Need help picking new truck
- Thread starter RU8TNQT
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If I had to do it all over again id get a NEW COLORADO...you can jew them down to around 30k with all the goodies.
I thought about it, but I do have some towing needs, I have a 25' camping trailer that is around 7k lbs loaded. The colorado might do that but it would probably be pushing it hard. I figure I could get into a pretty nice 2011-12 F150 or Ram at that price range and have that towing capability still.
I think the Ram might be the best bang for the buck in the year range you are choosing. You can get a loaded 4-door 4x4 Ram for under $30K.
Thats where I think I'm going, the Ram looks nice, interior is clean, and the hemi gets decent mileage. I might even look into the Eco-Diesel I know the price increases but it may work out over time with fuel savings. Anybody have experience with the Ecodiesel?
+ 1
They are giving the things away. I had a buddy who road races his 5.0 and needed a tow vehicle. I think all in he was able to get a loaded quadcab with tow package and hemi for under 30k. Nice truck for sure.
I personally would buy a used F-150, but I know used trucks can often cost as much as new ones becuase of how the market is ( atleast in new england )
I bought a used ecoboost F150 and love it. Love hearing the turbos sing! Heck I think it's quicker than my 02 GT lol and get almost 15mpg in the city and 17 on the highway. It's not breaking any records in the mpg department, but it's good enough for a truck. I'm looking forward to throwing a tuner on there as well, supposed to really wake them up and increase mpg's a bit.
I put a tuner on my Ecoboost and it is definitely faster than a stock new edge GT. Lifetime average over 11k miles so far is 18.2.
My cousin has a 2012 F150 Platinum exactly like the pic you posted. He is about to trade it in and get the new platinum. His is loaded and has the ecoboost engine. In the 37k miles he has racked up in the last 3 yrs, he has not had a single issue with it. It is his first pickup ever after having several BMW's and he will never go back to BMW. He freakin' loves the truck. I have driven it many, many times and it is a dream to drive. VERY smooth and comfortable, especially compared to my Raptor. I have no doubt you would love the Platinum as well.
Go see Dave Smith motors out of Kellogg Idaho. I bought My 2011 Dodge Ram Mega-Cab 4wd loaded for 43K out the door. No hassle no BS.
The GMC you posted looks like a 2500HD. Your price range will be a gas truck. For reliability and towing it will prob be the best. That will be a 6.0/6L80e truck. They are insanely reliable and the 6L80e is the updated 4L80e which we all know the abilities of even in stock form. Id guess 13/18 is about the best its gonna get. They arent real well known for getting good MPG. but...i had 3400lbs just in my bed the other day and it took it like a champ.
The Ecodiesel on the forums has shown guys getting 28-30mpg stock. Some are in the 31-34mpg with smaller tires, MP8, intake and exhaust work. (there arent many mods for them). Some guys have said the truck starts to struggle with sizable loads though.
Im not so sure id go the ecoboost route. Numerous friends complain of mileage. Yep...they are quick though. But..so is a buddies 5.0 with an intake, exhaust and tune. Id bet it would prob come real close to running along side a buddies eco. With that...many guys are complaining of towing mileage. Truck Magazine did a tow test with the exact same setup eco vs 5.0. Stock the 5.0 was mpg better. Towing...the 5.0 beat it by almost 2.5mpg. Thats a big difference. Sure the ecoboost was faster but the 5.0 never struggled. IIRC they were pulling a flatbed trailer with rock on it...it was around 8k lbs.
I drove a 2015 Hemi with an 8speed for a week after someone backed into my duramax. 407hp, 8speed and 3.92s...it ripped lol. And was showing on the DIC around 23-24mpg...take that for what it is. The trans did seem to have some odd points in it but well...its a dodge lol.
The Ecodiesel on the forums has shown guys getting 28-30mpg stock. Some are in the 31-34mpg with smaller tires, MP8, intake and exhaust work. (there arent many mods for them). Some guys have said the truck starts to struggle with sizable loads though.
Im not so sure id go the ecoboost route. Numerous friends complain of mileage. Yep...they are quick though. But..so is a buddies 5.0 with an intake, exhaust and tune. Id bet it would prob come real close to running along side a buddies eco. With that...many guys are complaining of towing mileage. Truck Magazine did a tow test with the exact same setup eco vs 5.0. Stock the 5.0 was mpg better. Towing...the 5.0 beat it by almost 2.5mpg. Thats a big difference. Sure the ecoboost was faster but the 5.0 never struggled. IIRC they were pulling a flatbed trailer with rock on it...it was around 8k lbs.
I drove a 2015 Hemi with an 8speed for a week after someone backed into my duramax. 407hp, 8speed and 3.92s...it ripped lol. And was showing on the DIC around 23-24mpg...take that for what it is. The trans did seem to have some odd points in it but well...its a dodge lol.
The EcoBoost F-150's respond very well to our custom tunes. On a 93 octane performance tune were picking up about 65whp and 85wtq. If you can keep your right foot out of the throttle you should see mpg increases also. Along with performance tunes we offer tow specific tune files for those of you that pull trailers.
EcoBoost Ford F-150, look for a leftover 2014, should find a good price and they still have the 3.5L ecoboost engine. I just got mine a month ago, with the rebates and discount I paid less that what I paid for a used 07 5.4L F-150 in 2009. It may be a V-6 but with the turbos the power is incredible, night and day difference compared to the 5.4. I pull a bass boat to the lake here in the mountains of NC and couldn't be happier. It will pull my boat up and mountain highway at any speed I want with ease, the 5.4 would always have to gear down just to pull the mountains at the speed limit with the same boat. The only thing you will miss is the V-8 sound, but that's it, I would say it rivals the torque of the F-250 Diesel I had several years ago. By the way mine is factory stock except for a Diamond Eye cat back exhaust. I would get a tuner but it would void my 7 year warranty, I have road in a tuned EcoBoost F-150 and it is amazing. Oh did I tell you I still pull 16 to 18 mpg mix of hwy, city, and towing?
I love my 14 ram. I got the quad cab 5.7 hemi with the 3.92 rear. I think max towing is something like 10,200 lbs. I'm a ford guy but when it comes to trucks I've always preferred the ram. I live in a big city with mostly stop and go traffic so my fuel mileage isn't the Best, I average right around 14 mpg in the city. I went on a beach trip and managed 22.1 mpg so I was pretty happy with that.
I'll be in the same boat in the next few months. But I only the tow either a two place sled trailer or a Sxs so maybe 3000 pounds. I was set on a 4 door f150 but keep going back to the rams. You can get rams with navigation and leather for the price of an xlt.
I would buy the Dodge and it would be the first one I ever bought.
Not sure how well this relates to the 150/1500 line but at work I have 5.4L F350s and 6.0L Chevy 3500s I drive on a regular basis towing 8k-12k lb trailers. The fords seem to be geared better for towing and the chevys seem to be better to just drive around. If I was going to tow every now and then, but mainly just drive it by itself I'd get the Chevy. If I towed a lot I would go with the Ford. Up at another base where my buddy works at he has a Dodge 2500 and they've had a few issues with it but it could just be that truck. Supposedly Dodge has fixed their transmission issues but I haven't driven enough of them to make a honest recommendation.
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