I wanted to submit a civil thread concerning the usefulness of half ton trucks. Here is my observation..based on experience... both as a past owner and a future owner of said class of vehicles. *An Old 1997 F150 pulled my scaled 6500 lb TT all over Tennessee without a single problem...It only had about 1600 lbs of payload.I loved that truck! *My 1997 Ram 1500 4x4 with a 360 never pulled a TT but it was a GREAT hunting truck but it only got 10 or 11 MPG*I LOVE window shopping and found that the average trim half ton... you know... 2wd, Cloth interior, nice, but not loaded... generally have really decent payload. Here are a few examples to illustrate that if one shops around its pretty easy to find respectable numbers2015 Suburban LT 2wd2014 EcoDiesel Crew Cab... You know.. the ones with 850 lbs of payload...My best friend has a 2014 Silverado LT 2wd Crew Cab... 5.3.. and 1900 lbs of payload... sorry, I do not have a picture of that oneFew Additional NotesThese trucks are fun to drive... all have 300 ish HP as a minimum with the V8's getting 350 plus HP. These trucks are fairly efficient...High teens and low 20's on the interstate is no problem, city MPG is good for 15's... impressiveThese trucks generally fit in garages, handle city traffic well, have good crash ratings, are safe, and reliable, and can pull and stop more trailer weight than some 1 ton trucks of just 15 years or so ago. All of these facts are useful and if one chooses the right truck and trailer the useless half tons will prove that they are not so useless any more :)The new midsize trucks are also pretty useful. They are expensive but are not worthless. Here is one final payload sticker of a 4x4 Colorado LT V6 with leather and Navi... pretty well loaded..Thanks!Jeremiah

Hey a half ton towed the space shuttle :E

Very true...just depends up what job you want the tool to do...

1/2 tons are just fine as long as you stay with a medium-small trailer, and don't feel the need to take everything in the house with you. I've towed a 21 ft Amerilite to Glacier NP with a Sequoia, and a 26 ft Keystone with a 1/2 ton on basically the same trip, 5000 miles roundtrip, never a problem.

There are lots of things that can be done with little hammer that the big hammer can't.

I towed an 8500lb FW quite a few times with my 2004 F150. I really miss that truck. Had to buy an F350 to pull the new and much bigger FW.

Half Tons are NOT useless!!! | Good Sam Community

68 Replies

goducks10
Explorer
Jun 09, 2015
BenK wrote:
That was the day Mr Murphy crossed that guys path...

As with all things engineered/designed with RATINGs...it is for that day Mr Murphy
crosses your path...AKA the worst day...either you have the right sized everything
and adjusted correctly spot on...or not...no time to go back to the store for bigger
or re-adjust

Ability to manhandle it is another term that applies to all sizes of TV's and
trailers

Just back visiting grandson and his 3rd Birthday at Disneyland

On the way there...counted FIVE cars on the side of the Grapevine
with their hoods up and steam coming out of the radiator. No one
towing was on the side but many out there. My next trip will have
a small utility trailer with me and haven't decided if my mini van
or the Suburban...depends on which used trailer I find on Craigs...

x2. It's just like insurance. You may never use it but when you need it, you're glad you have it.
BenK
Explorer
Jun 09, 2015
That was the day Mr Murphy crossed that guys path...

As with all things engineered/designed with RATINGs...it is for that day Mr Murphy
crosses your path...AKA the worst day...either you have the right sized everything
and adjusted correctly spot on...or not...no time to go back to the store for bigger
or re-adjust

Ability to manhandle it is another term that applies to all sizes of TV's and
trailers

Just back visiting grandson and his 3rd Birthday at Disneyland

On the way there...counted FIVE cars on the side of the Grapevine
with their hoods up and steam coming out of the radiator. No one
towing was on the side but many out there. My next trip will have
a small utility trailer with me and haven't decided if my mini van
or the Suburban...depends on which used trailer I find on Craigs...
jerem0621
Explorer II
Jun 09, 2015
its all fun and games until a Half Ton has an accident and a Dually doesn't :B

Seriously, glad everyone is okay.

Thanks!

Jeremiah
goducks10
Explorer
Jun 09, 2015
Here's an interesting read about 1/2 ton towing.

http://www.jaycoowners.com/forums/f7/length-to-weight-27899.html
IdaD
Explorer
Jun 08, 2015
Half tons have their place. They do get overloaded quite easily and often, but for smaller trailers they can be a great compromise vehicle for a lot of people. To me it's worth the marginally higher cost to step up to a 3/4 or 1 ton cause I think you get quite a bit more truck for not much additional expense, but that doesn't necessarily work for everybody for a variety of reasons. Honestly I think a lot of people buy a half ton by default thinking they're getting plenty of truck based on the commercials they see on TV, and then they run into trouble later on when they actually dig into the numbers (or just go for it on faith).
covetsthesun
Explorer
Jun 08, 2015
goducks10 wrote:
1/2 tons are for girls, HD trucks are for boys. And real men drive diesels :)

You are seriously going there?? As a "girl", I've driven a 3500 Diesel, an F150 and now own a 1500 Silverado. Lot of women running 18 wheelers too. Half tons make terrific daily drivers.

Just sayin.
cts
BurbMan
Explorer II
Jun 08, 2015
Yeah, I was waiting for someone to call me out on that.....
spoon059
Explorer II
Jun 08, 2015
BurbMan wrote:
Was having trouble getting a good shot while driving,

Just pointing out the fact that you are commenting about the potential unsafeness of a half ton truck pulling a fifth wheel while you are TAKING PICTURES WHILE DRIVING. If you took a random poll, some might be of the opinion that screwing around with your phone taking pictures while driving is inherently more dangerous than pulling a trailer that might be over the F150's pin weight.

Be that as it may, figure 1600 lbs loaded pin and it could be an Ecoboost with max tow/max payload and have 2300+ lbs of payload.

Just saying...
Johno02
Explorer
Jun 08, 2015
Do it right! Get a REAL truck

.

Btw, that is one of our kids. If we had a fiver, she could haul it with HER truck!
goducks10
Explorer
Jun 08, 2015
1/2 tons are for girls, HD trucks are for boys. And real men drive diesels :)