Pickup Shopping

[HB of CJ]

Specifically a half-ton, short wheel base, step side pickup?  Small block V8 with P/S, P/B, granny 4-speed with factory A/C?  Maybe a tilt steering wheel and electric windows?

Anywhere between $2500 for a basic runner up to and including over $10,000 for a very very nice street rod type restoration.  A whole lot $cheaper$ than something new.

Plus ... plus ... plus ... you can pull that lousy gasoline Chevy small block V8 and install an excellent, proper, boss, bitchin, noisy, leaky, smoggy Detroit Diesel 353N three banger!

One hundred whopping horsepower!  Two hundred bone crushing foot pounds of torque!  You can then also install a real JAKE BRAKE!  A T-5 3.97 5 speed tranny will work too.

Much fun.  Doable.  Very cheap as street rat rod pickup trucks go.  That and you can upset all your neighbours and have fun with regression and stuff.  Works for me!

HB of CJ (old coot)   How long that tranny will last with frequent Jake Brake use is debatable.  Maybe a long time, maybe not long at all.  Heavier trannys will work.

[Charles in SC]

I bought a new 2014 2500 Ram Longhorn diesel about a year ago. I had to order it to get 2 wheel drive. $52,000. I am getting 18.3 around town and 14 towing a 13,000 lb trailer. I like the truck but as I tell folks when asked. I drove Fords ( gas engines) for 30 years and never set foot inside a service dept. After having the Ram for 6 months I had the Dodge service department in the speed dial of my phone. I hope they have the bugs out but who knows. I did not buy Ford because I was scared of the engine. They have not had great luck with any of the diesels they build them self in my opinion. All of the new trucks on the market are way over priced and way more complicated than they need to be and all that complication is what creates most of the problems.

[lvmci]

Hi Clifford, beware of the 5.4ltr ford engines, they spit out spark plugs, mostly on F150s, tom, lvmci...

[mc6er]

I did not buy Ford because I was scared of the engine. They have not had great luck with any of the diesels they build them self in my opinion.

I thought Navistar made the 6.0 and 6.4 and Ford just started making their own again with the 6.7?

[luvrbus]

I don't know who makes it  I thought it was Ford but was told it was Navistar who ever made it cost Ford a lot of money , the made in Mexico scares me on the Ford Diesels that is why I leaning towards the GMC the Duramax is American made 

[pabusnut]

I know it's not a pickup, but my 2006 Jeep Liberty had a 4 cyl VM Motori Diesel in it, and it ran great.  I sold it when it had about 165K on it, and now I wish I had it back!  Towing a car on the tow dolly is a royal pain in the butt

[Purplewillie]

GM owns half that VM company that is making the little diesel, but haven't put it in anything in North America yet.  I read that Banks has been contracted to do the military version for the US military.  If I was a Dodge guy I would not know which way to turn, or what sand pile to put my head in.  A Dodge built by Fiat with an engine from a company owned by GM.  I went with Ford, if only because my sister is an engineer there, she is working on the new Mustang now.

FWIW, after both GM and Dodge trucks, the Ford (2005 F250 PSD) is the best actual truck, in my opinion.  GM was the worst (I had three or four of them, little sister was working for GM at the time so I got a family discount back when that actually meant a good deal), the Dodge was fine but man that Hemi was thirsty...  The thing about the Ford is that everything actually works, and doesn't piss me off all the time, which can't be said of the other two.  Just my experience, of course.  This truck could do me in yet...

Brian

I'm not 100% sure ,but i think GM sold their share of VM
Mark

[RJ]

Clifford -

I have a 2007 Toyota Tacoma Double Cab Long Bed PreRunner TRD 2wd with the 4.0L V6 and 5-spd automatic, coming up on 158K miles.

Loaded for work or empty, it gets 16 in town and 20/21 highway, has since new.  Paid $21K after they gave me $6K for my old Tacoma in trade.

Other than front brakes, which is understandable based on my work use, it's lived up to Toyota's reputation for reliability.

IIRC, it has a 5K hitch on it, but it might be a 3K.  Had no trouble towing the Jetta home on a dolly after it's purchase.

One feature I really like about the Tacoma is the way the rear seats fold completely flat.  Since I often carry parts & a small hand tool tote back there, the fact that it's flat was/is a big plus for me.  When I was shopping for a double-cab truck, that was something I checked out on all the available units, and Toyota was the only one with this feature.

If Toyota had offered a diesel in the Tacoma, I probably would have spent the extra $$.  Their homeland units have an excellent reputation.

FWIW & HTH. . .

[grantgoold]

I just picked up a 1993 Ford F350 4x4 crew cab long bed. The truck only has 127,000 original miles and is in excellent shape. 7.3 diesel, no computer, no turbo and best of all no smog checks!!!!  Total should be around $3,500 cash.   

Can spend a lot of money on fuel from the money I will save on smog checks, insurance on a $65,000 current plastic model and simply will have to get use to cloth seats

[TomC]

As to half ton Diesel Pickups-do I want an American made pickup with an Italian based engine (Dodge 1500 Ram with the 3 liter V-6)? Or do I want a Japanese made pickup with an American made engine (both Nissan and Toyota with the new Cummins 5.0 V-8)? Or do I want a GM made Chevrolet Colorado mid sized pickup with their new 2.8 liter 4 cylinder Diesel due out later in 2015?
The new Ford F150 with 2.7 liter or 3.5 liter Eco-boost V-6's are interesting-but I'm a hopeless Diesel head. Good Luck, TomC

[luvrbus]

In 1985 I had one employee when it came time for me to buy pickups he choose a Dodge  D-50 turbo diesel he drove that thing for 300,000 miles and loved it 

I recall it had a small Mitsubishi diesel that was a good engine they were only around for a couple of years I believe the entire truck was a Mitsubishi with just a Dodge badge 

[Lostranger]

I get dizzy when I read numbers the size of the ones you guys are throwing around.

A year and a half ago I spent $2000 on an '85 Chevy Scottsdale 3/4 ton 4wd. 4 speed automatic. Traded in at the Chevy dealership where my son is sales manager by the guy who bought it new. He replaced the engine two years before he traded. This summer I spent $700 on a top notch trans rebuild. Had a local shop do the R/R and I hauled it about an hour away to a place that specializes in race car transmission work. I put a new (not rebuilt) starter on it in August coming back from Elkhart with my bus windows and tanks other goodies. It still needs both power window regulators and nothing else. This truck is almost rust free, but it will eventually need cab corners.

It rides and drives like new, will go anywhere and it hauls or tows anything I need. I realized while reading this thread that I can fix everything on it — twice — and still have only a fraction of the money you guys are talking about invested.

And everywhere I go, guys say. "Whoa, nice truck." Works for me on every level.

Best of luck with all those piles of dollars.

Jim H

[somewhereinusa]

I bought a 82 Rabbit PU last summer with seized engine and a pile of spare parts. I've driven it about 6000 miles. Current fuel CPM is $ .10 total CPM including insurance, engine rebuild, new shocks and original purchase is $ .68.
Great towed.

[oldmansax]

I like HB's suggestion too. Clifford could build a pickup exactly to suit for half the money and it would be probably 10 times the truck. I thought a long time about putting a 6V53 in a Chevy. I just don't have the time.......

TOM

[robertglines1]

Cash's (6yr old grandson) Just bought a used 650 ford 4 door 4 wheel drive. ISB 5.9 Cummins--Jacked up . It is over 6 ft to bottom of window sill. 21 inch tv and all the off the wall things you can think of..   Main purpose= makes a rolling bill board for their mulch manufacturing business.  It will prob just pull light construction equip and mulch blower.     We have had cost discussion lately with finical and a few friends.  There was a run of the mill chev pickup diesel on the show room floor. $57,000  next to a low end but brand new 2015 corvette.  $61,600..  Something not right here!  My first home in a nice neighborhood was $7900.  a new car then was under $1800.   I don't understand the disproportionate change.     Ever seen a vehicle go up in value? (I know the exceptions.       So Cash gets to ride in his monster truck to first Grade!   Bob