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Your right, the list is only intended to be a minimum at the best.
Pick-up Trucks
- Thread starter PacingTheCage
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You could sleep a regular sized adult on the front dinette bed. Our two dogs (55 & 75 pounds) sleep on it with lots of room. In a perfect world, if I had funds to do it all over again I'd really consider the flatbed Hawk, the side door entry and having the dinette at the rear away from the bed (and the under-bed storage) are really intriguing bonus').
Member II
Thanks, would you put it on the Tundra still? That looks like Alaska mud on your rig. Is it? If so how did that trip go?
Influencer I
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Pre EGR, DPF, DOC, SCR, and DEF I would agree, but now adays with all of that even the big heavy duty engines are only lasting 750K miles as opposed to over 1 million, and spend about as much time in the shop as on the road. Pre exhaust after treatment is a whole different animal, you could not pay me to own an after treatment equiped diesel engine, they just dont make sense unless your hauling for a living.
That's a tough call. I think that if I went with a flatbed I'd probably go with a 1 ton of some sort. That of course, raises questions of which truck, something I don't even care to consider right now. I've seen a couple Tundra flatbed builds now, so it will be interesting to see if the added weight causes any issues. I can tell you I have no power issues with our setup, even fully loaded. Stock gearing on the Tundra is 4.3 which works well. I've toyed with the idea of going up to a 4.88 to enhance the more serious off-road capabilities (not that she doesn't seem to crawl up anything already).
I took that picture somewhere along The Dempster Hwy last July. We drove all the way to the end of the road in Tuk, and camped out on the shore of the Arctic. It was a most memorable trip, 8500+km over 3.5 weeks. The truck performed flawlessly . (I had an issue with a cv axle boot clamp snapping off, but that was due to a mechanic at home over-tightening it when it was in for a service)
Member II
Thanks for sharing. That’s a trip I want to take in 2 years if not sooner. The head to Alaska.
Member III
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You said it, I believe it, I wasn't really referring to American made diesels as much as I was foreign diesels that cant get into the USA. I don't know the technicalities on diesel engines but I have no reason to disbelieve you. One of my son's was a truck driver OTR. He did it for 30 years and finally quit because they gave him ridiculous delivery schedules and trucks that spent half their time in the garage or out on the road waiting for a mechanic or wrecker. Every hour he sat waiting for his rig to be fixed meant another hour he had to make up somewhere. Drivers are only allowed a certain number of hours behind the wheel each week. He always had 20 more hours than allowed to even get near the schedule he had to meet or get fired. He didn't drink, smoke or take dope but he died at age 64 from brain cancer he probably got from some of the loads he carried and the many chemical plants etc. he sat in waiting to make his deliveries. That's not to speak of the many hours of sleeping in a truck stop with all the diesel engines running all day and all night. The government dosent know what is safe or what isn't or else they don't really care, take you choice.
Influencer I
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I hear ya man, and I feel for your son too. I have been a heavy duty truck mechanic for 7 years now, and in that short time a lot has changed. I honestly dont know how owner operators make it. Fleet drivers seem to do alright, but it is a tough world, and they dont get near the recognition they are due.
As far as the engines go, 2007 was the year everything changed for diesel. I am confident that the industry will figure it out and make a reliable product, we just havent quite yet.
Member III
We should really all stop saying new American cars and trucks, save for the luxury brands, are just as reliable as the traditional imports. American makers tend to outdo the imports in a lot of ways, yes, but reliability is not one of them.
Here, Chevy was the best among American trucks, but was still 16% more likely to have problems than Toyota. Lexus completely outdid the competition.
Most of that is because the Japanese executives are more tolerant of modest growth, as opposed to chasing big paydays with huge model changes. The Tundra is coming up on 14 years old with little more than occasional facelifts, but they still sell 200k per year because they are outstandingly reliable.
The 4Runner is now 10 years old, and as you can see below, it is as solid as anything. Having spent a good deal of time on Ford truck forums, these are considered "ancient" in those circles. Hell, I saw guys complaining about how the new SuperDuty was getting old having been laat updated in 2017. All-new aluminum bodies, huge power and torque figures, ever-increasing towing capacities, and gucci interiors are benchmarks for American trucks. But, we can't have your cake and eat it too; these American makers simply can't afford to do the same level of QA testing with these all-new parts and equipment with all these refreshes and keep the vehicles competitively priced. (More specifically, they tend to spend their R&D money building new models every few years, rather than every 7-10 years and simply refining them in the interum).
Here, Chevy was the best among American trucks, but was still 16% more likely to have problems than Toyota. Lexus completely outdid the competition.
Most of that is because the Japanese executives are more tolerant of modest growth, as opposed to chasing big paydays with huge model changes. The Tundra is coming up on 14 years old with little more than occasional facelifts, but they still sell 200k per year because they are outstandingly reliable.
The 4Runner is now 10 years old, and as you can see below, it is as solid as anything. Having spent a good deal of time on Ford truck forums, these are considered "ancient" in those circles. Hell, I saw guys complaining about how the new SuperDuty was getting old having been laat updated in 2017. All-new aluminum bodies, huge power and torque figures, ever-increasing towing capacities, and gucci interiors are benchmarks for American trucks. But, we can't have your cake and eat it too; these American makers simply can't afford to do the same level of QA testing with these all-new parts and equipment with all these refreshes and keep the vehicles competitively priced. (More specifically, they tend to spend their R&D money building new models every few years, rather than every 7-10 years and simply refining them in the interum).
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Well of course I can appreciate your point of view...if I had a truck with 375,000 miles on it I would certainly feel very good about its brand. I'm not a die hard fan of anything...too many variables. I know the 2008 model F350s had a lot of issues due to being the first year of some changes and most people who had that year had issues and hated it. 2007 and 2009 year owners loved the F350. So not only is it hard to compare different makes, its also hard to compare the same make with different years of manufacture. What ever gets me from Point A to Point B with the least amount of grief is my new favorite... :)
Boostpowered
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Member III
Really? Seems like there are alot more domestic trucks on trails than ever, sure there are still the yotas but domestic has caught up. Plus if you consider jeeps a truck ( i do they have a sort of bed) then weve got the imports outnumbered.
Boostpowered
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Member III
Do you hate the enviroment? Only things wrong with dpf egr systems is that they rob some power (5-20hp) and eventually break like any other part. Also you dont get to roll black smoke on acceleration just clear clean h20, block off the egr with a plate and your dpf system will last alot longer since the soot wont be recirculating, also the addition of oil catch cans will keep the engine and turbo clean and working much longer. Most folks abuse and overload diesels just because they are diesels, do what we do with diesels and see how long that gas engine lasts. My colorado duramax weighs 6300lbs its rated to tow 7700lbs and ive tow more than 10000lbs with it on multiple occasions cows weigh alot especially in the mud, I get around 28 mpg on my diesel if all the tires are aired all the way up with no load, i get around 19 when ive got the duramax maxed out.
I have 320,000 on the clock on my '95 Cummins.
I see Ram is pretty low on that list for reliability. If the dash cracking is part of their study I suppose I can see why. That doesn't stop the truck though.
I see Ram is pretty low on that list for reliability. If the dash cracking is part of their study I suppose I can see why. That doesn't stop the truck though.
Boostpowered
Rank VI
Member III
They probably are rating the gasoline engine rams, i had a gas v8 one back in 97 it was always having sensors or the water pump go out, the diesel models engine will definately live longer than the truck body and drivetrain. The ram i had ensured id never buy dodge again but i would consider swapping a cummins into something else.
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My full size F-150 4x4 has taken me places I couldn't get to with my previous 2 wheel drive Sport Trac and Ranger! Running great still with 112,000 + miles on her!
Influencer I
My F-150 has 190k and counting. Taking it up to the Ozarks this weekend
Off-Road Ranger I
I went with a GMC Canyon over the Tacoma for several reasons including price, ride comfort, and back seat leg room. I think it will be perfectly capable for overlanding purposes. Those characteristics for me were important as it will be used for long road trips at interstate speeds in addition to exploring the trails and forest roads of Idaho.
The aftermarket is not nearly as robust as it is for the aging Tacoma and Frontier models, but there are vendors developing components.
Reliability is yet to be seen as the truck is still under 10k miles.
The aftermarket is not nearly as robust as it is for the aging Tacoma and Frontier models, but there are vendors developing components.
Reliability is yet to be seen as the truck is still under 10k miles.
Boostpowered
Rank VI
Member III
Just a heads up if your truck starts throwing cel codes and the dealership cant figure out why its likely the wiring harness on driver side just above the shock tower has rubbed through. I had this issue over the winter and the dealer couldnt figure it out after 4 months so i stopped letting them mess with it and i took about 12 min to figure it out. Im not sure if this is an issue on all models colorado/canyon or just the duramax but ive heard people with the colorado duramax complain previously about cel codes being thrown for no reason and they ended up trading them in.
Boostpowered
Rank VI
Member III
Also the aftermarket is pretty good if you look outside USA like australia and the phillipines where theve had gen 2 colorados a few years before us. Another bit of unsolicited info if you want tires bigger than 33 inches youll have to lift it more than 6 inches, the bottom of the wheel wells wont allow anything larger without it and it still will probably rub hard when the suspension cycles, i have a 3 inch lift 33 inch tires and there is a tiny bit of rub at full lock.
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I've got a Sierra that I'm converting to hopefully become an overland rig and most of it will be custom due to lack of after market parts
