# Thinking about a new pickup



## k-dog

I currently have a 1997 Chevy K1500 with automatic and 5.7 liter V8 with only 70,000 miles on it.  Until recently it has set in the garage as I used my little car to get to train station for work, but the 16 year old daughter took that so I drive my truck now.  It is a great truck but I want a 3/4 ton, something a little heavier duty for towing my tractor and a Polaris ranger up in the hills of WV and I'm thinking about adding a dump trailer to my collection.
I'm pretty set on wanting 4 door and the 6.5 foot bed and I'm leaning towards the gas as I only haul the ranger up the mountain usually only once a year.  I don't do enough hauling to justify the extra expense and maintenance cost for a diesel I don't think, but haul large enough stuff to justify the 3/4 ton.  I've been leaning towards Ford as I know a salesman at the local dealership.  I may look into a Dodge but can't bring myself to look at a China motors, I mean Chevy.  I think I will go brand new as I don't like getting a used truck as people do have a tendency to abuse them.
Suggestions or comments are all welcome.


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## Snowtrac Nome

the dodge will likely get you better milage with the ctd  as they have a maintanence scedual on the dpf so it dosn't need a regen cycle also there are companys that can program the dpf requirement out of ctd trucks. the fords i have delt with lately seem to ride rugh as he!! and there gas motors have had quite a few head problems with cam gears and spark plug's i wouldn't be afraid of dodge if i had to buy new but i wont as i don't need a computer controled vehicle.


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## 300 H and H

First off not all trucks in the used lot have been abused. Look for that one owner cherry one, they are out there, just ask to speak with the former owner. Look for one with out ANY modifications or add on's as those that are modded are also suspect. Folks who use them normaly don't do that to their trucks.

There are some issues with all the brands of trucks. Of course they don't want you to know. Do your home work before you buy. Diesel fuel is not the bargan it used to be since USLD was introduced. The milage of the diesel will off set some of the extra cost of the fuel though.

Good luck..

Regards, Kirk


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## tiredretired

Ford v Chevy v Dodge. Now there's a discussion that could go on for many pages.


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## EastTexFrank

300 H and H said:


> Diesel fuel is not the bargan it used to be since USLD was introduced. The mileage of the diesel will off set some of the extra cost of the fuel though.
> 
> Good luck..
> 
> Regards, Kirk



I agree Kirk.  Unless you do a whole lot of hauling I don't think a diesel makes much financial sense anymore.  If you need the diesel performance then fair enough.  With the extra cost of purchasing the diesel vehicle, the additional cost of the fuel itself, the additional cost of maintenance and now add DEF to the cost it gets tough to justify.  The small increase in mpg, if you even notice it, will never offset the other costs over the life of the vehicle at least not for me.  

As for brand, take your choice.  Like you I'd prefer to stay away from Chevy.  The Dodge would be OK and they still don't need DEF.  The Dodge though is still basically 20-year old technology and that may not be a bad thing for some.  I was talking to guy that just traded in his Ford for a Dodge and it was pretty nice but his observation was that the Dodge was a lot noisier than the Ford.  He said that it didn't bother him unless he was driving 300 or 400 miles and then it became a bit intrusive.  I've always been a Ford guy so I'm not going to say too much about them as I "may" be a little biased except that they are still good vehicles, especially since they've gone back up to the 6.7 liter diesel engine.  

As far as the 3/4 or 1 ton I have always found that they ride a lot better with some weight in the back, much more comfortable.  

Let us know what you decide.  I was looking pretty hard at the end of last year before I decided to squeeze some more miles out of the ol' duelly.


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## Snowtrac Nome

300 H and H said:


> First off not all trucks in the used lot have been abused. Look for that one owner cherry one, they are out there, just ask to speak with the former owner. Look for one with out ANY modifications or add on's as those that are modded are also suspect. Folks who use them normaly don't do that to their trucks.
> 
> There are some issues with all the brands of trucks. Of course they don't want you to know. Do your home work before you buy. Diesel fuel is not the bargan it used to be since USLD was introduced. The milage of the diesel will off set some of the extra cost of the fuel though.
> 
> Good luck..
> 
> Regards, Kirk


 
we have some new pc diesels in our fleet 1 is a t300 kw with an 8.3 cummins and dpf the other one is a t300 with dpf and scr every time they add on another emissions gadget you are burning more fuel the newest one uses twice as much fuel than our older non dpf equipped t300's this has to do with how the regeneration process happens in the dpf if you buy a new diesel powered truck don't expect better mileage than a gas powered vehicle cause it ain't going to happen on the plus side if you have a cummins powered rig there is a place that can reprogram the computer to ignore the dpf allowing you to remove it all together the testimonials all rave about how great the mileage is after reprograming


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## Andrei

Dodge diesel was my choice and I would repeat it if needed. 
But then I make some of my own fuel so .....


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## grizzer

Ahhhmmm

The original poster drives 4000 miles a year. Anything he buys will be well out of warranty before anything goes wrong.

I'd just pick the prettiest color one you like & buy it.

ps the Chevy HD's are new design 2015's matching the 1/2 ton update last year available now and GM is buying market share with deep discounts.


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## Doc

So ..what did you buy k-dog?


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## k-dog

Doc said:


> So ..what did you buy k-dog?



Well, I'm in a holding pattern right now.  The car I gave my daughter ended up dying sooner than I thought so she got a brand new Ford Focus which is pretty nice but it put my pickup plans on hold.  Plus she is graduating high school so I have to see what scholarships she is getting for school and what not.

As far as the truck, when I do get one, I think I'll go Ford F250 with diesel.  I was on the fence but said if I'm going to sink that kind of money in a truck I might as well go all the way plus I plan on keeping it for a long time.  I almost bought one a few months ago as they had a sweet deal on it but decided to hold off for now and of course it didn't last too long.
I'll still keep researching and reading but the Fords I have bought recently are doing quite well an I've been very pleased.


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## k-dog

Well I held out looking for that perfect used one as Kirk described.  I ended up with a 2012 Super Duty F-250 Lariat with a little over 28,000 miles.  It is pretty much fully loaded (I love the heated and AC seats).  I'm still reading the book on the navigation/radio/computer system.  It is gas with 6.5 foot bed and 4 door.  It is exactly what I wanted.  The previous owners had bought it to tow a small camper, then decided they didn't like the camping thing and traded it in on a new F150 for better ride and mileage.  The hitch looks like it has hardly been used.  It has a toneau cover it which I wasn't real keen on but it, but after seeing how it works it will be a nice addition.

It is going to take a little getting used to those mirrors sticking so far out.  I've been folding them in while in parking lots.

The real kicker is I've had it a week today and a small deer ran into the side of it this morning on my way to work.  I didn't see any damage looking at it with a flashlight but I won't be able to really tell until I see it in the sunlight.


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## Doc

Congrats.  Sounds like a winner.  I prefer buying mine this way also.  barely broke in but a whole lot cheaper than the new ones on the lot.  
Dang deer.   
My current truck came with a toneau cover.  When I was negotiating I told them they could keep that cover.  I'd just take it off If we made a deal.    Guess what.  The toneau cover is still on the truck and I love it.   Easy access but you can keep things dry.  Very handy.  I can haul everything but a refrigerator without removing the cover ... and that has not come up yet, thank goodness.


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## bczoom

Congrats on the new truck!



k-dog said:


> The real kicker is I've had it a week today and a small deer ran into the side of it this morning on my way to work.  I didn't see any damage looking at it with a flashlight but I won't be able to really tell until I see it in the sunlight.


Ummm, it's almost 2:00 in the afternoon.  I know it's cloudy in WV today but it is still daylight. 

What kind of tonneau cover do y'all have.  I have an Access roll-up and love the thing.
http://www.accesscover.com/original/?original/


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## k-dog

I work in DC and take the train in so the truck was at the train station.  This time of year it is dark when I get on the train and dark when I get off the train.  I work at home tomorrow so I'll be able to look at it pretty good then.  I guess I didn't make a lot of sense by leaving that info out. 

As far as the tonneau cover, I'm not sure of the brand but I like the fact that the cross pipes are hooked into the cover and roll up with it as opposed to having to remove them separately.

Now I get to adjust my hitch for the trailers.  I'm still working on the wife to get a dump trailer.  I'm still figuring out what size I want!!!  I want to get one big enough to haul my Kubota B7800.


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## bczoom

Makes sense now.

That tonneau sounds like the one I have.  2 rails on the outside with velcro?  Big bar in the back with a pull on the left side to release?  Near the back, they may have their name stamped in the vinyl.


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## EastTexFrank

Congrats on the truck but heck, you don't need a F250 to pull a B7800.  You just need ramps and roll it up into the bed.     and I do understand the difference between "need" and "want".  

I went looking at the Dodge dealer for a new truck last week-end.  The last time I did that was at the Ford dealer and I just couldn't see paying $60K for a truck.  This time I found a Dodge truck for $80K.  Can you believe that shit?????  That wasn't the worst.  They had an $85K Jeep on the lot too.  Needless to say, this tight Scotsman walked away.  I've pretty much decided to keep the junkers that I have until I die.  Honestly, I don't drive enough these days to justify that much money for a vehicle and there is no one in this world that I feel the need to impress.  .


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## Snowtrac Nome

part of the price is some of the federally mandated crap like automatic stability control, abs, and a whole host of other crap that dumbs down the driver. the other part is the gadget crap like automated climate control, and navigation units built into the dash. I for one need a vehicle to get me from point a to point b I know where I'm going and how to drive a vehicle in all conditions I would rather not pay for all the rest of that crap I suppose that is why I will die with my ctd dodge bought new in 1989.


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## k-dog

EastTexFrank said:


> Congrats on the truck but heck, you don't need a F250 to pull a B7800.  You just need ramps and roll it up into the bed.     and I do understand the difference between "need" and "want".    .



I haul a lot of other stuff as well.  Last year, I was hauling over1,000 gallons of water and it started to rain.  My old 1/2 ton Chevy pulled it pretty good but getting stopped was something completely different.  Even with weight distribution it was pushing me pretty bad.  Trailer had electric brakes but it was too much weight for the truck.  It was around 10,000 pounds with the trailer.  So I got something bigger before someone got hurt.


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## EastTexFrank

k-dog said:


> I haul a lot of other stuff as well.  Last year, I was hauling over1,000 gallons of water and it started to rain.  My old 1/2 ton Chevy pulled it pretty good but getting stopped was something completely different.  Even with weight distribution it was pushing me pretty bad.  Trailer had electric brakes but it was too much weight for the truck.  It was around 10,000 pounds with the trailer.  So I got something bigger before someone got hurt.



I know what you mean.  I used to pull a 40' fifth wheel with a one ton dually.  The first time I pulled that thing and hadn't got the electric brakes set just right I came down a hill to a stop light and that thing pushed me out in to the intersection.  First time on that truck the anti-lock brakes were made to work and the trailer brakes had the tires smoking.  Never did that again.  When you've got a load like that, stopping takes some pre-planning.


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## k-dog

Well back in December I found a 2012 F250 Lariat gas 4 door and 6.5' bed with a lot of extras on it that was one owner who had got it to pull a camper trailer and realized they could down size to F150.  It only had 28,xxx miles on it.  Leather heated and air conditioned seats, sunroof, power sliding rear window, backup camera, navigation and many other features.  In February I added a 14' PJ dumpr trailer with gross weight of 14,000 pounds.  Truck handles it well.

Fast forward to June 6, my 12 year old son and I were on our way home from a church activity and my wife and daughter were several cars back in her Explorer.  A deer darts across the road and a van coming the other way hit it and launched it into the air about 8 or 9 feet.  Deer crashed down on top of the truck and through the windshield landing on my boy.  He was knocked out with a nasty concussion.  Not a scratch on me and the best part was my son didn't even have to stay a night in the hospital.  Within a week he was back to normal; however, we are following up with a neurologist to make sure all is well with concussion.  Everyone from the rescue workers to the hospital staff were awesome.  The worst part so far is dealing with the insurance company. I'll try posting some pics because they really tell the story. In this picture you can see no damage except to top of truck which is about 7 feet tall.


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## k-dog

Another picture


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## k-dog

I know everyone wants to see the size of the deer and it really wasn't that big.
If I messed up on the uploading of the pics, moderators please correct them.


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## bczoom

Damn!!

Glad to hear your son is going to be OK.  That's some scary shit.


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## Doc

Wow.   Damn.  Like BC, glad both you and your son came through this okay.  Unreal.  Very lucky.  I know it's hell to lose a good truck like that but you guys were really lucky to get out of that without serious injury.   Whew.


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## k-dog

They are actually going to fix the truck.  The damages so far are at around $15,000.  They told me that having the sunroof actually helped because of the extra structure around it.  As long as my boy is fine, that's all that matters to me.  The truck can be replaced.

It's gonna take about 4 weeks to fix the truck and the part that stinks is I can't get a truck with a hitch as a rental unless I have a million dollar liability policy. Luckily I have a friend who has a truck who can pull my dump trailer.

The police officer that did the report said I was lucky the deer wasn't still alive inside the truck.  I told him I had something if it was and he just grinned at me.


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## EastTexFrank

Damn, damn and double damn.  You guys were lucky.  I'm glad that you're both going to be OK.  

It's sad to see that happen to a good vehicle but you're right, as long as the people are good, the truck can be replaced ... or fixed.


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## bczoom

k-dog said:


> It's gonna take about 4 weeks to fix the truck and the part that stinks is I can't get a truck with a hitch as a rental unless I have a million dollar liability policy. Luckily I have a friend who has a truck who can pull my dump trailer.


A million dollar policy is pretty cheap.  Actually, you may already have it depending on the number of cars you have now.

Our auto insurance policy has "stacked liability".  That means that the liability insurance on every vehicle we own can be applied to any incident in any vehicle.

We have 5 vehicles, each with $250K/$500K in liability.

That means for any accident, we have available to us 5x that amount or $1.25M/$2.5M

You could also ask your ins. agent what it would take to raise your liability to $1M for a month then lower it back when you get your truck back.  I just checked my truck's policy.  That $250K/$500K is $36 per year total premium.  With that number in mind ($3/month), quadrupling the policy for 1 month would cost an extra $9.


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