Taking a truck survey!

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jandk

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Hi folks!  I joined the forum a few months ago and have been appreciating all of the great information which you are so willing to share.  So....my hubby is retiring next summer and we will begin our fulltime rv adventure soon thereafter.  We will be ordering our Heartland Landmark next September at the Hershey RV Show, and now we are deciding on a truck. 

We know that we will be buying a 350/3500 diesel dually, as our fifth wheel is 18,000 lbs GVWR.  The question is, should we buy the new 2017 Ford 350 that just came out, or a 3500 Silverado/Sierra?  Both have great towing capacity, but we have not owned a truck before so I am hoping that those of you who are passionate about your truck will share your wisdom with us as we make this decision.  We are not really considering the Ram 3500 - I'm not sure why, but maybe one of you will convince me that we should look at it also.

Anyway, I am taking a survey of truck owners on the forum - what would be the best truck for hauling a fulltime fifth wheel around the country for the next 5 to 10 years?  Thanks everyone!
 
Good for you!!

Enjoy your travels no matter what truck you select.

All those 3 trucks are excellent choices and any of them will serve you well for years to come.
They are the heart of America!!

You will be flooded with opinions and preferences......good luck.

 
Any of those are great trucks, and very capable/reliable.

My recommendation? Don't buy a brand new model truck (not in at least the first year of release) - you will be the guinea pig for any 'flaws' yet to be identified on the mfr's pre-production test mules!

I came from a Ford F150, and bought a new GMC 2500 Duramax earlier this year. (I have -zero- "brand loyalty", and prefer to buy the best truck at the time for -my- specific needs!) I considered the Ford, but didn't want to buy the last year of the old model (horrible resale later), nor the first year of the new model - and for the very reason stated above.
 
I'll Cut To the Chase:

Since 1979, I'm on my 5th F-350 Dually Diesel. Put over 200K miles on each.

Nothing wrong with the other Makes at all. I'm just a believer in.. If It's work'n For Ya.. Stick with it.

Our 2012 is a Workhorse. Rides like a Car, Pulls like a Big Truck. Plenty of Power and the DRW's gives me the Load capability I want, and the Stability I Like.

425 HP and 800+ foot pounds of torque... Out'a the Box.... is all I need.

The Dodge & Chevy guyz will be along shortly.
 
I happen to have a F350 SRW and love it, but that does not make it the best choice for YOU.

With that said, the choice of trim level becomes a major decision.  Do you want leather seats?  Is dual climate control a requirement?  Power seats?  Cruise?  Are cloth seats and manual A/C acceptable?

All three are very good choices.  If I were speaking to your other half, I would say to drive all three and get the one your wife likes best.

I suggest used for both the truck and camper.  You will save a bundle on both and a used camper will not need to spend several months in the first year at the dealer for warranty service.
 
The best selling car in America is the Ford F-150 so you will undoubtedly get more votes for the Ford. Since it is the best seller you would probably be able to sell it quicker when the time comes.
 
You can't buy a bad diesel these days. All 3 of the players have pros and cons. Take all 3 for an extended test drive, you will know which one is right just by the way it feels.

good luck.
 
Alpena Jeff said:
All of the big diesel pickups are in high demand in the used marketplace. Buy the red one. 8)
Click to expand...
Disagree....I would get the white one  ;D..

Seriously I would drive them all and then you decide which one you like. All three are good trucks.
 
I chose to buy from the company that didn't take the government (taxpayer) bailout.
 
I am totally in the tank for Ford. LOL I currently have 4 of them. 3 cars and a F250. LOL So far I have towed my 13,000# trailer across the United States without a single problem. A total of 12,000 miles. I had to change the oil 3 times on our trip wasn't expecting that . My truck is totally stock except for the 4 inch hole I had to cut in the bed when I got the truck for the hitch. Most dealers dont have any trucks with the 5th wheel prep package. Camper package they may have but no hole in the bed. So you will unless you order the truck have to install your own hitch like I did.
I have the Lariat package without the sun roof but all the rest of the options. I plan on doing lots of traveling so I needed a comfortable truck and this one fits just right to me. You will need the DRW because you will need the 11.5K truck capacity for sure. Not sure you can get the 11.5K in a SRW.

  You are in f350 territory for sure but it's funny the F250 has the same motor. LOL The 17 has more power and torque and H/P than previous years. It also sits higher than the previous years not sure why but it looks like 3 inches.  My dealer has 20 16's on his lot so its going to be deal time soon. I wouldn't be comfortable not buying a new truck because you never know how the previous owner took care of it. With a new truck you will know it's history.
 
    As Lynnmor said I wouldn't buy from anyone that took a bail out from the government. There are you Youtube videos of the Dodge boys smoking dope and drinking beer in a park at lunch. Dodge fired them but the union made Dodge hire them back. So I never even considered a Dodge. 
Good luck with what you decide and happy RVing
 
I would recommend trying out all three,  Ford, GM, and Ram. I'm not really sure why Ram would be out of the running,  they're a great truck. I've owned all three brands and don't particularly like one over the other.
 
And.... which ever truck and trim level you chose, verify the REAL load capacity by including the passenger load, stock, pin weight and hitch of that particular truck. The load (CCC) for your particular truck as it left the factory is shown on the yellow sticker on the side of the door... But it does NOT include all the other things you add are going to carry.    That is one heavy trailer, like mine!!!
 
I would go to each dealer and test drive them all first.  We are a Dodge family and LOVE our 3500 Dually Cummins Diesel 6-speed manual transmission.  Traded in a 2002 of the same.

Good luck! 
 
Hi again folks!  Thanks for all of the great wisdom and information shared.  Keep it coming. We will include the Ram in our test driving, since there are many of you who are enthusiasts and it seems with good reason.  I'm wondering if the Silverado and Sierra are essentially the same truck, or should we be test driving 4 trucks rather than 3?  Also, how difficult is it to find a used diesel dually on the market?  It seems as though there aren't many out there on dealer lots - people tend to keep their duallys for a long time, unless there is a problem, and then I don't really want one with a problem....just pondering used vs. new....
 
I will speak up for Ram. But really I am speaking up for Cummins.  I have had about 5 different Ram trucks (one currently) and 3 different motor homes with a Cummins (including currently).  It's a good motor, but not all were perfect. I had a 2001 3/4 ton truck that had the Cummins 5.9 diesel in it. The motor was solid, but the Bosch fuel pump had a way of imploding at the cost of about $1200 each. 

My current 6.7 Cummins does not have that problem and pulls like a beast.  The older Fords with the Power Stroke motor made by International had some issues that they couldn't fix.  The current motors have proved to be quite reliable.  Chevy for a while in the early 90's didn't offer a diesel after their earlier motors had problems.  But since they went to the motor built by Isuzu, the Duramax has been a great diesel. 

So as others have mentioned, all the diesel's from the big three are strong and dependable. It really boils down to what interiors you like, and how you believe each one rides.  I would drive a dually from each manufacture and make your best choice from your own opinion. 

As for new or used, all of mine but one have been purchased new.  The used ones are still solid trucks, if you can find one. But they will command a big price tag as well as diesels are generally solid for 500K miles at least, and a million mile truck is not unusual.  I just like being the guy to put the first dent in the new truck....
 
I'll add 1 piece of common economic advice.  When buying new, buy the vehicle with the best resale value. When buying used, go the other way. Let me illustrate, 2 pickups, Ford/Chevy, comparably equipped, both cost $50,000, or nearly so, new. After 5 years the Ford sells for $33,000, the Chevy for $29,000. Obviously the Ford cost you $4000 less to own. Now go looking for a 5 year old pickup, now the Chevy, essentially the same pickup, costs you $4000 less to buy.  These are not real world numbers, I just made them up to illustrate the point.

OK, 1 more point. I've always laughed at the guys that say "just buy the diesel, you'll get your money back when you sell it." So I ran a little test, I checked Chevy.com and found that the current charge for the diesel option is almost $7800. I then went to autotrader.com and looked at 4,5, & 6 year old Chevy trucks with both gas and then diesel engines. I picked the 10 closest examples of each truck.  I was shocked to find these numbers; Gas engine trucks, 2500HD, averaged $28,300, while 2500HD diesel trucks averaged $36,100.  $36100 - $28300 = $7800, yep, you really do get your money back when selling a diesel.
 
Sound level inside the truck is a factor to us.  Diesels by the nature of the beasts are louder than gas.  I have loved my diesel trucks but as I get older I like being able to talk to my wife while traveling.  Sometimes listening to the radio without it being loud is kind of nice too.  My next truck will be a diesel as well but I'm going to try and get the  seller to demo it pulling a load as there is a difference in noise level pulling as some brands are quieter than others pulling a load.  I'm also torn between getting auto-transmission vs straight.  Better mileage, more control on shifting too with straight drive.  I prefer straight and my wife is OK with straight drive.  Resale value will be a factor as well.  I don't know which of the two would retain comparable value.  I assume straight would be cheaper to start with but don't know if any savings would be lost at resale time. 
 
Sorry to hear of your bias.  Rams have 20% fewer moving parts, best interiors in the business, ride and handling on par with anyone else. Not to mention a transmission second to none.  GM is now in third place in sales.  Ford and GM both use the same failure prone lift pump.  GM luckily is quietly replacing them under warrenty while Ford owners who experience a failure are forced to fork out thousands in repairs.  Good luck in your choice.
 
Hi Don,

donn said:
Not to mention a transmission second to none. 
Click to expand...

You mean the AISIN, or one of the other two?

We're planning to buy a 3500HD RAM next year and heard good things about the AISIN, but it costs $2500 or so extra, and we wonder whether it's worth it.

Cheers,
--
  Vall & Mo.
 
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