Where to start? I need a truck!

Reddog1 wrote:
I have never owned a Ford or GM diesel. But, I have become an expert on both of them through the internet.

I an just jesting with the BS in my first paragraph. When you read several of the post, they too are just BS. I would ask anyone reading this thread to ask someone that makes a post about a given brand of truck if they have ever owned one, especially if they are posting negatives. It has been my experience that most people will be very defensive with what they have. Some people are so biased, they have only owned one brand of truck.

About a week ago, I realized from experience that ride and load capacity wise there are so many factors to consider.

I have two trucks:

A 1996 2500 2WD SRW Extended Cab long bed diesel. I added one lief to the spring pack, it has no overloads other than the bottom, but does have airbags and 19.5 tires.


My second truck is a 2004 3500 4WD DRW Dodge diesel Quad Cab. The '04 has stock suspension which includes upper and lower overload springs, and stock tires.

Empty, the '96 rides like a covered wagon, and the '04 rides like one of my previous Cadillacs. This is not an exaggeration. In reading the posts through the years, I would have thought the 3500 would have given the rough ride.

Last week, I rode in a 2016 Ram 3500 SRW 4WD short bed Mega Cab. It had only the lower overloads and stock tires. The main leaf pack looked the same as my '04, with the exception the lower leaf appeared engaged with no load in the bed. The ride was as bad as my '96, maybe even rougher. I have rode in a 2004 3500 4WD DRW quad(?) cab GMC completely stock. It rode about the same as my '04.

I am making this post to point out that you can only say how smooth a truck of any size or manufacture rides if you have ridden in it. You can speak in very general terms, but ... There are simply too many factors to consider to generalize.

Wayne

^^^
You're not biased enough to be worth reading....lol.

Always get a kick out of these threads. Someone looking for the 'perfect' truck and everyone jumping in with the answers based on....limited experience.

Until this past year, we've ran Chev, Dodge and Fords, both gas and oil runners. I of course have opinions,thoughts,experiences; dare I say more than most. More miles driven, more repairs performed and paid for, more attention paid to the bottom line and reality and not being "defensive" about a choice.

They all work. Even the "oh my God, stay away from..." seem to get down the road ok. Buying used is a **** shoot more to do with the previous owner than the actual rig.

I think the advice mkirsch gives is great; don't get mired in details. Find something you like and see if it has the quality's that are important to you. They are not all the same, but the details will suffocate you.

We're down to 5 light/med duty trucks (under 35k). I'd tell you all the truth, but it wouldn't mean anything. It's the internet after all.....