"I am simply amazed how fast these half tons run out of payload."
Why are you "amazed?" They don't call them "half tons" for nothing.
Back in the 1940's a "half ton" truck had 1000lbs of payload. Over the course of natural evolution, that number has increased substantially to the point where a modern "half ton" truck has about 1500lbs of payload capacity on average.
1500lbs isn't that much in the grand scheme. A 6000lb trailer will eat half that payload capacity just in tongue weight. 250lb dad, 150lb mom, and two 50lb children is another 500lbs. It doesn't take long to eat up the remaining 250lbs tossing stuff in the bed of the truck because it's easier than packing it away in the camper where it belongs.
...and that's assuming you have a modestly-appointed truck. Get yourself a jacked-up, blinged-out, 4x4 with all the bells and whistles, and your payload goes right in the toilet. You'll be lucky to be under GVWR with just you, the wife, and the kids on board.
2002 Chevy 3500 DRW 8.1L/Allison
2000 Palomino B1500
...and the reason why I need a DRW to haul a Palomino:
2004 United 7x14 tandem axle enclosed toy trailer
2011 PJ 8x20 7-ton deckover equipment trailer
those are both nice trucks as far as comfort wise either should do what you want.. i've worked on two pairs of both style of truck in that configuration cc,drw.. all four had no problems pulling anything hooked to them.. pick which ever makes the family happiest
My wife and I have been talking about this for a long time.
I knew that I was pushing my half ton F150 pretty hard with my TT. It really does tow very well.
Last year when I bought my F150 the boys fit pretty well.
My oldest son has gained about 20 lbs so far in the last 14 months and to put it bluntly, he has to turn sideways to fit in the back seat of the extended cab.
Tomorrow, as long as everything works out, I am selling my F150 extended cab, and we are going on the hunt for a 3/4 or 1 ton something. (want some growing room for future trailers, and possibly a golf cart in the bed)
We got to keep the price around $7000.00 so we will be looking at mid to late 90's to early 2000's models with some higher milage.
Probably going to look for a 7.3 PSD Crew Cab, or a V10,
We found a 97 F350 Dually crew cab 7.3 PSD XLT for right around 7k asking price. We also found a SuperDuty crew cab, Lariat, v10 with high miles for about 5900.00.
Anyway, the post should have a point or a question and not just an FYI ramble so here it goes.
Anything in particular to look out for with an older HD truck that may be unique to HD use?
I know how to check the oil, fluids, etc. I understand that for the 7.3 diesels I need to check for electrolysis in the coolant system. I know nothing about the V10's, except they are functionally similar to the 5.4 I have now (cop's, modular design, etc)
I have not ruled out a GM or a Dodge,
For Dodge I just do not expect to be able to afford an 03-up crew cab diesel, maybe a Hemi, not sure.
GM, I know a bit about the 6.0 and the 8.1, but the reality is that I will probably be looking at 454 Crew cab dually's (seen quite a few in our price range that look pretty decent)
I didn't mean for this post to get so long, just kind of excited to be on the hunt again, hopefully, I will get it right this time.
Thank!
....and to think you have, right up until this weekend, been posting that ya truck is the greatest thing since sliced bread! LOL.
Anyway to help.....you are probably aware anyway that people on this Forum mention the fact that Ford 6.8 V10s somtimes blow the spark plugs out of their seats, minimal threads in an alloy engine?
Some great input to your post on here so far, very informative.
Chevrolet Silverado 1500 LTZ 2007 (new shape)
4x4 Crew Cab VORTEC MAX (L76) 6.0L V8 4L70E 4.10 axle
factory NHT Max Trailering Package.
2010 Coachmen Freedom Express 280 RLS
"...a Waldorf Salad?, sorry we are fresh out of Waldorfs!".......BASIL FAWLTY.
Well with fuel prices going up, I have seen a few more V10 fords hitting the street for sale. Take your time and search around, thats how I found my truck. It was a few years back and gas hit 4-5 dollars a gallon, when the previous owner flipped pretty hard and sold me his truck. Being honest.. I got a steal on it, like really cheap....So take your time, everybody wants to unload any xtra items they dont need right now. You are in a great position to pick up a great shape HD truck... mabey a little newer then you had originally thought!!
....and to think you have, right up until this weekend, been posting that ya truck is the greatest thing since sliced bread! LOL.
Anyway to help.....you are probably aware anyway that people on this Forum mention the fact that Ford 6.8 V10s somtimes blow the spark plugs out of their seats, minimal threads in an alloy engine?
Some great input to your post on here so far, very informative.
Hey, you got to run what you brung right? LOL..
I hope I never came across as recommending someone doing something unsafe. I certainly never intended that. I tried my best to be as safe as possible, but all my tows were within 75 miles of home.
I do think that half tons are quite safe when properly set up. The F-150 pulled pretty good. There was always something in the back of my head saying "You are overloaded" (which I was, GVWR). Will this opinion change once I tow with a HD truck? Maybe, I am not sure.
Experience tends to be a good teacher. I tried to do the best I could with what I had.
The reality that any upgrade of the camper, and if the boys keep growing it requires an upgrade of the truck. I am simply out of payload. I could ignore it, but I just can't ignore it.
mkirsch wrote: Why are you "amazed?" They don't call them "half tons" for nothing.
I am amazed how fast stuff adds up. It seems like basic math, but, like a lot of folks, I looked at the tow rating, my F150 had 8000 lb tow rating. Reality is if I had 8000 lbs of TT off of the hitch then 1040 lbs of my payload is almost gone, before me, my wife, my boys jump in the truck.
Anyway, not trying to justify myself, the decision has been made, it will be a 3/4 ton or a 1 ton.
Update on the search:
Tonight we looked at a pretty decent buy, it was a 95, Suburban 2500 with 454, 4.10 axles, and automatic. The mileage was 104,000 miles!!! Mechanically the truck was in very good condition.
The interior.. well.. both front seats needed recovered to be to the DW satisfaction. This is on our "Maybe" list.
Cons: The seats!!! and the 454 is pre Vortec (it still ran like a scalded dog), the steering felt lighter than my F150's. The third row was missing??
Pro's: 4.10, where have you been all my life!!! LOL Lots of torque. Lots and lots of room for the kids, driveline was near perfect.
Prospects still on the radar
1996 F350 Dually crew cab, 7.3 Diesel, Automatic, XLT, 130 ish miles
Supposed to have a "perfect to very good" interior, exterior looks pretty good from the pics.
1997 Suburban 2500, nice, nice, nice, interior, Not sure of the motor, 2wd, Has custom 20's on it (almost a deal breaker for me) DW loves the pics, but I am not sure.. if its a 5.7 then it is automatically off the list. The 20's make me nervous, I am afraid they will reduce capacity. 130k miles
1999 F350 2wd Crew Cab, XL package, V10, Automatic, 145k miles. EXCELLENT shape, but its an XL package, which means vinyl seats, vinyl floor mats, roll up windows (easy to clean up after the boys!!!)
The 96 F350 and the 99 F350 are the same price, about the same miles, My gut tells me to lean towards the 99 because of the heavier chassis and the newer design of the truck. The work truck trim would not bother me at all, DW is actually the one who found it.
As you can tell, we are leaning towards two types of vehicles, either a crew cab dually or a 3/4 ton SUV...
Just haven't been able to find 3/4 ton crew cab trucks in our price range yet.
Anyway, I will shut this long post up for now, stay tuned if you are still interested. lol
P.S. I get to upgrade the brake controller too!!
Thanks!
Jeremiah
TT: 1995 Layton 2910
Tow Vehicle: 1999 F-350, v10, 2wd, Crew Cab, Dually
Hitch: Draw-Tite Trunnion WD Hitch
Sway Control: Valley dual friction sway control
Brake Control: Tekonsha Voyager
"It's Kind of Fun To Do The Impossible"
~Walt Disney~
Jerem; if you are looking at older Dodge trucks be fair warned that the Dodge Quad Cab is smaller then a Crew Cab by 3". Yes it is larger then the Club Cabs but not as big as a true Crew Cab.
I'm 6'3" and 250 and would not want to ride in the rear seat for 8 hours. My son is 6'1" and 150 and anytime we go anywhere I make him sit on the passenger side or it makes for a very unpleasant trip for everyone.
I would say look for a clean Ford or GM Crew Cab or a full size 250/2500 Conversion van.
Don
Sorry had to go do a job, you can look at the Mega Cab, older Hemi's can be found cheep enough but the diesels still command a high price. 03/04 then 04.5/06 CTD 5.9 Rams currently are the most sought after trucks and as such are going for high dollar. But with the mileage we see are well worth it if you drive/tow a lot.
Good luck in your search.
* This post was
edited 04/24/12 09:33am by Perrysburg Dodgeboy *
Perrysburg Dodgeboy 2004 Dodge Ram 2500 Quad Cab SLT Cummins HO
2005 Keystone Cougar 304 BHS
Chrysler the only one to pay back 100% of their loans from the Government. *The Old Car Company" still owes 1.6 billion. Is that better Chuckles
Jerem, that '95 454 the pre-Vortec in my opinion is the better engine for towing. The TBI motors make there peak torque significantly lower in engine RPM, right around freeway speeds in overdrive with a 4.10 gear as a matter of fact ~2000 RPM. The Vortec 454's make there peak torque if memory serves me right at ~ 4,000 RPM. So don't rule the '95 out on the pre-Vortec thing.
2002 Chevy 2500HD 4x4 6.0L 4L85E 4.10 Full Floater 9200GVW 16K GCVW
2009 Rockwood Roo 23SS for camping
1989 Searay 230CC for the weekends when not camping.
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