Which Truck to buy

pulmantruck

Please can someone help me, i have always been a rice rocket or at least fast sedan buyer,and know very little about trucks (my Bad) and unfortunatly i was in a car wreck a few days ago that almost killed me and the driver, fortunatly my children and wife were not in the back seat, need i say more.
We were hit by a GMC truck travelling at somewhere between 65 and 80mph in the rear end which basicly destroyed the honda we were in and slammed us under a commercial van in front. My whole outlook on trucks has changed now as the truck that hit us you could have driven away, i want a truck that gets my babies up out of harms way and will protect them should this ever happen again, it has to be diesel and lifted price range upto $50K US. If anyone can help steer me to the correct truck i would be very grateful as i hear mixed reports on the ford and gmc engines, just the cummins seem bullet proof, i would like to modify a small amout maybe to obtain 500 HP.

duramax08

personally after your situation I would recomend a GMC/CHEVY 2500HD Diesel
there have been mixed problems with the cummins 6.7 (the newest motor) because of this emmisions junk the epa throws on all diesels now causing us to use even more diesel fuel and the dodge doesnt ride very smotthly
the transmission that comes with the diesel is the allison 1000 series 6 speed auto with tap shift (manual clutchless mode)
i myself am getting a 2500gmc diesel ext. cab its an 07 left over for cheap loaded in the 30's
the msrp for a nicely loaded diesel is around 50-53k but the way things are with fuel prices people can get 15 grand off easily
leaving some money to spare for performance
in order to make 500 hp you will have to modify the existing tranny wich will cost $3-6k alone
but i dont recomend a lift kit there pricey and then u have to upgrade tires and such plus more risk of a rollover
hope this helps!

pulmantruck

Great thanks for the advice, like i said im just getting into this whole truck thing.

mickeymouse1

Hello:
I have a family member that is a college freshman in Arizona. She just moved there and I'm trying to decide whether I should ship the 2007 Honda Accord(that she has driven for the past year and a half) or buy a small pick up truck since the traffic in Arizona is not what she is used to at home. My primary concern is her safety but I'm not sure if pickups are actually safer. Any feedback would be appreciated.
Thank you!

KCRam

I definitely vote Accord... several reasons:

1 - Unless you buy an extended cab 4x4, the pickup will be a lot lighter and easier for a novice to lose control. That big empty rear will swap ends a lot quicker than in the Accord.

2 - And that bigger 4x4 would be more prone to a rollover.

3 - She is already comfortable with driving the Accord, so the chances of her being surprised by its behavior are greatly reduced.

4 - The Accord will likely get better mileage, particularly in local driving.

5 - Having a car with a trunk will offer her some secure storage space. The cab of a small pickup may be lockable but it's completely visible.

kcram - Pickups Host

mickeymouse1

Thank you for your advice! I agree and have decided to ship the Accord from CT to Arizona. Do you know of any reliable shipping companies from Connecticut or Tri state area. I have tried to research this, however, there is negative feedback about most companies.

KCRam

I'll be honest, I've never had to do it and would probably be in the same boat as you. You might want to post an inquiry in Lost? Ask a Host for Help! and one of the other hosts can tell you the best discussion to ask about transport companies.

kcram - Pickups Host

mickeymouse1

I ended up doing a lot of research and found a company that I felt comfortable using. Thanks to the reviews online, I feel that I avoided a "shipping disaster" since one of the companies that I was seconds away from using(until I check the BBB rating and consumer reviews on various sites) was rated unsatisfactory and had a
long history of damaging and stealing from the cars they shipped. I now have the number of 2 companies(one that ships east-west and one that ships north-south).
The car arrived yesterday in Arizona in perfect condition(engine and body) and with no items missing. Please feel free to benefit from the research I did as this is what the forums are all about. I would be happy to share the names/numbers.

pipfindr

Sorry to hear about your wreck guy.. that really sucks.
Whatever you do don't buy any of the new,new trucks all of them are hard on fuel and are harder to do basic upgrades on. DO NOT listen to sales people.
Go find a 5.9 ltr cummins Dodge, or a 6.0 ltr Ford, (which I own) or last years 6.6 duramax. all of these next to last Gen trucks have their strengths and flaws. The easiest one to do upgrades on and gets the best mileage is the Dodge. I chose my Ford for high payload, towing and tough suspension. The chev is a city truck with a softer ride and middle of the road for mileage, actually I dont know of anyone who owns one that has beat my mileage yet in my 6.0ltr powerstroke. Also the other thing you need to consider is short and long term maintenance. Chev is the most expensive to maintain, lift or upgrade. Dodge and Ford are about the same, Dodge again is the least expensive. look at all of the different forums here and read lots of different opinions before jumping into something. Buy a copy of diesel power, diesel builder and 8 lug. Then drive them all. Then take a diesel tech out from each of the big 3 for lunch and ask him what he thinks. For a free lunch they will let you know their honest opinion. let us know what you decide. good luck guy.

mack86

Before buying a used truck, first of all need to know very necessary its price value, modal and manufacturer that is right way to choose a used truck. Semi trucks

truckbuyer6

This is a great question. I am currently trying to decide which truck (Ford, Chevy, GM or Dodge) to buy. I have owned Ford and Dodge gasoline-engined pickups before. Now, I was thinking I wanted a diesel for towing purposes and 1 ton size. Reading all of the horror stories about poorly designed and manufactured products and service from Ford and Dodge (and some from Chevy and GM), I am rethinking whether it is intelligent to consider a diesel-engined truck. Perhaps, some of the problems reported by owners have been caused by around-town driving where the diesels had not been run hot enough and long enough to keep them clean. But, with the high purchase price premium and fuel cost premium, do diesels make sense with all of the reported problems? I had hoped for long-term reliability. But, there seems a huge risk in buying diesel. Would I be better off going gasoline, saving thousands on purchase price, and thousands on fuel costs over the years without the failure problems of diesels? I will do some towing, but this would be my only vehicle, so, of course, I will need to make short runs of five to ten miles regularly. Interested in your experiences and advice. Thanks.

m2bord

hi,
i love my f150 but with that said, ford has done some things to aggrevate me like push back the 2009's.

so now that i'm looking through everyone's leftover inventory, i'm trying to decide between a ford or a dodge.

i've owned fords for 12 years and have no experience with anything other than the gmc's i had before that.

i drove a tundra and thought it was rough. is the dodge as smooth a ride as the f150 xlt?

i'm just looking for guidance. i don't need anyone selling me on how great fords are. i know how good mine is and it's a shame i can't refinance my lease. i love mine but ford as a company has let me down and i don't feel right rewarding the way that they have treated me as a customer by giving them even more of my business.

so that's why i'm looking at dodge.

thanks.

ranger_bob

I've been weighing over some of the same options you are considering, so I'll share what I've seen/felt/driven. Starting with the new Tundra, it is a truck, period. It is also very very powerful, far more so then anything else on the market. The sheer speed is amazing. I took one for a test drive with an eager sales guy, and he said I should let her rip...so I did. Just pure power. You'll pay the most for a Tundra, and it gets towards the bottom of the MPG food chain, especially if you hit the gas. Quality on the Tundra has been a bit of an issue, but Toyota backs up its product at the end of the day.

The GMC/Chevy option is also very good. The ride quality is fantastic, the smoothest driving, riding, shifting of the group. You can't go wrong with it, but there are very few 2008 models left on Chevy lots because of the success from the Employee pricing promotion, so finding what you really want could be challenging. What you do find, however, can be had for at least $10,000 off MSRP is you can work it well (assuming a Crew LT 4x4 model).

Before I discuss the Ford, I'll admit I'm a Ford guy, and love the 08 F150. That being said, the 08 F150 is not quite up to par in terms of ride, power, or comfort compared to the Tundra and GM product. When you drive these vehicles side by side, you see that the F150 is a five year old product that has not improved significantly in that time. In 04 when it came out, the F150 was so far and away the best truck on the market, now, it has aged, and been overtaken in several areas by newer competitors. The F150 still looks great on the outside, and the FX4/Lariat/KR trims have pretty good looking interiors as well. The lower trim interiors have not aged well, and will not get better with time. You can get fantastic deals on F150s right now, at least $12,000 off, maybe as much as $14,000 on the right cab/trim.

The best deals of anything can be had on the 08 Dodge Quad cab, which you can easily get 15,000 off book, putting a new, 4x4, HEMI, decently equipped truck at around $20,000. The ride on a Dodge is, really, okay. It is rough, but on a Dodge that is what you would expect, a truck. Power is good, you should be happy in that department. My problem with Dodge has been styling, on the outside it is fine, but inside just seems a bit blah. When you climb into the interior of a Dodge, you don't mistake it for anything else (Ford has been experiencing the same issue recently). However, Dodge's real problem is quality, both build and longevity. If you buy a new one, and treat it right, it could go for a long time. As for the possibility of Chrysler going away, I don't think that is a real threat, if GM buys it, they will honor the warranty, and if not, the government won't let Chrysler just die.

I have also driven one of the new 09 F150s, although not one equipped with the classic Ford 5.4 engine. The model I drove (SuperCab XLT with 4.6) was very nice. Improved ride quality, a far superior transmission, and the power that I got from it was very close to that of the 06 XLT eqipped with the 5.4 that I had. The big difference is the new 6 speed transmission, which should make the new F150 a big success.

I think I went a bit overboard on your question, but I'm not going to delete after I just spent 10 mins typing. If your priority is ride quality, you should go drive one of the GM models for comparison. If you are set on either an F150 or Dodge product, the F150 has a better ride. If you want a true Crew Cab, finding a Dodge Mega Cab will prove difficult (they were the first to sell once Dodge started the heavy discounting), and the Ram Quad Cab is very small (much smaller then the Ford SuperCab).

Hope this helps.