Looking for a new tow vehicle

[Lmdye]

Just lost my Toyota Tundra to the Camp Fire. The Whitehawk trailer attached to it was just left almost intact. We are looking for a new tow vehicle and want to go with a GMC or a Ford. Can I get some thoughts and/or recommendations.

[Midnightmoon]

Sorry to hear of your situation out there. Thankfully, things like trucks and RV's can be replaced.

I have a 2018 Ford that I have been very impressed with. I'd have no issue recommending one to you.

[GHen]

Sorry to hear you were involved with the fire. Hopefully your home and family are ok.

Everyone has their favorite and I’m sure they will all join this conversation. I believe that the big three are very evenly matched with their new lineups. I have 2 family members with Fords, 2 with Rams and 2 with Chevys. I would not recommend an older Dodge. Newer RAMs have been more reliable. I have a Chevy Silverado 2500HD Diesel. I consider it incredible, especially how the transmission handles up and down hills.

Your bigger question should be do you get a 1500, 2500 or 3500.
The 2500’s all have bigger brakes, bigger suspension, better almost everything compared to the 1500.

[Chet & Marie]

We have a 2014 Silverado 2wd with the tow package that handles our Jay Feather 23rlsw at 5400 lbs. like a champ.

[cekkk]

Agree with ghen about 250, etc. Of course you'll be getting a Ford. More room to grow with the 3/4 ton. So often the half tons are operated at or beyond their limits. Family First.

[GraftonGuns]

I would go with a FORD Super Duty either an F-250 or F-350 Mine is a 2016 F-350 Lariat crew cab. Plenty of power and a massive amount of room in the back seat area for our three labs etc.

[Crabman]

Food for thought.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H710...st=WL&index=39

[jloco]

I'm sorry about your loss. I hope all is ok with you and your family.
You should definitely check out the GMC Sierra or Chevy Silverado. They have some great offers on the 2018's. I don't know the weight of your White hawk, but a GM 1/2 ton with the max tow package equipped with the 6.2 is an awesome truck and can tow around 13k lbs if I'm not mistaken. The 3/4 ton with the 6.0 is also a great choice for a gasser. If you want to go diesel, that's a whole different animal. My Buddy owns a 2017 GMC duramax Denali and absolutely loves it.
I currently have a 2017 Silverado 1/2 ton as my daily driver. At just over 26K miles, the truck has been flawless. No issues at all. Not even a single recall.
I really don't think you can go wrong with any of the big 3 these days. All are built pretty well.

[rarobo]

Like what everyone says , trucks are mass produced there will be problems with all makes, Toyota May be a little higher quality control . We have a f150, pulling with the 10 speed trans is unmatched in my opinion, it pulls on the expressway in 7th- 8th gear @ 1400 -1700 rpm, and rarely goes below 5th with our 24mbh, of course when you get on grades it will change but it is smooth I find myself almost relaxing too much.If you want the 4wd automatic mode and blind spot trailer monitor you will have to upgrade to a lariat. Mpg towing is 10-11. I set cruise control at 63mph

[hboy]

Originally Posted by Lmdye

Can I get some thoughts and/or recommendations.

Sorry you have to deal with this. I don't think you can go wrong with either. You didn't specify if you are replacing with a half ton or larger truck. I'm assuming you are replacing with a half ton.

A few months ago I would say F150. I pulled a camper a couple months ago with a 5.3 chevy w/ proride hitch and it was the best pull i've had with as comfortable ride as i've ever had.

I don't think you can go wrong with either. If you tow a lot I would suggest one of the longer wheel base truck options for a little more stability.

If you do a F150, the ecoboost is pretty impressive motor in my opinion. In the end it comes down to you personal feel in the truck.

[gladecreekwy]

Why not another Tundra?

[Les7h]

Regardless of yore choice - it is always better to have too much truck than not enough - 3/4 ton will have larger brakes better suspension and overall more relaxing to drive in the wind or mountains and you can upgrade your camper in the future if you want to
If you choose a diesel you will have better power more fuel mileage and the exhaust brake is amazing
The Allison transmission paired with either the Duramax ( my 2500 HD ) or the Cummins ( my Seneca ) is a very good choice - I can’t personally speak of the Ford
Les

[Lmdye]

I loved my Tundra - it was a 2010 and had no problems with it. Unfortunately since 2010 Toyota has changed the body style, but has done no improvements to their towing packages or added much any of the additional features that you see in the Fords and GMC products.

[jpgale]

A friend of mine mom and brother lived in Paradise, sorry for your loss but glad you are all ok. I am a ford guy I had a 2008 tundra which was awesome I now have an older 2003 f250. Mine has the camper package which in 2003 makes the truck a f350 with the f250 gvwr. Anyway you can not go wrong with any full sized truck. I have no expereince with them but have you considered the Nissan titan xd.

[skids]

I have the 2014 F150 3.5L ecoboost full cab. It is great for towing the 195RB. It has gobs of torque and gets good economy when not towing. It does have its cons: There is not enough "compression" to resist picking up speed down long grades, so you rely on brakes. Otherwise it suits me. I would choose something else for a heavy trailer however.

[Half Ton Heavy]

The F150 HDPP is a good compromise between F150 and 250. 2500 payload, 11600 tow. Certainlt eclipses the Tundra on those fronts by a wide margin. Good luck, sorry for the loss, if it was only a truck, you made it though!

[GL243]

Dittos re condolences on your losses to the catastrophic fire out your way. For whatever it happens to be worth, I just saw a day or two ago that Consumer Reports has the RAM 3500 as the least reliable of all vehicles (i.e., not just among pickups). No other RAM made that particular top ten list, however, so maybe it's just stuff going on with the 3500. Not that I'd expect you'd want to go to that heavy duty of a truck for what you're towing. I'm towing a 30 foot SLX 267BHSW with a 2017 Ford F150 3.5 ecoboost supercrew 4wd and have been extremely impressed with the power, even up steep grades, but fuel mileage while towing is not really much or any better than my old 2002 F150 with the 5.4 V8, i.e., about 10 mpg average, with range of about 8.5 up to 11.5 depending on the route, elevation changes, etc. However, it gets way better mileage on the highway when not towing, i.e., 20+ mpg vs 16 mpg for the 2002. I too have noticed that I have to apply brakes on steeper downgrades a bit more than I'd hoped but the Tow-Haul feature seems to do a pretty good job of managing things, i.e., I'm not alarmed by anything with it, and braking I do have to do is very brief, i.e., you don't have to "ride" them at all really.

I think in most cases the other brands don't do any or much better than the F150 ecoboost for towing gas mileage from what I've read on line, although you do see an individual report here and there where someone claims 13 or even 15 mpg towing for their particular truck and trailer combination, so not sure how much stock to put in those particular claims but I don't really have any evidence to refute them. Could be accurate, or could be someone that doesn't actually do the math, or just relies on the dash mpg estimate without verifying how close to "actual" mpg they're getting. In my case, my truck's dash number is about .7 to 1.5 mpg better than I ever get from calculating mpg myself at fill-ups.

From what I read about trucks when I was looking, the Tundras have by far the best reliability, but, as you point out, fewer new/cool/desirable features, plenty of power, but probably the worst fuel mileage of the major brands of pickups.

Anyway, sorry for rambling, and good luck with your decision and any other recovery from the fire that you're going through.

[Half Ton Heavy]

^^^You can adjust the lie o meter to perfect by entering the engineering test mode on your truck. Google it up, youtube has it. Click something three times with foot on brake or something, I forget. But you can adjust to dead nuts on.

[Thighmaster]

What was wrong with the Tundra? Why changing manufacturers? Just curious.

[GL243]

Originally Posted by Half Ton Heavy

^^^You can adjust the lie o meter to perfect by entering the engineering test mode on your truck. Google it up, youtube has it. Click something three times with foot on brake or something, I forget. But you can adjust to dead nuts on.

That sounds pretty cool, will have to check into that, thanks.