Hello all, this is long but bear with me.

Its been some time since I have posted anything, both of my ford's are gone and yes wait for it.... I have two Prius a V and C for where I am stationed at they make sense for my old commute of 100 miles a day which due to moving back on base and waiting for my house to close I am at 40 a day.

Here is the Issue the wife and I are facing. we had a 1998 explorer which we enjoyed ( gas mileage not so much) which we sold to a friend who needed it and yes we bought a excursion v10 I was carpooling so the gas mileage which at 13-14 was pretty good and it didn't hirt to much although that changed. We loved that truck all of it the fill-ups hurt but it was the one truck the wife my two kids and I cold go anywhere do anything. my wife who gets motion sickness could actually read in and sleep in the front seat something she could never do and still can't My old duty station (Coleville ca) the grocery store was 40 miles away. Long story short we traded it in some time later for a Volkswagen and that's gone two.

Since we got rid of the excursion we several times have wished we had a truck. Now here it comes I am about to go back to the east coast ( were from Michigan me and Ohio her) probably Northern Va. However 1 dog two cats 2 kids and a Prius c and a Prius v... with luggage and some home essentials I don't think so. Now granted this situation is temporary but we miss the utility of having a truck, we hated not being able to get something or have to wait for delivery big shopping trip. Garage sales ect
I just signed up for another 4 years which ideally I will retire in 4( at 22 years) maybe a few years after that have to see what happens. But we do want to get a house with some land 20,40, or 80 acres with some small livestock and couple of horse 's( the kids) and good size fruit and vegetable patch. Not towing anything ( why I can't and I haven't yet).

So we like the f-250 lariats and up. we drove a 2010 Harley model (cpo) and we liked it .
However yesterday we drove a dodge 3500 long horn limited amazing interior and good power seemed though when I would let off the gas I could feel the torque re-leasing through the truck

Dodge 1500 here in a few weeks will be coming out with 3.0l eco diesel might fit the bill if I can get the same interior.

The plan is to payoff my Prius v and trade it in on a truck don't want or need a third payment and get a small car hauler and tow the Prius c back to the east coast. The question is which truck is the right truck

I know diesels although more expensive oil changes but less frequent few more filters, should last me a 300.000 mile lifetime. ( plus I think I may find a way to brew some biodiesel later in life) but overall I don't plan on letting it go till it just stops and for good. would be come a good farm truck in 5-6 years but in that time frame other than putting a cap/top on it and pulling my car back east with everything fitting nicely and ridding awesome with my 10 year and 6 year old. The on occasion filling up the truck bed I don't think I will pull much maybe once in a while rent a travel trailer heck maybe buy one go camping.

So am I living a pipe dream and need a slap of reality gas mileage yeah I know it is what it is (who ever has the better commute gets the truck when we get back east) but I am still trying to be some what sensible 20 mpg is great if I get it every day and twice on Sunday but some of the other numbers I don't excite me for a daily drive.

I don't want to make a 60k mistake and which I think would be hard there both nice trucks. but need verus want.

Thanks for any advice help in advance, and no I am not a tree hugger just hated filling up every 3 days.

 

People do a lot of things because they want to, as opposed to they need to. You only live one life, if there is something that you want, and you can reasonably afford it, I say do it. Don't wait 5 years because you or the person or people you want to enjoy it with may not be around or able to enjoy it with you in 5 years.

I would not buy a new $60,000.00 truck just to tow my other car across the country. Drive both cars, drive one - ship the other - ship your belongings - ship both vehicles and rent a van for the drive - so many options that are much cheaper than a $60,000.00 truck - but if you really want a truck then make your decision. Life is all about choices - would you rather have $60,000.00 in a truck or have the $60,000.00 towards some land ? Decisions and choices.

 

need to refine my previous post, I would have to pay out of pocket to ship the cars, the real reason we would tow and not drive the other car is IF I went with a truck why pay for two vehicles to fill over 3000 miles. The government would ship my furniture and whatnot. but blankets air matters. Stuff I need to have would be with me on the trip so space is a huge factor. as well. Plus the wife generally doesn't like to drive as much as I do and a push across country wears on everyone.

I can see myself towing in 5 years maybe a horse trailer or a bed full of stuff to take to the farmers market but before that not much, like I said I haven't been able to.

I like the thought of diesel due to longevity, If I do this I want the truck to run for awhile and not worry about reliability ( which yes all vehicles have som worry) when I hit 100k in under 5 years that I need to trade it in.

 

If you are looking for longevity the I would consider either a 5.4 or another v10(and stay away from dodge). Diesels have gone down in the reliability department since the 7.3 and gassers have gone way up since the days of 100,000 mile lifespans. The cost of maintenance is much less and with the cost of fuel any mpg advantages are nullified.

 

I'd wait to see some reviews on the dodge. It wont be a cummins in there.

 

A lot can change in 5 years. I would opt for a vehicle which will meet your needs (and fun) for the 2013 - 2018 time frame.

My father-in-law hauled a heavily loaded trailer hundreds of miles each week and loved his Dodge 2500 Cummins diesel. A diesel made sense for him.

I make short trips and don't haul, though I sometimes use my trucks to pull out tree stumps and drag a log or two to the burn pile, so a regular gasoline engine makes sense for me.

 

Convenience, independance, and budget will influence what is "right" for you. Consider a small utility trailer and put a hitch on your prius, so you can pickup that new washer, refrigerator, lumber. Yourself.

We have a jeep wrangler (our vacation place in CO mtns) and use our trailer to haul nearly everything since almost nothing fits inside a jeep. Also have a hitch hauler for grocery shopping with a 100qt cooler.

Ship or haul the cars with a uhaul truck and trailer and enjoy the trip

 

It is difficult to make a wise decision now on what kind of vehicle you will want in 5+ years. I think you should do what makes the most sense in the short term (next 1-2 years).