Pick WinterDeere's next truck

[FullMetalBucket]

OP, is a used pickup to your spec from the South West desert states a realistic option?

Maybe browse online sites like Carvana

 

[Fuddyduddy1952]

A friend just sent this he bought, 1929 Chevy wrecker. The first year for the Chevy six.

 

[deserteagle71]

Man that’s crazy! 50K (plus tax) for a stripped reg cab 3/4 ton gasser….
Makes the $74K for the loaded crew cab diesel I was looking at seem cheap (and they would sell for considerably less than 74K sticker).
Ford gets a premium for their trucks, and they have less warranty.

The 250/350’s are steel right? Or are they aluminum now, too?

The Superduty trucks went to all aluminum in 2017. The F150 series got them two years earlier. If I'm remembering correctly the cabs in the F150 and Superduty are essentially the same now. Beds are different, and of course the drivetrain.

$74K for a loaded crew cab diesel is not something you'll find around northern Nevada. Here's an ad from the nearest Ford dealer (only car/truck dealership in 100+ miles in any direction so pretty much a monopoly). Be a cold day in h*ll before I'd pay this much for a pickup - but people do, so the prices keep going up.

 

[sandman2234]

There are 2 pickups here, both diesel and neither half ton so they won't fit your spec's. However, since we are all getting older and more likely to break something if we aren't careful...
I missed a step coming downstairs 3 weeks ago. Broke a couple bones in my left foot, cause that is what stopped my fall, by slamming it up against the wall in the corner of the staircase. I quickly learned just how much fun shifting gears is, when your left foot has 2 broken bones. Didn't help with the start and stop, but I sure am glad that I am proficient at floating gears with a manual tranny!
Driving yourself to the Doctor would be so much more fun with an automatic!
David from jax

 

[WinterDeere]

What about looking in a different place? As in another country where they sell them, and import. Yes, shipping, emissions, highway safety etc. that will most likely need to be brought to standards. But think about it, you most likely can get what you want. just sayin'

Fun cars, sure... I've done that. But not a truck. It's just a tool to me, not a passion project.

If I were to buy a new truck, and I'm considering it now, I'd want this...F250 4x4 work truck, especially no carpet. 6.8L gas.
A truck...nothing more

This is almost exactly what I was looking at this evening, but one level up in XLT, just to get cloth instead of vinyl seats. I need to find time to play around with their configurator, as it appears the 7.3L is only another $1500. If both engines have similar reliability ratings, and choosing one versus the other doesn't force other options packages I don't want, I see no reason to ever choose anything other than the biggest available.

Like you, I don't need or want carpet. I throw away the carpet floor mats and install rubber mats in every truck I own, anyway. But I'm not sitting on vinyl on our -10F January mornings! Heck, they're equally bad in July. I'm not spending money to put leather into a pickup truck, where I'd likley just rip it anyway. So I'll take cloth, thank you!

Speaking of seats, that is the one good thing I can say about auto trans, I guess... I do use my remote start almost every F'ing morning in winter, and have the heated seat set to come on and be warm before my rear ever hits it. I still have PTSD from a childhood spent waiting on cold vinyl car seats to warm up, while dad scraped ice off the car windows.

The 250/350’s are steel right? Or are they aluminum now, too?

Aluminum, which is honestly the only reason I'd even look at Ford. But I'll admit... I'm looking!

I have a 24' RAM 2500 w/ the Cummins. So far I really like the truck. I was a Ford guy but kept having issues with them.

Putting rust aside, my two Rams are the most reliable two vehicles I have ever owned, by a very long shot. I can't say enough good about them, in that regard.

But I'm also getting real tired of replacing trucks at 50k - 70k miles, when the doors, tailgate, and bed rust out. If Ford can solve that problem, they're at least worth a look.

Edit -- forgot to add -- Standard Cab???? Could never go back to a standard cab where you can barely shove a windbreaker behind the seat. A full crew cab is SO much more utilitarian and versatile.

Again... agreed. It's awful hard to keep luggage dry in an open bed, driving to the airport in the pouring rain, or to lock up anything while traveling. Extended, Quad, or Crew cab solves all of these problems, and gives more space for hauling passengers when needed.

OP, is a used pickup to your spec from the South West desert states a realistic option?

Maybe! Although the last vehicle I bought sight unseen ended up being an undisclosed smoker's car, so heavily perfumed with detailing products that I couldn't tell until all that chemical wore off. Took probably more than a year to stop getting ash out of the vents and every crevace, and for the truck to stop smelling like an ash tray everytime it'd be humid or raining.

Driving yourself to the Doctor would be so much more fun with an automatic!

Just a few days ago, I posted about making my buddy shift my 5 on the floor Chevy pickup while I drove with a broken shoulder and ribs. Even my 12 year old knows a standard 6-speed shift pattern today, so an upper body injury could still be managed. But yeah... broken legs are tough with a clutch!

 

[Hay Dude]

The Superduty trucks went to all aluminum in 2017. The F150 series got them two years earlier. If I'm remembering correctly the cabs in the F150 and Superduty are essentially the same now. Beds are different, and of course the drivetrain.

I think the only aluminum on my Ram is the hood and the wheels. My aftermarket EBY flatbed is all aluminum, but that doesn’t count.

$74K for a loaded crew cab diesel is not something you'll find around northern Nevada. Here's an ad from the nearest Ford dealer (only car/truck dealership in 100+ miles in any direction so pretty much a monopoly). Be a cold day in h*ll before I'd pay this much for a pickup - but people do, so the prices keep going up.

View attachment 5336864

Yeah, screw that noise.
$109,000?
Laughable.

 

[Hay Dude]

Found WD’s next truck!
It’s a Ford
It’s a 1/2 ton
It’s a manual transmission
It has 4WD
It’s even John Deere Green!
AND, It’s nearby where he lives

Just needs a little rust repair

 

[Jstpssng]

I throw away the carpet floor mats and install rubber mats in every truck I own, anyway

Why? What I remember most about my trucks with vinyl is that every spring I'd have to lift the mats to dry the insulation because of all of the snow I'd dragged in all winter. After a few years it still stunk so bad that I't rip out the mats and run metal floor.

 

[Runner]

Maybe an unpopular opinion, but have you priced out fixing yours? I mean, you said it yourself- a new one is going to do the exact same thing.

A vehicle is a constantly depreciating asset.

I’d take it to a small independent body shop, get a quote on patching the bedsides, and checking the rockers and frame over.

Exactly what I was thinking. At 52,000 miles, it's just broken in and it's not going to be used as a daily. I'm seeing complete beds for under $2,000 advertised. Don't know how much a body shop would charge to paint/install a replacement bed, but even $5,000 all-in sounds better than $60,000 new.

 

[dodge man]

Cab size? That’s always a tough choice. Mine is a Super Cab, the smaller back seat a the rear doors open the wrong way. The advantage is a longer bed. We’ve had the truck 9 years and there has been 3 or 4 times we wished it was a crew cab. One time we even rented an SUV because we needed the bigger back seat and luggage space. A couple of times we got away with hauling luggage in the bed because it wasn’t raining.

You can get bed covers and roll ups but it never seems water tight back there.

 

[dieselscout80]

You don't think you're interested in a diesel.....until you own one. $74,000. Sitting at D'Ambrosio Ram in Downingtown.
Don't test drive it because you'll buy it if you do. ZF-8 transmission. 1075TQ. 11,400 GVWR. 10 year, 100,000 mile warranty. Not slow, either.
View attachment 5336801

I really LIKE my 2020 Ram HEMI 2500 with 4.10 and the ZF eight speed transmission.

One thing is the OP said he’s concerned about parking garages and height of the truck. The Ram 2500 4x4 is almost 84” tall.

 

[Runner]

Like you, I don't need or want carpet. I throw away the carpet floor mats and install rubber mats in every truck I own, anyway. But I'm not sitting on vinyl on our -10F January mornings! Heck, they're equally bad in July. I'm not spending money to put leather into a pickup truck, where I'd likley just rip it anyway. So I'll take cloth, thank you!

Don't tell anyone, but the first thing I bought for my 2004 F350XL with vinyl seats was a nice set of cloth seat covers. Not because I mind sitting on vinyl, but to protect the seats. They look great and match the interior perfectly.

 

[WinterDeere]

Found WD’s next truck!

You laugh, but I really like that truck! But I suspect it’s not 4wd, and probably has the same rust as the truck I’m trading in.

Why? What I remember most about my trucks with vinyl is that every spring I'd have to lift the mats to dry the insulation because of all of the snow I'd dragged in all winter.

You’re probably remembering the old flat rubber floor mats of the 1980’s and earlier. All of mine are “deep dish”, no snow spills or gets under them.

That said, I do try to kick most of the snow off my boots before hopping in, as much as is practical with two quick kicks of the feet.

OP said he’s concerned about parking garages and height of the truck. The Ram 2500 4x4 is almost 84” tall.

Yeah. This is the only factor that has me even considering a 1500. I don’t care about the price, I can get over the thing being heavier and slower, but height will be an issue every time I need to go to the city. I can’t even fit 84” into my attached garage. I do like to move my car to the barn and put my truck into my attached garage on snow days.

That said, I’m already thinking about building another 4 or 5 car garage, and could make that taller.

 

[Hay Dude]

You laugh, but I really like that truck! But I suspect it’s not 4wd, and probably has the same rust as the truck I’m trading in.

Check out the front axle-locking hubs!
Buy it, fix rust, put a $2,500 Jutland aluminum bed on it
Great woods truck.

 

[Jstpssng]

Cab size? That’s always a tough choice. Mine is a Super Cab, the smaller back seat a the rear doors open the wrong way. The advantage is a longer bed. We’ve had the truck 9 years and there has been 3 or 4 times we wished it was a crew cab. One time we even rented an SUV because we needed the bigger back seat and luggage space. A couple of times we got away with hauling luggage in the bed because it wasn’t raining.

You can get bed covers and roll ups but it never seems water tight back there.

I prefer the reverse opening rear doors as all that I am putting in there is gear and my dog. I could never understand why they needed to make the cabs so freaking big. My '98 Sierra was a good size, although it lacked rear doors.
If somebody needs the rear seat to haul people they have the option of buying the larger 4 door model.

A tonneau cover does a good job of keeping things dry. Even though mine is old, the velcro is torn out so that the front and rear are the only things holding it on; things still stayed dry last weekend when I came up the interstate in a snow/rain storm. The only downside is that I am unable to use my racks; but there are models available which would allow that.

 

[WinterDeere]

Don't tell anyone, but the first thing I bought for my 2004 F350XL with vinyl seats was a nice set of cloth seat covers. Not because I mind sitting on vinyl, but to protect the seats. They look great and match the interior perfectly.

With the aluminum body, or something garage-kept, I guess I could see doing that. But when you trade in a truck as rusty as my last one, no one is even going to open a door to look at the seats.

My car is never driven in snow, and kept in a garage. Other than some mineral whiting on the cast aluminum oil pan, the thing still looks like it came off the assembly line, underneath. Salted roads on snow days and sitting outdoors, are awful hard on a vehicle.

 

[WinterDeere]

Check out the front axle-locking hubs!

I was wondering about that. Working on a small screen, did’t zoom in far enough.

One of my favorite truck was a 1978 Bronco I owned in the late 1990’s. It rusted so fast you could almost hear it, every fender and door bottom had been cut out and welded back at least once. But it was a very fun vehicle to drive, and very solid. I especially loved the all-metal dash and door interiors, with just a small vinyl panel to cover the window and door latch mechanisms.

And your prior “it’s a Ford… check”, I’d only go Ford to get an aluminum body. If not for that one factor, Dodge would probably be the only on I’d even look at, for a new truck today. I have grown to really like my Dodge’s, I’m just getting sick of how fast they seem to rust out.

 

[WinterDeere]

A tonneau cover does a good job of keeping things dry. Even though mine is old, the velcro is torn out so that the front and rear are the only things holding it on; things still stayed dry last weekend when I came up the interstate in a snow/rain storm. The only downside is that I am unable to use my racks; but there are models available which would allow that.

I’ve looked and and considered those folding and locking hard tonneau covers on each of my last two trucks, but having big cabs that stored all I ever needed, never bothered with the expense and hassle. Open bed has always worked fine for me, even if it is a pain cleaning it out of iced-over snow and getting it dry when I need the bed for moving boxes in winter.

I’ve also thought of switching from pickup to a big SUV, since I use a trailer these days, for so much of the stuff for which I used to need a pickup truck bed. But does anyone even make a 3/4 ton full size SUV, anymore? Another Dodge Durango would NOT cut that mustard.

 

[Hay Dude]

I was wondering about that. Working on a small screen, did’t zoom in far enough.

One of my favorite truck was a 1978 Bronco I owned in the late 1990’s. It rusted so fast you could almost hear it, every fender and door bottom had been cut out and welded back at least once. But it was a very fun vehicle to drive, and very solid. I especially loved the all-metal dash and door interiors, with just a small vinyl panel to cover the window and door latch mechanisms.

And your prior “it’s a Ford… check”, I’d only go Ford to get an aluminum body. If not for that one factor, Dodge would probably be the only on I’d even look at, for a new truck today. I have grown to really like my Dodge’s, I’m just getting sick of how fast they seem to rust out.

You aren’t washing underneath in winter, I’d guess.


“Dodge”???
RAM stupid!!!!

 

[Snobdds]

How are diesels slow?

Mine don’t seem slow

Some things are just so shocking to hear, it really questions everything.

It makes you think you have to start from step one...What is a truck?