Best truck under $10k?

[D2Cat]

Three months ago I found/bought a 2011 Dakota, 4x4, crew cab, no rust, like new interior, new tires, new battery, 99,820 miles. Underneath looks like it's a year old, Line-X bed liner. Guy had a 28% loan at a buy here pay here place and wanted to sell it because he had improved his credit and could get an 8% loan. Ipaid under 10K to clear his note. I replaced one tie rod. He was sure to tell me the oil will soon need to by changed and he used 5W-20 Castrol Edge Full Synthetic. Beautiful paint and interior. Negative is not much bed space.

 

[Muhammad]

Three months ago I found/bought a 2011 Dakota, 4x4, crew cab, no rust, like new interior, new tires, new battery, 99,820 miles. Underneath looks like it's a year old, Line-X bed liner. Guy had a 28% loan at a buy here pay here place and wanted to sell it because he had improved his credit and could get an 8% loan. Ipaid under 10K to clear his note. I replaced one tie rod. He was sure to tell me the oil will soon need to by changed and he used 5W-20 Castrol Edge Full Synthetic. Beautiful paint and interior. Negative is not much bed space.

I saw a couple of dakotas out there and wouldn't have been opposed to a deal like that but the selection was slim.

If I'm being biased, growing up my dad had a lot of bad luck with Ford products. I have seen mixed reviews about the new Ford stuff. I guess it all depends on the drive train, etc. Takes a while for the market to determine longevity of a platform.

@2manyrocks Yes I have the 3.0 V6 RWD configuration.

 

[deserteagle71]

If I'm being biased, growing up my dad had a lot of bad luck with Ford products. I have seen mixed reviews about the new Ford stuff. I guess it all depends on the drive train, etc. Takes a while for the market to determine longevity of a platform.

My luck has been just the opposite from your dad's. Up until 2016 I've had a few F250 and F350 trucks and each was relatively trouble free. In 2016 I bought a new F150 Supercab with the 3.5 Ecoboost engine and in 60,000 miles all I've had to do is change the oil and rotate the tires. Never been in a shop for any reason - and the overall fuel mileage since new (hand calculated) is 20.6 mpg.

My "heavy hauler" for the past few years has been a Dodge/Cummins dually. All I've ever had to fix on it was a leaky water pump a few years ago, so it has been very dependable also.

 

[rangerfredbob]

I've been a Ranger fan for a while (yeah, username is that Ranger...), I currently have two Rangers and two Explorers along with the F350 and the wife's Camry... The 3.0 is a good engine, just keep up on the fluids and it'll last a long time. If automatic transmission wouldn't hurt to shift it manually from time to time, the engine likes to rev (since it was designed for a Taurus it has a higher rpm camshaft) but Ford in their infinite wisdom makes it shift well below the torque peak so they are well known for being gutless turds... but then again I'm daily driving a '97 extended cab Ranger with a manual trans and a 2.3L so a 3.0L would be more peppy... There's downsides to Rangers of various configurations but whatever, I only go to shops for windshields and tires... I got my '97 for $450 with a bent I beam (towed out of a ditch with a chain from the middle of one I beam...), $150 in junkyard parts and some random used tires I mounted myself and I'm less than $1200 into it and have put almost 40k on it...

I'm not too brand loyal anymore, I'm just familiar with the drivetrain and wanted something reliable and decent on fuel so I got what I got... Everything has its plusses and minuses, the early 2000's are a good time for vehicles being a good balance of reliability, ease of maintenance and less fancy junk... the LS engines in GM's along with their fairly reliable transmissions are a good place to be, a 4L80 is going to be more reliable than a 4L60 trans but either if taken care of are fine, Ford's 4R70W and 4R100 and whatnot are apparently fine too but the 5.4L has issues in a few years, all can have their good and bad apples...

 

[coobie]

Let's just say, best general use pickup truck under $10,000 in the current market.

Factors to consider:

Reliability (starting from the age/mileage)
Features/performance
Practicality
Value

I purchased a 2004 chevy 1500 Silverado Z71 with 4X4 last June(2021) for $7500 bucks with 132,000 miles on the OD in decent shape with some rust around the rocker panels. I now have 154,000 miles on the OD and it has been flawless.Good trucks are out there just take your time to look..

 

[Muhammad]

I purchased a 2004 chevy 1500 Silverado Z71 with 4X4 last June(2021) for $7500 bucks with 132,000 miles on the OD in decent shape with some rust around the rocker panels. I now have 154,000 miles on the OD and it has been flawless.Good trucks are out there just take your time to look..

That sounds like a great deal on the current market. Also that truck out here in California would fetch 10k I think.

 

[D2Cat]

I saw a couple of dakotas out there and wouldn't have been opposed to a deal like that but the selection was slim.

If I'm being biased, growing up my dad had a lot of bad luck with Ford products. I have seen mixed reviews about the new Ford stuff. I guess it all depends on the drive train, etc. Takes a while for the market to determine longevity of a platform.

@2manyrocks Yes I have the 3.0 V6 RWD configuration.

The reason the selection is slim, and what you find is often beat up and rusted is because they quit making them in 2011. That is why I was looking for the latest model. I had a couple of them before and knew in insides fit my butt, legs and head room requirements. In fact, when wanting parts I have to tell the parts guys (who look everything up on their computer) it's a 2010 because 2011 in not in their computer.

The model is coming back this year, which seems odd for auto manufactures.

 

[MossRoad]

I purchased a 2004 chevy 1500 Silverado Z71 with 4X4 last June(2021) for $7500 bucks with 132,000 miles on the OD in decent shape with some rust around the rocker panels. I now have 154,000 miles on the OD and it has been flawless.Good trucks are out there just take your time to look..

That’s very similar to the 2003 Suburban we bought last May.

One thing, though, is that used prices have skyrocketed since just last year. So expect to pay a bit more in today’s world.

 

[Oaktree]

Three months ago I found/bought a 2011 Dakota, 4x4, crew cab, no rust, like new interior, new tires, new battery, 99,820 miles. Underneath looks like it's a year old, Line-X bed liner. Guy had a 28% loan at a buy here pay here place and wanted to sell it because he had improved his credit and could get an 8% loan. Ipaid under 10K to clear his note. I replaced one tie rod. He was sure to tell me the oil will soon need to by changed and he used 5W-20 Castrol Edge Full Synthetic. Beautiful paint and interior. Negative is not much bed space.

Yeah, the smaller trucks with the crew cab don't leave much room for a bed...tacoma's are even worse, doesn't look like the bed is much more than 3' long. Why even bother? Saw one a while back with a bicycle rack on the back!

IMHO the 2nd gen Dakotas ('96-04) were the best. I've got an '01 with the 4.7 and it's still going strong. Around here you see more of the 2nd gen ones than the 3rd gen...the newer ones were kind of rustbuckets.

 

[blee03]

1994 Dodge Ram 2500 - cars & trucks - by owner - vehicle automotive...

Dodge Ram 2500 Cummins 6 Cylinder Turbo Diesel SLT, with 2011 bed, Toolbox, power doors and windows, CD Radio. Runs good. The body is clean. Please call. Do not text.

sandiego.craigslist.org

 

[5030]

That’s very similar to the 2003 Suburban we bought last May.

One thing, though, is that used prices have skyrocketed since just last year. So expect to pay a bit more in today’s world.

The issue with used GM products is their cylinder deactivation system. You can deactivate it with a Holley / Range deactivation module (on the earlier ones) but the later ones you cannot and the cylinder deactivation system causes eventual oil consumption plus the newer system has expensive to repair issues.

I will say (owning both Ford and GM products) that General Motors products are light years easier to perform routine maintenance on compared to Fords, especially their front wheel drive models.

Personally, I'd never buy a used Chrysler product, I don't believe their build quality is on par with Ford or GM. Personal opinion only.

If I was to buy a used pickup truck today, I believe I'd buy a used Toyota or Nissan unit. Not in the market myself and never will be.

Hard to find used trucks today for a good price that aren't beat. Just not out there. People are hanging on to older trucks (and cars), much like older pre emissions tractors but with tractors it's for a different reason.

 

[5030]

Living out west, corrosion should not ne an issue, but here in the upper midwest, it becomes a big issue so a used truck should be looked over carefully underneath and especially in the wheel arches where mud and salt collects and rots the sheet metal. The other ' Achilles heel with domestic products (again up here in the upper midwest and east) is the fact that domestic automakers use steel brakelines that are prone to rusting out and can be an expensive issue to fix. I've replaced a number of rotted brakelines in the past. They always seem to fail where they are impacted by road spray (doing them on my wife's 2016 van right now). European car makers for years have used alloy brake lines that don't rot out but for some reason domestic manufacturers are still using steel hard lines.

 

[MossRoad]

The issue with used GM products is their cylinder deactivation system. You can deactivate it with a Holley / Range deactivation module (on the earlier ones) but the later ones you cannot and the cylinder deactivation system causes eventual oil consumption plus the newer system has expensive to repair issues.

I will say (owning both Ford and GM products) that General Motors products are light years easier to perform routine maintenance on compared to Fords, especially their front wheel drive models.

Personally, I'd never buy a used Chrysler product, I don't believe their build quality is on par with Ford or GM. Personal opinion only.

If I was to buy a used pickup truck today, I believe I'd buy a used Toyota or Nissan unit. Not in the market myself and never will be.

Hard to find used trucks today for a good price that aren't beat. Just not out there. People are hanging on to older trucks (and cars), much like older pre emissions tractors but with tractors it's for a different reason.

I’ve never owned a GM product that has cylinder deactivation.

 

[blee03]

If I was to buy a used pickup truck today, I believe I'd buy a used Toyota or Nissan unit.

 

[RustyA]

The 1 Big Problem People Are Having With the Chevy Silverado

Despite being one of the best selling trucks in the country, some Chevy Silverado model years all have one big, and costly, problem.

www.motorbiscuit.com

 

[JJT]

I fully expect to get flamed here.... Not a "real" truck but it will carry a full sheet of plywood flat - the Honda Ridgeline. I sold my 12 year old Ridgeline with 140K miles for $9,500. It's enough truck for many people and it drives like an SUV. We replaced it in kind, plenty of truck for me.

There are some good trucks out there under 10K, but you have to really look and do your due diligence. There's also a lot of over priced used and abused trucks out there.

 

[RustyA]

It's a thing for many model years starting around 2007 in some models. Older system wiped out the cam and lifters when it failed newer system causes big time oil consumption.

 

[MossRoad]

I fully expect to get flamed here.... Not a "real" truck but it will carry a full sheet of plywood flat - the Honda Ridgeline. I sold my 12 year old Ridgeline with 140K miles for $9,500. It's enough truck for many people and it drives like an SUV. We replaced it in kind, plenty of truck for me.

There are some good trucks out there under 10K, but you have to really look and do your due diligence. There's also a lot of over priced used and abused trucks out there.

 

[5030]

I’ve never owned a GM product that has cylinder deactivation.

You don't want one either. Amazing how little power a V8 castrated to a 4 cylinder don't make. GM only did it to make the CAFE overall use regulation for gasoline engines. I deleted my wife's and the average mpg didn't drop at all. It still gets terrible mileage but it sounds like a V8, not a 4 cylinder with asthma. Really besides poor power, the only difference is it HAS power.

Big issue for us at least was the lag time between cylinder deactivation and a real V8. Took a couple seconds to revert and the lag was somewhat disconcerting, especially if you wanted to pass a slower vehicle and it was running on 4.

Kind of like the stop at the light and the engine shuts off deal. Considering the overall quality of sourced components today, I wonder how long the starters will last...

We got the big V8 because you don't haul around a Suburban magic bus with a 4 cylinder in the first place.

 

[5030]

I fully expect to get flamed here.... Not a "real" truck but it will carry a full sheet of plywood flat - the Honda Ridgeline. I sold my 12 year old Ridgeline with 140K miles for $9,500. It's enough truck for many people and it drives like an SUV. We replaced it in kind, plenty of truck for me.

There are some good trucks out there under 10K, but you have to really look and do your due diligence. There's also a lot of over priced used and abused trucks out there.

I certainly won't flame you at all. Seems people who buy 'pickup' trucks today the ones they buy, the beds are shorter than the cabs are. Can you even get an 8 foot bed today? I don't know but I'm not buying one anyway. I'll take Japanese technology and attention to detail over American car companies anytime.