I think I would tend to stay away from the first model year or revamp of an existing platform. It has all the bugs that need to be worked out and they are definitely going to get it out the door before all problems are solved. Also, I think I would always get at least a 3/4 ton if I used it for work.You never know what you may get stuck doing when it comes to work.Overkill there won't hurt.

 

All cars are manufactured "internationally".....all agreed!

But I go back to my original comment:

When you buy a Foreign brand:

The profits go FOREIGN.

When you buy a FORD, profits go DOMESTIC.

If you buy a Toyota made in KY, YES, american jobs are utilized. But the PROFITS go off shore.

Can't get away from that.



I'm not knocking Toyotas. They make a fine product.

MY opinion however, is that in the large truck segment, rice burners just aren't on the same plane. Can't comment on the small truck segment.

I have had too many friends that actually tried to use a foreign truck as a WORK truck. The only work being done wrt to the import truck was at the dealer on THAT truck.

ahhhhh.....I feel MUCH better now.

 

If you need a serious work truck that has to haul more than 1900 lbs. payload, tow more than 7200 lbs with ease, or you need a plow truck than get a Ford F250 or F350 or larger Super Duty with a V10 or Diesel engine.


THE BIG PICTURE! The biggest most expensive part for most businesses are the employees sometimes costing in access of 70% of those businesses expenses. That's money that is going into American pockets boosting our American economy. That’s more important than how much money a Corporation puts in its pocket. Don't forget about all the dealerships, gas stations, Trucking/shipping companies, mechanics shops, and parts/performance stores that are also involved in that equation. 1 in 5 jobs in this country have to do with the auto industry. Toyota is now I think the third or fourth largest Auto manufacturer in the world. The money that does go to Toyota Motor Corporation actually goes to the shareholders of that corporation, which could be an American shareholder.

 

My dad had a 1981 Toyota 4x4. that thing ran perfect for the ten years that he owned it, He ended up selling it because our family that consisted of four people could not fit in a single cab truck. Also it got a little bit rusty, well really rusty..........actually you could not tell what the real color was anymore, but is still ran good.

 

So what????? IF "DOMESTIC" profits get used to build a factory in Mexico to build my Super Duty and the "off shore" profits are used to build factories in the USA; which benefits a LOCAL economy???

I love one of the first posts bashing Toys because they're not American. But he'd buy a Dodge over a Toy. I guess Daimler/Chrysler isn't a "furrin" compay.

 

Back to the original post-

Sounds more like your in need of a SuperCrew if you think the Ranger's too small. Like I said, the Tundra's rear seat was not comfortable, and I realize the Ranger's jump seat is a lot worse. If your wife wants to take a few of her girl friends very far, unless everybody is child size the SuperCab/ Access Cab is just too small.

I know this goes against what you've got yourself geared towards, but for not wanting a full sized truck your telling me she's going to need a vahicle that seats 4 comfortably and be able to through stuff in the bed.

-Kerry

 

Have you taken a look at the Nissan offering against the Ranger? That has a supercrew cab on the ranger like chassis I don't remember what they call em' right off hand but they look pretty good and I got a couple friends that drive them and they really like them.

 

Does this have enough back seat room? http://www.pickuptruck.com/html/auto...003/intro.html

 

The problem with the larger Toyota double cab is: it's too large now. He was talking about keeping it small. A truck with comfortable 4 passenger seating and the ability to haul stuff, but not as large as a Supercrew. The Toyota is slated to be larger than the Supercrew... that means it will drive like a larger truck. Harder to park than ever... will he wait until it comes out?

Thanks toilet, I usually catch the new premiers, but missed this one.

-Kerry

 

I own 3 Toyota's, but for a fullsize you can't beat a F150

 

Domenic I own 3 Toyota's, but for a fullsize you can't beat a F150 )

It depends, I have been incredibly harsh towards Ford's 150 as of late(just check out my posts in the 04'forum)

I have had many bad experiences with them,-but I also work a truck-it's not just a daily driver for me.

I now have an 01 SD 5.4L manual-it's what I needed to begin with-at least if I needed a stick....

In all fairness,a 150 should be moderately capable of hard work-as long as it's got auto tranny(and more importantly no 4.2L v-6).w/3.55's in the rear.

I guess even the manual would work with the 4.6L as long as you only carry loads and don't pull nothin-do not believe Ford's tow ratings for manual tranny-real towing is never that ideal-try pulling a 3500lb trailer around at all times with you ,and soon you'll lose it(tranny).


Regards.

 

I had a 97 150 4x4 swb sc 4.6, traded on a PSD F250 in November., It had 140K on it. Never had any problems with it. Never was in the dealer for warranty. It was very well maintained, maybe over maintained. It was not a work truck, I towed car trailer with either a jeep or Toyota on it a few times a year. But I decided I needed a bigger truck for what I been doing, and I wouldn't recommend and makers haft ton as a work truck

 

This is exactly right....people forget about this. I couldn't have said it better myself.

NOW...for an honest opinion... I rode in a 2001 Toyota Tundra. It had the extended cab with 4 doors. It was 4x4, and had the TRD off road package. We drove it about 100 miles mostly interstate, some city.

The back seat is excessively uncomfortable. Any adults riding in the back will probably complain. I couldn't feel my legs after about 15 minutes. The truck was also noisy on the interstate, and each bump in the road rattled the area around the doors. It sounded like the truck was coming apart when we hit a dip or bump in the road. The interior is very plain (which is good if you like simplicity).

I also noticed that the windshield had already cracked and there were a few other problems on the interior that seemed to be from cheap materials.

The truck was a nice looking truck, and the Jap V8 seemed to do a decent job. Overall, I was not impressed at all. I didn't see where the superior quality was. And the sad part is, the guy probably paid as much for that truck as a new Ford F-250 SD.

 

I can't say I've ever had anyone ride in the back of my 250SD long enough to give a thumbs-up or thumbs down. My inlaws rode in the back for about 20 minutes one time. They said they were surprised at how comfortable it was (!).

250SD on the highway?.....NO COMPARRISSON. It rides like a '71 Eldorado. No toyota truck will ride like that because of weight and WB differential.

That lame "quality" argument also irks me anymore.

There was a time in the early to mid 80s to the early 90s when there was a significantly wide gap between domestic quality and import quality.

There have been numerous unbiased industry trade studies that have shown that "now-a-days", the quality gap has shrunk to what some argue is a gap not covered by noise in the data (i.e. within the error bands of the analysis).

I happen to be acquainted with a higher up at BMW that says that there is a concerted effort to push a lot of the BMW production to the US. The existing US plants are putting out quality that exceeds domestic (german) plants !!!! Of course, there are internal german economic considerations that fuel this as well, but, still..............Also, BMW is making a BIG push to open production plants in South Africa. Looks like manufacturing technology has made "quality" a little more independent of location.

Sorry, when I see a rear axle that looks like it was stolen from a matchbox car, compare it to the axle on my SD..... enough said. I've talked to too many toy owners that say the trucks don't cut it. I'll stik with the SD. Nothing beats snorting american V8s, whether yesteryear, or yesterday.

My wife has a camry......great car.....but is it REALLY that much better than its domestic competition in terms of QUALITY???....don't think so. It comes down to what you like. Certainly, the argument can be made, fairly, that Toyotas have a knack for the european flair in their cars, something that still seems to elude the domestics.

(My wife liked the "euro" feel of the camry. ME?, I was trying to talk her into a Mustang GT....I lost)

I figured if she had a GT, I could test drive it every now and then to make sure the engine was still breathing right

Oh well....she wanted an estrogen-mobile. She got it. Still a good car though. I told her to wait until she needed a brake job. My 250SD will get out for under what she will pay.......

I prefer lining american pockets, given the choice and most other things being equal!

 

LOOK! I am not arguing that the Ford Trucks are not great trucks because they are. If someone asks my opinion on whether the Tundra is good for towing more than 5000 lbs. or using it on a real construction job as a serious work truck hauling major cargo than I will always tell them get a Ford F-250 Super Duty with the V10. My step farther has one and I have driven the thing many times. They are two different animals in different classes. The Tundra is more for the person who wants car like features with the utility of a half ton truck. This is the majority of the truck buyers on the market and Toyota was smart to aim for the meat of the market first. Lets face it most people just drive their trucks unloaded back and forth from work and only occasionally use them for what they were actually meant for. I use mine for my every day vehicle and for my side jobs as a carpenter. A 1950lb. hauling capacity is good enough for what I do and it handles the heavy loads very well without being all over the road like someone commented on!

The above comments buy this guy are just bogus!!! I agree about the back seat thing though. I totally disagree about the truck being noisy on the interstate. That’s a bogus comment when meant for most stock Tundra’s. This truck is one of the quietest vehicles I have every driven in. Its library quiet! My doors or any other part of my truck do not rattle even with 48k hard driven miles.

This Tundra owner most likely put different aggressive off road tires on and probably hacked up the inside of the door installing speakers or something. A windshield doesn’t just crack for no reason! In fact the TRD off road package uses stiffer springs with aggressive off road BFG tires!!! If you read consumer reports, Motor trend, and Car and driver you will find that all of the authors that wrote an article on the Tundra commented on how quiet the cabin was and how well mad the interior of the Tundra was. I have had a lot of experience with Ford, Chevy, Dodge, and Toyota trucks and none of them excel in everything.