Help making a decision on truck purchase.

[Camaurice]

I am thinking of buying a new truck to pull our winnebago micro Minnie 5th wheel. We currently have a 2006 gmc 2500 . I’d like to go with a smaller truck for gas mileage and was thinking of a Toyota Tundra or GMC 1500 4x4. While the trailer is fairly light and we’ve been told a 1500 can pull this trailer, I’d like to hear other opinions. Is there anyone who has any experience towing smaller 5th wheels with these trucks? . Gross Vehicle Weight is 7000 on the trailer.

[Grit_dog]

@Nammedevac70.
I am thankful for your service in our military. Regardless of your petty internet posts. Thank you sir!

[Grit_dog]

JIMNLIN wrote:
Buying and maintaining a 2nd vehicle didn't make cents/sense for my use and others. BTDT.
Figure up the cost of a second vehicle....insurance...maintenance cost over long term. My and others issues with two vehicles is a 600-700 mile a week work commute. It made cents to keep driving my current '03 2500 Dodge/Cummins HO that ran 21.5-22 mpgs week after week month on month. 20 years later even with 380k miles on the odo the truck still works pulling my 11k lb rv and other smaller/larger trailers.

Same with a older 2500 chevy 5.7 truck. Ran it for 9 years on a shorter work commute.

Others that live in town and have a short commute, and money for a 2nd vehicle, may work for them.

A F150 3.5 EB with a 7500 gvwr/4050-4500 rawr (20+ mpgs) will handle that small trailer with ease. The big plus here is no added cost of operating a 2nd vehicle.

Sure, great, if you have the time, knowledge and inclination to keep an old 400k mile rig on the road….I can, but fortunately I can choose not to, financially speaking.

[Thermoguy]

Downgrading a truck to get better gas mileage might not work that great.

I've had 3 in recent years.
2001 GMC 8.1 Liter - didn't get good mileage.
2007 GMC Yukon 5.3 Liter - had the feature that turned off 4 cylinders when driving on the highway, still couldn't get better than about 16mpg
2015 Chev 2500 Diesel - best gas mileage of them all - up to 20 highway, mostly around 16-18 in the Pacific NW. Typical with trailer 12-14.
My work vehicle is a 2016 Ford Explorer - at best 19-20 freeway. Not much better than the 2500... obviously gas is cheaper.

Yes, I have a 3rd vehicle and my truck is only used when I need a truck. I like that I can park in any downtown garage, parking space, etc when working and not worry about trying to park a larger truck. But, If I didn't have the luxury of a 3rd vehicle, then I would be fine driving the 2500 all the time.

The point of this is that my mid size explorer doesn't get much better mileage over the Diesel truck, and the full size SUV was awful on gas. Just because it is less capable doesn't mean it gets better fuel economy.

[NamMedevac_70]

As expected Grit Dog you did not like the recent reputable business news articles I posted about Ford's admitted serious quality problems and as usual you attack the messenger. I feel sorry for your grumpy and small attitude. I do a lot of fishing and camping trips with access to wifi and cellular and as an investor enjoy reading many online business news publications. Maybe you need to broaden your mind sport.

Also Mr. Slow I posted those articles as my reason the OP should stay with GMC or pick another brand at this time. I enjoyed greatly owning and driving my Ford Van many years ago. Cheers to those with open minds and common sense.

Retired financial accountant, commercial and Army pilot

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[Grit_dog]

Tyler0215 wrote:
You won't notice any improvement in gas milage going froma 2500 to a 1500.
They are the same size. Different weight capacity. The Ford ecoboost might be a good choice. They seem to get better mileage than the V8's.
That said, I think any 5th wheel will pull better with a 2500. You will be close to max cargo weight in most 1500's.

Lol. Too bad the bigger trucks always get worse mileage, not even close. Couple few mpg different consistently.
But to your point, one will never get worse enough mileage compared to the other to make “buying a new truck” a financial savings. But it’s a good justification for a new truck! Lol.

[Camaurice]

I do not know how to reply to each individual, but want to thank everyone for their opinions. All makes good sense. Especially the one that says keep our 2500 and save money. The reason for possibly getting a new truck was because we are in snow country and our existing truck is not 4 wheel drive. We thought about selling our awd car and getting a 4 wheel drive truck Going down to one vehicle. We have a lot to think about.

[Bionic_Man]

There are plenty of reasons to like the EcoBoost. But MPG really isn’t one of them. They never have gotten significantly better MPG than comparable engines.

OP, I’d look at the numbers on the door and the real pin weight but it’s hard for me to imagine that a 1500 isn’t capable of towing a 7000 pound GVWR trailer.

[Grit_dog]

Not sure where y’all got the itch to try to analyze the OPs overall vehicle situation…..lol
Was it because he has a (presumably, since a LBZ would not have him thinking about poor fuel mileage ) gas hog older 3/4 ton and mentioned getting a half ton for better mpgs?
Any newer half ton will get 30% + better gas mileage than that old 6.0 or 8.1 in city and highway driving. (Not towing).

To the OP, almost any new half ton with anything bigger than the base engines (heck most of the base engines will tow it perty ok as well, just not by 2023 standards) will tow that small 5ver just fine. But you’ll need to beef up the rear suspension.

[Grit_dog]

NamMedevac 70 wrote:
I would stay with GMC. Although I love Ford suspensions, I own 3 Dodge ram trucks and former 2500 V10 and also former Ford Van owner. According to these recent business news articles Ford has admitted serious quality problems.

24/7 Wall St.
24/7 Wall St.
View Profile
Ford’s Massive Mistake, Another Blow
Story by Douglas A. McIntyre • Sunday

"The Ford Motor Company may be America's least lucky public corporation or its most poorly run. After component problems with its new F-150 Lightning, battered earnings, and trouble pricing its vehicles, it has recalled several of its vehicles, including its flagship gas-powered F-150 pickup. The total recall adds up to 1.5 million vehicles.
Ford’s recalls involve two problems. One is that windshield wipers can break. The other is that some brakes can leak fluid. The brake problem involves 1.2 million of its 2013 through 2018 Ford Fusions and Lincoln MKZs. The other recall involves 222,000 F-150 2021 vehicles."

"Both of these recalls are a reminder of Ford’s sloppy work. Ford recently said it would take at least two years to improve its quality to industry standards. It is hard to believe that a global manufacturer with a century of car experience could take so long to remedy its problems.

Ford does less right than any of its competitors. In the third quarter of last year, it missed its earnings by $1 billion, mostly because it got its component cost estimates wrong. Ford’s fourth-quarter numbers were another earnings disappointment.

Ford has had trouble launching its F-150 Lightning which Executive Chairman Bill Ford said was the company’s most important launch in a century. There were faults with the EV’s batteries."

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/companies/ford-s-massive-mistake-another-blow/ar-AA18OOQT?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=0e43bceee26a413b8655a545b53c8ba0&ei=8

CNBC
CNBC
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Ford is about to break out big EV losses for the first time
Story by Michael Wayland • Yesterday 8:00 AM

Wall Street Journal March 24, 2023 Front Page top story

"Ford Says
EV Unit
Will Lose
$3 Billion
This Year
Company rolls out new
projections as finance
chief describes the
division as a startup"

As stated, Ford admits they have serious quality control issues.

Seriously dude, you need to get out more…

[JIMNLIN]

Buying and maintaining a 2nd vehicle didn't make cents/sense for my use and others. BTDT.
Figure up the cost of a second vehicle....insurance...maintenance cost over long term. My and others issues with two vehicles is a 600-700 mile a week work commute. It made cents to keep driving my current '03 2500 Dodge/Cummins HO that ran 21.5-22 mpgs week after week month on month. 20 years later even with 380k miles on the odo the truck still works pulling my 11k lb rv and other smaller/larger trailers.

Same with a older 2500 chevy 5.7 truck. Ran it for 9 years on a shorter work commute.

Others that live in town and have a short commute, and money for a 2nd vehicle, may work for them.

A F150 3.5 EB with a 7500 gvwr/4050-4500 rawr (20+ mpgs) will handle that small trailer with ease. The big plus here is no added cost of operating a 2nd vehicle.

[cptqueeg]

APT wrote:

cptqueeg wrote:
Keep your truck for towing, etc and get a Toyota Corolla Hybrid to conserve fuel. Buying a new big$$$, less capable, truck to conserve fuel is pointless, you'll conserve money by not buying it.

Agreed.

However, are you trying to improve towing FE or non-towing? Non-towing, then I further support buy any hybrid car for every non-towing situation. It will also cost half as much as any pickup.


If you want to focus on towing FE, then buy any diesel 3/4 ort 1-ton pickup.

OP may need a new vehicle for whatever reason, so in an effort to minimize over all fuel use the compact hybrid was suggested. We all know the mileage when towing will be the same whether it's the old 3/4 T or a new 1/2 T and when not towing the hybrid will have double perhaps more mileage than the new 1/2T.

Why sacrifice the capability of the 3/4T already in hand? Why not optimize fuel mileage by using an alternative to a pu?

The cheapest, most money conserving thing to do is buying nothing and paying the fuel bill.

[Tyler0215]

You won't notice any improvement in gas milage going froma 2500 to a 1500.
They are the same size. Different weight capacity. The Ford ecoboost might be a good choice. They seem to get better mileage than the V8's.
That said, I think any 5th wheel will pull better with a 2500. You will be close to max cargo weight in most 1500's.

[APT]

cptqueeg wrote:
Keep your truck for towing, etc and get a Toyota Corolla Hybrid to conserve fuel. Buying a new big$$$, less capable, truck to conserve fuel is pointless, you'll conserve money by not buying it.

Agreed.

However, are you trying to improve towing FE or non-towing? Non-towing, then I further support buy any hybrid car for every non-towing situation. It will also cost half as much as any pickup.


If you want to focus on towing FE, then buy any diesel 3/4 ort 1-ton pickup.

[mkirsch]

cptqueeg wrote:
Keep your truck for towing, etc and get a Toyota Corolla Hybrid to conserve fuel. Buying a new big$$$, less capable, truck to conserve fuel is pointless, you'll conserve money by not buying it.

Many times over the years I ran numbers and it always worked out to be less expensive to have the one vehicle that could do it all.

The only way to make it pencil out is if the fuel savings is SIGNIFICANT. The compact chitbox will have to get 40+MPG to break even, if you have any car payment at all.

You either put it in the tank, or send it to the bank. There is no free lunch.

[LITEPHIL]

I would stick with a 3/4 ton