I’m looking to buy a new truck in the next couple months. Half ton , crew cab, 4x4 , gas v8 . Looking for opinions from owners on reliability , overall satisfaction.

If I were going to buy a new pickup today, it wouldn't be a GM or Ram...

Kinda narrows the field for me.

I have a 1/2 ton Dodge company truck that I like, but I wouldn’t buy one. The body on my Dodge isn’t holding up well at all. The metal must be very thin. It does ride and drive pretty well, though.

Those Rams seem to keep winning Truck of the Year from Motor Trend for about 4 years in a row now.......but good to hear some real-life experiences.

Best used truck I've seen on the market in a while, sorry, notta crew cab.

https://www.crystalmotorsports.com/details/used-1970-chevrolet-ck-10-series/73792256

only Ford did not take Government money to bail out. Neither GM or RAM would still be in business.

I suspect that you will get condemnations and recommendations for each brand. I’ve had I think six Silverado’s. One had a transmission module crap out. It cost $500, but covered under a recall. Other than that, they’ve been great trucks. Good luck.

Tundra 😀

I did find this for you - a list of new trucks offering V-8's across brands, V-8;s 2021

I am a Ford guy, and finding a v8 part may be a factor - but an unnecessary requirement. No I would not have said that until recently.
My 2013 3,7 v6 has more power than my prior larger v8. It ain't exactly a beast though.

My 3,7 is a 2013. my daughter has a 2.7 v-6 2020 and she can haul 50% more than I can. Its crazy and yes...TWO point seven.

Ford does offer a V-8 gas powered engine 5.0l with 400hp and 410ft-lps torque and payload over 3300pounds ( which is great) - it uses a variable displacement science like those old Cadillacs of the 70's where it only uses as many cylinders as it needs at a time.

THe 2021 3,5L V6 Ford Powerboost Hybrid boasts 430 hp and 570 ft-lps torque and tos over 12.000 pounds. Says it can go 750 on a tank of gas.

If you haven't priced trucks or vehicles lately- have a defibrillator standing by.

If I coul dnot get a For d I oculd talk myself into a toyota and thugh no one sees to liek them- the New Nissan is a good looking truck to me - and comes in a 5.6 L v8.

All trucks matter! 1/2 ton I probably go tundra with ford 5.0 second choice.

On just looks...I would say Dodge.


Ford and Chevy are hideous right now.

Ford took $6BB in bailout money.

Good luck finding a new truck of any flavor on a lot right now.

Recently bought a new F-150 crew, 4x4, 5.0L and I’m really liking it compared to past owned trucks. Very comfortable, very quick, quiet, far too many features to fully appreciate and excellent gas mileage.

But most new brooms do sweep clean.

Congress is looking at an investigation on Ram diesel pickups now...repeated, epidemic, expensive failures of 'fuel pumps', whether they mean transfer pumps or injection pumps I don't know. Media knows as much about diesel engines as they do firearms.

GMC is THE best looking truck on the road !!!

Maybe if you like the "trying to pass a bloated whale through a razor wire fence look".

Know nothing about new production but my 2004 F150 4x4 is still rolling just fine.

^^ Fixed it for you. ^^

i have had a '15 f250 crew cab for 7 years and 48k miles with no problems. the 6.2 gasser is a gas pig though. 10mpg. thats why it only has 48k miles. love the truck other than that though

Tundra...had it right the first time. Tacos are overpriced junk. Tundras have more power, more room and about the same gas mileage. And you can get a Tundra for less than a loaded Taco.

I had an 85 Ford, 460 gasser.That one trashed the engine at 85K, ten years old. Worse truck I ever owned.Then I bought a 98 Dodge,Cummins. It trashed the engine at 150K, plus 3 injector pumps, 2 lifter pumps until I put in a FASS system, complete clutch assembly, 20 years old. I had more in repairs than I paid for the truck.So,I am trying a Chevy now. 2019 Silverado Duramax, 6 speed allison. I like everything except the ridiculous low air scope below the front bumper.Two recalls on the block heater.No fix,so they cut the cord. Almost 20K on it, about 1/3 is pulling and carrying a heavy load of 17K pounds or so. It's pulling truck for sure though. The Dodge had GCVR or 17000 #'s, this one has 23,000

The 2022 Tundra says "Hold my beer!"

After working in both my families GM and Ford Dealerships you dont need to try and sell me on the fact they all break down. I currently own a Silverado after years of Fords. Probably go with GMC next. Silverado has been good. Just like the looks of the GMC.

I have to agree, I have same year Tundra and Taco, the Tundra is twice the pickup for more or less the same price. Odometer tells the story, they were bought within days of each other, Taco has 160,000 on the clock, Tundra has 245,000 on the clock.

I've had fantastic luck with 5 Silverados in the last 25 years. The only thing out of the ordinary (besides routine fluids, tires and brakes) were the stinkin' tire sensors on the last one. I went the GMC route last year because I much prefer the looks of the new Sierra. I'm sure the other brands are fine, I just knew karma would somehow bite me if I strayed from what's worked for me.

I certainly feel like for myself, I need a new $71,000 pickup to run back and forth to the post office and Enda-&-Earl’s Diner for runny salmonella eggs

Dang!


You are right. Thats repulsive.

You dont have to get the denali or high country, just get the LT.

You need to go forth and investigate for yourself. Drive and look into each and make the decision on what You like. Everyone around here has their own preference but you need to find out what you like. That's my story and I'm stickin to it.

It's the Bosch CP4 high pressure pump used for model years 2019 and 2020 on the 6.7L Cummins engine, so not half ton related. The same pump incidentally was used for a short time on the 2500 Duramax's, and as far as I know, is still used on the Powerstroke V8's. Ram has gone back to the tried and true CP3 pump for 2021.

Unless you need to actually haul -or- can write off the vehicle expense through your company... dropping $70k+ on a pickup truck is absolutely retarded. When did trucks turn into luxury cars? They were supposed to be for utility.

A really nice used one. First off you should weigh more than what you're pulling, so do you really need something with 400 hp and 600 foot pounds of torque in a 1/2 ton with it's softer suspension? Then are you going to be willing to trash your new high dollar truck through the brush? As an every day driver a truck sure isn't as economical as a second car would be. The first couple years depreciation on a new anything is significant. Insurance is way higher on a new high dollar vehicle and so is the licence in some states. My old low mileage V-8 F-150 goes hunting, fishing, dump runs and pulls a trailer as needed, but a GMC SUV gets the daily driving miles. There are a lot of trailer towing trucks parked next to garages in this area, so I'm not the only one in these parts who thinks like I do.

Justify?

Buy what you want for the reasons you want and can afford.

I like the looks and ride of the Ram. Then I read about the horror stories of owners. Real POS. My boss had a 2020 GMC. transmission went out at 27,000 miles. Why would that happen today? Another co-worker had a F-150 from when the little turbo first came out. He was around 175,000 miles when the tranny started shuttering some. No problems until then. he traded it and bought a new Ford. I'd get a Toyota.

No brainer

My 2018 f150 ecoboost has had 20g in warranty work now

At 59000 miles

Hard pass on Ford for me now

I just bought a 2021 f-150 lariat V-8 back in May before the chip shortage news broke. I like it and it wont rust! There are some silly little nuances about it that I don't like but all in all it get's great gas mileage over the dodge and chevy average is about 21mpg after 1st oil change. I would suggest holding out for a while and keep what u got or sell what u got and wait if possible. Take advantage of prices now. Vehicles are absolutely insane right now. Never in my life did I ever think I could buy a brand new truck and put 8000 miles on it and get offers for 2-3 thousand dollars over MSRP. It's crazy right now. i also would suggest hitting the latest model truck forums and doing some research. www.f150gen14.com is a good one for anything 2021 f-150
good luck

I've had a 2020 f-150 with the specs the original poster gave. Love it. Was driving an 04 Tacoma. So it's kind of an apples and oranges thing. Wished I had done it sooner.

Not enough to choose from..

My 2018 F150 crew xlt 2.7 has been problem free and is a great truck. Almost 40k miles on it. Plus I was lucky and bought it "new" w/ 2000 miles (after the owner of the dealership drove it for 6 months) for $32k. I could probably sell it for more than that today.

The thinking of huge depreciation driving it off the lot isn't quite so true right now IME. Good Condition used trucks are selling for almost as much as new ones!

Ram will have the best ride empty, the 5.7 hemi and 8 speed has proven to be reliable. I've had a 2011 and a 2015 and no complaints. It's a little more saggy in the rear with a heavy load.

Ford - 5.0 is good, some debate over the eco-boost. Still running leaf springs in the the rear and is most expensive of the big 3.

GM - well just look up the MDS cam failure epidemic. I wouldn't touch anything new made by GM aside from the c8 vette .

You didn't really expect an objective response from this bunch of jugheads, did you?

I'm a Chevy fan, and between me and my three brothers, my son, and several nephews we have owned probably 20-30 Chevs over the last 30 years. Very, very little trouble with any of them. I could go on and on but I have figured out one thing about trucks - IMO, it would be hard to buy a bad truck these days... trucks are built better, have better engines and drive trains, are quieter, get better gas mileage, and just generally last longer than any generation of trucks before. They even back up their trucks with much longer and more inclusive warranties than ever before... Buy what you think looks best and is most comfortable and you'll be fine with your truck... I'm really liking the looks of my 2015 Chev 1/2 ton Crew Cab 4x4 Z71 and my son's 2021 GMC 1/2 ton Sierra 4x4 crew cab and both of our last Chev trucks went well over 200K miles before we wanted new trucks... but you do you and try to forget what everyone on this site has to say about the matter.... LOL

Bob

Ditto... I'm just wondering if the OP can even FIND a new truck!

I'd say whatever one could be procured within my time-frame to purchase.

Ditto... I'm just wondering if the OP can even FIND a new truck!

[/quote


Yes I saw several new Fords and Dodges yesterday. I even saw a few of the UGLY Toyota’s

Well, I guess just about everyone here knows how I feel about 2009 and newer obamamobiles. Lots of folks bitched and moaned about the bailouts, free money, and stock buying, back when it happened, but lots of folks seem to have forgot and now buy obamamobiles.

When gm pays back the 11.5 billion dollars that obama gave them for worthless stock (actually obama used our tax money to buy gm stock and then sold it back before he left office at a 11.5 billion dollar loss), I might buy gm products made after 2009. But until then, 'Fug gm, fug obama, and while I'm at it, fug biden'.

Hey because of the chip shortage the DFM is inoperable.

I would be leery of a Ford 5.0 because the cylinder liners are sprayed in. My ecoboost was bought back with 6k on the odometer.

Toyota Tundra no thanks and I owned a 2017.

i'd get a ford. however, i've owned a few chevys and they were good trucks. i live on a farm, so my farm truck gets beat up. just about every farmer i know drives either a ford or a chevy. few dodges in my area.

Toyota would be my first pick and Ford my second. Remember before you start the "made in USA" rant, none of the "big 3" trucks would even run without foreign parts. Does the Chip shortage ring a bell? Whatever you do Don't buy a GM or Dodge, unless the GM is a 20 year old garage queen....they were decent back then.

Ok where can I find out about the cylinder liners being sprayed in ?

1) Bling.

2) Dependability.

3) Price.

Pick your poison. Everyone is different.

We're on our 3rd new ford in the aluminum (current body). All have been 2.7 eco boost. All have been crew cab 4x4, first 2 were XLT, the latest is a lariat.

They've all been very good for us but we've also not kept them much past 40k. These have been my wife's trucks, I drive an F250 with 150+k on it. We keep mine around for heavy towing and we mount a V snow plow on it in the winter. Our fords have been great, I've never owned a new GM or ram truck so I can't give owner experience on those. I've tried used GM and have come up.... scorned.

If I had the money to not care... I'd try a new GMC, being fully prepared to hate it, but I'd try it if I was silly with money and bored or something.

Dodge

In the past 9 years I've had a 2012 5.7 Ram, a 2015 3.5 Ecoboost F15, a 2019 5.7 Ram Laramie and a few weeks ago got a 2021 2500 6.4 Hemi Tradesman with off road package. My 2019 was involved in 2 fender benders, but no issues with any of the trucks themselves.

I like Ford seats a bit better. I love not having to use an actual key and the rotary shifter in the Ram. New Chevys are ugly!

I really liked the Ecoboost, especially in Sport mode, but I think the Hemi will likely be less trouble in the long haul.

In the end, look at them all and then get the prettiest one.

I too would like to learn about spraying new cylinders, I've got a 409 chev that might need one cylinder...... sprayed. lol

Just went through through this. Decided on the Ram. Hemi is super reliable and plenty of power. Ram offers a ton of options in the Bighorn 2 equipment package. I was driving a 2012 F150 king ranch. The Bighorn 2 gives me all the options I had on the king ranch except leather seats. I do seatcovers any way. To option a new ford similar to my Ram would of been about 8 grand more. Other than the Ram logo there aint much difference in the layout and the interior features of a F 150.

Got about 1000 miles of mainly city driving and I am running a tick over 17 mpg. Of course some of that is been playing with the Hemi. Got a 392 rear end take the traction control off and and you could go through the rear tires rather quickly.

Heard to many recent horror stories on GM to even look at their web sight let alone buy one of heir trucks.

Friends don’t let’s friends buy Chevy trucks!

I usually buy used and let someone else eat the depreciation. I bought a new 2021 Tundra in January just before things were starting to get crazy, the used trucks were literally the same price as the new with no warranty. It has gotten way crazier since then and I could sell my year old truck right now for more than I bought it for. I would if I didn’t have to replace it, truck lots are empty here.
I went Toyota for the reliability after owning 2 Silverado Duramax trucks the last 15 years. Both were pre emission trucks and were great, just couldn’t justify a diesel anymore. Have friends who own all the different brands and the Toyotas have all been bulletproof in a 1/2 ton. Totally happy with the Tundra and would do it again in a heartbeat. YMMV

Ford uses Plasma Transfer Wire Arc cylinder liners in the 5.0 v8. People are pushing those stock bottom ends to 1k HP in Mustangs so I wouldn't worry about the 5.0 holding up. They had a few 5.0 production issues in 18-19, but it's good to go now.

GM is having a fit with all their V8's collapsing lifters and eating cams by the trainload and parts are scarce to fix them. So that leaves Ford or Ram, both are good trucks in my opinion, I'd be ok owning either one for 1/2 ton duties. If GM unfuggs their engine issues, that might be a decent choice also, but that could be a while.

Toyota if new, Ford if 2014 or older.

https://www.reddit.com/r/MechanicAdvice/comments/9pm5iy/ptwa_spray_cylinder_bore_liner_ford_engines/

That is one source. Thru someone I knew they traded a 2017 F150 5.0 because the cylinders were scored. It had roughly 20k on it.

These threads are always funny, especially when the Ford folks come out of the woodwork with the above sentiment. The above isn’t even close to being true. Nothing wrong with liking a Ford because it’s a Ford, but basing your preference on some sense of moral outrage that isn’t even true doesn’t make a lot of sense. But if it makes you happier about your choice…

Ford took bailouts too

Did you read the article? It says that Ford took LOANS from the government. Just as other automakers did, including Toyoda. Loans have to be paid back - bailouts don't.

I drive a 2010 Ram 1500 Laramie with the hemi, love the interior and most everything about the truck, only issue is having to deal with the broken rear exhaust manifold bolts, which I have had to have replaced twice on the passenger side and once on the drivers side and it needs it again. Will be getting another down the road and hopefully they have fixed that issue.

FORD dodge Chevy anything yota..my buddy had a Toyota he didn't have to wait for the frame to rust out because the 2018 frame had a stress crack very brittle steel in them frames.

Buying decent used was my method as well. Buy something with five six real good years left in it after about three start looking for something to replace it. My 2012 F 150 was right at the point of dump it or keep it til it died. Nothing decent to be had used looked for about six months. Everything was a couple three years old and nearly the same as new. Nothing in that five to seven year old range which was kinda the sweet spot. Acceptable miles overall still in good condition. Might need some little things and getting to the end on some of the higher dollar consumables. But if you do your own work the costs were acceptable.

The 2012 gave me about 35000 miles and two and a half years. Traded it for a 1000 bucks less than I paid.

As others have said here I don't think you can go wrong with any of the big three brand new. I also wouldn't hesitate to buy a new Toyota or Nissan. If Honda made a half ton I might be in their corner as well.

I drive a 20' crew cab Chevy 5.3. I've had several (7) since 97' and the only issue I ever had was with an 06' when the 4wd went out under warranty. The dealer in my small town is a Chevy dealer and I'm personal friends with the owner so that's my go to. My son has a 16' Dodge and the 5.7 is a beast but he has had to deal with body deterioration a couple of times already. I can't speak as to Ford but see a lot of them around.

which dealer has the best service department