may vary !

 

[JDC1]

I don't think the 8 ' bed is available with extended ca on the f150s. The ecoboost is a twin turbo v6 that is competing with the v8s for torque and hp. The ecoboost v6 actually is billed as the "towing" engine in fords 1/2 ton trucks.

 

[Adios Pantalones]

I don't want the eight-foot bed. The 6 1/2 foot will do fine for me, without the loss in turning radius and parking. I am definitely going for the four-wheel-drive, that is already decided

 

[flyingcow]

i have a crew cab with an 8ft bed, you need to pay attention when you pull into the local walmart parking lot. I tend to park aways from the front.