Talk to me about half ton trucks

It's actually one thing the car makers have gotten pretty good at and that's trucks. I think you pick the one that has the features you want and forget about the name. One thing I will say about Toyota, If you insist on factory parts for anything, get your checkbook ready. I've only replaced a few things on my '06, alternator and starter and normal wear stuff and walked right past the dealer and went to the local Autozone. No issues. I don't know about the others but Toyota really thinks highly of their replacement parts.

the Ecoboost is amazing in every way. i tow a 24' boat, a 25' camp trailer, 28' snowmobile trailer loaded with 4 sleds, etc... never had a problem. as for the towing power, i've never had a problem towing any of my stuff and cruising at 80mph. the power is amazing. but plan on getting 5-8mpg towing, whether you're towing a flat bed with a golf cart or a 25' camp trailer. cruising around town i'm about 14mpg. rip to SLC and back i'm about 21. St.George and back i'm around 16.

with a lot of weight towing it feels like it is overloaded pretty easily. i have airbags but just not a real solid feel.

as for a daily driver or ripping to St.George for the weekend with bikes in the back it's probably the most comfortable truck i've ever ridden in. i love it.

my '12 is paid off and i was thinking about trading it for a brand new 3/4ton diesel, but i might keep mine for a daily driver and get a used 3/4ton diesel for towing. i really love the truck.

i'll also say i test drove an '18 Chevy 1500 and was very unimpressed with the motor. i'm comparing it to my Eco that i've been driving for 6 years, but it was a very uninspiring ride. it was the V8 and felt really flat. the actual ride was very comparable to mine, but it felt gutless. my truck gets up and goes, the 1500 felt like i had to put my foot to the floor to do anything and it still felt flat.

I’d go with the Tundra or F150. I was torn between the two, and open to either one, but came across a good deal on my 2014 Tundra so that’s what I bought. I’ve been happy with it. I don’t know about the GM half tons, but I got my wife a new Denali and what a piece of shit that was. Oil cooler lines replaced twice, harmonic balancer replaced twice, new transmission(going from 2nd to 3rd was like going from 2nd to neutral, then 3rd would catch as the RPMs fell), 3 broken motor mounts, faulty brake switch which caused the cruise control not to work, and probably more I’m forgetting. I think she put more miles on the dealer’s loaner car than she did on the one we bought.

SEE ARE125 wrote:

I’d go with the Tundra or F150. I was torn between the two, and open to either one, but came across a good deal on my 2014 Tundra so that’s what I bought. I’ve been happy with it. I don’t know about the GM half tons, but I got my wife a new Denali and what a piece of shit that was. Oil cooler lines replaced twice, harmonic balancer replaced twice, new transmission(going from 2nd to 3rd was like going from 2nd to neutral, then 3rd would catch as the RPMs fell), 3 broken motor mounts, faulty brake switch which caused the cruise control not to work, and probably more I’m forgetting. I think she put more miles on the dealer’s loaner car than she did on the one we bought.

What kind of MPG are you getting out of your tundra?

peelout wrote:

i'll also say i test drove an '18 Chevy 1500 and was very unimpressed with the motor. i'm comparing it to my Eco that i've been driving for 6 years, but it was a very uninspiring ride. it was the V8 and felt really flat. the actual ride was very comparable to mine, but it felt gutless. my truck gets up and goes, the 1500 felt like i had to put my foot to the floor to do anything and it still felt flat.

Thanks for the feedback Peelout! That echoes what I’ve been hearing about the ecoboost and the Chevy.

borg wrote:

It's actually one thing the car makers have gotten pretty good at and that's trucks. I think you pick the one that has the features you want and forget about the name. One thing I will say about Toyota, If you insist on factory parts for anything, get your checkbook ready. I've only replaced a few things on my '06, alternator and starter and normal wear stuff and walked right past the dealer and went to the local Autozone. No issues. I don't know about the others but Toyota really thinks highly of their replacement parts.

Yup...no brand loyalty for me at all. Just want the best truck (most power, best mileage, best ride, most reliable...for the dollar.)

They're all pretty good these days, I'd skip the ram Ecodiesel though. Ram has the best back seat if you're looking at crew cabs. Ford has the best motor.
The chevy 5.3 is good but I'm not a huge fan of the cylinder deactivation. The torque converter unlocks when it changes, and the random rpm jumps bugs me. Also the side mirrors on the Chevy suck. The colorado has better mirrors.
Ford has a floor shifter and ram has the effing dial. Idk what's so wrong with a colum shifter?
The Toyota gets piss poor gas mileage, and you can ask newmann about the backseat storage lol
Couldn't tell ya much about the nissan.

Colin called me out...

The TuRD PRO Tundra is a pretty amazing truck. Amazingly expensive for as few electronic gadgets as it has, which is one of the things that attracted me to it. Not the expensive part, but the fact that it is not overloaded with a bunch of bullshit that one doesn't really need in a truck. It has a backup cam which I like, but no backup sensors, no lane assist with buzzing seats, no blind spot monitors, no memory seats, steering, pedals or mirrors. No stupid leaky ass panoramic roof(Ford), It did have leather seats, a plus over all the easy to stain fabrics everyone offers today but the plastic steering wheel was cheap and the replacement Platinum Edition leather wheel I bought was over $500.00 with my discount. It runs good, really good, handles good and stops good. The cab is big, lots of rear seat room. The rear floor sucks, steps up under the rear seat and has no storage under the seat...none. With the step up in the floor it sucks with the seat folded up for putting stuff on the floor. The seat doesn't fold forward so zero storage behind the rear seat.

And don't get me started on the midget bed. I love the truck, but they really missed the mark on a handful of items. I waited for years to buy one in hopes of a 6 1/2 - 6 3/4 foot bed on the crew max but they still don't offer it. And even though the 13.9mpg sucks, the fucker does run good...REALLY good. And it sounds good too. But that takes into Alta thread territory.

Colin mentioned the Nissan. Now that truck has a bunch of neat features. I felt the diesel was a little on the weak side, okay maybe a lot on the weak side. A good friend bought one in gas flavor and likes it a lot. He researches stuff more than one should so if he bought it, it's probably a damn good truck.

It's kinda ugly if that means anything to you.

I had a 2013 Ram Laramie with the big HEMI and loved it. Every creature comfort you could ask for, smooth as silk ride with the air suspension and massive doses of power. Drove it for 4 years and 80k miles with not one issue other than maintenance.

Bought a 2018 Chevy LTZ around 6
months ago. The only reason I went with Chevy is because the dealer sold me a truck with a 46K + sticker price for a even 32K. I was going to get another Ram or a Ford but I could not pass it up. After driving the Chevy for 6 months I now realize why it was discounted heavily. 5 years newer than my Ram and to me it’s less of a truck. 2018 and it still requires a key??? No wonder GM is having trouble

I’d go with Fords or Rams. Not sure if the Tundra can match those trucks in ride comfort. I’m just going by what my friend has....his Tundra I think is a 2016, the ride seemed more harsh than the American trucks

Forgot about mileage figures. My Ram with the massive power and this Chevy with the 5.3 V8 are getting about the same numbers. High teens around town and usually around 22-25 on the highway. I do drive very conservatively with the gas pedal. Except with the occasional burnout with the HEMI I am pretty light footed. Does wonders with the MPG

newmann wrote:

Colin called me out...

The TuRD PRO Tundra is a pretty amazing truck. Amazingly expensive for as few electronic gadgets as it has, which is one of the things that attracted me to it. Not the expensive part, but the fact that it is not overloaded with a bunch of bullshit that one doesn't really need in a truck. It has a backup cam which I like, but no backup sensors, no lane assist with buzzing seats, no blind spot monitors, no memory seats, steering, pedals or mirrors. No stupid leaky ass panoramic roof(Ford), It did have leather seats, a plus over all the easy to stain fabrics everyone offers today but the plastic steering wheel was cheap and the replacement Platinum Edition leather wheel I bought was over $500.00 with my discount. It runs good, really good, handles good and stops good. The cab is big, lots of rear seat room. The rear floor sucks, steps up under the rear seat and has no storage under the seat...none. With the step up in the floor it sucks with the seat folded up for putting stuff on the floor. The seat doesn't fold forward so zero storage behind the rear seat.

And don't get me started on the midget bed. I love the truck, but they really missed the mark on a handful of items. I waited for years to buy one in hopes of a 6 1/2 - 6 3/4 foot bed on the crew max but they still don't offer it. And even though the 13.9mpg sucks, the fucker does run good...REALLY good. And it sounds good too. But that takes into Alta thread territory.

Shit thanks for reminding me... My sun roof has leaked since day 1. Ford would not do anything about it, I ended up replacing the sliders and now it doesn't leak water but it's loud as hell. Love the Lariat package but I'll never own another vehicle with a sunroof

peelout wrote:

Shit thanks for reminding me... My sun roof has leaked since day 1. Ford would not do anything about it, I ended up replacing the sliders and now it doesn't leak water but it's loud as hell. Love the Lariat package but I'll never own another vehicle with a sunroof

Had a customer fumed at us the other day. We had replaced his glass roof panels and repaired scratches on the roof of his 2018 F250 thanks to the valet and a low clearance parking garage. He comes in a month later pissed that it is leaking and flooding the interior of his new truck. Sure as shit, it was soaked. I proceeded to open the roof and water test the drain hles with him standing there until it started to overflow on the passenger side. I then blew some compressed air through the right drain tube until I dislodged the crepe myrtle seed that was blocking his drain. Guess what kind of trees line his driveway??? He apologized, but didn't offer to pay me for the hour I spent taking care of his problem and helping him dry out his interior.

Lots of F150 and now 250/350 sunroof horror stories.

I was getting either a RAM 1500 or the F150 , really like them both and only time I ever considered a Ford. Drove the ecoboost and was impressed with how it ran but still wanted a V8 because I have seen the turbos go out around 70k miles . I got the RAM because I can buy at $500 over true cost and I they do not own a Ford dealership of all 23 dealerships I can buy from. Have several friends with eco F150 and they have great luck with them as have I with my Rams. Drove the Tundra and it was cool but just didn't do anything for me but a very solid truck same as Chevy so I don't think you can really go wrong no matter what you buy.

I have a '14 F-150 Crew Cab with Ecoboost and really like it. I used to have an '04 F-150 Crew Cab with the 5.4 Triton V-8 that I traded on the new one a few years back. That truck sucked rotten eggs compared to the '14 in many ways. No problems yet with my Ecoboost (knock on wood) and it got way more get up and go and it doesn't lose power in the mountains like the old truck did when I go on the Colorado trip. It also automatically shifts down when in tow mode going down an hill to save on brakes. Many other new features I like as well. Funny thing is I paid the same price for that truck as I did for my '04 10 years earlier. I want to say right at around $32k since it was a leftover. The '15s were going for like $50k. Fuck that.

lostboy819 wrote:

I was getting either a RAM 1500 or the F150 , really like them both and only time I ever considered a Ford. Drove the ecoboost and was impressed with how it ran but still wanted a V8 because I have seen the turbos go out around 70k miles . I got the RAM because I can buy at $500 over true cost and I they do not own a Ford dealership of all 23 dealerships I can buy from. Have several friends with eco F150 and they have great luck with them as have I with my Rams. Drove the Tundra and it was cool but just didn't do anything for me but a very solid truck same as Chevy so I don't think you can really go wrong no matter what you buy.

I hadn't heard that about the turbos on the ecoboost at 70K miles...is that true?

i'm looking at buying between 40K and 70K miles...so if that's a common issue that would steer me away from a Ford. I don't want to pay $20K-$30K for a truck and then have to replace the turbo in a few years.

Talk to me about your Ram 1500...what kind of mileage? How does it tow?

I have a 2016 F150 FX4 Crew Cab 5.0 and absolutely love it.

I was very unimpressed with the Chevy 5.3 when I test drove it. It just didn't have any get up and go compared to the 5.0 ford and 5.7 Ram. If your going with Chevy I would recommend the bigger V8 (I think its a 6.2).

Toyota will be most reliable and best resale but the design and engine is dated. Also the MPG is worst if I recall correctly.

Also remember there is a V8 option with Ford in the 5.0. Obviously the 3.5 Ecobost is the top engine but the 5.0 isn't as far behind as people think. Check out Youtube for comparisons of the 5.0 vs 3.5EB - Its .25 mile and towing time are really close to the EB.

I'm going to go look at this truck tonight after work....(looking for a couple others to check out).

https://www.ksl.com/auto/listing/5137790?ad_cid=7

Don’t discount the chevs. My family drives fords of every shape and size. I switched to a
5.3 1500 And am very happy. Key features That outperform other brands
Ride quality
AWD and 4x4 on the fly knob. Get a lot of rain where I live and when conditions get slick it’s a simply turn on dial.
Ent system syn is much better than any fords I’ve been in.
Full size crew cab with a 6.5” bed this was the biggest deal breaker for me.
I don’t believe anyone else offers this??
Bumper steps are lovely.
Cargo lighting without ignition on is the tits.my brother is very jealous.
I have the bench seat up front , I much prefer this set up.
Oh yea, 60,000 miles and no visits to the dealer...
Both my brothers trucks are newer and have been in to see the dealer a few times..
I’m sure someone else has a story of chevs with problems and fords with none.. so I’m just adding some weight to my side of the scale.

Anyone had to have there aluminum body worked on with fords?? I remember when those first came out, there was big debate on body damage repair costs.. working on aluminum would be much more costly. It’s been a few years since and haven’t heard much?

Would it be stupid to buy the Ford F-150 and not get the EcoBoost? Anyone have any experience with the 5.0 engine?

crockett wrote:

Anyone had to have there aluminum body worked on with fords?? I remember when those first came out, there was big debate on body damage repair costs.. working on aluminum would be much more costly. It’s been a few years since and haven’t heard much?

Military strength aluminum is even harder to work on.

Titan1 wrote:

Would it be stupid to buy the Ford F-150 and not get the EcoBoost? Anyone have any experience with the 5.0 engine?

I love my 5.0

IMO its better than the Ford 2.7 Ecoboost, the Chevy 5.3, the Toyota 5.7, and the Nissan 5.6. I would rank it a hair below the Ram 5.7 hemi, and a notch below the Chevy 6.2 and the Ford 3.5 Ecoboost.

I'm on my 3rd Ram and love it. The 5.7 with the 8 speed trans is frickin awesome compared to the old 5 speed setup.

The only other truck I was really considering was the F150 and personally I wouldn't be worried about going with the 5.0 over the ecoboost.

My 2006 F-150XL has 222k on the clock...bought it new for $12,500. 1 alternator, 1 battery, 1 set of pads/rotors, 1 headlight bulb, 2 sets of tires. It's not perfect...gutless and 17mpg but cheap and rock solid. She can run 80 all day long and has many, many times. With the cost of new trucks nowadays...this baby will get a rebuild or a crate motor when the time comes.

My son has a Ram 1500 with a really strong V8. I like it but couldn't tell you how reliable it is. He could destroy a Sherman tank with a rubber mallet.

That ram looks nice, did you go drive it?
And the 5.0 ford is a great engine. Just not a fancy turbo 6 like the 3.5
Being that you're in utah I assume you live at elevation right? The 3.5 ford might be the best for ya then. Sea level the turbos arent as helpful as they are at 5k feet

Chevy/GMC 5.3 4X4 2012 or newer.

crockett wrote:

Anyone had to have there aluminum body worked on with fords?? I remember when those first came out, there was big debate on body damage repair costs.. working on aluminum would be much more costly. It’s been a few years since and haven’t heard much?

The aluminum labor rate is more expensive due to an additional 50-100K worth of tools and equipment required to work on them as well as additional labor hours for some repairs. The big problem with the "military grade" aluminum is that it is quite brittle and does not dent or buckle very much at all before it cracks, tears or shatters. Any bolts or fasteners are mostly all one time use due to coatings on the steel bolts contacting any aluminum components. Certain replacement parts require removal of other parts which may result in the necessity to replace them as well. Lots of specific construction adhesives, sound deadening foams and structural foams are required in replacing panels as well.

We repair a lot of damaged steel bedside panels where bumper ends get bent in. We replace almost all Ford aluminum bed panels for the same damage.

Keep full coverage insurance on it...

On my second new Tundra in 9 years. Currently have a 2017 Double cab 4x4 SR5 TRD with 40K miles and ZERO issues so far.

Reliability and re-sale value were some of my most important considerations. Getting a good deal on a used one is tough though so I buy new and enjoy the first half of the trucks life. (my last one had 185K on it when I sold it) It's hard to argue with the Tundra's reliability record.

Love the Toyota for towing in fact it drives better with something behind it if that makes sense. I pull a 26 foot 5000Lb dry weight toy hauler to the races and a 6x12 enclosed trailer to track practice. Has a confident safe feel while pulling.

Day to day gas mileage is lower than Toyota claims, I get 13.5 average and 9-10 with toy hauler back there.

It may sound old fashioned but I also like to support companies that support MX and SX. Toyota has done so as long as I can remember.

Have fun truck shopping!