Dodge/Ford/GM

[gaylejoe]

Watch what the "car haulers' are using on the road for a TV. Up in the Northwest all you see are Dodges. I've seen photos in TurboDiesel of Dodge diesels with over several millions miles on them. It is a work horse. I have been a GM person all my life up till I purchased an 06 Dodge Cummings. Couldn't be happier with my choice. This is just my opinion.

[moosetags]

Originally Posted by Jim & Susan

Hi guys. Trying to work my way thru this thread. What does SRW mean again? My Gomer side is showing.

Jim

Single rear wheel as opposed to a dually.

[ROBERTSUNRUS]

Originally Posted by greatlakes

Our AS are the same model and mine loaded goes to 6100#. I don't know where you pick up the extra 1000#. You may want to check the scales or don't carry so much food .

Hi, greatlakes. Your Safari is like mine and rated at 6,300 lbs, but some later models and front bedroom models are rated at 7,300 lbs and that is where Brian got the difference.

[nmgt350h]

Ford, Chevy, dodge, this is a very old debate... These days they are all good trucks, all three with pros and cons. although I'm saying go Ford superduty, gone through a few in last 10 years with no problems. I have a 06 5.4 F150 now for daily driving it rides nice but its kinda a guttless wimpy truck... Driving my Power stroke is a treat!

[mopariac]

Originally Posted by Dave Park

I exclude the Dodges because you just don't see very many 20 year old Dodges on the road.

I exclude the GMs because they don't have great specs. There's just too many things not rated for that grade of truck.

Dave, here is one of the not very many 37 year old dodges on the road

[wkerfoot]

Dave,

Here is another 37 year old Dodge.

Bill

Originally Posted by Dave Park

I exclude the Dodges because you just don't see very many 20 year old Dodges on the road.

I exclude the GMs because they don't have great specs. There's just too many things not rated for that grade of truck.

[moosetags]

Also, are there any thoughts on crew cab vs. extended cab trucks. We are leaning toward a crew cab, but a foot shorter overall length might be nice. Does the extra foot really mean anything when the truck is already that long?

Brian

[moosetags]

[QUOTE=greatlakes;884012]Brian,

Our AS are the same model and mine loaded goes to 6100#. I don't know where you pick up the extra 1000#. You may want to check the scales or don't carry so much food .

I have weighed Lucy twice on Cat Truck scales. I weighed her by herself unhooked from the tow vehicle. Once she weighed in at 7300#, and the other time at 7400#. Lucy is a Front Bedroom which I believe is heavier than the corner bed 25 footer. These weights were done with Lucy all packed up for a cross country trip. She has the added weight of a Hensley, full LP tanks, a nearly full fresh water tank, and well over 100# of Moose Tags on board. Lucy doesn't travel light.

Brian

[Aviator]

On the crew vs extended cab issue. My previous truck was the three door type, it was nice, but having the four doors means there is a lot of additional in cab room. Usually there are four of us in the cab, plus the dog. It would have been way to tight in the old truck, but very comfortable for us now. Also, we don't own a traditional sedan. When we go out with another couple, the truck is comfortable doing double duty as opposed to taking two vehicles.

[Bluto]

Crew cab or Extended cab.

I had both and for ease of use and comfort and useable space you can't beat the crew.
I have a 3500 Chevy Silverado crew with 8 ft. bed, 4x4, dually wheels and Duramax diesel and Allison trany. It's a great tow vehicle and seems to be made for long distance travel.
The seats in the Chevy were by far the most comfortable to me when I was looking (2007).

[Gene]

My experience is with Toyotas, but the principles are the same as far as cab size. Tundra has a standard, double and crewmax cab. The latter two have independent doors in the rear.

Our '02 Tundra has doors in the back that only opened when the front doors were open and that was a pain, especially in parking lots with narrow spaces or when it was raining and you just want to get the door open and closed fast. So, I'd avoid that kind of door set up if any other brands have them.

The crewmax cab, I believe (meaning it may have changed), does not have a medium or long bed. They don't want to build a longer wheelbase vehicle or have too much rear overhang for the crew cab.

Our double cab has plenty of space. The crewmax is enormous and seems to be too much (although not enough space for a moose). With a long bed, you have an even longer truck that will inhibit access to wilderness roads.

Another thing to look at—fuel tank capacity. Our Tundra has only a 26.3 gallon gas tank. That is not enough for towing. We could get a second tank in the bed that feeds to the OEM tank, but they cost something more than $1,200. With a camper you couldn't do that anyway. I think the Ford 150 gasser has about 10 gallons more capacity, for example. I know someone who bought the 150 instead of the Tundra just because of that difference.

Gene

[dshouston]

just went from a gmc sierra with a 6 1/2 foot box to a sierra crew cab with a 6 1/2 foot box. i was concerned about the added length. after driving the new truck for a month i can say i don`t even notice the extra length. the room in the crew cab is really nice too.

[Pat Conway]

Our 07 Duramax is a crew cab 6.6ft bed. The extra length prohibits it from fitting in our garage, but is comfortable for passengers, and seats in the back fold flat converting into a large, relatively high storage area with easy access from the back doors. Pulling our 88 25 ft A/S home from New Mexico a few days ago, I had a motorcycle in the bed and was able to store items I didn't want to get wet in the cab. Was very happy with the large quantity of items that fit in there.

BTW, another feature I like is that the roof isn't so high off the ground that the truck won't fit into covered parking garages. It isn't 4 wheel drive, don't know the clearance difference between the two. The new Ford F-250, especially 4wd looks like it is quite a bit higher than GMC. Optical illusion?

[redeagle313]

Originally Posted by Greg N Cindy

Brian

I just bought a Ram 2500 Crew with the Cummings and the reason I did was two fold...

1. The Cummings is made by a diesel Engine manufacture.
2. Its the only one with an Exaust brake...

Your gonna be Heavy and I think the Exaust Brake you would appreciate in a down hill situation...

Greg

The 2011 GM pickups with the Duramax Diesel are all equipped with an exhaust brake.

[moosetags]

OK, now y'all have me convinced that I should go with a diesel crewcab 4wd.

I am good with both Ford and GM. The thing that concerns me about Dodge is lack of a dealer network. We have traveled with Lucy extensively in somewhat remote areas of the United States. I have noticed that virtually every small town has a Ford and/or a Chevy dealer. Dodge dealers seem to be only in the bigger towns.

Brian

[2airishuman]

2 of the 3 brands trimmed a LOT of dealers last year.

dodge especially cut a bunch that were in LESS populated/used locations or poor sales performers...

but the ramboys will remind us that ANY cummins shop can service the mota (which is rarely gonna breakdown neway) ...

it IS reassuring to see those blue oval signs overhead while travelin'...

but not every dealer/service center has a LEGITIMATE DIESEL certified mechanic.

and some dealers only have PART TIME diesel coverage in the back room.

there is a large network of indy' diesel repair shops, some are very large and some are at TRUCK stops...

they places can and do work on the powerstrokes especially ALL of the navistar built engines (7.3, 6.0, 6.4)

cheers
2air'

[dkottum]

We also take long trips (months) with a need for many day-or-two excursions away from the trailer, so have taken an interest in this thread.

How would a 4x4 diesel crewcab reconcile with the need for a daily runabout on a six month trip? (I often see some fifth wheel pullers followed by the spouse in the family sedan.) It seems to me the plan presented here is oversized and cumbersome, considering your (and our) purpose.

We recently moved from a VW Eurovan pop-top pulling a Suzuki Samurai to our Airstream, which was really great for exploring but not for the long-term. Can't seem to find a reasonable replacement.

Doug

[Gene]

Brian,

The ultimate and less than elegant solution is a cargo plane with the Airstream and a truck with camper. You will fly in your private jet to various locations while your staff sets up the Airstream at an RV resort and picks you up in the truck or perhaps a Rolls Royce at the airport. Of course, for this kind of money, you could import mooses to Florida.

This may require you to be executives at Goldman Sachs where such craziness might be considered a normal solution.

Good luck at finding the happy medium.

We are going to camp on Grand Mesa for a couple of days. Several years ago they brought some mooses from North Park to Grand Mesa and they are doing well there, so maybe we'll see some.

Gene

[knunut]

Researching the Flippac ,found www.Adventuretrailers.com
they have some great video's on outfitting a truck/camper setup. It might be extreme for some but it really look's neat.In the back of a 4x F150 (Etc.) it would be great for short trip's away from the trailer.I would use less than they show but would then have more storage space.Still have to figure how to carry Kayak's or get folding ones.

[moosetags]

We are planning to head out with Lucy on yet another great adventure. Right after Labor Day we will be heading to northern New Hampshire and Maine in pursuit of unsuspecting northeastern Mooses.

Along the way, we are going to go out on some of the unimproved roads in the Suburban, and we can hopefully get a feel for how we could use a truck camper.

Brian