Truck Time

[heymrdj]

The F-150's have official FoMoCo wheel liners, I believe it's 250$ MSRP at the build of your truck, could be different for later installation. I was just shopping F-150's before I got my fiesta a few weeks ago. I was gunning for an 2014 F-150 Crew Cab 4x4 XLT with the 302A and chrome package. I think I'll wait for the 2016 F-150 though.

As for the remarks about SUV vs pickup, everyone has to make their own call there. I loved my Expedition because it was so flexible (interior room vs hauling a trailer). But I also had to deconstruct *alot* of cargo to make it fit in the limited vertical height. In the end I knew I'd be much happier with a pickup with a cover. But only you know your uses best.

As for the remarks of people buying crew cab pickups, welcome to the new american society, where most households take 2 incomes. I can (but don't want to) afford 2 car payments (car and pickup). Most americans are in the same spot (let alone parking anywhere in surburbia, I live in a really small farm town and we can't park more than 2 vehicles in the driveway, which is single wide so it requires shuffling and planning, and we can park one on the road when it's not winter, as the road is single wide and a plow can't get through if you park there, you'll get towed).

The fact is getting the fiesta I've given up alot of fun things, you simply can't fit alot of things in a sedan or a hatchback, for guys that like to get out and do things, and do their own things, you can't beat the versatility of a truck or SUV, no matter what hairs you split. A small car, while being a gas sipper (I get 36mpg real world on my fiesta), does not make up the difference in extra insurance, registration costs (a new car in Indiana under 20k is 400$ per year to register), and miscellaneous costs. So instead you get a truck that can do the extras you want and also carry the family. It's simply the best option.

 

[halik]

The F-150's have official FoMoCo wheel liners, I believe it's 250$ MSRP at the build of your truck, could be different for later installation. I was just shopping F-150's before I got my fiesta a few weeks ago. I was gunning for an 2014 F-150 Crew Cab 4x4 XLT with the 302A and chrome package. I think I'll wait for the 2016 F-150 though.

As for the remarks about SUV vs pickup, everyone has to make their own call there. I loved my Expedition because it was so flexible (interior room vs hauling a trailer). But I also had to deconstruct *alot* of cargo to make it fit in the limited vertical height. In the end I knew I'd be much happier with a pickup with a cover. But only you know your uses best.

As for the remarks of people buying crew cab pickups, welcome to the new american society, where most households take 2 incomes. I can (but don't want to) afford 2 car payments (car and pickup). Most americans are in the same spot (let alone parking anywhere in surburbia, I live in a really small farm town and we can't park more than 2 vehicles in the driveway, which is single wide so it requires shuffling and planning, and we can park one on the road when it's not winter, as the road is single wide and a plow can't get through if you park there, you'll get towed).

The fact is getting the fiesta I've given up alot of fun things, you simply can't fit alot of things in a sedan or a hatchback, for guys that like to get out and do things, and do their own things, you can't beat the versatility of a truck or SUV, no matter what hairs you split. A small car, while being a gas sipper (I get 36mpg real world on my fiesta), does not make up the difference in extra insurance, registration costs (a new car in Indiana under 20k is 400$ per year to register), and miscellaneous costs. So instead you get a truck that can do the extras you want and also carry the family. It's simply the best option.

Just out of curiosity, what is this stuff you carry all the time that won't clear an expedition?

I'm pretty sure my observation holds for most people with crew cab trucks. That being said, if you actually live on a farm that all hat no cattle thing clearly doesn't apply. I had a coworker that drove a diesel dually to work, because he owns a horse farm and didn't wanna spend money on another car.

 

[WackyDan]

I was at a Ford store 2 weeks back and they had a brand new f150 crew cab. The rear wheel wells were definitely bare, no liners what so ever.

Yeah... They sell the liners as dealer option. Ford parts too.

 

[WackyDan]

I bought my 2012 F-150 Super Crew as the two year old trucks weren't much cheaper than a new truck.

The Ford was only $1200 more than the Ram and I got a shit load more for my $1200 by going for the Ford.

Pretty happy with it. Towed 3000 miles last year.

As for an SUV being a better option? Bullshit. SUV's are heavier. I'm also willing to bet the 300 fence pickets they fork lifted into my truck would have been an issue with an SUV. Same for all that concrete staining the bed liner currently. *and I don't use the truck for work, or live on a farm.

 

[mvbighead]

I had a coworker that drove a diesel dually to work, because he owns a horse farm and didn't wanna spend money on another car.

This to me is one of the most ridiculous things ever. I totally get the need for a truck like that, but when your primary use is driving to work and back, it makes a helluva lot of sense to go buy a $5k car to put miles on.

Cost of tires and gas alone would eat that $5k in no time I'd like to think. Not to mention, your resale value would be higher or you could keep it longer as it wouldn't have quite the amount of wear and tear.

 

[Zivic]

I've owned GM trucks... never with my own money will I buy one. The more I use them, the less reliable they prove to be. Not only that, the interiors still suck and with an autobody tech in my family, GM's are put together like crap

-that said, I have had bad fords as well.

Ford and Toyota trucks in this house... though the new rams look nice. I just took an 800 mile trip in a decked out big horn edition and I think they are decent trucks. the diesel is a great option.

 

[Zargon]

Yeah... They sell the liners as dealer option. Ford parts too.

sssssh

most will line them too, but they also are too stupid to sand anything

my boss takes his truck back annually to complain and gets it redone for free

 

[Greenman]

I bought my 2012 F-150 Super Crew as the two year old trucks weren't much cheaper than a new truck.

The Ford was only $1200 more than the Ram and I got a shit load more for my $1200 by going for the Ford.

Pretty happy with it. Towed 3000 miles last year.

As for an SUV being a better option? Bullshit. SUV's are heavier. I'm also willing to bet the 300 fence pickets they fork lifted into my truck would have been an issue with an SUV. Same for all that concrete staining the bed liner currently. *and I don't use the truck for work, or live on a farm.

So you were able to use it as a truck twice, that's good. But that isn't really an argument against an SUV. I don't know that a traditional SUV would have been a better choice for you, that's a decision you make for yourself. None of that changes the fact that a four door short bed truck is an SUV. They're made for hauling six people around in comfort, with a small cargo area in the back, and they're huge. Huge is key, huge sells, huge is the new black. Sheet metal sides that look like an aircraft carrier, cabs that require built in stairs to get into, two and a half feet of space between the tires and the body. That's what people want, and that's an SUV.

 

[skyking]

I want a 4wd truck that is not tall. Good luck me. I don't need massive clearance, those huge sheetmetal sides, the upper deck climb to seating. I need the traction now and again in slippery conditions when towing, sometimes on snow or ice. None of that requires the current stance of 4wd trucks these last 20 years or so.
I'll continue to make do with my 2wd that I can just swing into and out of.

 

[slag]

So you were able to use it as a truck twice, that's good. But that isn't really an argument against an SUV. I don't know that a traditional SUV would have been a better choice for you, that's a decision you make for yourself. None of that changes the fact that a four door short bed truck is an SUV. They're made for hauling six people around in comfort, with a small cargo area in the back, and they're huge. Huge is key, huge sells, huge is the new black. Sheet metal sides that look like an aircraft carrier, cabs that require built in stairs to get into, two and a half feet of space between the tires and the body. That's what people want, and that's an SUV.

He used his twice or so he's posted. Just off the top of my head, I've put my 4 wheeler in the back several times and driven out to the country to play around in the mud on 20 acres of field, hauled brush to the dump, put several lawn mowers that reeked of gasoline in my truck, carried two engines and numerous scrap metal to the recycling center, etc etc etc, all things you don't want to put into an enclosed passenger area in a SUV, just since this past spring. A 4 door truck is still a truck, one that is just more versatile than a standard cab truck. Until that bed is enclosed and able to be used as a passenger area, its a truck.. not a SUV.

 

[leper84]

Wouldn't get a Tundra. The whole "we wanna copy Ford with our redesign but then beat it with an ugly stick" thing turns me off enough. Its the unboxed, unwelded, riveted together frame that gets an automatic disqualification from me.

I think a GMC would be okay for light use, the new Gen V engines sound pretty awesome. Just seems to me build quality & fit/finish is still a generation behind the other two of the big three. I'd absolutely buy an extended bumper to bumper warranty being a GM and a first model year though.

F150 costs more for a reason, and it aint cause its your boss' white hat truck. For the amount built the resale on those trucks is insane as well. Even if they cost more you can still get pretty awesome discounts at the right time of the year. Last two years I've seen Lariat Supercrew 4x4s going for ~35k new.

 

[jaha2000]

Wouldn't get a Tundra. The whole "we wanna copy Ford with our redesign but then beat it with an ugly stick" thing turns me off enough. Its the unboxed, unwelded, riveted together frame that gets an automatic disqualification from me.

I think a GMC would be okay for light use, the new Gen V engines sound pretty awesome. Just seems to me build quality & fit/finish is still a generation behind the other two of the big three. I'd absolutely buy an extended bumper to bumper warranty being a GM and a first model year though.

F150 costs more for a reason, and it aint cause its your boss' white hat truck. For the amount built the resale on those trucks is insane as well. Even if they cost more you can still get pretty awesome discounts at the right time of the year. Last two years I've seen Lariat Supercrew 4x4s going for ~35k new.

The new tundra is terrible looking. I actually like the look of the old ones better.

 

[WackyDan]

So you were able to use it as a truck twice, that's good. But that isn't really an argument against an SUV. I don't know that a traditional SUV would have been a better choice for you, that's a decision you make for yourself. None of that changes the fact that a four door short bed truck is an SUV. They're made for hauling six people around in comfort, with a small cargo area in the back, and they're huge. Huge is key, huge sells, huge is the new black. Sheet metal sides that look like an aircraft carrier, cabs that require built in stairs to get into, two and a half feet of space between the tires and the body. That's what people want, and that's an SUV.

More than twice. I just cited two examples. Should I also cite my neighbor with the huge SUV next door that asked me to take stuff to the dump when I went because he didn't want to get the inside of his SUV dirty?

And yeah... I have the super crew - ordered it with the 6.5 bed as the dealers don't stock the 6.5 on lot... I would have bought the 8' bed if they offered it on the super crew, but the rub is, I can't justify stepping up to an F-250 for the bed length alone. I bought the Super crew so I could actually have my daughter's child seat locked into the retention latches found on all new cars, versus strapping her seat into the front seat of my old truck which never really seemed as safe as it should be *using the seat belt versus the latches.

Back to one of my original points though. You advocate for SUV's, when all that extra sheet metal and cage adds weight... Weight a truck doesn't have with just a bed behind the 2nd row. So please tell me why the crusade to tell people they should have an SUV and trucks are wasteful?

 

[jagec]

The fact is getting the fiesta I've given up alot of fun things, you simply can't fit alot of things in a sedan or a hatchback, for guys that like to get out and do things, and do their own things, you can't beat the versatility of a truck or SUV, no matter what hairs you split. A small car, while being a gas sipper (I get 36mpg real world on my fiesta), does not make up the difference in extra insurance, registration costs (a new car in Indiana under 20k is 400$ per year to register), and miscellaneous costs. So instead you get a truck that can do the extras you want and also carry the family. It's simply the best option.

Car plus utility trailer, I think, is THE most practical way for people who commute to work and still want to haul stuff on the weekends. Any car on the market can haul 1500 lbs.

Car plus old truck/SUV (or truck/SUV plus old car, I suppose) for people who need extra towing capacity, do more serious work, or go off-road a lot. Since one vehicle in the combo is old, insurance & registration tends to be cheap...often cheaper than it would be for the new, fully loaded, crew cab luxury truck/SUV that people get to "do it all" with.

Why people insist on buying ONE vehicle that 95% of the time is being used for something that it sucks at, I have no idea. Image, I guess. Just file it under "decisions that keep people poor".

 

[iamwiz82]

I was just at a Ram dealer and the sales guy was telling me there are multiple Rams for under $250/mo for a lease with 0 down (no first month, etc). He pulled out one deal he had put through the previous for a 2014 Ram stickered @ $45k for $243/mo. Nuts. He said Rams are where the deals are right now.

I wasn't interested in trucks too much, but that price sure pulls my attention away from a Grand Cherokee.

 

[Greenman]

More than twice. I just cited two examples. Should I also cite my neighbor with the huge SUV next door that asked me to take stuff to the dump when I went because he didn't want to get the inside of his SUV dirty?

And yeah... I have the super crew - ordered it with the 6.5 bed as the dealers don't stock the 6.5 on lot... I would have bought the 8' bed if they offered it on the super crew, but the rub is, I can't justify stepping up to an F-250 for the bed length alone. I bought the Super crew so I could actually have my daughter's child seat locked into the retention latches found on all new cars, versus strapping her seat into the front seat of my old truck which never really seemed as safe as it should be *using the seat belt versus the latches.

Back to one of my original points though. You advocate for SUV's, when all that extra sheet metal and cage adds weight... Weight a truck doesn't have with just a bed behind the 2nd row. So please tell me why the crusade to tell people they should have an SUV and trucks are wasteful?

I'm not advocating for SUV's. I don't much like them. My point is that pickups are the new SUV's. That's why they have 4 doors, short beds, and they're huge. Those things are worthless as a work truck, but they're pretty good as a family sedan that will hold more stuff.

 

[Greenman]

I was just at a Ram dealer and the sales guy was telling me there are multiple Rams for under $250/mo for a lease with 0 down (no first month, etc). He pulled out one deal he had put through the previous for a 2014 Ram stickered @ $45k for $243/mo. Nuts. He said Rams are where the deals are right now.

I wasn't interested in trucks too much, but that price sure pulls my attention away from a Grand Cherokee.

Low mileage lease. I know a fellow who got hosed bad on one of those deals. He should have read how many miles he was allowed before signing. You can get a nice ride cheap, but you can't drive it very much. Sometimes the limit is as low as 25,000 miles on a three year term. I'd burn through all my miles in the first year, and be stuck paying for the next 45K at .25 per mile. That would mean I'd owe around $11k when I turned the truck in. So the total of a 3 year lease would be around $20K, or around $550 a month. Still not bad for a nice truck.

 

[WackyDan]

I'm not advocating for SUV's. I don't much like them. My point is that pickups are the new SUV's. That's why they have 4 doors, short beds, and they're huge. Those things are worthless as a work truck, but they're pretty good as a family sedan that will hold more stuff.

Ok... I gotcha now. Thanks for the clarity that time. You are right on that. Heck, This is my first full size truck having gone from an S-10 to two Dakotas and now the F-150. I just can't buy smaller truck *that I actually want anymore.

When it was rumored that Dodge was going to put a diesel in the Dakota (before they killed the Dak completely) I was salivating as I thought I'd get better MPG and towing without going full size. I got the F-150 and it was probably best for me to get a full size as the trailer I tow is 5500# dry and I probably load it to north of 7000-7500#. If this trailer towing continues then I might be tempted to go to an F-250 or 2500 model when I wear this one out... But I don't see my needs getting higher. I'd like to think that the next truck might be a mid sized again if there is a decent option out there at the time.

 

[heymrdj]

Car plus utility trailer, I think, is THE most practical way for people who commute to work and still want to haul stuff on the weekends. Any car on the market can haul 1500 lbs.

Car plus old truck/SUV (or truck/SUV plus old car, I suppose) for people who need extra towing capacity, do more serious work, or go off-road a lot. Since one vehicle in the combo is old, insurance & registration tends to be cheap...often cheaper than it would be for the new, fully loaded, crew cab luxury truck/SUV that people get to "do it all" with.

Why people insist on buying ONE vehicle that 95% of the time is being used for something that it sucks at, I have no idea. Image, I guess. Just file it under "decisions that keep people poor".

Not my fiesta. The DCT will make clutch material smell just having 700lbs of people in it going uphill in stop and go traffic. I can't imagine trying to do interstate speed with it (with the drag), and stopping a trailer that literally weighs half of its weight doesn't sound like a bright idea. 112 ft. lb. of torque just can't move heavy loads without alot of slippage first. It only weighs 2600lbs, and with disc front and drum rear, stopping power wouldn't be brilliant either. On top of that if it did fry out the transmission I'm on the hook for the 6 grand to replace it. If you haven't noticed, all the manufacturers have clauses on their cars now stating what will happen if you tow with it and it does any frame or powertrain damage. I get it, my parents had a lincoln town car from 1988 that could pull our bass boat with ease. They don't build them that way anymore (not to mention it got the fuel economy of my Expedition).

I'm not poor, and I don't do the "old truck" deal. I spend too much time and miles in either vehicle to be dealing with cassette converters for audio, uncomfortable damage upholstery, buggy items that cost an arm and a leg to fix ect. I expect ANY vehicle I own to be in top shape and 100% clean/functioning. I don't do "beaters". Plus there's not tons of in shape older trucks that are crew cab (more than 2 of use when we go out.)

 

[heymrdj]

Low mileage lease. I know a fellow who got hosed bad on one of those deals. He should have read how many miles he was allowed before signing. You can get a nice ride cheap, but you can't drive it very much. Sometimes the limit is as low as 25,000 miles on a three year term. I'd burn through all my miles in the first year, and be stuck paying for the next 45K at .25 per mile. That would mean I'd owe around $11k when I turned the truck in. So the total of a 3 year lease would be around $20K, or around $550 a month. Still not bad for a nice truck.

I looked at it as I have a friend here as a dealer at a local super chrysler dealership. I looked at a Big Horn with pretty much everything besides the moon roof and rambox for about 450/m, 0 down, 24 month 24k total mileage lease ith 0 disposition ect. What you have to remember is the markup on truck. See the MSRP on a 2014 RAM, slash 5K right there, then add on 3-4500 in deale incentives. 2014 F-150, take off about 5K to start, 2013 F-150 take off 8-10K.

Just out of curiosity, what is this stuff you carry all the time that won't clear an expedition?

I'm pretty sure my observation holds for most people with crew cab trucks. That being said, if you actually live on a farm that all hat no cattle thing clearly doesn't apply. I had a coworker that drove a diesel dually to work, because he owns a horse farm and didn't wanna spend money on another car.

Electronics cart in box. Had to take it out of the box and disassemble as it was too tall to fit in any direction.

Server rack, again disassemble.

2 29" bikes, wouldn't lay down in the back.

3 29" bikes and a 26" bike, obviously a worse nightmare.

Dirt (speaks for itself you can't move a hill of dirt inside an SUV with a backhoe loader, ended up borrowing an ATV trailer and pulling that with the truck).

Had a concrete bag blow inside the truck, that was a mess.

Any boards over 8 ft. With a truck you have tiedown options to make it work. With the Expedition you have to try to get the angle so they can fit out the top rear window, which due to the shallowness of the floor and the distance the window sticks out when open, isn't actually too far.

Refrigerator and bed when moving (both too tall and/or wide to fit in the back).

That's just off the top of my head, I know there's been more times.

 

[jaha2000]

Ended up with a CPO Tundra
2010 Crewmax with 38K on the clock..
Couple of things drove me decision
1. I currently have extended bumper to bumper on my FJ with 0 payment though Toyota. Apparently when you trade on a Toyota with that on another Toyota you get a credit for it. I am ending up with factory coverage on the new truck for 200 bucks though 125K.
2. The fit and finish of the 4 year old truck is still better than the new domestic brands (Ford is the closest) The other 2 are FAR behind. While the soft touch materials on the new ones are nice, the fact that lines dont line up all that well drove me nuts.
3. The used vehicle i got was the sales managers rig. He brought out every single thing he had done to it in the 4 years he had it. Very well taken care of.
4. It made sense at the price point. I feel like i got a lot more truck for less than i would have been spending on a new ram/GM/Ford. And did not take a big depreciation hit 15 seconds after i signed the papers.

Ill post up some pics tonight once i get it home.

 

[heymrdj]

Ended up with a CPO Tundra
2010 Crewmax with 38K on the clock..
Couple of things drove me decision
1. I currently have extended bumper to bumper on my FJ with 0 payment though Toyota. Apparently when you trade on a Toyota with that on another Toyota you get a credit for it. I am ending up with factory coverage on the new truck for 200 bucks though 125K.
2. The fit and finish of the 4 year old truck is still better than the new domestic brands (Ford is the closest) The other 2 are FAR behind. While the soft touch materials on the new ones are nice, the fact that lines dont line up all that well drove me nuts.
3. The used vehicle i got was the sales managers rig. He brought out every single thing he had done to it in the 4 years he had it. Very well taken care of.
4. It made sense at the price point. I feel like i got a lot more truck for less than i would have been spending on a new ram/GM/Ford. And did not take a big depreciation hit 15 seconds after i signed the papers.

Ill post up some pics tonight once i get it home.

Sounds nice, make sure to get lots of pics. I like the last generation crew maxes.

 

[iamwiz82]

Low mileage lease. I know a fellow who got hosed bad on one of those deals. He should have read how many miles he was allowed before signing. You can get a nice ride cheap, but you can't drive it very much. Sometimes the limit is as low as 25,000 miles on a three year term. I'd burn through all my miles in the first year, and be stuck paying for the next 45K at .25 per mile. That would mean I'd owe around $11k when I turned the truck in. So the total of a 3 year lease would be around $20K, or around $550 a month. Still not bad for a nice truck.

The one I was shown was a 12,000 mile lease @ .11 center per mile on overages. As a second vehicle it's a steal, I'm torn.

 

[Greenman]

The one I was shown was a 12,000 mile lease @ .11 center per mile on overages. As a second vehicle it's a steal, I'm torn.

That's a good deal if you don't drive too much. The .11 mileage charge is a steal. Because of how I use my truck, and the service life I expect, I can't lease. I generally keep them for around 12 years, and expect reasonably trouble free service for that entire time.

 

[jaha2000]

Crappy cell phone pics.