Do I NEED 4WD?

[safeinthecar]

What would you be hauling with the truck? Would a short-bed work for you? That would give you a lot better town and parking lot maneuverability than a long-bed and open up two more options for you to choose from. (Nissan and Toyota, in addition to the big 3. Although there is supposed to be a long bed Titan in 2010, they haven't even released photos of it yet)

Are you going to be towing? If so, what capacity do you need?

 

[SafeDad]

Normally, I don't think so. However, you're one of those people who lives in a place where I do think it's a good idea. Isolated, off pavement roads often enough and you've already had 2wd and discovered you were screwed at times.

Agreed. For most urbanites and suburbanites, 4WD and AWD is not only more expensive to buy, but also more expensive for fuel and maintenance. Generally, a complete waste of money and resources. On the other hand, this sounds like one of the situations where I would want 4WD or AWD.

As a side note, we've had no issues with our new FWD Prius in the Chicago area snow. It replaced a Subaru Outback AWD and we haven't missed it at all. Granted, we rarely, if ever, go offroad or to roads that aren't plowed in a reasonable amount of time.

 

[northernmommy]

truck will be a short bed, I don't need the 8' box. The Toyotas are a bit more than my budget allows, and have a lower score on Informed for Life.

I hope to add a travel trailer in the next few years, but have no idea how heavy it would be

Unless things change drastically, at this point I've settled on the GM, short box, 4x4...just not sure if I'll go Sierra or Silverado

Thanks for all the input!

 

[bubbaray]

You can PM if you want. I'm reasonably sure that you live where my BFFs siblings live (recently renamed? ). They always purchase their trucks in Penticton for some reason.

You definitely need a 4WD. JMHO. Anyone living north of Vancouver has a legitimate reason for a 4WD and anyone who tells you otherwise has never experienced the thrill of winter driving in BC. Even driving Hwy3 through the Hope Princeton SUCKS in a 2WD vehicle.

*I* prefer Dodges and Fords, but like you said, if the dealerships in PG sucks, strike them off your list. Service is just as important as the vehicle, especially in the North. What are you towing? If you look around RV parks, most people are using Dodge 3500HD diesels or GM 2500HD diesels. A diesel will cost you 7KCdn more. But, you'll definitely be putting on enough mileage to justify that. The choices in engines etc are quite staggering. If money were no object, my truck of choice would be a Dodge 3500Heavy Duty diesel crew cab.

My DH is a GM guy and prefers the Chevy over the GM. IIRC there were a few differences in standard equipment in the Canadian spec'd trucks (he purchased last June, got an '09 Toyota Tacoma crew cab -- but we test drove everything on the market). You may find that some of the comments on a predominantly US forum like this don't apply to the equipment offered on the Canadian models, KWIM?

IIRC, one dealer is offering snow tires with new vehicle purchases, but I just asked DH and he's not sure that applies to trucks. Something you might want to negotiate (even if you purchase in summer) as they cost a bundle!

FWIW, 3 across with a MA and a GN in the mix is definitely doable in the GM crew cab. Buckets of room and 3 across TTs. Ditto for the Dodge.

ETA: here is another site: http://www.iihs.org/ratings/summary.aspx?class=70 ETA#2 -- FYI, those ratings are only for the 1500 or half ton trucks. You can NOT compare the crash test ratings of a half ton (1500) to a 1 ton (3500).

BTW, I want to see pics of Darren driving his Prius from Rupert to Vancouver. In winter. LOL.

 

[trippsmom]

Now that I have a 4wd I will always own one. I am in the south, but we get ice and rain. I wouldn't trade my auto 4wd for anything! This year in the massive amounts of flash flooding here, at mil's and between the 4wd saved my butt. Having it auto is nice for rain, etc, but when we get snow or I have to go off road it is nice to drop over to it manually. I am also a ford girl, so can't help you there. We always liked Fords and Toyotas in the mud... seen too many oil pans and tranny pans getrippied out from under chevies hot-dogging clearance.

 

[bubbaray]

Just wanted to add on that you should consider what you want to (eventually) tow as that will make a considerable difference to what you purchase now.

If you want to tow an RV (other than a super-lightweight, which usually aren't winterized, hard to find used and are uber-expensive), you need at least a 3/4 ton(2500) and you'll want a diesel engine to manage our mountain passes. Like I PMd, you also need a tow package (special tranny, tranny cooler, hitch, engine brake, etc). You will NOT be happy towing an RV with a 1/2 T gas engine.

If you only want to tow some ATVs, a boat or some skidoos, you're fine with a 1500/1/2 ton truck and you might as well stick with a gas engine.

 

[beeman]

One thing I will disagree with is jumping on the diesel bandwagon with the possibility of towing in the future. Just on the quick quotes, a 1500 with the larger engine was 38,865 and a 3500 with the Duramax was 56,320 (2500 55,055) (all base model GMC with crew cab 4x4). With that large of difference, I'd personally wait until I had the trailer (unless I was sure it would be coming in the next couple of years; not 5 years down the road), and then upgrade trucks at that point. The larger truck has bigger, more expensive parts (including 'consumables' such as brakes, front end steering components, suspension, filters), will depreciate much harder in dollar value, and there will likely be a slight increase in fuel consumption. This all pays off if you are using the truck for it's intended purpose, but if it's just for 'someday maybe', it's not worth the extra cost at this point :twocents: .

 

[lovemyfamily]

A truck isn't a truck unless it is a 4WD. lol They only suck of the gas mileage when you USE the 4WD. And it is much better for resale value.

 

[slrgrl]

If your not hauling anything and it will be mostly highway miles...depending on your roads I would go 2wheel drive more economical in the longrun

 

[SafeDad]

A truck isn't a truck unless it is a 4WD. lol They only suck of the gas mileage when you USE the 4WD. And it is much better for resale value.

Trucks and SUVs do tend to suck gas, even those that are not in 4WD mode and those that are 2WD in the first place. The reasons are the high displacement, high torque engines that are common in most of these vehicles along with their weight and poor aerodynamics.

Even crossover SUVs tend not to be as fuel efficient as the sedans upon which they are based.

One look at the EPA fuel economy guide demonstrates the differences between trucks and cars, 4WD and 2WD pretty well.

 

[northernmommy]

Yeah, I know my gas bill is going to take a sharp rise Unfortunately, it will do that regardless of which truck I get, lol.

I'm trying to decide between a 2006 F150 XTL and just getting a 2010 Silverado/Sierra. The 2010s have side curtain airbags, which I really would like, but there's about a 12k difference in price between the 06 Ford and the 2010 Chev...hmmmmm

 

[slrgrl]

That is always the hard part deciding money or better safety options....funny how the more safety options the higher the pricetag