3/4 ton gas truck suggestions

Anyone have suggestions for a used 3/4 ton truck. Im looking to get a used truck to tow wood and various other things. I am looking at spending around 17k. So far im leaning towards a 2002-2005 silverado 2500HD. I wish I had the money for diesel but am going with gas engine. Thanks for any suggestions.

If anyone from NJ specifically around the woodbridge area has any input on a dealer called Olger Motors that would be helpful. They have some very good prices but it seems a little to good to be true. http://www.olgermotors.com/. I'm willing to travel for a good deal but I really dont want to waste 6 hours to look at a truck that is to good to be true.

 

What are the specs you are looking for? I have one for sale. I live in ohio but I like road trips and the food places that I find along the way. Plus my sister lives east of me so I could visit family while on the road.

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You should be able to get a whole lot of gas truck for that kind of money. I'm partial to the 2002 - 2005 F250's with the 10-bangers. The 5.4 is underwhelming in a truck that size and the MPG difference in negligible.

The go for 10-15K around here all day long....

 

Yea I guess I should have done specs for what im looking for, my bad. I think i want to stick with the smaller sized engine 5.4l, 6.0l . Under 75k miles would be great definitely under 100k. Extended cab 4x4. Also power windows and doors would be nice.

 

How much weight are you looking to tow, how far, and how often?

 

When I was looking for a crew cab there was not a shortage of 6 liter Chevy trucks. They seemed to be on dealer lots, not by owner. Certain years of the 6.0 had issues with exhaust manifold bolts. I jumped on a truck forum and searched for the the holy grail as far as issues with trucks and years.

Good luck with the search.

 

No more then 8k on towing and doing that maybe once a month or so. Im probably going for overkill but I don't want to have the "hmmm should have bought a bigger truck". I feel like the heavy duty trucks are built better then the full sized smaller trucks.

 

Try to find a truck that has a towing package. They usually have a trans cooler and are wired up for trailer brakes with all the fuses in place and ready to work. It really isn't hard to add but it is nice to have from the start.

 

As much as I like Ford's, there's no denying this.

If it were me, and obviously its not, if I'm going to buy a big truck with a gas engine I'm getting a 6.8 or 8.1. The gas mileage difference is almost non-existent, especially when loaded if that's what you're worried about. A lot of times you can find them cheaper too.

EDIT: If you're buying a gas truck, cross Dodge off your list immediately if you haven't already.

 

No such thing as overkill in a truck. The half tons are built more like glorified station wagons.

I've got a '99 f350 with the v-10 -- gas was cheap when I bought it (<$1) so diesel made no financial sense then. The truck has been very reliable other then the transmission; maybe they figured it out by '02? Mine didn't even make it out of warranty before the first rebuild.

 

Not a daily driver, longest trips would be 300 miles round trip and not very often. Mostly would be used for around my county and surrounding area which is country driving at 65 mph.

 

I have an 8.1 and bought a diesel so I can play with it. It was a get it now or never type of thing. Federal mandates with smog was choking out the new diesels so I grabbed an early 07 with the LBZ engine which predates all the regen and pizz tanks.

The 8.1 is mated to the Allison transmission. When completely loaded down I know there is a load but the truck really doesn't act all that differently. It just goes. When I bought it I had the same mentality I did when I bought the diesel, the last of the heavy duty gassers.

 

I can't remember if it was '02 or '03 that Ford started offering the 5 speed auto to compete with the Allison. From what I understand they are pretty good but I don't have first-hand experience. 5r110 maybe?

 

The Allison is the best automatic I have ever had. However, I would love to have manual trans. My old 84 Chevy with the 4 speed/ granny gear mated to the 205 transfer case with full floater rear and Detroit locker was a beast in the woods.
If you drove it any distance it would beat you down but as a woods/ local truck it was great.

 

This isn't the truck your looking at is it?
http://www.olgermotors.com/2004_Chevrolet_Silverado 2500_Woodbridge_NJ_194622898.veh

or

http://www.olgermotors.com/2005_Chevrolet_Silverado 2500_Woodbridge_NJ_224068427.veh

 

yea those were the ones i saw on autotrader. Seemed to good to be true for the price and miles

 

The second one with 45k miles seems like its worth looking at -- The company has its share of fans and haters like all used car dealers. I suppose in your area you need to look for signs the trucks were flooded during the Hurricane?

http://www.cars.com/dealers/198174/olger-motors-inc/reviews/

 

yea thats what i was worried about with that dealer was getting flooded trucks from hurricane sandy.