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OT: Pickup trucks

USN_Panther

USN_Panther

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Jul 7, 2001
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Who has them? What do you like from your truck, and what are the drawbacks?
Looking to get one. Need dual cab and would be towing trailer and boat regularly. Need to ford shallow rivers and deal with moderate mud and unpaved roads.
Prefer diesel to get maximum engine life.
Would pay a bit more to buy American. Heard Ford Ranger not so hot. Holden (Australasian Chevy) Colorado seems pretty well liked. Heard good things about Mitusbishi, Toyota Hilux, and Mazda pickups.
What are your experiences with pickups?
 
USN_Panther said:
Who has them? What do you like from your truck, and what are the drawbacks?
Looking to get one. Need dual cab and would be towing trailer and boat regularly. Need to ford shallow rivers and deal with moderate mud and unpaved roads.
Prefer diesel to get maximum engine life.
Would pay a bit more to buy American. Heard Ford Ranger not so hot. Holden (Australasian Chevy) Colorado seems pretty well liked. Heard good things about Mitusbishi, Toyota Hilux, and Mazda pickups.
What are your experiences with pickups?
Click to expand...
2023 Sierra AT4x.

The new turbo diesel is a must get for you. If you go GM. Don’t have it personally, but the feedback has been great for it.
 
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Pitt Gunner_Storm said:
2023 Sierra AT4x.

The new turbo diesel is a must get for you. If you go GM. Don’t have it personally, but the feedback has been great for it.
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GM is not easily accessible here anymore. They used to make Chevys in Aussie and called them Holdens. But they closed those plants and there's not much around anymore. Can get the Colorados. I saw a Sierra in the carpark of the A&P show today, and it was branded as a Chevy. It was right side drive. But that is not a common find around here.
 
Motor Trend rated midsized trucks.
Colorado
Tacoma
Canyon
Gladiator
Nissan
Ranger
Not sure if there is a diesel version in the states. There might be availability down under.
Most reliable vehicles made are still the Toyota brand.
The 2024 Tacoma is all new with a turbo 4 cylinder that creates a huge amount of HP and Torque for towing.
I’m casually shopping for a Tacoma myself. 24’s trickling in stores now.
 
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Pitt1975 said:
Motor Trend rated midsized trucks.
Colorado
Tacoma
Canyon
Gladiator
Nissan
Ranger
Not sure if there is a diesel version in the states. There might be availability down under.
Most reliable vehicles made are still the Toyota brand.
The 2024 Tacoma is all new with a turbo 4 cylinder that creates a huge amount of HP and Torque for towing.
I’m casually shopping for a Tacoma myself. 24’s trickling in stores now.
Click to expand...
I noted that the local towing company has Colorado as the company car. I figure they know what that types they end up towing.

My recent tow for my Subaru got my wife talking about a new vehicle. She wants donkeys, so I told her we could get donkeys, but would need a truck to tow a trailer to take them to the vet. The rural vets would come here, but don't tell her that. Donkeys for a truck is a good trade-off.
 
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I have a F150 super crew lariat. Love it. Fords provide a more car like ride

My son bought a Ram and is very nice as well. Much stiffer truck like ride. His is a V8 and gets as good of mileage as the 2.7 V6 turbo that I have in my F150

If you want to do any serous yard work or hauling the full size pick up is the way to go. The crew section can either seat three more comfortably or be additional storage space.

Chevys are garbage. The GM is a nice truck too but I’ve never been in one
 
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How heavy are the trailer and boat that you’re towing? There’s a lot more to towing than engine size. I would recommend considering a double cab. Most are very spacious and provide more bed size and better towing capability. Even adults have never complained about having enough space in the back seat of my Silverado double cab.
 
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goatman said:
How heavy are the trailer and boat that you’re towing? There’s a lot more to towing than engine size. I would recommend considering a double cab. Most are very spacious and provide more bed size and better towing capability. Even adults have never complained about having enough space in the back seat of my Silverado double cab.
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Single axle trailer and small boat, 14 footer. My diesel Subaru Forester can tow them no problem. But in the future I may be towing a horse trailer. Double cab is preferable. I will likely be going to ice hockey with several players. Good to have my defencemen not all cramped up on he ride to the game.
 
I have a Gladiator Rubicon and it is just a Jeep with a bed that is not all that usable if you have a hard tonneau cover, can't fit an Rtic 65 cooler under it, but I bought it because I wanted a Jeep and use it offroad to access hard to reach fishing spots and it great for that.
 
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USN_Panther said:
Who has them? What do you like from your truck, and what are the drawbacks?
Looking to get one. Need dual cab and would be towing trailer and boat regularly. Need to ford shallow rivers and deal with moderate mud and unpaved roads.
Prefer diesel to get maximum engine life.
Would pay a bit more to buy American. Heard Ford Ranger not so hot. Holden (Australasian Chevy) Colorado seems pretty well liked. Heard good things about Mitusbishi, Toyota Hilux, and Mazda pickups.
What are your experiences with pickups?
Click to expand...
I have a Chevy Silverado Z71… it has the extended cab… not the back full sized doors…95% of the time I am in it by myself, so I would rather have the full sized bed.. but have had very little troubles.. mines a 2018
 
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Loved my 4 door tundra. Loved the size except when parking. Love my Tacoma when parking, but miss the space of the tundra.
 
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Dan1911 said:
Loved my 4 door tundra. Loved the size except when parking. Love my Tacoma when parking, but miss the space of the tundra.
Click to expand...
2j1gcg.jpg
 
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USN_Panther said:
What are your thoughts on the Ford Ranger? I heard that the diesel versions have problems with EGR faults.
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They have certainly improved the Ranger. I think most of the F350's are diesel and many of the 250's. My 250 is gas and its been good to me. At the time I considered diesel as well but the maintenance on diesel is so much more. This being said they will run forever. I don't think you can go wrong with the F250.
 
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USN_Panther said:
I noted that the local towing company has Colorado as the company car. I figure they know what that types they end up towing.

My recent tow for my Subaru got my wife talking about a new vehicle. She wants donkeys, so I told her we could get donkeys, but would need a truck to tow a trailer to take them to the vet. The rural vets would come here, but don't tell her that. Donkeys for a truck is a good trade-off.
Click to expand...
A truck for some ass is always a good deal.
 
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2014 Ram 1500 Hemi - love it. Do not and I mean do not buy one with the air bag suspension unless you live in a warm climate. I recently had mine removed because it was a money pit.

Previously

2010 F150 with the 5.0 - ran nice but it was a rust bucket within 4 years.

2007 Toyota Tundra 4.7 - great truck virtually no issues minus power steering leak.

1989 Ford Ranger - 2.9 - it was a nice little truck
 
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DrPittfan163 said:
I have a Chevy Silverado Z71… it has the extended cab… not the back full sized doors…95% of the time I am in it by myself, so I would rather have the full sized bed.. but have had very little troubles.. mines a 2018
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I have a 2018 Silverado High Country crew Cab. Smooth ride like a car, plenty of room front and back. My 2 black labs love riding in the back and the wife thinks it’s more comfortable than her 2019 Lexus RX350.

And I beat it up pretty good frequently hauling stuff from light loads (mulch) to topsoil, gravel, large rocks and boulders. Don’t do much towing, off-roading or traversing shallow water like USN mentioned though.
 
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We don't see many Ram trucks or Silverado trucks here. By far the most popular are the Toyota Hilux and Ford Ranger. The Mitsubishi Triton pretty popular too.
I'm definitely getting the snorkel on whatever I get. Weather conditions change rapidly and you can end up on the wrong side of the river. Was out with a fishing guide who underestimated the depth of the river on our return trip. He had us in with water coming up to the hood. That snorkel saved us a major situation.
 
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USN_Panther said:
We don't see many Ram trucks or Silverado trucks here. By far the most popular are the Toyota Hilux and Ford Ranger. The Mitsubishi Triton pretty popular too.
I'm definitely getting the snorkel on whatever I get. Weather conditions change rapidly and you can end up on the wrong side of the river. Was out with a fishing guide who underestimated the depth of the river on our return trip. He had us in with water coming up to the hood. That snorkel saved us a major situation.
Click to expand...
That snorkel saved us a major situation.
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No doubt ..
 
In the U.S. Engine failure is rampant in Fords these days if you don't keep you oil clean, and I mean religiously. The oil ports clog. Not sure what kind of engine the rangers have over there. Of the Utes you listed, I would go with Toyota.
 
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I have a 2004 Ram that is semi-retired. Rust falls off when you close the door too hard. Have pulled trees and various other heavy objects with it. Used it like a truck with minimal upkeep other than oil changes. 186,000 miles. Engine and transmission are both in great shape.
 
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USN_Panther said:
We don't see many Ram trucks or Silverado trucks here. By far the most popular are the Toyota Hilux and Ford Ranger. The Mitsubishi Triton pretty popular too.
I'm definitely getting the snorkel on whatever I get. Weather conditions change rapidly and you can end up on the wrong side of the river. Was out with a fishing guide who underestimated the depth of the river on our return trip. He had us in with water coming up to the hood. That snorkel saved us a major situation.
Click to expand...
Does it ever bother you that you swore allegiance to the King of England?
 
RoguePanther said:
In the U.S. Engine failure is rampant in Fords these days if you don't keep you oil clean, and I mean religiously. The oil ports clog. Not sure what kind of engine the rangers have over there. Of the Utes you listed, I would go with Toyota.
Click to expand...
Scratch Ford and Holden. Talked to a guy at the petrol station who had a newish Colorado. He hates it. Had all kinds of problems at only 42000 km. Torque converter, EGR, condensation in headlights causing it to fail inspection. I need reliability. Can't be in the shop all the time.
 
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steelcurtain55. said:
2014 Ram 1500 Hemi - love it. Do not and I mean do not buy one with the air bag suspension unless you live in a warm climate. I recently had mine removed because it was a money pit.

Previously

2010 F150 with the 5.0 - ran nice but it was a rust bucket within 4 years.

2007 Toyota Tundra 4.7 - great truck virtually no issues minus power steering leak.

1989 Ford Ranger - 2.9 - it was a nice little truck
Click to expand...
I've had a few trucks over the years, got a RAM BigHorn with Hemi V8 and absolutely love it! Their Cummins diesels are great too. Rides like a Cadillac on the highway and has way more towing power than my Ford F150 did. The Ford trucks being made are rust buckets and have cheap interiors as well. Ford is not testing vehicles like they used to 10-15 years ago because they are going all in on electric and focusing on those. Therefore, the consumer is left being the test lab. Too many issues with Fords now, that's why they are losing a big portion of the market they USED to own!
 
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I’m kinda shocked that so many on this site have evil fossil fuel powered pickups. You all are contributing to global warming er uh climate change
 
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pittbb80 said:
I’m kinda shocked that so many on this site have evil fossil fuel powered pickups. You all are contributing to global warming er uh climate change
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I needed to haul stuff and do it pretty often or I wouldn't have bothered. Truthfully I need another but they are way overvalued. There are a lot of guys driving them around like a status symbol or something. I've known several guys that just refuse to haul anything in them because it will "lower the value". Won't even fold back the tonneau cover to haul a piece of furniture. Just weird to pay that much for something and not use it for the intended purpose. The OP wants to tow a boat. That makes sense to me. Can't speak for others in this thread but it is weird to see these guys tooling around, babying these things, and they really can't even park them correctly.
 
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pittbb80 said:
I’m kinda shocked that so many on this site have evil fossil fuel powered pickups. You all are contributing to global warming er uh climate change
Click to expand...
I offset it by heating my home with the renewable biomass fuel called wood. And I need the truck to get it. And to tow my boat (trolling motor fully electric) to procure my sustainable natural dietary protein called trout and salmon. And to haul my recyclables to the recycling centre. And to tow a trailer full of coal for my multi-fuel firebox.
So I am pretty green, except for the coal. But I'm not dying of the cold when the power goes out.
 
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pittdan77 said:
I needed to haul stuff and do it pretty often or I wouldn't have bothered. Truthfully I need another but they are way overvalued. There are a lot of guys driving them around like a status symbol or something. I've known several guys that just refuse to haul anything in them because it will "lower the value". Won't even fold back the tonneau cover to haul a piece of furniture. Just weird to pay that much for something and not use it for the intended purpose. The OP wants to tow a boat. That makes sense to me. Can't speak for others in this thread but it is weird to see these guys tooling around, babying these things, and they really can't even park them correctly.
Click to expand...
LOL Yup I do a lot of landscaping and gardening and the truck is invaluable. Its also great for storing my golf clubs and push cart! The crew cabs make them incredibly flexible as both a pretty nice set of wheels to get around in with the fam.

Parking can be a challenge at time but if you cant park it you shouldnt be driving it LOL
 
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