New Trucks - Are they really better?

Several times a year we head down to West Virginia and Kentucky to go SXS riding. I tow a 24' Moritz 14k deck‑over bumper‑pull trailer that weighs around 4,000 pounds. With two machines loaded, the total weight ends up in the 8,000–8,500 lb range. My current truck is a 2011 2500HD with the 6.0, very low miles, and in thirteen years of ownership the only issue I’ve had was a minor O₂ sensor problem. Other than the heavy fuel consumption and the fact that it’s a regular cab, I really have no complaints. The truck is rated for 9,500 lbs GVWR for a bumper‑pull trailer, so it’s technically within its limits.

When we were going to West Virginia over the New Years, we were getting pretty close to the house we were staying at and there was a pretty windy road going down a mountain. About halfway down the mountain my brake pedal went about half to three quarters of the way to the floor. I was NOT riding the brakes at all up until that point. Trailer brakes work, and were set, and the trailer rides very level with my setup. Told the girlfriend to hang on, we might be going for a ride. Made it down the mountain without any issues (luckily). Hindsight being 20/20 I could have turned the brake controller up on the trailer brakes, but I also didn't want to cook the trailer brakes. If you've worked on conventional electric trailer brakes, you know they aren't built very stout. With all of that said, the whole ordeal still has me a little shook up.

Been throwing around the idea of getting a new truck. I know everyone has their own bias to the brand they like / love. I'm not interested in having a Ford vs GM vs whatever brand debate. What I'm interested in hearing from folks that have gone from an older truck to a newer truck is:

1) Do you feel that your newer truck tow and STOPS better?
2) Do you feel safer when towing a heavy load?
3) Would you buy again?

What I’m really struggling with is the idea of giving up a vehicle that has been completely reliable for something new that might come with problems. A lot of truck manufacturers—Ford, GM, Toyota—seem to be dealing with quality issues lately. At the same time, the towing capabilities of newer trucks are miles ahead of what I’m driving now, and that’s hard to ignore.

 

You didn’t really say, unless I missed it, but did you look into the cause of your problem? If you’ve never flushed the brake fluid on your truck, you should get that done. Dark fluid has a lot of moisture in it; get it hot enough and it will develop steam/air bubbles that cause a flat pedal such as you describe. You can also upgrade brake pads and rotors if you feel that yours are not up to capacity.

More directly to your question, if you like your truck it would be far more economical to address issues and do preventive maintenance as needed than to buy a new one. If you feel you’re really overloaded, though, you might decide you need a heavier truck. 8500 lbs shouldn’t be a problem for that truck, I wouldn’t think.

Nice handling of the situation. Glad it turned out okay!

 

As stated above, old brake fluid can cause trouble. We flush ours every 3-4 years. Hawk brake pads are a significant improvement over oem. I've put them on lifted 4x4s to offset the extra rotational mass of large tires and then some, as well as on tow vehicles. I highly recommend them if you want to keep your truck vs buying new.

 

Just my opinion here, but brake technology hasn't changed much in years. Newer trucks will do a lot of things better, but I don't feel braking is one of them.

It sounds like you cooked some air/steam into your brake fluid and lost the pedal. I would flush and refill the fluid and possibly add some new/better brake pads...depending on their age they could be glazed.

The advertised towing capacities of these newer trucks are bonkers. Ford says you can tow 38K with a F350. No f&*(**& way I'm doing that.

 

I know two people with two new trucks that lost engines this year. One was in a Tundra, one was a Tahoe. Both yardsaled the bottom end on the highway. I need a new truck in the next 2-4 years but I'm scared...if I had low mile older truck I'd squeeze every mile out of it.

 

Have a few friends that are car mechanics and they say they never change brake fluid because "it's a closed" system. I talk to other folks that do, and they say to change every X amount of years. The brake fluid has never been changed, and the truck still has OEM pads on it. A friend and I tore into all four sets of brakes in the fall of 2025 and greased the caliper pins, and sanded and put never seize on the pad ears, and checked the pads for glazing etc. I'll flush the brake fluid once the weather warms up some. Bought a one man brake bleeder to vac test my saw, guess I can figure out how to use for its intended purpose.

The other interesting part is, we got to the bottom of the mountain and we sat there for a minute to clean up our pants and the brakes went back to normal. They were fine on the way home too. And I took the same exact route back. My guess is, since the mountains were at the beginning of the drive, the brakes were cold and that's why they were fine.

 

That's my hesitation on buying a new truck. Fords had's their problems with the early 7.3's & 6.2, GM with the 10 speed & 6.2, and Toyota with the Tundras. I'm not a Stellantis fan so they aren't even on my radar. Let's not talk about infotainment / tech issues.

Current truck only has 66k miles on it. Been getting the frame spayed with oil every year starting about three years ago (thanks to brenndatomu for referring me to a great place to have it done at). That has kept the frame rust at bay. I am starting to see bubble forming on top of the rear fenders though. And it being a regular cab is getting a little old too.

damm if you do, damm if you don't.

 

In a perfect world, it is a sealed system. But modern brake fluid is designed to absorb moisture intentionally, so you don't get pockets of water in the system that will either freeze or boil. Adding fluid from a previously opened bottle and even daily operation allows minute amounts of air, thus moisture, into the system. If it's dark, it's got moisture in it, and would do well to be changed. Flushing the fluid periodically also extends the life of brake calipers and wheel cylinders, ABS pumps, and plumbing. They even sell meters that check the moisture content of brake fluid.

Edited to add: Hot/glazed brakes will lose braking force, but the pedal height doesn't change much except that you're pressing it harder in an "oh crap!" situation. The loss of pedal height is normally comes from problems with the hydraulic system, such as air or mositure. The return to normal means, most likely, that it was steam and not air, although air bubbles also change size with large temperature changes. I hope I'm explaining this well enough to make sense.

 

So after you did essentially a full brake job in Fall this happened? You did a good brake flush? Tbh, I've only ever flushed out a master cylinder or so out of any brake system on a car/ truck.

I'm just over 100k on my '16 5.0 F-150 and I tow a 5500 lb boat with it now. The boat has 4 drum brakes on it so that helps, but I noticed some pulsing at the end of the year only when towing and heavy braking. I'll be putting front brakes with rotors and at least rear pads on before boating season and I'll more than likely go with a HD towing brake setup to help.

I think I'll go through a bigger bottle of brake fluid when we bleed them after reading this thread. New fluid is cheap insurance.

 

I, too, believe it is cheap insurance, especially if you tend to hang onto the same vehicles for a long time like I do. If you get a new vehicle every three or four years, it won't matter nearly as much to you. Heavier use and older age means more frequent changes; just keep an eye on the color compared to new fluid to tell you when it's time, or of course if you do any plumbing work (lines, calipers, etc.) that's a good time too, since you've opened the system already.

 

Something like this is handy More Information for PERFORMANCE TOOL W182 I try to change brake fluid following the vehicle's service recommendation. My motorcycle (the one modern enough for hydraulic braking system) gets a fluid change every two years. Four wheel vehicles every three. A moisture tester is handy for vehicles that have issues or an unknown history.

 

I'm planning on running this truck until 250k. So yeah, I'll put the better brakes and such in it.

 

I'd have to agree here, it's very likely this was brake fluid related...or specifically dirty/contaminated brake fluid related.
Most manufacturers call for brake fluid to be changed every 2-3 years. (clutch too, for those with hydraulic clutches)
If it has much color to it at all, it needs changed. (just a very light amber maybe... and clear/not cloudy at all)
Brake fluid is hydroscopic, so over time it absorbs moisture from the air (contrary to popular belief, the reservoir is not air tite)

The easiest way to change it is to suck out the reservoir with a mightyvac, clean it up with brake clean if needed, then make sure it's all cleaned up, then refill with the proper new fluid.
At this point it's easier to have a helper...have them cycle the brake pedal a few times, watch to see if any air bubbles come up in the reservoir...sometimes it will after changing the fluid.
Then pump up the pedal, crack a bleeder...close it, pump it back up, rinse/repeat until fresh fluid comes through...X4.
Make sure the reservoir doesn't go low during all this...you'll probably at least a quart, maybe 2, for your truck.
Never drain the system just to change fluid....WAAAY more work and trouble then it needs to be!

Another thing that people neglect is differential oil.

Now, as for replacing the truck, I'd keep it. I'm gonna try to keep my '03 forever.
Just not a fan of this newer stuff and all it's nanny state crap...nothing but trouble! Not to mention all the mechanical unreliability that seems to come baked in now!
I will say though, the axles/brakes are a lot beefier than the older trucks. You compare an 80s 3/4 or 1 ton axle to one made in the last 10 years or so...big difference.
A common swap for OBS Ford guys is to swap in a newer 1 ton straight axle, with coil springs, instead of leaf springs and the old ttb system. (Even the newer Superduty leaf springs ride better than the older ones, but coil is better yet)

 

Oh, I thought you were having them do the full treatment? If you do the full body/frame oil spray every year, it will keep those existing bubbles from growing much at all.
My neighbor has a white 98 F150 with rust bubbles on the wheel wells and with the oil spray they have hardly gotten worse at all in the last 10 years...it'd be gone by now otherwise.
I've had the same experience with my white Honda too.

 

I would take your 2011 over anything for sale today. Our Tundra at work got a new engine and the replacement is starring to knock. Lease is up so it's not my problem anymore. Neighbors Silverado with the 6.2 is making expensive noises, is still under warranty and they are fighting GM to do anything about it.

You already got some good advice on the brakes. I hope you can get it fixed right.

 

Complete honesty...I wish I could buy what I bought brand new in 2006 over again. Had two since that one, neither has performed any better by marked amounts. Mileage is the only real 'improvement' but the amounts are moot at a couple mpg. Can tell you one thing for sure.... 6 speeds in a transmission is plenty for me. The new uber slush boxes are far too busy trying to keep the engines at 900rpm no matter your speed. They tell me 10 is better than 5 or 6. Ok then, how about 15 speeds? 20? Wouldn't that be better again because moar?? LOL

I'm not sure what goes on in engineering schools these days. Intentional complication of systems and designs is really stupid. There is a new word for it but I cannot utter it here.

 

I drove a "newer" Ford pickup last winter. Long story made short, a resort loaned it to me to drive 80+ miles round trip to pick up a new starter for my friends Honda van so we could drive home after ice fishing. Anyway as I'm driving, this thing is shifting constantly enough that I wondered how many speeds is this thing? 11 speed transmission, what the heck. I'm not that up to date on newer vehicles and had no idea that was even a thing. Next thing I wondered was, how much does it cost to rebuild one when it fails? As long as my older vehicles run and don't fall apart from rust (dang salt) I keep driving them. 2002 Tundra and 2005 Buick LeSabre

 

I guess to each his own...I like to have a newer vehicle, drive a 2020 now and would replace it if I thought a truck was worth 60 - 80K. But, at 118,000 fairly trouble-free miles (only 8 speed tranny, lol), I will continue to enjoy this one for a few more years.

 

Flip them before the warranty expires. I simply cannot trust any of the new stuff to be as reliable as the stuff I had in the past. I had one I drove for 7 years *after it was paid off with zero mechanical repairs, only maintenance items (over a decade). It's my feeling that there is no vehicle with this kind of durability now, and it's on purpose.

 

All fluids except for the brake fluid have been changed in the truck in <20k miles. Changed the diff, transfer case, and tranny fluid a few years ago. Radiator fluid was changed out last year, and it gets yearly oil changes.

They are doing the full treatment. They drilled even out the door "frames" so they could spray oil in there, so the rockers don't rust out. The tail gate also gets sprayed.