Home Forums Gear Hunting Trucks and Four-Wheel Drives Taking About Quality And Price.............

Dealer I bought my '10 Silverado from, gives "forever" free annual state inspections. They're located in a small, rural PA town, but many customers drive some distance to buy from them (40 miles for me, third truck bought from them over the years).

They will come get your rig and bring it back, if you press them to do it, but I've only ever availed myself of that once in 14 years ('97 S Blazer, warranty repair).

Have never seen one offer "forever" warranties, though? Probably not much of a gamble, given that few people keep something for more'n a few years?

Where is this at and how many units do they sell each year?

Two Toyota dealers within about 10 miles of me. Neither has ever offered any great deals on Tacos or Tundras, that I've ever seen? The year I bought a new S-10 ZR2 (2002), GM/dealer rebates amounted to around $5K. By comparison, the Taco was $1K off and the sticker price was a coupla thou higher to start with.

Actually intended to buy a new ext. cab 4x4 Taco that year, but decided it really wasn't worth several thousand more than the ZR2.
Same for Sierra/Silverados vs Tundras, in price and rebate reductions.

I was looking on and off for a few months for a new truck. I looked at Chevy,GMC,Ford and Dodge. Best deals were on the Chevy followed by the Dodge. Out of all the trucks the Chevy/GMC have the highest highway mileage even better then a 6cyl Tacoma. The Ram has the best ride slightly edging out the Silverado although I cannot buy a Dodge for any amount of money because of their reliability record.

Ford had lots of incentives and great pricing on mine. I got $11K off the sticker + $1000 cash back.

Based on my own experiences, those of my friends, and Consumer Reports long term records, Dodge trucks are right there with the other full size trucks when it comes to reliability. The Dodge 1500's are on their recommended list along with the Ford 150. The half ton Chevys aren't. When it comes to the 3/4 ton, 4WD's, they give the Chevys a slight edge over the Dodge and a bit more of one over the Fords. E

Actually, I would buy a Dodge because of their reliability record. I have a 99 Dodge 2500 with 375,000 miles on it, if that's not reliable I don't know what is. I wouldn't buy a GM product, I don't trust them to hold together for the mileage that the dodge will.

Chevrolet and GMC trucks are always on the consumer report recommended list and have been for years. All I know is of about 20 truck owners that I personally know the only one that had a LEMON LAW applied was a Dodge P/U with a DIESEL. Like the ad says there are more GMC Chevy pickups on the road in more of a range of model years then any FORD or Dodge, the only other truck is a Toyota PU.

Here in Canada our diesel fuel prices are the same as gas,high, so for the 1T and 3/4T, we go with the torgue,it makes hills and trailers so much easier. Twice, I passed new gassers on long hills pulling a quad like me.They had passed me on the flat,as I was just loafing along at 65MPH.

Recommended rebuild milages for the diesels under heavy use, GM 200K,new Ford 250K, Cummins 350K.

The ad claiming that Chevys are so long lasting ignores the fact that most of them are very old trucks kept alive by the abundance of parts availiable in junk yards and the back yard mechanics that can work on them.
The point about the small Toyotas is true. But, in the last few years, to be competitive, Nissan, Ford, Dodge and GM all make stuff that can go the distance like the small Toys.
As far as tough goes, or lemons, I've seen more Chevy/GM's with significant problems than either Ford or Dodge.
The other thing is that GM would have been bankrupt and may still be if it were not for the government bailout. They have not and aren't expected to pay back what was given them. Or their bond holders. Ford didn't take any money and Chrysler has repaid their debts.
I'm not investing any company with that kind of track record. E

So far this thread has stayed on track and not had any bullschit replies.

Without belaboring the issue, chrysler DID NOT repay all of their bailout cash and is the same as government motors. Unless $1.3 BILLION owed to taxpayers doesn't amount to anything.

"Chrysler and its financing arm needed a $12.5 billion bailout from the U.S. government two years ago. The company was restructured and Marchionne was placed in charge. Of the original U.S. bailout, $11.2 billion has been repaid. The U.S. Treasury Department says it likely won't recover the remaining $1.3 billion." July 26, 2011

http://news.yahoo.com/chrysler-reports-2q-loss-due-bailout-repayment-120458533.html

I'm having a hard time with sticker prices. Paid $31k for my 2003 Cummins 2500 4X4 (Sticker was $39k). Seems like the equivalent truck now is more than $50k.

Bah, I have reached curmudgeon status.

My truck now has 225k. Total engine repairs (not maintenance) has been 2 waterpump replacements and a transmission cooler on the side of the block. Have replaced shocks, brakes (twice) and upgraded the tranny with Suncoast parts. Balljoints, tie rods etc are all original.

Which means exactly nothing. Consumer reports and all the other ratings magazines are complete jokes. Read their articles sometimes, they rate vehicles based upon useless criteria that has nothing to do with a vehicle's longevity. The true test of quality is how long something holds up under hard use. For every 12 year old Chevy/GM diesel still on the road I'll show you ten dodge diesels still working. That's all that matters, all else is just gum flapping.

Consumer Reports have made complete azzes of themselves in the past on other occasions too. In the late 80's/ early 90's they predicted the Chebby Cavalier would be a better long term proposition than the Acura Integra........

Just correcting E who said otherwise that they were not on there. Yes Consumer reports sucks , I know more about things mechanical then most people. I buy based on what I see, hear and feel and most importantly my experience. The fact of the matter there are more Chevys/GMC's and toyotas on the road then any other make by FAR. We are not discussing diesels in this thread BTW.

You sure don't live in high mileage Kalifornia. Chevys simply don't rule here. Most of them are pretty old. The parts stores and junk yards do a lively bussiness.
My 89 Dodge 4X4 diesel was sold in 07 with 306,000 miles on it. Only had a few electrical problems in spite of lots of hard use, including lots of off road rock crawling.
My present one, an 06, has had one small problem. The heater's fresh air door would creak and groan when it moved. Had that replaced under warranty.
We do see lots of Toys, and more Nissans now. Where I live, Jeeps are very popular as well.
Out in the Central Valley, where some put as much as 70,000 miles a year on their cars and trucks, Chevys aren't common. E

We weren't until you brought them up.



If there are more GMC and Chevy pickups on the road it's because there were more of them built, not because of any longevity advantage. I worked my way through college as a mechanic, that cured me of any desire to ever own a GM product.

If you worked thru college as a mechanic and were not impressed by GM but impressed by dodge then there is nothing I can do for you.


I just brought up the fact that the only lemon truck that I know of was a dodge with a diesel . The diesel in his case held up fine it was the POS wrapper it came in. Ford outsells Chevy do they not ? How well do their gas engines hold up? My best friend lives in PA and bought a 1996 Ford F150 with the new triton engine. 87000 miles and it was DRT engine shot. There are more old Suburbans,Tahoes,Silverados on the road then many of the GM haters care to admit. I don't see many Expeditions,Exploders and old F150s on the road that is for sure. What is the resale on an old dodge pickup pre Hemi? LOL

Last year I was hunting elk in Nothern BC oil patch,I was amazed by the brand change. In the 70s and 80s, the only P/U was Ford,though you did see the odd foreign one,Chevy or Dodge.In that country,Chevy was foreign. Now,well over half the trucks were CTDs.

I bought a lease return 08 Dodge 1T longbox Quadcab last year.A bit well used. Third gear in the manual is notchy in the cold,the G-56 is a medium duty truck tranny,not a sports car one. The other problem was the alternator packed it in,from the scarred battery leads I would say the truck was used to jump heavy equipment.After owning a VW Rabbit,when I saw it was Bosch and not a NipponDenso,I was not pleased.Other than that she stood up well to his heavy use.

I love the "Locomotive",a big black metalic monster. I've done half a dozen 12hr runs with one 16.Those M-B seats are great,at my age, I'm an excellent judge.BTW a Nissan is only a 6hr truck.

The new dodge trucks are definitely better then what they were building a few years back. They have the best ride of the 1/2 ton pickups I drove recently. I just do not like the gas offerings and do not have a need for a cummins turbo or any other diesel motor for that matter. Nissan is a waste of money I agree

I'm not particularly impressed with either of them, but of the two GM is by far the least impressive. I'm sure you're correct that there's nothing you can do for me.



You didn't say Chevy, you said GM and Chevy. As I'm sure you know, GM and Chevy combined sell more trucks than Ford, which explains why there are more on the road. (There goes that logic stuff) It also explains why there are likely more of them in junkyards around the country.