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Considering buying a new full size 4wd truck this spring or early summer. I currently drive a 1999 4wd extended cab Tacoma. I use it for hunting trips and towing a 5 x 10 utility trailer and 4 wheeler. I don't really need a full size truck but my wife and I would like some extra room when traveling with our teenage son. The added size and towing power would be a benefit but not a requirement.

Right now I like the Tundra Double Cab, F150 Super Cab and the Sierra/Silverado Ext Cab. I am also considering the Tacoma Double Cab as it will do everything I need a truck to do. However, IMO the full size trucks offer more room, more capabilities, and seem to get pretty close to the same gas mileage.

I'm looking for some real world experiences(good or bad) and observations/opinions with any of these trucks. In the Tundra I am considering the 4.6 liter, the F150 would be the 5.0 liter, and the GM's would be the 5.3 liter.

I bought a 2011 4x4 extended cab F150 a few months ago. It has the basic 3.7 liter V6 but really performs more like a V8. This is both my first pickup and Ford vehicle. Toyota makes some really good products too, I sold my Corolla with 142k miles on it shortly after buying the truck. I too considered a Tacoma, it should make a brilliant off-road truck with the TRD Off-Road package. Those are pretty popular here in Wyoming.

So far the most I've hauled in the F150 is a deer but of course it can do a lot more. I would probably take the Ecoboost 3.5 liter V6 over the 5.0 V8, more torque and better MPG according to Ford. JMO.

What kind of mileage are you getting from your 3.7? I'm really intrigued by the EcoBoost but a trusted Ford mechanic thinks the 5.0 is a more durable and proven design.

2007 silverado 4x4 CC, 3.73 gears and 4.8L motor/ 16-18 mpg in town 19-22 mpg intersate/freeway. Plenty of tow power & room.
I do not know what the 5.3 gets MPG wise.
I was going to buy the Tundra, smaller, more expensive, worse MPG overall. Same with the Ford 5.7L ...worse mpg & 15K more.
The silverado road nicer than the other 2 IMO & costwise a lot less. Not a single problem in the 5 yrs I have owned it.

I get 20-21 on the highway and maybe 13-15 in town. I live in a small town, very stop-go with mostly 20-30 mph speed limits.

This was about all I wanted to spend, only an XL with the power group and XL plus package but still hit over 30k. If I could afford it I would have gone with the EcoBoost. IIRC it puts out a tremendous 420 ft-lbs. of torque at only 2500 rpm. The normally aspirated V6 and V8s are certainly more proven but Ford did a lot of testing and evaluation for the twin-turbo EcoBoost engine before releasing to the public. The 3.7 is still a pretty good engine though, I think it has a lot of oomph for its size.

My 08 Tundra has had one proble; the stereo. It messed up right after I bought it and Toyota replaced it. The truck has since given me 50k trouble free miles and is absolutely the best driving pick up I've ever driven.

Expat

Tundra

I have a 2011 F-150 w/5.0l V-8. It has tons of power and sounds mean as hell, but it ain't no tundra. I traded a 2006 Tundra for it.

I have 11K miles on it now and have more rattles in it than my Tundra did at 90K miles. It drives me nuts.

FWIW, I get mixed driving MPG of 17.5'ish and highway MPG of 18-19.9 depending on the hwy and my speeds. It tows like crazy. I tow a 5500# boat and you barely know it's there. I like the truck plenty, it's just not as well built as my Tundra was or my Tacoma before that.

My work truck has a 3.7l and it gets crap for mileage. I've not got about 13mpg yet, and it's the same for our other 3 that are just like it. This is however, a lot of city driving.

It has nowhere near the HP or torque as the 5.0 V-8 I have in my personal truck does.

I must say that I have been a true diehard GM Owner for several years. The trucks that dad and I have had, have been mostly Chevy trucks and we had very few problems out if them. I currently own a 2006 Chevy 2500HD 4X4 with the Duramax and Allison Transmission (6 Speed). It has about 45,000 miles on it. I must say that truck is a beast as far as towing and hauling. I bought it for the long haul to tow my campers and farm tractors. I will have it until the wheels fall off. It has got as high as 22.8 MPG on a trip but usually fuel mileage is 18 MPG or less in the mountains.

Yet I still desire to buy another gas powered (non-diesel) truck to run around in and maybe to travel in. Even though I am a diehard GM man I would probably buy a crew cab Toyota Tundra if I was buying. Here is why. I have had 2 full sized Chevy trucks (2003 GMC 1500 and my current 2500HD) and the intermediate steering shaft gave trouble on both of them at a certain mileage. The steering gets a thud in it when you hit ruts or bumps on the road. Chevy may have fixed that on the newer trucks, but that really ticked me off that they did not cure that on the earlier trucks. Also there are issues or were issues (pump rub) with the transfer case on the 4X4 GM trucks. That might have been cured after the 2008 models? Also I have read where the 5.3 Liter GM engine burns alot of oil after so many miles. I know a guy at work that has 2006 Chevy with the 5.3 Liter. It uses a quart or more between oil changes. Chevy place told him that was normal oil usage. Well to me having to worry about adding oil is not for me. I also know a guy that has a Chevy Tahoe with several miles on it and it use�s 2 or 3 quarts of oil in between changes. Just do a search on the net on this subject.

In the past few years I have lost faith in GM just for those reasons. I would buy Toyota Tundra in a heartbeat. I would even consider a Ford believe it or not (can't believe I said that). It all boils down to buying a dependable truck that will give little to no problems. According to the reviews I read the Toyota Tundra fits that to a T.

I am a long time Chevrolet truck owner..Don't know if I remember all of them we have had, but dad and I generally had about the same things while he was with us.. We had two 64's, one 69, one 70,one 71,and one 72 4WD I still have. After these, dad had a Ford until he passed. I then had one 2001, one 2005, and now a 2011. After dad passed, I also have three Toyota Tacoma's, he was a WWII vet and would not have approved.

The early trucks were all good. The 2001 had the aluminum 5.3 and the pistons rattled from day one. The 2005 was an iron block 5.3, had the 4sp auto and 3.73 gears. These were both 4wd models and the 2005 was a club cab. It was probably the best truck I have owned. It had power, everything worked well, and got 19 on the highway. The 2011 truck would probably seem alright if I never owned the 2005. The 2011 is a pretty fancy club cab 4wd with another aluminum 5.3, 6 speed auto, and 3.42 gears. It really drives nice and rides nice, but has several things I don't like as well as the 2005. It has less power, has the motor which goes from 8 to 4 to save gas, was not available with 3.73 gears (without getting the MAX) has a very plastic interior, throws rocks and dirt all over it, and has digital ac/heater controls which make you take your eyes off the road to adjust. In addition, it only gets around 18.5 on the highway with all of the gadgets to make it better. The sticker indicated 21mpg highway. I didn't want a Ford due to height, but wish I would have looked closer at them or bought a 3/4 ton Chev.

I traded a Super Crew F-150 for a 4 door Tacoma 5 years ago. The big Ford was only rated to tow 300 more lbs than my Tacoma, but when pulling the same loads the Toyota does it with more pep. Having a 1500 lb lighter truck with only 10 fewer horsepower makes a big difference.

You would gain a lot more interior space with the full size, but the 4 door Tacoma meets my needs, maybe not others. I always owned full size until this truck, not because needed the towing or weight capacity, but because of interior space. The older Tacoma's were just too small, but the newer versions are really a mid-size.

I'm still skeptical of the full size trucks fuel mileage claims. They brag about highway mileage in trucks with small motors and high gearing. My experiences with those combos has left me underwhelmed. When I traded my 02 Ford for the 07 Toyota the highway mileage was pretty close, about 17-18 vs 20-21. But the fuel mileage where I do 90% of my driving went from 12-13 mpg up to 17-18 mpg. While that may not sound like a lot it works out to about $70 less for gas for each 1,000 miles driven at todays fuel prices. About $100/ month with the miles I drive.

I also considered cost and resale value. I haven't looked at truck prices in 5 years, so the market could be much different now. But 5 years ago, where I live, I could buy the Toyota $8,000 cheaper than any comparble Ford, Chevy, or Dodge 1/2 ton. It was the right decision for me. I'd at least look at the 4 door Tacoma before deciding on a bigger truck.

Being a GM truck, I'd say it's nearly anytime now.

Tundra and don't look back. I saw somewhere recently that Tundras are made with more American parts than any other truck on the road fwiw.

I'll see if I can find the link to that article.

Expect 15 to 17 mpg.

Thanks for all the replies. I plan to drive all of them and maybe even try a Ram, Titan and Frontier while I'm at it. I'm sure the double cab Tacoma would do anything I need and if it has enough room in back, it maybe what I go with.

Got 80,000 miles on a 2008 Tundra now. Running 91 octane and averaging 17 to 18 miles a gallon. Going strong and no issues to date.

Been trying to buy a Tundra all day. Been contacting dealers and asking for their best price over the phone and the internet.Seems they don't want to sell a truck, not going to waste many hrs running to different dealers to get their best prices. Once I get a fair price i'll go in and conduct business, in this economy you would think they would be all over me. Oh well,My beautiful 2001 C3 "Denali" has become expendable as it is all wheel drive not 4WD. That low range has been missing for a while now. It has pulled my horse trailer excepionally well but time to move on.

VA,
The GM products I have been driving for the past several years have given me great service. A 1/2 ton extra cab with a 5.3 will be a great choice. Good fuel economy and I have found them to be very reliable.
Just bought a 2012 2500HD LTZ w/Z71 and a 6 Liter. Put a Leer XL100 on it (8' bed) and love it. Rides great, noise level very low, excellent power, great brakes, and very comfortable. Only one issue with this beast but I knew it going in. 14.2 mpg highway and 11.5 mpg around work and town.
Last one was a 2007. Traded it with 91K on it and the truck held good value on trade. Gasoline, tires, and fluids in 5 years.
FWIW I noticed that true 4 door trucks had quit a bit better trade value over an extra cab but I like 8' beds and a four door w/8' bed is a yacht.

Dave

From reading and speaking to several mechanics, they all say the 5.3 in the GM trucks is a great engine. It will probably boil down to what drives and rides the best.

Does anyone know when the GM trucks are due for an update? The current body style has had a few cosmetic tweaks here and there but seems to be a pretty old design, IMO.

9 outta 10 sales managers aren't going to waste their time giving their best price over the phone. I'm sure the salesman would love to help you, but it's a simple fact that the sales managers just aren't going to take anyone serious over the phone.

Full size GMCs/Chevies were "tweaked" in 2007. Both interiors and exteriors. I liked the old dash design much better, but don't miss the swing out "wing" rear door windows at all (extended cabs).

Only probs I had with my '06 Sierra Z71, were a coupla engine sensors, fan switch and fan motor (noisy). All replaced under warranty. No issues thus far with the '10 Silverado Z71 ext. cab (20,000 miles), other than crappy fuel mileage (18 MPG). Miss the 20 MPG that the '06 GMC got. 5.3L engines suit me fine. The '10 has "coil over" front suspension, which in my opinion, rides/handles better than the previous torsion bar front suspension.