Truck Confusion
August 18th, 2009Sea of Options
Truck owners, clue me in.
I originally wanted a regular cab pickup with an 8-foot bed, in 2-wheel drive. But it’s easier to get the other good stuff, like the big motor, the good suspension, and trailering doodads, if I go with an extended cab, 6.5-foot bed, and 4×4.
Am I going to regret this for eternity? Will the smaller bed drive me insane? I have no idea how to put a sheet of plywood in a short bed. And the extended pickups have a really stupid pretend backseat, which is utterly pointless. I would rather have empty space.
I am thinking this would still be a good choice for the rare occasions when I’d move very heavy stuff, because it will pull a rental trailer with no problems.
August 18th, 2009 at 10:34 AM
With a 6 1/2 foot bed, you drop the tailgate and that gives you the extra length you need. Plus, you have secure storage in the extended cab.
August 18th, 2009 at 10:43 AM
Previous trucks that I’ve owned have all been standard cabs/8′ beds. Present truck is extended cab (“quad cab” in Dodge-speak) with an 8′ bed. It works well, but is a bit long to park if necessary. As it is 2WD, I have gotten it stuck 3 times now, while pulling our travel trailer.
Personally, I think you’ll be happy with that truck, for the reasons that Steve mentions. The 4WD can come in handy, believe it or not.
August 18th, 2009 at 10:56 AM
We have had Suburbans for 30 years. Always with 4WD. But we are on beaches, swamps, etc a lot. Well, at least we used to be, back in the day. I have begged my husband to get an extended cab pickup because there always comes a time when you just need a pickup. So far I’ve begged in vain. But I would say get a pickup, extended cab, 4 WD. Reason: you can haul things, and 4WD is just enough higher that it can go through water a little better in case of hurricane flooding.
August 18th, 2009 at 11:48 AM
The seat in my extended cab is folded up – like Steve said – for secured storage. There are going to be times when you don’t want to put things in the bed. If you have a passenger with you on a shopping trip, then you have no place to keep stuff without it getting stolen.
Honestly, 4wd would probably be a waste for you since your driving never takes you away from pavement and you never see snow or ice. Should you venture away from your tropical paradise, it could come in right handy. If you had a boat that could be towed by your pickup, 4wd is very useful on a boat ramp as well. If you ever do move north to a rural area, 4wd will become a lot more useful.
August 18th, 2009 at 1:47 PM
We had an extended cab Ranger and we just made 2×4 braces when we needed to hall plywood or drywall. We have lived in Florida for 9 yrs now and never had to use the 4WD (take that back used once when hubby got truck on a serious strange angle in the culvert in front of the house)
What ever you get spend the money and get a Rhino liner put in it. Nothing and I mean nothing will slide in the bed.
August 18th, 2009 at 2:28 PM
Steve, I just got this (and I hate Hannity) but it’s important:
Subject: “WHAT WAS ELIMINATED FROM HANNITY”
To everyone who thought the special about Obama was going to be on Hannity. It was taken off. Here are the segments. You better watch now before they are removed too.
Yes, the program was not aired Sunday so it was googled and found the segments had been taken off of the internet as well. Wonder who did this?
‘Wonder who blocked this? Is this our NEW Government ‘protecting’ us?
Here are the 6 segments . . . . If they have not been removed before you get to them.
Part 1 – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rthv8QmJLUw
Part 2 – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kJNhKZh8mGY&feature=fvw
Part 3 – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95XFUi8PrTs&feature=related
Part 4 – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gl4twMf1xyM&feature=related
Part 5 – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CKzFtKEysjw&feature=related
Part 6 – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EmEmRbRJFLU&feature=related
August 18th, 2009 at 2:40 PM
As jdunmyer says above, I have the “Quad Cab” in Dodge-speak, with the short-bed.
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I’ve hauled 4’x8′ plywood sheet with no issue; as Steve_in_CA says, just drop the tail-gate, or as I’ve also seen done, leave the tailgate up and have one end of the plywood rest on the lip of the tailgate.
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I have found that the “lock up stuff out of the way and out of sight” aspect of the Quad-Cab is pretty valuable. Got a laptop or travel bag?..throw it in the back seat. Most of these trucks have deep tinting in the back so that it’s almost impossible to see stuff back there unless it’s painted highway cone orange, and even that can be hard to make out…
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I will admit that I have the 2WD version (in Illinois no less!), but I upgarded the rear-end to a Posi and put real truck tires on it (it came with passenger car radials). The changes have made a world of difference in the snow.
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If you don’t get the 4×4, see if you can get a Posi-rear end. It could save you getting stuck in mud or sand (yes, I know South-Florida has Coral and Rock, not sand, but you do go to Kentucky on occasion, right? 😉
August 18th, 2009 at 2:43 PM
I can think of two things that might make 4WD useful. First, boat ramps. I’ve seen submerged vehicles at boat ramps, and it’s really disturbing. Second, using the truck as a tractor, which any handy person will do once in a while. I still remember trying to yank concrete slugs out of the yard.
August 18th, 2009 at 2:58 PM
I’ve got a standard cab, 8′ bed, tonneau cover 350 cube V8, Auto trans.
If I get a load of plywood or drywall, it can stay dry in the rain til I get to it.
My tools have been secure in there for years.
I’ve got 2WD in Michigan and have driven on blizzard days when the cops were shutting down entrance ramps, with no problem (I’m not bragging, just saying). Pulls great. There’s room behind the seat for laptop, rifle, etc.
Your choice, based on your needs. I’d regret a short bed. No one else does, I guess.
I don’t want to pay to repair a transfer case I rarely use.
August 18th, 2009 at 3:46 PM
4WD is indeed handy for boat ramps; if there’s any loose ground, a 2WD may not make it back out of the water once you have the boat in deep enough water to float. Just saw it happen last week in fact (no, it wasn’t me, we don’t have a boat!).
August 18th, 2009 at 5:04 PM
I agree with JD who agrees with Steve in CA. Besides, once you have 4WD you’ll find reasons to use it.
If you really want to haul sheet stuff then build a rack that extends over the cab. Once you have your Bobcat hooked up you won’t be able to corner with your tailgate down.
August 18th, 2009 at 5:31 PM
My one pickup was standard bed and standard cab with 4WD. Never used the 4WD, but sorely missed having anywhere to lock up cameras, computers, etc. If I got another, it would be extended cab.
August 18th, 2009 at 6:07 PM
I’m w Ed- got a Ford w 8 ft bed extended cab 2 wd in Ill. Hauls like a mutha, good in snow and the only time I got stuck in mud the 4 wd which came to help me got stuck too- the farmers John Deer got us both out. And it was cheap.
August 18th, 2009 at 6:12 PM
We have a standard cab with a short bed Dodge Ram. I would prefer we had the extended cab or even a four door truck. I know we would drive our truck more if we could all sit in the darn thing! You never know what will happen, you may decide to drive your sister and dad to church with you some time, with an extended cab, you can all go together. 😉
August 18th, 2009 at 6:45 PM
I can’t live without the big engine, tow package, and limited slip. Hard to get all that with an 8-foot bed. You would think it would be a natural combination, but Ford disagrees.
August 18th, 2009 at 7:33 PM
The reason Ford doesn’t offer it is that the 4WD often fall into the higher (lower mileage) CAFE category. Keeping the HD options out of the light truck line keeps the CAFE numbers higher for the lighter trucks.
August 18th, 2009 at 7:44 PM
I can’t live without the big engine, tow package, and limited slip. Hard to get all that with an 8-foot bed. You would think it would be a natural combination, but Ford disagrees.
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Steve, I thought I’d get online and see what kind of trucks the Ford dealers in Coral Gables offered…so naturally I googled “Coral Gables Ford” and this is what I got:
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http://www.coralgablesford.com/
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No wonder you can’t find a decent truck…do they all come in pink or pastel green?
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Ya know Carmax will ship you a truck…what about this one:
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http://tinyurl.com/psy57y
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Can’t tell if it has limited slip though…
August 18th, 2009 at 7:49 PM
Why buy a new pickup? Spend the same effort and find a late model used one with the stuff you like already on it. My pickup is a ’92 F150 2WD Extended cab 8′ box. I’ve had it six years. Two years in I had a limited slip differential installed. I have real truck tires on it and have never had an issue at launch ramps, or towing my 5th wheel trailer. It will easily carry 1200 pounds. Oh, yeah, when I bought it I wanted the extended cab so I could carry Boy Scouts on outings. I don’t do that any more, but it has enough room back there for my 100# Amstaff Terrier. It is still great for carrying stuff I don’t want out in the weather.
One other benefit to buying used is that the first owner worked out the bugs and paid the 50%+ depreciation.
Gerry N.
August 18th, 2009 at 8:06 PM
Brother in law hauls stuff for a living, in truck and with trailers – has the Ford double cab F250 diesel with the 6 1/2′ bed, we just hauled 10′ barn siding by shoving it in with the tailgate up, 3-1/2 feet sticking out is barely noticeable. It is a bear with a large turning radius, but 2 wheel drive and good aggresive tires get through any Michigan winter. Has a plow attachment for winter driveway clearing, not that you know what that is…. I say it is a good combination and you can haul pretty much anything.
August 18th, 2009 at 8:09 PM
How much more trouble and expense to order one like you want?
August 18th, 2009 at 8:29 PM
There are some decent choices in Florida. I’m not too worried.
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As for used trucks, that was my first idea, but the prices I’m seeing appear to be the results of psychiatric disorders. They are extremely unrealistic. People don’t seem to realize you can’t charge 85% of the new price for a year-old truck.
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Ordering…do they still DO that?
August 18th, 2009 at 9:28 PM
Yeah, You can order it, you just can’t fly to the plant and pick it up to save delivery charges anymore.
However, check the prices up here at a year old. Fly up and take one back. We’ll do lunch.
2007 F-150 Super Crew 4×4 – $23000 – (Clinton Twp.) pic <<cars & trucks – by owner
2008 Ford F-150 SuperCrew XLT 4X4 (Stock# P3091T) Black Beauty! – $25999 – (Garden City, MI)
07 F150- Bank Liquidation – (Westland) (5.4 v8)
2008 F150 Supercab V8 XLT 4×4 (A MUST SEE) – $24995 – (Brighton)
August 19th, 2009 at 8:24 AM
4wd is a tool. You need it even if you don’t currently have use for it.
And, like you said, it can come in handy with a big boat on a steep , slippery boat ramp.
August 19th, 2009 at 1:03 PM
A friend just bought a 2000 Ford F-250 with the PSD, short bed, extended cab. Had less than 45,000 miles on it (IE: not quite broken in yet), and paid $14,000.00 for it from Brondes in Toledo, OH.
My own truck was bought in San Antonio, TX in October of 2007, it’s a 2001, 2500, CTD, and had less than 47,000 miles on it at the time. I paid $17,000.00, about trade-in value. Yeah, the LH map light in the overhead console was bad (still is), but we just finished a trip to Alaska that was 11,500 miles w/o any truck trouble.
August 23rd, 2009 at 10:14 PM
Whatever you do, don’t get a manual tranny in a Ford.I drive a 3 yr old F-250 at work. The clutch and tranny are so stiff my GF couldn’t drive it.
August 27th, 2009 at 2:17 PM
I’ve only ever owned 4×4’s – and the last two full-sized trucks with 6.5 beds. The bed has always been big enough – never wanted more.
But a 4×4 in Florida? You can’t pull your dad’s boat, and you don’t get snow. And if you’re gonna go all redneck (not that there’s anything wrong with that) and go mud-boggin a 4×4 w/o 46″ tires is just gonna get you stuck…
August 27th, 2009 at 2:20 PM
“But it’s easier to get the other good stuff, like the big motor, the good suspension, and trailering doodads, if I go with an extended cab, 6.5-foot bed, and 4×4.”