On 12/26/10 3:49 PM, Gene wrote:
On Sun, 26 Dec 2010 15:06:57 -0500,
wrote:


Who has a recent vintage "smaller" 4x4 pickup truck and what has been
your experience with it in terms of durability, fit and finish, small
boat towing capabilities, gas mileage, et cetera.

By smaller, I mean pickups like:

Ford Ranger
Toyota Tacoma
Chevy Colorado
Nissan Frontier

I had a 4WD Colorado with the I-5. Limited carrying capacity and even
my son's 17 foot aluminum G3 felt like towing an anchor. It got 20 MPG
on the highway, unless towing the boat and then it got about 14 MPG. I
think, even with the new V8, they just aren't designed to tow that
much.

I now have a 4WD Silverado with the 5.3L V-8 and can tow anything less
than the Grady effortlessly. I get 20MPG in the winter on the highway
and 18.5 MPG towing my MC trailer and the G3. I think I can tow about
9,700#.

I had owned a Chevy big block dually that got 8 MPG, regardless...
then an S-10 and the Colorado... so, I thought the increase in mileage
was worth it.... I won't own another mid size truck, I don't think.





Thanks, I don't think I'll be buying another trailer boat of any
substantial size. I had a nice Ford Ranger Splashtruck in the 1990's
that was adequate for short tows of my 18' Sea Pro to the ocean ramps.

I haven't looked at the new Rangers, or the Chevy, Nissan or Chrysler
offerings. I have seen the Tacoma, a 4x4 model that apparently has a
6500 pound tow capacity.

Mostly I'll need the truck to haul around garden stuff, or tow my
tractors to the shop, and stuff like that. I have a lot of miles on my
4Runner. Might just get another 4Runner.

The new "full size" pickups seem humongous to me.