In the market for a truck

Shift518 Automotive
41

Ive had a variety of trucks…a midsize nissan, two fullsize chevys, a fullsize dodge, currently a fullsize GMC…and in the past few years my stepdad has gone thru a midsize dodge and two fullsize dodges…so hopefully this helps…

OP i would suggest not ruling out a full size. Also…why not buy american? Your buying a truck, not a tinker toy. I think once you get a small truck you’ll be happy with it for a bit, but once you actually put it to use you’ll wish you had gotten a fullsize. The fuel mileage your going to save with the v6 in a midsize to a v8 in a fullsize or midsize is minimal or none. Personal experience i had an 03 nissan truck with the 3.5liter vq35de <-(dont quote me on that) v6, and got 12mpg all day everyday no matter what i was doing. Other than that, it was a great truck. 4wd worked flawlessly never did anything but change oil/brakes thru 55kmi of use. I also have seen a 06 Dakota with the 3.7l v6 and an 04 dakota with the 4.7l V8. The V8 dakota got 3mpg more. As far as parking a fullsize goes…even if your driveway is tight or on street parking is scarce…you shouldnt have a problem. I can fit my giant schoolbus of a DD, pretty much wherever i need it to fit, i guess its more about HOW you park it, rather than where you park it.

IF your really into fuel economy and your needs really arent that extensive…i would recommend a colorado with a 4banger. They truly do get good fuel economy, but they’re a gutless turd. I can’t comment on toyotas but I personally wouldn’t go with a ranger or a toyota or a nissan (midsize or fullsize). Dodge and Chevy/GMC IMO would be your best bet.

I would encourage you to try out a Dakota, theyre bigger than the colorados/canyons and bigger than the ranger/tacoma/frontier but in the same class. They have a pretty powerful 4.7L v8 and they hold up well. The interior IMO isnt quite as quality as a Chevy/GMC or a Nissan, but it isnt terrible by any means. (which are the better interiors of the group IMO). The backseat in extended cab models really couldnt be used for someone over 5ft tall, but its good for storage, and this is the case with almost any midsize. I personally would look into the 04’s. Thats the older body style and the interior is actually nicer and more comfortable. And id be willing to bet if you can find one with low mileage you can get it for a damn cheap price. If you want passenger space you need to sacrifice your bed size for a quad cab. This isnt the case with a fullsize, extended cab models in pretty much all the different trucks, have room for normal sized passengers.

If you look into a chevy or gmc…it was rumored that the colorado/canyon’s would be outfitted with a v8, and the 5.3 v8 at that. Now, I havent had a chance to look into this, and dont really care much, but for someone in the market for a midsize, this is one HELL of an option. I had a 5.3 in my fullsize chevy and ran it for well over 40kmi. 14mpg average…never a single repair…only thing it ever needed was brakes and a couple of wheel bearings. (and those were more likely from my abuse rather than normal wear+tear). And it had a TON of ass.

SOO after that giant rant…my advice to you would be reconsider a fullsize, and if you’re stuck in the midsize take a look into the Dakota or Canyon/Colorado’s.

42

Buy my Ford before I title it.

43

^you bought a truck wayne?

44

^^ Good post and great info. I would like to consider a full size and may not rule it out. For the money, full size is the only way to go but my problem is parking a full size truck in my neighborhood or in my driveway. My street is almost always completely jam packed and my driveway is really narrow. My girlfriends father has a full size GMC and is going to be stopping by today so I’m going to have him try to pull it into the driveway and see if it’ll fit.

I looked at the Dakota and it is a bigger mid-size truck but it is so ugly in my opinion. The Nissan and Toyota are bigger then the Colorado and the Canyon which is why I ruled the Chevy/GMC out. I will only consider buying a domestic truck if I’m going to go full size.

For the most part I’m not doing heavy duty hauling like you probably are. I’m mostly doing work around my house, hauling a lawn mower, the occasional side job here and there. Anything that would require something with a full size truck, I could borrow from a friend or family member.

45

Yes, yes indeed.

![http://i.ebayimg.com/24/!ByMPN-wEWk~$(KGrHqN,!hMEw5FOsQF9BMQwQzwmi!~~_3.JPG](http://i.ebayimg.com/24/!ByMPN-wEWk~$(KGrHqN,!hMEw5FOsQF9BMQwQzwmi!~~_3.JPG)

Here’s the deal. Buying a truck is like buying a tool. Buy the biggest and the best god damn tool you can afford at the time. You’re going to get a small truck and then find all these fucking awesome uses for it that IT WON’T FUCKING HANDLE.

Am I going to tow with that fucking monstrosity all the time? FUCK NO

Am I really ever going to need that truck? MAYBE but I gotta buy a truck anyway and you can do ANYTHING with something like this. ANYTHING.

Do I have a small penis and this truck makes me feel better? YES I HAVE A SMALL PENIS. NO THE TRUCK DOES NOT HELP THAT.

I’ve been in the situation where I’ve had to small of a truck (97 Nissan hardbody - first truck) I couldn’t do SHIT with it except put a quad in the bed. Fucking wouldn’t make it up a damn hill without downshifting and running it at 5k all the time.

My previous truck was a 99 F250 v10 with an auto. I LOVED that god damn truck, but the gas mileage was equivalent to a fully loaded semi. The truck would take anything I threw at it, but Fords automatic isn’t that great and the v10 is not as powerful as some like. I never had a problem with mine, i towed 5k with it once and you’d never know it was there. The best part about a fullsize truck is having a bed that’s worth a damn. Don’t get a fucking crew-cab-neutered-bed-bitch-mobile that you can’t even put sheetrock in. Point is - the point of having a truck is to be able to use it for everything and anything. Buy a TRUCK, don’t buy a glorified sport utility.

46

Some of you are missing the point that I simply do not have anywhere to house a full size truck. I’m not parking it off my street on a wider street. The Kind of work I do and will be doing doesn’t require me to have anything bigger then a mid-size.

47

i’m with Bakerian then. get a yota.

The Colorado’s are peices of shit and crack heads all the damn time, parts are on intergalactic backorder.

Rangers are… well, Rangers.

Dakotas actually are great little trucks (used to be anyway). GranMassaX on here has one and he’s had it forever. Things bulletproof.

EDIT: Buy my Ford, it’ll fit in the garage I promise.

48

Yea, i’m going to try out both the Toyota and the Nissan.

Your truck is bad ass. I don’t have a garage at my house :frowning:

49

couple things to check on the Yotas to make sure you get a good one. My buddy had one and it was a complete peice of shit. PM Oppie on here and ask him about his last Yota.

50

+rep to waynes posts and his new truck!! I love it man!

I think part of what i was trying to get at for you is that once you buy the midsize truck, you WILL be sick of it quickly and wish you had bought a fullsize. You just plain can NOT do much more than tow a pushmower and pick up three bags of cement with a midsize. There no more stable in bad weather than an AWD or FWD car, and I dont see the appeal to a smaller vehicle with terrible mpg, when you can have a big, safe, nice riding vehicle for the same terrible mpg’s. LOL. It sucks that you dont like the dodges because i think a dakota would probably work out perfectly for you. I think your parking situation, isnt as big of a problem as you think. I highly doubt that theres not a useful spot on your street or that you couldnt fit a truck in your driveway. I could be wrong and I dont doubt that its narrow…but fuckin A i plow quite a few VERY TIGHT city driveways during the winter…im guessing a truck would at least fit. No one said you need room to play football around it, just park and slide in and out…

All in all, i hope you enjoy whatever you purchase, and it serves you well. But i think you would be stupid not to buy at least a 1/2 ton truck. And I personally would recommend Mopar or GM. Also i made a point to mention passenger space, I dont know if thats necesary for you or not…but if not…get a standard cab truck, very easily manouvered and easy to drive (almost no blind spots etc…) especially with a 6ft bed, although i wouldn’t recommend buying a truck with a standard cab unless it had an 8ft. I actually miss the 8ft from my previous truck, you’d never know useful it is until you move down to a 6ft.

51

Not to break your balls, just to make a point…

Didn’t you say that having to borrow a truck a lot, is part of the reason you want to buy one? Even just working around your house, you cant fit SHIT in a midsize bed. At least a fullsize you can fit 1.5-2 (8ft bed) yds of mulch or 1.5yds of topsoil or more (and thats a halfton) or if you really want you can grab a buddies dump trailer, load it to the gills and at least your fullsize will pull it. You try to throw sheetrock or plywood or long pieces of trim or flooring or ANY amount of tile in your midsize…it just wont happen. It couldnt take the weight of tile or flooring materials and it doesnt have the dimensions to handle other everyday household repair types of material. I just dont see the point in a midsize if you have ANY plans to use it as a truck. IMO a midsize is for the green planet loving, hiking, lesbo, wanna be contractor, PUSSY. :lol JK but you know what i mean.

52

hey Pauly, any idea where i can find a nice used minute mount?

53

other than the obvious CL and Wantad, not at the moment…but i can look around for ya buddy!

One of my close friends comes across them allllllll the time, so i will let you know if i hear anything

54

10-4 thanks homie!

back to the regularly scheduled small truck bashing.

55

:rofl

56

I’m beating a dead horse once again. The only person that may actually be able to attest to my situation on this site is Ray because he knows where I live and he knows how shitty the parking can be on my street and how narrow my driveway is. Unless I can get a steal on a full-size truck I will be making a purchase on a midsize.

Most of the things I am hauling don’t require a full size truck. It’s just given in my previous situation I always had to borrow a family members or friends truck because I had absolutely no way to haul anything around.

Jobs I do that require me to move anymore then a few sheets of sheet rock or a pallet of tile I have delivered anyways. Less back breaking on me to move the shit and it costs just as much to have them deliver it then it does for me to have to worry about hauling it.

I guess I fall under your standard as far as a wanna be contractor.

57

Toyota, extended cab ftw then.

Makes it a rather simple choice.

58

In that case you gotta get a ladder rack and live in Rotterdam. Everybody knows that’s where the fake contractors live!!!

59

:rofl thats where they all live Wayne, trust me!!! This town is full of them…

And OP i wasnt breaking your balls, srsly. Like i said in my posts, i dont doubt that your parking situation BLOWS. All im saying is you would be better off with a fullsize and i DO doubt that you couldnt find anywhere to park it, or get it in your driveway. It probably would be a pain, however a midsize wont be very much better. SO anyways i hope i helped alil bit and didnt mean to offend you.

60

I say you guys make it interesting and make a wager on whether or not zee oh sex or Wayne can park their trucks on that street :lol