Tow vehicle? For a cardolly/full trailer...

[ping65810]

For work I run a 90 2500HD Chevy, 350, auto, 4x4, etc. Can tow down a house, relaible, not too bad on gas, and parts are very cheap, and they are wicked easy to fix most things on. I also have a 96 3500, same way. I would go with any 88-99 Chevy 2500 or 3500. Great trucks all the way around, and actually farily comfortable and ride nice for what they can do

[808BMW]

^^^^^^^^^

Hey man Americans have been building trucks for nearly 100 yeas yoda just started in what 98? (full size) I think the its the only thing the Big 3 do right anymore. An why the ford POS when they downsized to the 6.0 diesel it became a gutless pile, now they have bumped displacement back up to 6.3l (I think) an are running sequential twin turbo system that requires a specific "Ford" oil or it will burn itself down. Plus it runs all kinds of emission shit an has to have low sulfer road only fuel. Give me a 05 or older Durmax (04 or 05 LLY is my choice) so you can still run off road fuel or home heating oil in a pinch, that with an allison behind it is nearly idiot proof. All though the cummings in the dodges is a good engine too, just sounds like a ready mix truck an its hard to talk to the guy next to you in the truck when running down the high way, they are kinda noisy compared to the durmax.

Toyota entered the full size market in the mid 90's, and the 07 tundra is the best gas truck out there, hands down.
Last year the Titan was king, thats why they made a new tundra.

The big 3 are still top of the diesel market, but the v8 gassers are home to the imports now. Ford's new powerjoke is a 6.4 twin turbo, and all 3 companies use ultra low sulfur diesel as of 07, its the law.

Older trucks can use motor oil, vegetable oil, atf, and a whole slew of other things as fuel (in a pinch, extended use is bad)

Best motor: Cummins (Dodge). I'm a chevy guy and I will own a duramax truck soon, but anyone who says the cummins isn't the best motor in the light truck market is either lying to themselves or clueless.

Best tranny: Allison (Chevy). As far as your price range goes, I doubt you'll be getting a chevy with a duramax/allison combo, but it's a damn good tranny. The 06+ is so sick that I wouldn't mind the automatic (because its probably one of the most advanced trannies in the world)
Dodge auto trannies suck (Aisin I think?) so I would stick with the 5 speeds (NV4500).

As far as budget, the general consensus is damn right. 88-98 GM. Whether it be a 350 gasser or 6.5 diesel (don't get the 6.2) your pretty much set. As already said the 4L60 is crap. 14 bolt rear end, strong and dirt cheap to replace. Stay away from 1500's with any heavy duty package (there are even some older diesel 1500's) because they really aren't equipped for the weight light a 2500/3500.

Vans are a PAIN IN THE ASS to work on. Try changing the the plugs on a late 90- current ford full size van. You have to pull the the tire off an dismount the engine an clock it up 35 degrees just to get to the back 2 plugs.

Did I mention it earlier VANS ARE A PAIN IN THE ASS TO WORK ON. Although its is a good option if you are on a real tight budget.

I Put 70k miles on an 06 E-350 in 1 year and it was a POS. I couldn't even see the plugs, so that sounds about right.
We used to own a Chevy Astro and that thing was the bomb. Bulletproof, lots of power (I never towed but I did massive burnouts), and with no seats (we had an extended one) that thing could probably hold like 6 motors and 10 sets of bumpers and still be able to see out the windows.

[mrsleeve]

808 I see we agree on most points, I still say the imports are junk when you try to use em like a truck all the time. I have seen blown diffs(front an rear), t-cases, tranny's, an a twisted drive shaftin them on construction sites in 1-2 years of hard use, an we have domestic 1/2 tons 93-06 doing the same thing all their lives with only minor problems. Cummings is a wonderfull engine just noisy as hell.

The GM 6.5 is still a big pile of shit even w/ the turbo on it.

Oh an I said somewhere that the 07+ need the new fuel because its the law.

[808BMW]

Well the 07 tundra and 06 titan haven't been around long enough for that kind of durability test, but within a few years people will realize.

The titan was the best gas truck I've ever driven (last year) and I'd say the only weak point is the d44 rear. Although a 1/2 from the big 3 doesn't have anything special either.
The new tundra has a better motor, much better tranny, better brakes, and a massive rear axle (10.5").

I've driven my fair share of work trucks (unfortunately mostly fords) and I have to say none of them last past 50-70k very well.
I always rag on my boss about his new F-150, because he pokes fun at my old e30. The other day some relay started burning up for no reason and I laughed my ass off when they were loading on the tow truck.

I've driven numerous import trucks at 100k+ with no problems.
I've driven lots of super old import trucks with 200-300k+ but they're not really comparable to these trucks :P

[ping65810]

My trucks see over 4,000lbs dumped in the back regularly, and also tow a lot. I dont have any problems at all. Then again, its not a 1/2 ton truck. Just use common sense, some trucks are meant for serious work, some arent. My 90 and 96 dont ride nearly as smooth as a 1500, but they can haul a heck of a lot more. My 1990, for example, TBI 5.7 (350), 3 spd auto, 14 bolt full floater rear, 4.11 gears, 8 lug wheels, 8600 gvwr, 6000lbs rear axle load rating, etc. Now thats a work truck. Throw 4k in rock in any 1/2 ton and you're f*cked, plain and simple. 2500 and 3500s have both the suspension, but also huge brakes, different gearing, trannys, etc. There is a lot more to them than just suspension differences. The reason they have 16" wheels on them is b/c you can't fit anything smaller over the brakes, which are enormous, especially compared to an e30. Try the rear brakes look almost as big as stock basketweaves! And no, I'm not kidding, LOL!

[StereoInstaller1]

Fuck all of that pickup bullshit.

Buy a pre-90 Chevy Astro NON AWD for about $300 with a blown motor.

Go find a decent 350 that has been rebuilt. You want to stay TBI. TPI is sexy, but full rewire. Towing, not racing! Buy motor mounts from www.jtr.com

Quick easy swap, same ECU, same radiator hoses even. Change the chip, injectors and the TV/kickdown cable (90 G20 van cable) and trim the fanshroud.

Do a fresh 700R4 or even a T-5. Beat up on Hondas with your soccer mom van in your spare time! Imagine a 3 pedal van with 275HP or so. My last one had a cop car roller cam 350, made about 300HP on TBI, LSD on 3.73 w/TH400 (MAJOR PITA!!!!) but the ex-twat lost the title and we could not get it replaced.

If you really wanna get sexy, put the late model front end on it. Bolt on job, much better looks. www.astrosafari.com

Luke

[Axxe]

Anyone ever tow a car with a 5 spd 4runner? I'm thinking about picking up an early 90's example as a hauler/tow. Keep in mind it won't be towing often, maybe once or twice a month.

[ivo316]

if i was to get a truck id go with a Toyota Tundra. American manufactures just do not know how to build cars. Now if i had to go american, Ford F350 turbo diesel.

good luck with the find

If you go japanese, add a set of heavy duty bushings for your rear suspension, towing with Toyotas or Nissans is not wise unless you get the proper bushings from the dealer, they carry a kit for towing.

Again: Don't ask how I found out.:(

[2002maniac]

When I was 16 I had a '89 F150 with the 4.9 inline-6 and 5-speed. That was an awesome truck! Plenty of torque and still got decent gas mileage (in the 20's!)

I towed a 2,000 pound trailer up the conejo grade at 70mph to give you an idea of capability.

[2002maniac]

Anyone ever tow a car with a 5 spd 4runner? I'm thinking about picking up an early 90's example as a hauler/tow. Keep in mind it won't be towing often, maybe once or twice a month.

GUTLESS

[george graves]

I can't figure out for the life of me why do many 3/4 ton work trucks leave the factory with an auto?

Locally for me, Ford is the majority of trucks (apperiently I live in ford counrty!!!)

Can I assume, that a truck with a manual will be a lot better tow than a auto? Autos scare me, never owned one, never want to.

I swear, the world of truck is so crazy...I'm way over my head...

[mrsleeve]

^^^^^

My self I would want a truck in auto, I know I will get shit for this but when towing with a manual a lot you see cooked clutches, an other that maybe a dodge good luck finding a manual trans. Autos are nothing to be scared of as long as you keep the fluid changed an if need be put in an after market cooler. An if you go GM 3/4 ton you will get 1 of the 2 most reliable autos ever made the turbo 400 (3 speed) or the 4l80(E) which is just a 400 w/OD. I had a buddy with a 400 that quite working (right) an he had me look at it, I pulled the dip stick it looked like the motor oil it was so burnt. So I just changed the filter an flushed it out with fresh an it was back to pullin 8500lbs of horse trailer (500 miles a week) an still is to this day an it was 5 years ago.

[JasonC]

Alot of trucks don't come with manual's no more cause people don't know how to drive them or are to lazy to shift.

[Jscotty]

I think that its cost effective for the manufacturer to use auto trannies. Autos are probably cheaper to build/buy and then on the flip side they can charge more for it as an added option.

Also, fleet customers probably have a preference for autos because changing the fluid is much cheaper than replacing a clutch disk, pressure plate, and flywheel. And I don't know how accurate this is because when I worked in a blue collar industry, we all drove Toyota Tacoma pickup trucks. We had over 100 employees in our shop and every truck had a manual transmission. In the 5 years that I worked there, I had never heard anyone complain about a bad clutch.

We also had a handful of S-10's for the wussies who weren't man enough to learn how to drive stick but if your truck broke down, you had better learned how to drive a stick if you want to come back to work tomorrow.

[Charlie]

Can I assume, that a truck with a manual will be a lot better tow than a auto? Autos scare me, never owned one, never want to.

I wouldn't assume that. In the gasser range, the manual tranny trucks are ususally rated about 2-2500 lbs less in terms of towing capacity. The auto trannies in your newer diesels are plenty strong as well. For a big heavy vehicle that might see DD & Traffic usage, I see no issues with a slushbox.

-Charlie