Help me help my mom buy a truck
 

Sup 86heads
I am posting this here because no matter how many test drives I go on, magazines, and reviews I read, nothing compares to what actual owners can share with me on the subject. I know many people who have an 86 on this forum also have other vehicles including trucks, and anyone with an 86 is obviously extremely smart haha so advise away! I actually came from a honda ridgeline, and I loved it. My mom was in love with the truck too and would love to buy a new one for herself, but the problem is mpgs. The ridgeline with its nice v6 is permanently in awd and because of that the avg mpgs hovers around 15ish. When I had my 07 ridgeline I averaged a bit less than that. So heres what I am trying to find for her. If the truck has awd or 4wd, an option to switch it into just two wheel drive like the tacoma( i think it has that feature) would be a plus. Decent gas mileage helps, I know she wont be getting 100 mpg in her truck lol. Power is important as she will occasionally be hauling around a 3k lb horse trailer. As far as features go shes going to be getting base options as her 160 lb dog isnt too kind on interiors. She was thinking about the f150 but I told her to check out the tacoma first, and then the dodge 1500. But thats just my opinion. As I do my research if i find that 16 or so mpg is about average for smaller trucks then Im going to get another ridgeline haha. Any feedback is appreciated. Particularly any negative feedback regarding bad experiences with your truck, be it customer service, reliability, or anything else that comes to mind.
Cheers,
brandon

Supposedly the Nissan Titan will be getting a Cummins Turbo Diesel soon...

Should be good MPG and towing capacity.

Also won't cost as much as a domestic HD, SuperDuty etc giant truck (for a diesel)

http://www.trucktrend.com/features/c...el_first_look/

I will be considering this truck for my wife when it comes out...and its time to put her Chevy 1500 to bed.

To be honest I didn't really even consider diesel. I read some of the pros and cons but I've yet to drive one. Actually I've never driven a diesel anything except for a tractor.

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Go with the Tacoma I had 2 of them. I took them both to 200k with no problems. They were both 2.7 4cyl which are bulletproof. My commute is 100 miles to NYC everyday which is a good torture test. I also took them offroading a lot on the beach surfcasting.

You said your mom want's good gas mileage and she only need 3k towing so she should be good with the 4cyl. Also stick with the high 90's and low 00's I think they are a little better, and you can get them cheaper.

Damnnnnnnn I forgot the Tacoma came in a 4cyl...do they still make that? She's not really one to buy a used vehicle. Thanks for the tip!

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http://www.toyota.com/tacoma/feature...7504/7554/7594
:thumbsup:

i owned a 2012 ram 1500 4x4 with the 5.7 hemi before getting the fr-s... i loved that truck. imo the best looking trucks and best riding trucks on the market. The gas mileage wasn't great, but it wasn't horrible either. I'd see 20mpg on the highway if i kept it around 68mph. They put a 3.0 diesel in the 1500 this year. I would definitively check that out. 30 mpg and ability to tow... hell yeah :)

http://i43.tinypic.com/16bwztx.jpg

If it's just a truck for running around and doing light stuff (no towing) then Tacoma/Frontier are the way to go. The Ranger is a bit big but also viable as well as the Mazda B series. All come with four cylinder motors that should get you around 20 mpg depending on how you drive and I believe all later models offer four doors or at least livable back seats.

Plus if she gets a manual and your FRS is in the shop you could take the truck out for a spin and do some backroads drifting. I'm still not sure why more young men don't get cheap beater trucks as first cars...

I will never own a 4 cyl truck again. I had a 1999 4cyl s-10 and a 2000 6cyl ranger. The ranger was better in every way. It even got better gas mileage than the 4cyl s-10.

I think that's a factor of buying different models entirely. The V6 in the S10 is one of the best motors ever put in a small truck, Americans aren't known for their four-bangers. Also the Auto's in small trucks generally suck and rob what little extra torque may be there, but that's not an issue for someone just looking for a runabout.

My '91 Nissan has the same motor as the first 240sx, nabs me 22 mpg on average, 24+ highway and plenty of torque to get sideways. Very happy with my 4 cyl. truck.
:burnrubber:

Had two Toyota trucks... great stuff... but go with the diesel
 

I loved my Toyota trucks... a 93 Pickup.. Yup... that is what the model name really is... and a 2010 Tacoma TRD OffRoad. The TRD got ~18 to 20 mpg depending on how much of hurry I was in on any given day. The V6 will haul 6500lbs, so that would not be a problem for your mom. All that said, diesels will give better mileage, towing is no brainier and they will most likely last the same 300K miles the Tacoma V6 will. I sold my TRD to my brother when I got my BRZ... I will buy a new Tacoma ..... when they start putting diesels in them again!!

A V6 F-150 should handle what she wants reasonably well, and for towing I prefer Fords suspension. As an every day runabout there isn't anything wrong with GM's trucks, the LS motors will get 20mpg all day long with at least 300hp. Where I don't like the GM trucks is the suspension, they wallow under load. One of my buddies at work got a Ram 1500 with the V6 and loves it, I don't know what kind of mileage he gets, but it has around 290hp, which should handle a small trailer without problem.

ok so I guess shes decided she needs 5k lb of towing power... I assume that rules out any 4 banger truck... Im leaning towards the dodge 1500, or maybe a slightly bigger one with diesel, hopefully gonna test drive this weekend!

I've got a Ram 3500 with the Cummins 6.7 to tow my 35 foot toy hauler. I was impressed with the Rams fit and finish, and interior comfort. The Cummins engine is a no brainer, which on paper makes the upcoming Nissan Titan with the 5.0 Cummins V8 look appealing... BUT....... I don't know anyone that has a Titan that hasn't had a headache with their truck. I only know 2 guys with them personally. One I think got his replaced because it was in the shop under warranty for something like 3 months. The other has more electrical trouble than an 80's range rover., and he just hates it... So depending on how soon she is looking, I guess I would wait to see how the Ram 1500 with the 3.0 VM Diesel performs. The engine seems to have a great track record in europe, and the ram truck is solid, so it may be a legitimate choice. I also believe it will have the 8 speed transmission, which has been great. Very reasonable up charge from the cost of the Hemi (like $2600). Prob 30 mpg...

On the other hand, if she wants one now, I don't know too much about them, but the f150 ecoboost seems like it would fit the bill too. I know the early ones had engine issues, but I have heard that they have those issues sorted out. My coworker has an eco boost f150 and he really likes it.

Have fun, truck shopping can really be an interesting adventure. Some things to consider on the test drive you really don't think about too much in a car. Check the turning radius, sight lines on the front, and the back when backing up. All of the trucks are bigger than the Ridgeline, and they are a little harder to get around in. Also look at the specs on Towing capacities.. A lot of people just look at the rated towing capacity, which is a big mistake. Look at the payload capacity, and the max axle weights. You can easily exceed the payload capacity with a trailer that is within the max towing capacity. Good luck, and have fun with your search!!