Help me decided on a truck for the family and farm

[mamato3]

With my meat rabbit business were needing a truck. So im need your opinion on trucks which ones cost more to repair when the transmission or something big goes wrong which one has the least problems and so on. I know everyone has a favorite vehicle but im wanting to hear why you like it so i can figure out which one we might should get.
A little about what were needing. Big cab area would love a 4 door but as long as its roomy inside. We have 3 young kids so room for 3 kids and 2 adults. With the option for a 3 adult MIL see goes shopping with us on occasion. Figured 1 of the kids can come up and set between us so MIL can sit in the back. We will be buying used as we cant afford new. Some ive seen online and like are the Chevy Silverado and chevy Avalanche Also the Fords all seam roomy 1 has got my hubbys eye he likes it so if its still there the middle of next month we will be going to test drive it.
http://xtrememechanix.fourstatesauto...ehicle_id=3876
I thought i like Dodges but they dont look roomy or comfortable in the back seat area. Anyway so what your opion on these trucks how is there repair cost and how are they in genral?

[Beeman]

Do you need a dually and a diesel? I know they're cool and many need them but do you? A dually has 6 tires wearing out at a time, a good quality set for that truck is $1,000 or more. That truck has a 7.3, very good engine if you need it. Do you know anything about diesels? Do you have someone that will work on it that knows them?

[65284]

I've had 2 Dodge pickup's and was satisfied with neither, the 95 was especially troublesome, caused me nothing but trouble from the day it was new.

Never owned a Ford and have no firsthand experience with the brand so I can't say anything about them.

I have bought 7 new Chevy pickups and all have given me good service, the last is a 2001 HD 2500 series Silverado With the Duramax/Allison combo, and I love it. I have kept it far longer than any vehicle I've ever owned and, at my age, I imagine it will be the last one I ever buy.

Not much real info in my rambling but, I personally would probably go with a Silverado and avoid Dodges like the plague.

[MichaelK!]

Hi MT3
You have three little ones NOW, but in just a few short years, you'll have three young adults. Plan on having a vehicle they can grow into!

Here's a pic that has our truck in it.

It's a 4-door Ford F350 6 speed manual diesel 4X4. It has been a good trouble free vehicle for us. I used to have a 4X4 Ford Ranger, which was OK for driving around town, but was not up to real homesteading work, like pulling a trailer.

Diesel trucks are fantastic for pulling loads and driving on steep mountain grades. Diesel trucks also get better milage than gas trucks and if I get less than 20 miles per gallon, I'm asking why! The stick-shift improves mileage even more. Plus, I can run the truck on bio-diesel whenever I find it for sale.

I do all the service myself, which to date has only been oil and fuel filter changes. Those can be substantial though. Its 6 liter engine takes 3.5 GALLONS of oil and my cost is about 60$ per change. You also have to change fuel filters more often, and those cost 85$ per set of two. I've already ruined one shirt letting diesel fuel drip on me while under the truck! I don't even want to ask how much these services cost in the shop.

If you need something BIG, and if you can service it yourself, I'd say you should consider the diesel.
Good luck,
Michael

[Lazy J]

We have a 2008 Ford F250 Diesel Cre Cab. It has the heavy duty suspension with the GVWR at 10,000 and we use it to pull a 25' gooseneck flatbed, hay wagons, gravity wagons, as well as general farm and personal use. We don't need the diesel everyday, but when we "need" it we really need ig.

Jim

[mamato3]

Beeman thats what i told hubby. Were only hauling rabbits and feed. I think its a bit of over kill for what we need. My dad has diesels but i could not count on him to help us out. The good news is we could help dad haul hay next summer. But with the cost of fuel and the tires all we really need is a truck that takes regular gas and only 4 tires. Later when we ever can afford it we plan to buy land and have some cows so i think he is thinking into the future. But im thinking we should think of our intermediate needs for know. Im sure any truck can handle what little bit of farming we will do.
Thanks 65284 this is what im wanting to hear personal experience figured if i get a few i can figure out an idea of what the truck is like.

[Our Little Farm]

We have a 4 door gas F150 4x4 and haul everything with it. Plenty of room for the kids and its a work horse. Ours is 6 years old and going strong. We have hauled huge trailer loads of hay, logs etc with it.

[mamato3]

Thanks everyone ive been looking at fords and have liked what ive see so far. Michael yes my kids are small but like you said will grow up thats why im hoping to get a four door. But alot of the 4 doors are expensive as long as we can afford it we will get a 4 door.

[geo in mi]

Next purchase should be a forklift to raise the feed pallets and crates of meat into the bed...................

[ErinP]

I've lived in farm and ranch country in various parts of four states... For what's it worth, Ford pickups outnumber Chevy an easy 3-1. In all eras.
Dodge is becoming more common, but it's still Ford at the top of the heap. Not sure if this is indicative of anything more than just what's available in the used-pickup market, though.

Diesel trucks also get better milage than gas trucks and if I get less than 20 miles per gallon, I'm asking why! The stick-shift improves mileage even more. Plus, I can run the truck on bio-diesel whenever I find it for sale.

They will also last far longer than a gasser. Which, when you consider the lubrication of diesel vs. the drying effect of gas on an engine's moving parts, makes perfect sense.

Whatever way you go, I too would suggest you makes sure you can scrape up enough for a Crew Cab.
When we got our '97 F250 (diesel) 8 years ago, our kids were 2 and 4. They fit in the SuperCab just fine. Now that the boy is 11 and the "little one" is 9, they're starting to get a bit crowded back there.

[Old_Town]

I operate a small fleet of pickup trucks for the construction company I work for. Over the years I have had all makes and engine types. In my experience diesels are much more costly to own/operate. In my opinion, the higher initial cost, the higher fuel and maintenance cost easily negate any savings in terms of fuel economy that the diesel may offer. Unless the operator is towing heavy loads all day everyday, the diesel pickup cannot be justified.

I run GM gas pickups exclusively . Most have the 5.7 or 6.0 engine. In my opinion they are the most economical option to keep going.

As far as long lasting?? I routinely get 200K out of these trucks before they present any major problems.

I find it laughable that the diesel people think that if you own as much as a 5x10 trailer that you need a diesel to pull it.

[MO_cows]

We have always had Ford pickups and found them to be dependable. We have had 4 of them since 1982. A 76 F150, replaced by an 87 F150, replaced by a 95 F150, replaced by a 2002 F250. Ford is the best selling new truck, therefore there is the most selection of them on the used market, too. But a long bed 4 door that is not a heavy duty truck is hard to find. Usually if you get 4 doors you have to setle for the short bed. We opted for the "extended cab" with the small doors since we seldom have back seat passengers, with a full size bed.

[Alice In TX/MO]

Both hubby and son have Dodge Diesel with Cummins engines.

Over 200,000 miles on both trucks. Get GREAT fuel economy. Very little repair needed.

[ErinP]

Originally Posted by Old_Town

I find it laughable that the diesel people think that if you own as much as a 5x10 trailer that you need a diesel to pull it.

I guess I don't know about that...
We got ours because it routinely pulls a 28' loaded stock trailer.
Though there was the day that we pulled a GN flat bed with about 13 tons worth of concrete blocks...
The motor did fine, but we only drove about 15 all the way home because the brakes just said, "Are you kidding?!?!?!"

Well, that and longevity.
We currently have 230K on ours and, beyond basic maintenance, we've replaced the water pump and clutch.

[Beeman]

An idea of a budget would be a good starting point, a realistic #. A van or a Suburban might fit the bill and cost a lot less. Highlander uses a van for his pork business in VT. Don't get caught in the it looks or status of certain vehicles. A HD van or Suburban can pul a trailer loaded as well or better then a PU. They can also provide a weather protected space for your product.

[mamato3]

Beeman hoping to stay less then $10,000 so far every vehicle we have owned we never spent more then $6,000. We have a van know its a 99 dodge grand caravan great van but we fill like were running it into the ground. Im sure when we sell it we will only get $1000 for it. WE just loaded 8 bags of feed in the back of the van last week and we bottomed out with every bump lol. We got a small trailer and we tried to put a hitch on the van which works but the back-end is so low were always bottoming out with big bumps and such. We really much prefer a truck that way if we want to haul something we can. Gas type we dont care diesel or gas whichever biggest thing for use is the roomy interior. Short bed is fine we have a small trailer if we need it. Im sure 10 to 15 bags of feed will set in the back with out a trailer and we should be able to haul lot of bunnys.

[plowjockey]

The are 10's of millions of Fords, Chevys and Dodge trucks on the roads. Some break down all the time, some never do. Most are somewhere in between.

All are expensive to repair. Maintenance is key, but many are abused and continue to run with few problems.

Never was a Chevy man, but I recently purchased an 01' Silverado 1500 5.3 V8 Z1 extended cab, with 166K miles. Looks and runs like new. Not as roomy as a 4 door, but cost less and is not a big deal, as the kids only ride in the back occasionally. Otherwise, its place to throw stuff. This was a "creampuff". I knew the family was anal about maintenance, so I knew I'd buy it even before I went to look at it.

I'm a fan now. FWIW for these Chevys the V6's don't get that much better gas mileage than the V8's and the bigger V8's get about the same as the smaller ones.

I know folks who have Fords and Dodge who love them also.

Shop around for a 1/2 ton "cream puff". One that have been taken care of. They are out there.

Good luck.

[Old_Town]

Originally Posted by ErinP

I guess I don't know about that...
We got ours because it routinely pulls a 28' loaded stock trailer.
Though there was the day that we pulled a GN flat bed with about 13 tons worth of concrete blocks...
The motor did fine, but we only drove about 15 all the way home because the brakes just said, "Are you kidding?!?!?!"

Well, that and longevity.
We currently have 230K on ours and, beyond basic maintenance, we've replaced the water pump and clutch.

Sounds like you got a good one. The last Duramax pickup I was around needed a $3800 injector job at 160K. I have known of several Ford 6.0L Powerstrokes that had to be replaced in less than 100k. I do like the the venerable 7.3 engine though.

If a person routinely pulls heavy loads for long distances a diesel makes sense. For occasional towing they do not.

[Old_Town]

Originally Posted by plowjockey

The are 10's of millions of Fords, Chevys and Dodge trucks on the roads. Some break down all the time, some never do. Most are somewhere in between.

All are expensive to repair. Maintenance is key, but many are abused and continue to run with few problems.

Never was a Chevy man, but I recently purchased an 01' Silverado 1500 5.3 V8 Z1 extended cab, with 166K miles. Looks and runs like new. Not as roomy as a 4 door, but cost less and is not a big deal, as the kids only ride in the back occasionally. Otherwise, its place to throw stuff. This was a "creampuff". I knew the family was anal about maintenance, so I knew I'd buy it even before I went to look at it.

I'm a fan now. FWIW for these Chevys the V6's don't get that much better gas mileage than the V8's and the bigger V8's get about the same as the smaller ones.

I know folks who have Fords and Dodge who love them also.

Shop around for a 1/2 ton "cream puff". One that have been taken care of. They are out there.

Good luck.

Sage advice^^^^

I hate the fact that GM was bailed out by the government but they do build good engines and transmissions.

[65284]

Originally Posted by Old_Town

I
I find it laughable that the diesel people think that if you own as much as a 5x10 trailer that you need a diesel to pull it.

I use mine to pull a stock trailer, haul hay, etc. I didn't need a diesel I but WANTED a diesel.

Another thing, we make our own biodiesel and use it mostly in our old Mercedes wagon but also in the pickup. When gas hits $7.50 per gallon let us diesel folks know how you get along making your own gasoline. The diesel thing might not be nearly as laughable then.