Posted on 03/12/2013 6:34:05 PM PDT by Chuckster
I am going to be needing a prime mover to tow my boat from Washington to New Hampshire in a few months. I will also have to have a trailer built or adapted for my approximately 6000 lb, 27 foot long sailboat. I have trailered this boat before with a borrowed rig but now I need to buy one for the cross country move.
Can't buy new. New trucks just cost too much and I am not certain I would want a brand new vehicle anyway. My budget is probably around $10K to $15K for the truck.
I am thinking of something like a F250 extra cab 4X4 or similar GM or Dodge. After we get to the far side, the vehicle will be used as a farm truck and for towing horse trailers and such.
I have plenty of time so I am open to just about anything including buying a sixties vintage vehicle and having it customized for the purpose. Obviously, it does not have to be pretty but it would be nice to have something with a little style.
OK FRiends. What do you think?
Tundra w/ a 5.7L V8....it’ll pull that little boat like it was a child’s toy.
Having had like 15 Chevy trucks, last being a new ‘05 LT Duramax Diesel HD2500 loaded - get a Ford. Don’t buy from Gov. Motor Corp. Never!
Dodge has great engineering, great ideas, great features & looks. BUT, the quality just isn’t there like in Ford.
Really a no-brainer. Ford’s are best trucks made today. 10 years ago, it wasn’t so. Today it is. And they are not gov. owned. I now drive a Ford after 30+ years of Chevy’s and GM’s........
Tundra. Toyota is a best choice in every non-luxury segment including trucks. It is not a dog and still last.
1). Tundras are made in Texas
2) if you buy a Tundra, you’ll never get another truck because they don’t wear out.
3). We have 2 Tundras and 1 Ford ( gas 460 ). The Tundras get driven, the Ford doesn’t.
4). Diesel fuel is high but doesn’t contain ethanol in ever increasing amounts.
A F-250 or F-350 are the most likely trucks that you'll come across. In the 1970’s Ford had a heavy duty F-150 that would handle this job. Basically, it was a 3/4 ton truck equipped with ligher springs and 15 inch tires. To handle heavy loads, it had factory overload leaf springs that hit their pads after an inch or so of rear end squat. My 1978 F-150 was equipped from the factory for heavy towing and was used quite adequately for a 10,000lb 5th wheel trailer. If you do come across one of these beauties, the tires are likely to be incompatible for a heavy tow as the 15 inch wheels made it too easy to save some $$$ and put some non-LT rated tires on it.
Most of the talk has been on engine. Yeah, get a diesel or 460 V8. That will get you down the road without blowing the engine but other items will keep you from wrecking. Tighten up the steering via tie rod ends so the truck doesn't wonder around and will handle cross winds better. Check out the bushings in the rear leaf springs for the same reason. A heavy tow really pushes the back of the truck around and the rear suspension has to be tight. Put on new shocks front/rear (Rancho on a budget and Bilstein for high end). A transmission oil cooler is mandatory - Aftermarket coolers are a plus even if the truck has an OEM transmission cooler integral with the radiator. Flush the cooling system then pressure test. The pressure test will probably show up a leak if the radiator is weak from corrosion. Complete fluid change out for engine, transmission, differentials, power steering and brakes. Inspect the brakes - Besides the pads, wheel cylinders and such, the master cylinder could be weak. Look at the wiring to the rear lights - Repairs could be needed to fix sloppy splices made over the years for trailer light harnesses. Obviously, an electric brake controller is needed although you could find a truck in this category already has one. An auxiliary tank is a plus - If the wind picks up and in the mountains, the MPG can be cut by half.
Be cautious about trucks that are anything other than OEM suspensions. There are lots of sloppy suspension modified trucks with lousy suspension mods and body lifts around so they could fit some oversized tires and look cool. No body lifts period, no blocks on the rear leafs!
Just realized that I am rattling on now. Better stop! LOL!
Just say no to Chrysler or G.M.
I’d buy anything before I’d buy a gub mint motor pos.
Save your money and contract a professional hauler. It’s done here around the Great Lakes and here in Wisconsin all the time. They have insurance and all the expertise, permitting and all you would want for such a journey.
Then again, if you are trying to secure a badly needed truck, I would opt for something in a diesel (more HP when you need it) but at a high operating expense (fuel costs).
I would not go any smaller than a 3/4 or 1 ton truck built for such purposes. Good luck convincing your wife that you REALLY NEED a truck. (It can be done as wittnes to my F-250 Ford)
It will be at least 5 years old so it won’t matter. I have had Chevys in the past, a ‘53, a ‘64 and two ‘67s, one a pick up the other a Suburban. If I were buying new I would avoid GM products
Thanks. I'll remember that. d;^)
Done a lot of sailing in the past six years. Always wanted to do one more road trip across America.
The boat is going to NH so it can be in a salt water port. We will be living in Orleans County, Vermont. I grew up there so I know about the winters.
Yes. Briefly. Economically of course that is the best option. But she is not just a boat. She has been our home for more than twenty years and has carried us many, many miles in the Pacific. For a lot of reasons, we want to drive across America and put her in the Atlantic.
Thanks. Sounds like good advice (Mainly because it pretty much mirrors my own thinking)
Clearly, you do not know my wife d;^)
I like your thinking...or heck, I’ll sail it around the horn for him.
Go to a big exploration geologist convention and 80% of the vehicles in the parking lot are Ford Trucks...and it ain’t because they are the cheapest.
QUOTE: “Dodge has great engineering, great ideas, great features & looks. BUT, the quality just isn’t there like in Ford.”
While the Fords (F250/350’s diesel)are certainly good work trucks, I’m surprised no one has mentioned Dodge Ram’s with the Cummins. I have a Ram 3500 Dually with the Cummins and used to be a huge GM fan. The Dodge kicks as$. The truck has 138K miles (2005) and I’ve only done oil changes and front u-joints. The engine is amazing - would pull down a house! The only dually I’ve ever owned that will leave a skid of 4 tires from a stand still. Unbelievable power and torque. It tips the scales at over 7100 lbs, can tow 23,000 lbs, and gets 22 mpg. Oh, and its a quad cab.
The Ram 2500 with the Cummins is awesome too. A 2005-2008 would be in your price range, and would go 300K miles easy!
Good luck!
ok... I understand completey!!
But as another freeper said... whay dont you take it around the horn? (or at least through the panama canal)
You know you always wanted to...
If you decide on a Ford let me know. I can get you a Friends and Neighbor discount.
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