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So OP when you go to get a truck keep the following in mind:
1. Once you onw a truck for a while, you will always want to own one, even if it is not your primary car, you will want to have one. There is no going back.
2. Most trucks have no place to put stuff. You end up with all your crap sliding around in the back seat or behind the front seat if you have no back seat. Of course in an accident, that stuff is going to fly around and kill you. Some Dodge trucks have quite a few hidden storage compartments under the seas and built into the footwells, but nothing large. Some Dodge trucks and the Chevy Avalanche (no longer made) have storage in the sidewalls of the bed. Your other option is to put some form of locking storage container int he bed itself. This will eat up some of your bed space. there are slide out tool boxes that only eat up some of the depth of the bed. However these are limited in the size of items they can hold. I always carry a hydraulic jack, tow straps, some tools,flashlight, boots, hardhat, a tire/air mattress inflater, can of fix a flat, a blanket or sleeping bag. All of thsie stuff had to go into the back seat until I got a RAM with the RAMboxes in the sidewalls. Same with smaller things you do not want rattling around in the bed. Throwing axes (Tomahawks) for example. Not something you want loose in the back seat if you are in an accident.
3. You freinds and relatives will expect you to help them move, pick up a tree from Home depot, haul a new or old fridge or couch, drive their daughter in the homecoming parade etc. Having a pick up suddenly means you have nothing better to do with your lie than haul things for other people. You will learn to say no, but it will make you feel guilty.
4. 4x4 is terrific. It is another one of those things you think is silly until you have it. It is especially good to have if you like helping people.
5. A towing set up is worthwhile even if you do not plan to tow. It gives you a good solid, easily accessible connecting point for chains or straps for pulling someone out of the ditch, pulling a tree over, dragging your broken lawn mower to the back yard to work on it, having someone else pull you out of the mud, dragging a sled on an icy road, etc etc. They also make nifty platforms that connect to your reese hitch receiver and allow you to add luggage, a few more bales of hay, bicycles, etc.
6. Little trucks do nto cost that much less (used anyway) and do not get much better mileage, but they are easier to park. However they also tend to have cramped, uncomfortable and cheaply made interiors. At times, the bed of load capacity will be insufficient. To me it absolutely is not worth it. You may end up feeling differently but do not assume a smaller truck is automatically better.
7. You do not have to give up performance if you have the money. Many trucks are amazingly quick for their size. However they do not handle all that well on corners and curves.
8. If you have the choice, get the truck with skid plates, regardless of whether you will drive off road or not.
9. You will end up wanting a bedliner and some sort of retractable cover. Not a hard cover. Something that can be stowed without going home and without losing bed space.
10. If you think you might be towing or pulling people out of ditches etc, avoid the unibody trucks with no frame.
11. The high end trucks are amazingly comfortable and have lots of cool gadgets. They are expensive new (like $50 - 60K for gasoline another 10+ for diesel), however the price drops fast for used. My truck 6 years old with 70K miles was 34,000 below its original sale price.
12. I suggest getting one that already has some dents and scratches. Sooner or later you will dent and scratch it. It is a truck. Save yourself a lot of strain on your heart and gt one already dented/scratched a little bit so it will not be a big deal when the next one happens.
OP is so all-over-the-map in vehicle types that he or she will declare another vehicle type as favorite once the novelty of the minivan wears off. Auto dealers must love this kind of buyer because he or she could be worked over real hard by sales reps.
Decades ago, I had a sales rep try to switch me over from a very specific model of truck...to a small car. In fact, it was a Corolla, come to think of it. It was what the dealer had in stock, unlike the truck I sought. I walked off and went to another dealership. When you tell a rep in no uncertain terms that you want the truck for minimal seat capacity but big cargo capacity, lots of choices in how to cover the bed, and other trucklike traits, and he assumes that a small frontwheeldrive sedan can substitute, THAT is insulting to one's intelligence and not worth giving him a second chance.
Sedans are fine for quick trips since they're light & easy to drive around town, but give me a good-handling SUV any day. We have both and I dread getting into my wife's car, but it saves gas, etc. etc. Snorefest.
Sometimes I drive the SUV more than other cars but there are moments on the road where I believe if was one milli-sec behind on avoidance I would definitely crash because SUVs are just slow and poorer handling than avg cars.
I had one person who cut in front me than brake checks on me, my stopping distance is much worse on the SUV than regular cars so my driving style has to change when I go to a SUV.
So I don't think SUVs are safer, they are safer for absorbing crashes but not for avoidance.
Sometimes I drive the SUV more than other cars but there are moments on the road where I believe if was one milli-sec behind on avoidance I would definitely crash because SUVs are just slow and poorer handling than avg cars.
I had one person who cut in front me than brake checks on me, my stopping distance is much worse on the SUV than regular cars so my driving style has to change when I go to a SUV.
So I don't think SUVs are safer, they are safer for absorbing crashes but not for avoidance.
SUVs are fine. We own a Navigator and two sedans. For a while, I drove the Lincoln as my daily driver, until it hit me that I was hauling around a giant 7-seater tank through town while enjoying my 15mpg and poor maneuverability. We use it when going on family outings with the kids, or when we need to tow stuff, but other than that, heck no.
I'm offended by this. I like my Corolla very much and have no desire to drive anything else!
True that. Give me "boring" any day, what matters to me are reliability, smooth ride and a decent price. One of the reasons I don't get trucks is in this area anyway they are freaking HIGH as all get-out. The same goes with SUVs. I saw a 2002 Honda CR-V selling for what I could easily get a 2008 Corolla for. Yes you can get more in an SUV or a truck, but it's not worth paying THAT much extra to get it. I've seen people asking $3000 for a 25 year old truck with like 350,000 miles on it, when I paid $1500 for a 2000 Toyota Corolla which had 160,000 miles on it. One person wanted $4000 for a 1995 Nissan with vinyl seats and a broken air conditioner, I had half a mind to call the person just to tell him he was insane and that if it were up to me he wouldn't even be allowed to make such a request, by law even.
The other reason (a) the trucks I've seen anyway, they are BUMPY even my Toyota Corolla isn't THAT bumpy and any mid-sized car I've been in is MUCH smoother (b) they're harder to get into and out of due to their height (c) they're more of a handful in crowded parking lots (d) expensive huge tires (what they ask for with the price of tires to me it's insane and I'd even be in favor of price controls for them) (e) what's in the cargo area is vulnerable to theft and rain and (f) again, the cost.
I'm not saying that trucks are no good, the first time you need to haul something huge and substantial you will wish you had one, absolutely, but to want one because a sedan is "boring," I just don't care about that. It's a vehicle, it's not a woman in a bikini.
So I don't think SUVs are safer, they are safer for absorbing crashes but not for avoidance.
You are right about most SUVs in that last line. Physics rules still apply. But not all SUVs are created equal. I love tossing mine into corners with virtually no body roll - amazes me every time and puts a grin on my face.
Quote:
Originally Posted by 28079
"good handling SUV" - must be the Porsche Cayenne or BMW X5M?
I don't have the M but mine has adaptive drive (sports suspension). Not many even have that nowadays because they made it an expensive option whereas before it was part of the sport pkg. The M would have that and of course more go.
As I said, the sedan is lighter/easier to toss around as opposed to an SUV no matter the power.
True that. Give me "boring" any day, what matters to me are reliability, smooth ride and a decent price.
I can get that with a non-boring car, too. Given the choice between boring and non, I'll choose non-boring every day and twice on Sundays.
Quote:
It's a vehicle, it's not a woman in a bikini.
We get it, you really don't understand cars and car enthusiasts at all.
You probably don't like roller coasters, fast go karts, G forces, or having fun. I like all of that and require my cars to deliver on that. My BMW was a great price, reliable fun, comfortable, agile, fun, stylish, and carries quite a bit of stuff. But I bought the Sport tuned model rather than the standard model because driving fun and non-boring is way up on my list of priorities. I don't like being boring.
I can get that with a non-boring car, too. Given the choice between boring and non, I'll choose non-boring every day and twice on Sundays.
We get it, you really don't understand cars and car enthusiasts at all.
You probably don't like roller coasters, fast go karts, G forces, or having fun. I like all of that and require my cars to deliver on that. My BMW was a great price, reliable fun, comfortable, agile, fun, stylish, and carries quite a bit of stuff. But I bought the Sport tuned model rather than the standard model because driving fun and non-boring is way up on my list of priorities. I don't like being boring.
You're making an awful lot of assumptions there. It is possible to like both roller coasters and "boring" cars, you know?
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