In a little over a year I am going to retire from a big airplane company. 36 years is enough. My wife and I plan to visit as much of the US as possible and after much thought have decided on a pickup and travel trailer. This will be cheaper than hotels, gives us some flexibility and from a cost stand point, will be cheaper than an equivalent RV.
I have found a travel trailer, a nice 24 foot Aspenlite that has been used about a dozen times since new. It is well maintained and has been seasonally serviced. The only issue I see is that it has been sitting for 5 years so the wheel bearing will need to be checked and repacked.
For a tow rig, I currently am weighing 3 options.
My FIL currently owns a 99 F-250 with only 26,000 miles on it. It’s a diesel with an automatic. The first 24,000 miles were put on it the first 3 years he owned it, he has rarely driven it much since. Just occasional trips to the grocery store and his yearly trip to the Ford dealer for servicing. He is willing to sell it to me for a bit under the Blue Book value. My only concern with this truck is the number of parts that are ready to fail, especially if taken on a long trip, due to the lack of use.
A cousin and her husband have a 2006 GMC Sierra 2500 4X4 they will sell for about the same price as the Ford. 77,000 miles, used to tow a 5th wheel trailer or a boat. I see two issues with this, it’s a 4x4 and gets about 10 MPG less that an equivalent 2 wheel drive truck. And it’s a 5 speed manual, my wife can’t and won’t learn to drive a stick.
Buy a used truck. Both the above trucks are extended cabs, not crew cabs. We would prefer a crew. I will have about $25,000 or so to spend. The above trucks would cost about $7,000 less. Currently this will get me a 5 to 8 year old 3/4 ton crew cab pickup. My quandary is, which brand. Toyota Tundra’s seem to hold the most value, I would have to get an older model. The popularity of Ford means there are more out there available. I have never been enamored with Dodge trucks even they appear to have the best power train options. And I have been soured on GM products, the last 2 I have owned have not been very reliable.
If given the same choice, what would you do? And if option 3, which brand of truck?
I’d take a close look at the Ford. KBB is about $9000 and that gives you a lot of money for repairs you may or may not use. With only 26000 miles, it probably is is very good condition. Just get a full service (coolant, brake fluid, transmission fluid, engine oil, differential oil, air filter, cabin air filter) have the AC checked out and new batteries, new tires. Consider this part of the purchase price and if your FIL gives you a decent break on the price, you should have around $12000 - $15000 for repairs.
If it will satisfy your needs, it sounds like a great deal.
Yeah, $18k-ish is completely insane for the Ford. There’s some situations where unusually low miles will command a premium, but a diesel truck absolutely is not one of them. If you can get it for closer $10k it might be worth looking at, but even then I think you’d be overpaying.
Do you know what the approximate weight is on the trailer? And any idea about how many miles you think you’d actually be towing? And will you put a lot of non-towing miles on the rig?
I would avoid option #2 like the plague. I would agree that the Ford is overpriced so before you decide on option #1, take a good look at what used trucks actually are available in your area. If your FIL won’t negotiate, move on.
the F-250 is the 7.3 liter PowerStroke diesel. I don’t think there are too many parts on it which are “ready to fail.” That was probably the single best diesel engine offered in a Ford pickup until the current 6.7 liter.
The Frontier is a compact pickup. I want a full size truck. I already own a Honda Ridgeline that is rated just enough the tow the trailer I am going to buy but I want something more than a V-6 power plant. The Nissan Titan is a full size pickup, I may consider it if I found the right one.
I think the F-250 engine should go 300,000+ miles with basic maintenance. So the engine is just barely broken in. Other parts of the 16 year old truck may not be as fortunate, especially if it hasn’t been driven much. Has it been garage kept/dry?
The 7.3L fords are hard to find without super high mileage, and they’re much more expensive than the 6.0s. I’d go with that one. If your wife won’t drive the stick, I personally wouldn’t go that way. It’s very good to be able to switch drivers on long road trips.
A year ago I paid $25k for a fully loaded 2010 Tundra Crewmax 4x4 with 40k miles on it. I absolutely love it. So if you don’t mind blowing your whole budget, that’s what I’d recommend.
I would not go with either the 2 options mentioned. I’d go for a used GMC 1500 crew cab or a Nissan Titan. The Titan is a pretty sharp truck and $25k gets you about a 3 year old vehicle with 50k miles. That’s probably better than you can do on any of the other models.
