[budster101]

No derailers please. I'm seriously asking opinions of those who actually like SUVs or Pickup Trucks, as I will be in the market for one or the other in coming months.

I used to own an old Ford F-150, and it wasn't pretty, but it was rock solid and I never had any problems with it. I am interested in the same model, but would like input from others as I have no experience with other makes and how they compare.

SUVs. I had a nice Honda Passport (Ok, Izuzu) when they came out, and it did last me for over 170,000 miles before it gave out. It would have lasted longer but it developed a tick in the engine and the tranny went out. 4wd. No fixie, too expensive. No rust! So I sold it.

What are your preferences, experience and why? What about value besides the cost of the truck / SUV? Service? Who is the best?

Thanks.

[ihatesuvs68]

My friend has a nissan pathfinder.... early 90s version, the kind with a real frame. It has over 300,000 miles on the original engine... it is kinda rusty, but the engine sure lasts. It gets about 19mpg on the highway.

I'd suggest NOT getting an SUV since 99% of the time you won't be needing one.

[JHromadka]

My Dad has a Chevy Silverado diesel. It's very reliable both on the farm and on long drives to Colorado and Florida. Highly recommended.

[effgee]

If you're looking for a reasonably priced SUV, I'd suggest one of my all-time favorites - the Jeep Cherokee (without the "Grand"). As mentioned in one of the previous car threads, I'm a total sucker for the classic "shoe box" design.

I bought one when I came to the US - used w/50-60k miles on it, drove it for 5 years, gave it to my in-laws with 120k miles when I left the States and today, another 2 1/2 years (or so) later, it's got 170k miles and it's still running strong. The only repairs I had to have done during my 5 years of ownership was a set of brake pads and a new battery. The fscker is indestructible - oh yeah, and there is not a single speck of rust on it, either (last time I saw it, that is).

It's not the most luxurious ride but it's got all the regular amenities, looks cool and can be had at a decent price.

[wdlove]

If you want the safest SUV on the road it would be a Volvo XC 90. My wife attended a rodeo using the XC 90 at Gillette Stadium. It did very well on the course. The only SUV that can be turned over, many have tried. It has gyros to compensate when a problem is noted. Volvo is know for reliability.

[SVass]

You should define your requirements. What kind of cargo will you carry? people, hay, or both? What kind of roads? dirt, four lane highways? snow? What kind of speed? Differing vehicles perform different tasks! sam

[budster101]

DP...

[budster101]

Just me, my wife and our dog.

Ca$h:
Never liked Nissan Pathfinders. Just the way they look. Glad to hear about the reliability.

JH:
Chevy SIlverado, got one as a loaner once. It was awesome! Thanks for the advice.

efgee:
Very very nice. I like that.

WDlove:
I'd love to own one of those. Way out of our price range, unfortunately.

Sam:
Once per month, maybe something for the home we plan on building.
Mostly highway, and back roads.
0 - 70 mph max.
Snow on occassion.

Hope that helps you sam. Any suggestions?

[RAILhead]

Well, you know what I'm going to say: the Nissan Titan.

Overall, it consistently kicks the arse of any vehicle in its class, be it GMC, Ford, Chevy, or Dodge. Depending upon how much $$ you want to spend, you can get it totally plain jane to totally souped-up. After owning Toyota, Chevy and GMC trucks, the Titan is by far, the best IMHO (and experience).

Maury

[budster101]

Maury:

I'm going to have a close look at the Nissan TItan. (If they can make a Pathfinder that does well...)

[jasonsRX7]

I've always been partial to Ford trucks. I've had a Sport Trac and an Expedition, my dad has a F-150 and a F-350. I like them all. I used my trucks for pulling Jet Skis and a boat, and my dads trucks are used for pulling horse trailers. They've all been very reliable so far. Before the F-150, my dad had a Durango, and it was very unreliable, and is now on its second motor.

[His Dudeness]

I love the new Durango and Ram 1500 and 2500. Also the new Nissan Titan is freakin awesome.

[hondo]

Originally Posted by RAILhead

Well, you know what I'm going to say: the Nissan Titan.

Overall, it consistently kicks the arse of any vehicle in its class, be it GMC, Ford, Chevy, or Dodge. Depending upon how much $$ you want to spend, you can get it totally plain jane to totally souped-up. After owning Toyota, Chevy and GMC trucks, the Titan is by far, the best IMHO (and experience).

Maury

I have a Nissan Titan LE Crew Cab. I have owned it for 16 months and have 16k miles on it. I have owned Toyota's (4Runner/Tacoma) and Honda's (car's) mostly. I have mixed feelings about this truck. I love the power and design and my stereo/DVD rocks. That being said, I have had recurring problems. None of them mechanical (yet) but some paint and fit and finish problems that keep me returning to the dealership. An example is yesterday, when I opened the tailgate, the bolt that attaches to the cable that holds the tailgate up when it is extended, had come completely off.

It is a big truck and it tows my boat without breaking a sweat. I get around 13 to 15 mpg. It is one of my favorites as far as design but the quality issues have been aggravating. It could be that it is just the truck that I bought. I wonder if Consumer Reports has rated it yet.

hondo

[SVass]

I owned a Datsun (now Nissan) for a number of years. It was the cheapest thing they sold. I used it to help move into a new house (1989) and drive to work. No truck should go faster than 55! It hauled dirt for my raised bed garden and two by sixes for a 16' by 30' deck that I built. After my house was nice and an idiot ran into the passenger door (his insurance company GAVE me more than the blue book value and let me keep it rather than replace it with an equivalent), I gave it to a friend who was buying a new house and moving stuff and bought my MGB. (He let me borrow the Datsun a few times later.)

A very low cost, highly reliable small pickup serves very nicely as a second vehicle if one needs a small cargo carrier occasionally. We use a Honda as our primary car. sam

[budster101]

Why shouldn't a truck go faster than 55?

[RAILhead]

Originally Posted by hondo

I have a Nissan Titan LE Crew Cab. I have owned it for 16 months and have 16k miles on it. I have owned Toyota's (4Runner/Tacoma) and Honda's (car's) mostly. I have mixed feelings about this truck. I love the power and design and my stereo/DVD rocks. That being said, I have had recurring problems. None of them mechanical (yet) but some paint and fit and finish problems that keep me returning to the dealership. An example is yesterday, when I opened the tailgate, the bolt that attaches to the cable that holds the tailgate up when it is extended, had come completely off.

It is a big truck and it tows my boat without breaking a sweat. I get around 13 to 15 mpg. It is one of my favorites as far as design but the quality issues have been aggravating. It could be that it is just the truck that I bought. I wonder if Consumer Reports has rated it yet.

hondo

That *is* odd -- I've had no issues whatsoever.

Maury

[SVass]

Originally Posted by budster101

Why shouldn't a truck go faster than 55?

Trucks and SUVs have a high center of gravity and thus have a tendency to roll over. sam

[budster101]

Going straight, I've yet to see an SUV or Truck roll over. When and where did I state that I would go around a corner going 55 plus?

They don't roll over going over 55mph in a straight line.... jesus.

[d0ubled0wn]

Originally Posted by budster101

Chevy SIlverado, got one as a loaner once. It was awesome! Thanks for the advice.

I drove a 2000 Silverado on a road trip with a buddy. I like the design, however the one thing that bothered me was the sloppy steering. It seemed like there was too much "play". Someone else mentioned the same thing about Tahoes so I don't think it was a defect.

[OldManMac]

Motor Trend's 2004 SUV of the Year.

[the_glassman]

Ford Escape Hybrid. When gas hits $3.00+ a gallon it will be nice to have 30+ miles per gallon.

[stevesnj]

after years of trial and error (American made trucks) i went to Toyota and haven't looked back. I have a Tacoma and Im in love with it. Every American truck I owned never seemed to pullits weight like my Toyota has. I would always be getting recall letters, safety warning fixes, blah blah...from Ford or Chevy and i got sick of it. Besides sensors always blowing, 5 in the Ford and bad alternators...3 in 2 years in the chevy plus much much more I have yet to bring in my Tacoma in for a serious repair EVER!!! be it sensors or recalls i have not had any at all. Go with Toyota you wont be disappointed.

[dampeoples]

A pickup truck and an SUV are pretty much two different animals, sit back and decide if you need the capacity of a pickup truck bed (always get an extended cab!), or the enclosed space of the SUV.
For my opinion, I just sold a Bronco, not a problem at all, replaced it with a Cherokee, my second. No major problems out of either one, and happy enough that I'm planning on buying a third later this year. I also recently sold my 4th S10 (actually a GMC Sonoma, but....) and all of these have been relatively trouble free, all vehicles require maintenance. I also have a Blazer, and can't complain about it at all.
I honestly believe you can't go wrong with just about any brand. I've never owned a foreign made truck, so I have no input on these. All the vehicles I just mentioned (except the Bronco) are mid-sized where you mentioned a F-150, I suppose you also need to weigh the operating costs versus the capacities of each. I find that if my vehicles are not large enough to transport what I need to, that the cheaper costs of operating a smaller vehicle pay off more than he two or three times a year I have to make two trips.
One last thing, you can save some money by purchasing a 2WD vehicle if you don't need the 4WD capabilities. One of my Jeeps, and all of my S10's were 2WD, I just never needed it, so that's an expense I didn't have to pay for up front, or during the time I owned it.

[zerostar]

Originally Posted by hondo

That being said, I have had recurring problems. None of them mechanical (yet) but some paint and fit and finish problems that keep me returning to the dealership. An example is yesterday, when I opened the tailgate, the bolt that attaches to the cable that holds the tailgate up when it is extended, had come completely off.

I concur, we had a Titan Crew Cab at work for hauling inspectors and some equipment, nice truck but was in the shop 4 times for small problems.

We traded for a Honda Ridgeline and I love it, seats are much more comfortable and it drives much nicer on the trails, its only 255hp but still performs every task we need (sometime a 4000lb trailer in the florida swamp mud) Seems like it absorbs the terrain better as well. No problems with it yet.

And it has the highest government crash test rating (5 stars) for both frontal and side-impact tests.

Oh, and the higher sides keep the hay inside better too

[Krusty]

I've had ownership and work experiences with Nissans. I've had usage experiences with Ford, Chevy, Dodge, and Toyota.

Its hard to beat American trucks in the full-size arena (but the Titan looks like the first serious challenge in that ballpark. On paper at least, it has all the right specs including drive-train and transmission which is where Japanese trucks have usually sucked in comparison to American ones). I'd definitely recommend giving one a test drive.

. In the sm/mid-size arena I'd say go Nissan or Toyota. I've personally owned 2 Nissan trucks in my life (smaller model, pre "Frontier" name) and those may have been the most rugged and reliable little vehicles on the planet. I put 80k on the first one (crashed it) and 192k on the second one (sold it), overloaded them, failed to change the oil for 10k miles at a stretch, and just generally treated them like a dog's @ss. I had a grand total of ONE trip to the shop for something that would keep either of those vehicles from running (water pump on the 2nd one at 170k miles) though I had about 2 trips total for non-critical things that needed fixed. I hear Toyotas are similar in their reliability but to me they always looked weird and their sheet metal had the appearance of being flimsy.

If I were going mid, I'd go Frontier due in part to my experiences with Nissan and in part for the recent move to a "real" truck platform on those model (fully boxed ladder frame, outrageous engines for the size of truck, etc.).

[SVass]

Originally Posted by budster101

Going straight, I've yet to see an SUV or Truck roll over. When and where did I state that I would go around a corner going 55 plus?

They don't roll over going over 55mph in a straight line.... jesus.

Ford Explorers roll over when going in straight lines when overheated tires blow out. By the way, drivers might be liable if their high bumpered vehicles strike other cars in vulnerable areas and they were driving "too fast for conditions". sam

[hondo]

Originally Posted by zerostar

We traded for a Honda Ridgeline and I love it, seats are much more comfortable and it drives much nicer on the trails, its only 255hp but still performs every task we need (sometime a 4000lb trailer in the florida swamp mud) Seems like it absorbs the terrain better as well. No problems with it yet.

And it has the highest government crash test rating (5 stars) for both frontal and side-impact tests.

Interesting! I am considering the same trade. My only hesitation was the Ridgeline's ability to tow my boat at 4,000 lbs. Seems like this is a non issue. I test drove the Ridgeline and completely agree that the seats are very comfortable and it drives great. Another plus is that it gets about 8 mpg more that my Titan.

If a mid size truck is what you are after, I would take a serious look at the Ridgeline.

hondo

[budster101]

Great thoughts!

Sam:

You are a pill. Overheated tires... Man you got an answer for everything. Ford Explorer was one of the highest rated SUVs around. My in-laws have one. Wait. How fast do you have to go for them to blow out? <kidding>.

They love it by the way. I'm not to happy with the capacity of it though. Seems a bit small on the inside.

[rozwado1]

Toyota Tundra extended cab (for the fam). We have one in the fleet at work; 4x4, extended cab, 70k miles. It has no problem pulling a 5,000lb load through Florida mud and the ride is nice. Build quality hasn't been an issue, and we've been using it everyday for more than 2 years. Most people in my field have to drive American made trucks because they offer a dually model, but I'd be driving the Tundra everyday if I didn't have to pull such huge trailers.

[zerostar]

Originally Posted by hondo

Interesting! I am considering the same trade. My only hesitation was the Ridgeline's ability to tow my boat at 4,000 lbs. Seems like this is a non issue. I test drove the Ridgeline and completely agree that the seats are very comfortable and it drives great. Another plus is that it gets about 8 mpg more that my Titan.

It's a great truck, with the trailer attached it doesn't skip a beat. I think it is most comparable to a F-150 V8 Triton 4.6L in terms of horse power and torque. (plus its ULEV-2 rated) The 'trunk' is my favorite feature, water tight and lots of space, a perfect mix for a truck.

[budster101]

Ohhh man. F-150 V8 Triton 4.6L ... oh-oh-hhhhhhhh? <Home Improvement's Tim Allen>

Nice.

[the_glassman]

I wouldn't be caught dead in a Ridgeline just because it's so fugly!

[cjrivera]

SUV: Infiniti FX45
Truck: The new Ford F150

[His Dudeness]

Originally Posted by SVass

Ford Explorers roll over when going in straight lines when overheated tires blow out. By the way, drivers might be liable if their high bumpered vehicles strike other cars in vulnerable areas and they were driving "too fast for conditions". sam

Except that it was the tires at fault, not the Ford. So blaming Ford or the SUV for that matter is wrong.

[His Dudeness]

Originally Posted by the_glassman

I wouldn't be caught dead in a Ridgeline just because it's so fugly!

No, not that. It's a HONDA. Nuff said.

[Goldfinger]

Toyota Land Cruiser 100. The Best. But it isn't cheap.

[von Wrangell]

Toyota Hilux 33"

Toyota Hilux(Tacoma I believe they are called in the US) on 38" wheels. Cheap, reliable, and surprisingly good at offroading.

I've driven Chevy Suburbans on 44" wheels and although a very smooth ride it's almost useless when offroading(especially in snow).

If you want a more expensive alternative go for a Toyota Landcruiser 90 or 100 on 38" wheels.

[doucy2]

98 lincoln navigator works for me

[ihatesuvs68]

Originally Posted by budster101

Going straight, I've yet to see an SUV or Truck roll over. When and where did I state that I would go around a corner going 55 plus?

They don't roll over going over 55mph in a straight line.... jesus.

So if somebody pulls out in front of you, you go straight?

So if a deer or person runs out in the road, you go straight?

So if there's a big piece of blown tire in the road, you go straight?

No. You don't.

[ihatesuvs68]

Originally Posted by doucy2

98 lincoln navigator works for me

Moron.

[nredman]

[ihatesuvs68]

Originally Posted by nredman

Yeah, I've been reading about that thing. It seems honda is ready to dominate the truck world too. A trunk underneath the bed?! GENIOUS! This thing rocks, and you know it's going to have honda reliability. If I had to buy a new pickup, that'd be it.

[zerostar]

Originally Posted by ihatesuvs68

Yeah, I've been reading about that thing. It seems honda is ready to dominate the truck world too. A trunk underneath the bed?! GENIOUS! This thing rocks, and you know it's going to have honda reliability. If I had to buy a new pickup, that'd be it.

For a 1st try in the consumer truck market I was impressed, the Passport (Rodeo for $4K more) was a piece of crap in just about every respect, this thing is all honda and it shows.

I would like to see a slight redesign to smooth out some small things, also a better front grill, its pretty bad. A little more power would be better but I think they are trying to keep it ULEV-2? As it is it's a useable truck.

[RAILhead]

The Lexus LX SUV has 275-hp V8 with 332 lb ft of torque (3,400 rpm) and it's LEV-2. I think Honda just didn't want to put that much power into a small SUV (it's only a V6, too). Not only that, for those of us that are 6'4", the interior dimensions leave much to be desired. Narrow wheelbase, low torque, short bed, small gas tank, 17 inch wheels...I could go on.

Blech.

Maury

[ihatesuvs68]

Originally Posted by RAILhead

Narrow wheelbase, low torque, short bed, small gas tank, 17 inch wheels...I could go on.

Blech.

Maury

You're right. It isn't going to be an off road monster or a 'mayons' truck. It's just going to be extremely reliable, well made and good at what MOST PICKUPS ARE USED FOR MOST OF THE TIME.

[zerostar]

Originally Posted by RAILhead

The Lexus LX SUV has 275-hp V8 with 332 lb ft of torque (3,400 rpm) and it's LEV-2. I think Honda just didn't want to put that much power into a small SUV (it's only a V6, too).

Good catch, honda seems to have a legacy of many vehicles with the minimum power.
You should remember though that the Lexus starts at $66K, You could get 2 Ridgelines for that.

Not only that, for those of us that are 6'4", the interior dimensions leave much to be desired.

For the average american male (5'10") there is plenty of room, this is why there are other choices out there.

Also, the dimensions on paper may be less, but you need to test any vehicle to see how the room is used before you can say with any kind of certainty.

low torque

Agreed, back to the minimum thing. Hopefully they offer more choices in the coming revisions.

Narrow wheelbase, short bed

Perhaps compared to Large truck, this is meant to compete with say a Frontier, where is is almost the same exact wheelbase.

small gas tank

Again, it is large than the frontier Crew Cab, which it is seemingly meant to compete with.
And Its only 2 Gallons less compared to the Titan (distance on full tank here)

17 inch wheels

17" is only on the top model on the Frotier, and the Titan has 17's on he base and 18's on the others.

You can make any vehicle look bad comparing it to a $70K luxury or one in a different class.

[Sage]

It looks like you're mostly considering large trucks, but have you considered a new Toyota Tacoma? (This '06 model really stretches the class-size boundaries.) We just got one—double-cab long-bed—and it's just awesome. Car-like cockpit, lots of room in front and rear, big bed, strong engine (though it's a rather weird-sounding engine).

And how 'bout a Subie Forester for an SUV? The 2.5XT is a rocket—0-60 in under 6 seconds.

[ihatesuvs68]

I Forester XTs!!!!!

They don't handle quite as well as a car, but if you throw in a WRX suspension they handle awesome, kick ass, and take names!

[rozwado1]

Another thing: Don't get a Dodge Ram. I drive a 3500 Cummins dually quadcab longbed for work and it's full of problems. No attention to detail in these trucks.

[OldManMac]

After giving this more consideration, I'd recommend getting a real truck, not any of the toys already mentioned. This is what I drive.