Full Size Truck, Trailer, Midsize Truck and Trailer

To begin this is premature, but I run this through my head so much I wanted to ask the forum.

Current State:

• This summer we replaced my wife's 2013 Ford Explorer just in time. I'll save you the background. The wife has a new car as a result.
• We also picked up 2011 VW Jetta for daughter. She works to pay for the gas and insurance ,and is an honor roll student.
• Current debt load will not permit me to do anything about a truck or trailer at the moment. I need to clear debt before I could do anything. I am working hard to get this paid down in a timely manner.

At this time and the foreseeable future any discussion on a used and or new vehicle is a want. Not a need. I would keep my car to drive the 140 mile round trip to work and back. Just so long as it continues to run, and even though it's a 2006 with 225k+ miles on it, I don't see it dying on me.

One Option:
Before I get into the main options, I must say that I do have an option to purchase a 14 year old GMC 1500 4X4 extra cab the my brother-n-law owns with 145k miles on it. He does use it as a plow truck, but he maintains it meticulously. He's asking $6500 for it. The only two problems I know of are a small hole in the bed and a rusted post for the tailgate. I use it frequently, and know that the truck rides good on the highway and under load. I'm just afraid that the truck is approaching a time where some major maintenance is coming up.

Option two:
Purchase an F150 used - 2013-2016 - I am partial to Ford. (Yes I listed a GMC as an option above. That is what my brother-n-law owns, and it's an option.) Pricing wise these run from the mid 20ks to as high as the low 40ks.

Pros:

• Full size for towing a camping trailer.
• Fit all of 5 of us when we go places (this does not happen as much).
• More capacity for loads like mulch.
• Used to go get CL wood

Cons:

• Only a half ton truck - Would be pushing it to haul the ENV-8 blocks which is a ton. This is where the trailer would come in.
• While the ECO Boost is better with fuel, it's not a ton better. Not something I commute to work everyday.

Option Three:
Ford Ranger or Toyota Tacoma 4X4 Crew Cab - two smaller midsized trucks. One that is out today, and the other being re-introduced.

Pros:

• Able to fit most of the family. (Extremely rare that all 5 of us are together. In face most of the time it's just my wife, my youngest daughter and I.)
• Able to tow a trailer to pickup CL wood.
• Able to tow a trailer to pickup the ENVI-8 ton of blocks.
• Short bed able to handle most things I need a truck for.
  • Mulch
  • Loom
• Ranger 10SPD paired with ECO Boost should get better gas milage compared to F150.

Cons:

• Unable to fit 4' X 8' sheet of plywood between the wheel wells. Need a trailer to properly carry them.
• Really short bed.
• Toyota - has not done anything to improve their gas mileage to compete with the changes made by Ford and Chevy.

With either option, I feel that I would need to get a 1 ton trailer to haul the ENVI-8 blocks. I'll be using them until I am able to complete my three year plan. Plus the trailer would come in handy for other tasks. Especially if I were to go with either of the smaller trucks.

Looking for opinions. Not an argument against why I should not bother with Ford.

 

Personally, I would stay away from any 1500 that was used for plowing anything more than your own driveway.

I would also run from the first edition Ranger.

F150 or Tacoma...I would choose the one that has the better Specs and price to pull a trailer.

Good luck when the time comes!

 

Take a look at the 2015-2016 smaller 2.7 ecoboost F-150. A 4x4 will still get mid 20s mpg freeway 26 mpg is not unheard of even with the 6 spd. That 2.7 is no slouch. It will spank 5.3 gm v8s everywhere. 325 hp and 375 tq on the first gen 2.7 ecoboost. The 2.7 is the most popular engine for Ford for great reason.

I like the new ranger too, but I've seen the epa figures, and it might get a mpg better than a 2.7 ecoboost. I think for the capability of the fullsize truck, that minor mpg downgrade will be totally worth it. I didn't see if you were looking at a super cab or a crew cab, but you can get a 6.5 ft bed even in the super crew Ford. Then again you could get a 8ft bed on a super cab. Those 8ft beds are not easy to find on trucks with more than 2 doors.

 

I got stuck in a similar dilemma and just chose to keep my daily driver 220k mazda wagon and my 210k 93 f150. Reason being cost of ownership and economy. I also have a 250cc moto for my commute, which is 70-75mpg. I break it down to the $. I cannot find a vehicle setup to buy that saves me $ compared to what I have now.

If it were me as a ford guy myself, buy an old 80s/90s f250 for 1500$ and enjoy cheap tags and registration. Or heck a f150 with an inline 6 and a cheap trailer.

If you are dead set on a newer rig the eco boost is awesome as is any chevy ls motor. Hard to go wrong. Fyi my wife drives a yota 4.0 and it’s awful in town, 14mpg. Towing i get 22mpg in it. Go figure. Ymmv

 

OR for $10-15k buy a 94-97 Ford crew cab with a 7.3 diesel from down south. And keep your daily driver.

I've had two of them with automatics and both got 21ish mpg on the highway.

1997 F-350 7.3 PowerStroke

 

Here's one, an alloy screw 4x4 in what looks to be a 2.7 ecoboost, for well under what you could get a new ranger for. The ranger coming out will help you as it's possible that 150 prices lower a little with an option that isn't a full size.

Used Ford F-150 For Sale - CarGurus

If you want a super cab, that will also lower the cost as not as many people want those.

 

If you want something for wood hoarder chores find an old truck. Yes some of them are junk, but a lot have had recent engine and other running gear upgrades. Rust might be really bad in your area so that could be a limiting factor, but it's so much fun to go into the woods knowing that if you scrape some limbs or slide off the road into a creek it's no big deal.. vs oh God I just put a dent in my 20000$ pickup. Among the old iron pick 3/4 or 1ton Ford or Chevy, I have no experience with old dodges but some people love them. A F150 4x4 with the 300 inline six and granny 4 speed is a tough cookie also.

 

That is nice. Just wish I was in a position to purchase it.

 

I'm not averse to an older diesel truck. My 2006 is a VW Jetta TDI. My dad had an 89 Dodge Cummings diesel Ram.

 

There will be more available. As you know, the F-150 has been the #1 selling vehicle for 40 years. I'm good at finding decent vehicles online. Well, ones that look good, and just need to pass the final inspection. .

So will a super cab work for you? For the few times you said you'll put 5 in the truck, a super cab will work. Then there's the convertible front bench seats in a lot of the xlt and lower spec F-150s. Then that's 6 people if you had to take that many. I'm 6'4" and I can fit in the back of newer super cab F-150s quite comfortable for several hours.

 

Ok I’m gonna be a downer here you’re daily commuter is 12 years old with a ton of miles on it. It sounds to me that by the time you can get your finances in order you’re gonna need money for a newer car. You can only afford an old beater truck. Good luck!

 

It's 12 years old, but it's maintained well. I honestly think I'll get another 5-10 years out of it. Though your comments are always in the back of my mind. It's that bloody need versus want. When it comes right down to it, I will get a vehicle that gets me back and forth to work with the best mpg's that I trust at the lowest cost out there should I have to replace my 2006 VW Jetta TDI. I love that car, and replacing something that gets 45mpg on average is going to be difficult at best. Personally I've had great luck with my VW's and high mileage. Plus with the snow tires on her, she's great in the snow.

I guess I need to shift my attention to a car that can pull a 1 ton trailer and get good gas mileage. Then I'll be the car guy wood hauler.

 

I've hoarded for years without a truck. All the vehicles I've had got worse mpg than the new trucks.

So, eventually I'll get a truck.

 

I work with a guy that has an old 1980's VW rabbit diesel, it's got three hundred and some odd thousand on it. Those VW diesels will run a LONG time with proper maintenance.

 

I agree with the daily driver lasting a while as it is a diesel. Depending on how far you are moving wood, you can get quite a haul with a cheap hf trailer too. I have hauled plenty of junk with my mazda protege wagon. I prefer to use my pick up and heavy duty trailer, but I also have a 4x8 hf trailer that was dirt cheap.

Something to think about for me was my half ton tags are about 1/2 of a f350 of similar year. This is in California. My inline 6 saves fuel over a 1ton, plus tags. This changes if you have a big trailer.

To make things more complicated I have a motorcycle for dry commute, mazda wagon for wet commute, truck for hauling, and a ‘13 4runner for my wife/family rig. I could almost validate selling the truck and using the 4runner to move wood, but hate to beat up my wife’s daily driver. Also it has over 150k, so probably don’t need more hard miles on it. At least all were paid cash for.

 

What did you replace your wifes Explorer with? If its another mid-large SUV, I'd say just put a hitch on it if it doesn't have one and pick up a trailer.

THEN go out and find yourself a newer TDI, as those will certainly be dwindling fast!

 

Replaced her Explorer with a VW Tiguan. Smaller than the Explorer.

 

that should be able to tow a smaller trailer with no problem.

 

I think you need to better define your use case, and also put a harder number on your budget to get the best answer.

Also, what are the other factors to consider, like what does your wife think? How much driveway space do you have? etc?

Do you really need a new-ish pickup, particularly if you're trying to control your debt load?

If you're hauling a trailer around the suburbs, you can probably get away with putting a hitch on the Tiguan and trading off with your wife when you really need that. The US spec for towing capacity on the Tiguan is 1500lbs,* which is sort of marginal, but the UK spec for a Tiguan is 1600kg for a manual transmission and 2100kg for an automatic. I wouldn't go for a full two tons, but I think you could safely tow a ton on a light flatbed trailer with brakes and the appropriate hitch, though that's technically over GCVWR.

If you're going into the woods or something, you probably do need a bigger setup, but I would run the numbers on total cost of ownership. My guess is that you're best off keeping your VW for commuting, and getting a cheap used pickup to use on the weekends for load hauling, or an SUV+trailer combo.

Also, and this is just me, but I think an SUV plus a trailer is much more useful than a pickup for 95% of people. A trailer generally has better loading/unloading ergonomics, more payload capacity, keeps the mess away from the tow vehicle, and you can switch trailers for the mission (if you get seriously into this, you can have a covered trailer, a flatbed/utility trailer, a boat trailer, and a dump trailer, for instance). Driving a trailer is a bit of a pain at first, but I think most people really overestimate how difficult it is. To be sure, it's not as good offroad, and can be less convenient in some use cases, but I think the added cabin space makes up for it.

*I haven't looked too closely at this, but the 1500 lbs matches quite well with the UK rating of 750kg for an unbraked trailer, so maybe if you add a brake controller you can get the 1600kg/2100kg in the US.

 

I was in a similar situation last year but with not as many moving parts. I debated getting a half ton pickup truck vs. midsized vs. a trailer. Looking at new and certified pre-owned the midsized trucks were not much less than a full sized half ton so it was a no brainer why not go for the half ton. I have a bigger bed overall plus I can fit 4x8 sheets of material, I never have to drag out and hookup the trailer to get material. Before the truck purchase I did purchase a trailer as well so I have both, and love having both, I can accomplish a lot with having both the full sized pickup and a trailer. I don't use the trailer all that much, but when I do its worth its weight in gold! The truck is a extended cab Silverado I can fit my entire family in it. I even have my daughters infant seat carrier in the back, plenty of room. Trailer is a 6x12 utility trailer plenty big for what I need it for.

Sounds like you need a trailer regardless of any option you choose so that much is clear!

I have to politely disagree on the SUV trailer setup for me personally. And remember every setup works different for each of us!

For me who is always doing work around the house, landscaping, hoarding wood, redoing our bedroom, bathrooms, and often visiting the box stores for material and other items a pickup truck is hands down the way to go. I had a SUV, awful experience with trying accomplish all I just mentioned. From constantly having to fold the dang seats down and strapping plywood to the roof, 2x4's and trim sticking out the window, to mulch leaking, dirt getting everywhere, having to put sheets down, etc... I eventually bought a trailer with the SUV but everytime I wanted to run and grab material I had to drag it out, hook it up, return and repeat the process, PITA! Felt like you had to plan everything with using just a trailer, I could never just see a wood score or stop by box store to grab material. I had to run home and grab trailer, head back out! If you have plenty of space on your property where you can just quickly unhook, come and go that experience will be much more pleasant and perhaps not a big deal.

Having the ability to just throw stuff in the bed of the pickup is hands down just flat out the most convenient way to go for me personally.