So who makes the best trucks (2012, plugs, MPG, mileage)
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I'm not crazy about their styling but the F-150 is the hardest working truck from your options in the poll, imo.
GM makes nice looking trucks, Japan makes reliable trucks, Dodge has some nice engines.
But over all it's mostly the venerable Ford F-series I see shutting up and putting out in the field, day in and day out.
I'm currently driving a 1992 F-350 for my temp summer job. That truck has seen 97k of hard, relentless, all-season working miles on it and it does not give a flying hoot. We have 2 Dodges in the fleet and, even though they are little over a decade younger, they are already rusting out the butt holes. Chrysler just can't seem to shake their quality control issues. Their metal quality or ability to drain water, or something is just not there. Unacceptable for a work truck in a harsh climate that needs to last years for the tax payers. (city job)
You might as well ask people what color is the best. All the major full size trucks are about the same, with the latest redesign usually taking the lead until another brand come out with their redesign.
Ford is in front right now, because the Silverado is getting dated, but Chevy will have an answer soon. I think the Ram is a great looking truck, but I read safety ratings aren't up to par with the rest. Toyota might be my choice if I were to ever buy a new full-size truck, but I'd go with Chevy or Ford if I needed workhorse.
Titan is irrelevant until they attempt a redesign.
Hard decision here... I've owned all four listed. The Toyota was a piece of crap, easy to break and three engines, the only truck that was worse was the Ford.. in three years I probably got to drive it for 5 months, the rest of the time it was in the shop. Have owned three Chevys and two Dodges, now those were trucks. between those five I must have put over 1 million miles and my last truck is a dodge with 200k and going strong. In between my last Chevy and this Dodge I had a Jeep and it lasted over 170k until it was totaled. Any vehicle will last a long time and go many miles as long as you take care of it and do regular maintenance, that is if it is not a Ford or Toyota. All my trucks have been 4x4s, and the three Chevrolets and the first Dodge were solid axles, the Ford was a twin I-beam axle and the Toyota was IFS, This latest Dodge is an IFS but they must have really beefed up the front end, it has taken more abuse than the Toyota and has not failed yet, that I am surprised about since the second time I took the Toy out on a trail I busted the right shaft.
The Detroit trucks are used exclusively here in farm country, where people... well.. use their trucks. In the subburbs Toyotas and Titans are seen a lot more. Dodge>Titan, seeing how Nissan was going to have Dodge make their 2011 model... but that fell through with the economy. Nissan and Chrysler Halt Plans for Dodge Ram-Based Nissan Titan - PickupTrucks.com News
Well........I suspect they got the '65 Mustang right.
true, but that was long time ago. Most of the 70's, 80's and 90's Ford cars were complete TRASH. There have been improvements in the last few year though.
Last edited by WildWestDude; 07-02-2012 at 10:04 PM..
I'm afraid you'll have to build your own. (as no one seems to be rushing to that market (unfortunately)). New Emission devices are dramatically altering the practicality of Diesel economy / cost of ownership (exhaust scrubbers).
Your second sentence explains the first. Diesels do get somewhat better mileage than gasoline vehicles. But the diesel fuel costs more and erases much of the cost of fuel per mile benefit. Oh, and the diesel engine probably costs an extra $6000 over a gas engine (guessing that figure from 3/4 ton diesels costing $7-8k more than a gas engine), servicing it costs more, and they are much heavier to boot. They do last longer than gasoline engines but even with gas engines the engine usually outlasts the rest of the vehicle.
Quote:
I will have to imagine that CNG and LP will take the 'econo-less pollution' market in USA (since USA hates diesels).
We don't hate diesels. Well, I correct that, the U.S. EPA hates them but the rest of the country is largely indifferent. Like I said above, diesels work best in heavy equipment that has a very long lifespan and more or less runs the engine at a fixed speed. Virtually all construction equipment, heavy trucks, farm equipment, and most larger generators run on diesel fuel as as result. Diesels are also very popular in medium-duty trucks as well. We just don't have an irrational infatuation with them and use the tax code to get manufacturers to stuff them in places they really aren't at their best, such as small passenger cars. Lightweight inexpensive spark-ignition engines make the most sense here, which is what we have.
CNG and LP are essentially gasoline substitutes, similar to ethanol in a lot of ways but harder to store. They have very high octanes, burn very cleanly, and can be used in lightly modified spark-ignition engines that can also run gasoline. However an engine set up to run any of those fuels plus gasoline will always have relatively poor fuel economy on anything but gasoline as low-octane gasoline prevents the high compression ratios needed to obtain the full power and efficiency from those high-octane fuels. MPG is king and you can't have a spark-ignition engine that doesn't burn gasoline except in a few fleets here and there, so they are doomed to be bit players. We'll probably end up cracking a bunch of coal to create synthetic gasoline before we start to optimize engines for something that's not nearly identical to 87 octane regular petroleum gasoline.
Quote:
Was in Thailand last week, and one day took a CNG instead of Diesel Toyota cargo van... Had to stop 6x for fuel on a simple route that took less than 1/2 tank of diesel. MANY (if not MOST of the OTR transit trucks have CNG conversions / dual fuel.) I bet they are gutless.
Depends on the engine. You can have a gutless diesel too, just depends on the engine and the vehicle.
Quote:
Last I saw, someone in ID was offering F150's w/ 4BT's. They were not terribly impressive, tho I think they got ~33-35mpg. Since my 6BT gets 20-22 (empty) I can stiil drive it, tho I add most my mileage to my econo Rabbits, VW pickups, Jettas, Golfs, Passats. (lower cost of tires / brakes / bearings / shocks ...)
50 mpg since 1976, where have you been? No Dinosaurs or OPEC required.
Except that your 1976 diesel Rabbits have a snowball's chance in Phoenix in July of passing remotely current emissions standards, crash standards, and probably even starting reliably on a cold day in much of the country. They also have roughly 60 hp and are woefully underpowered to drive on highways that have speed limits higher than the 55 mph of 1976 (and are even sketchy at 55.) The current Jetta TDI is a better comparison as it isn't a wheezy, smoking death trap. It gets in the upper 30s for mileage, which is minimally better than the gasoline versions.
I've owned 3 GM trucks and have never had a major problem with any of them. The only breakdown I ever had with any of the 3 was when my distributor went out on my '86 C10. Replaced it, ran like a charm.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
