Looking for the best full size for my family.

[Tjbell]

Hello all! Long time lurker. I have a wife, and a son who is 6 and we are looking for the perfect do it all rig. We are planning to do many road trips/camping/exploring etc.. Terrain will likely not be anything crazy, service roads/dirt roads, maybe some trails but no hardcore stuff. Size wise I am about 6ft 215 lbs, everyone else is smaller.
Mostly will be exploring New England area.

So I have a list of recommendations (demands) from the wife.
A vehicle can we all can sleep in, either a truck with a cap or full size SUV. Something comfortable for long road trips. Reliability is important. A small lift/level 2-3" likely. Enough storage space for 2 to 3 nights of food/clothes/etc..


So with that in mind, looking under 30,000 usd closer to 25,000 the better!
Which leads me to a list we have come up with.
Suburban for obvious reasons.
Expedition El
Sequoia (enough room?)
Tahoe (again, sleeping room?)
F250 quad cab with 6.5 bed and a cap with storage /sleeping platform.
???
Profit!

Thanks all

 

[MattF350]

For what youre asking, I would do 4 door truck with cap. You can do a lot with that. Storage and sleeping arrangements are endless.

I might just be truck biased. Ive considered an SUV for similar ventures but sleeping space eats up any interior storage. Unless you get a rooftop cargo holder or a small trailer.

 

[Tjbell]

Would I be better off staying with a 150? My wife like the size of the 250. I'm indifferent I know both trucks limits and such

 

[Deleted member 9101]

F150 or F250 with a truck camper. Screw being cramped and having no room.

If you search you can find an F150 with the Heavy Duty Payload Package (HDPP). Hauls what older 3/4 trucks did, while riding better ans getting better fuel economy.

 

[Deleted member 9101]

Would I be better off staying with a 150? My wife like the size of the 250. I'm indifferent I know both trucks limits and such

Well, the F150 is cheaper to buy, cheaper per mile to operate, it rides better, and it's easier to park.

 

[Tjbell]

Well, the F150 is cheaper to buy, cheaper per mile to operate, it rides better, and it's easier to park.

I do agree with that, but I've heard horror stories about both the 3.5 ecoboost and the 5.0. It looks like the 6.2 is near bullet proof, but still learning if I had to guess I'd go 5.0 pre 2018 so no oil burning

 

[Deleted member 9101]

I do agree with that, but I've heard horror stories about both the 3.5 ecoboost and the 5.0. It looks like the 6.2 is near bullet proof, but still learning if I had to guess I'd go 5.0 pre 2018 so no oil burning

There are literailly millions of each motor on the road.... The "horror stories" are something like 0.01% of the total trucks sold...lol. For every one that you hear about, there are countless examples that are trouble free. You have to remember that people don't complain about reliable vehicles on line...thus you never hear about them.

My father has the 3.5 in his 2015 Navigator, not a single issue. My brother has the 3.5 HO in his 2019 Limited, no issues. We had 6 3.5s in our fleet at work, zero issues. We had one 5.0, no issues. The 2.7 in my 2017 has not even flinched. My neighbor has a Raptor...you guessed it, no issues. If these motors were so problematic... I would think that one of them would have had problems by now?

Officers I train at work have 3.5s in their new patrol vehicles.... Guess what...no issues.


Also, the 6.2 is pretty bullet proof, but is thirsty, doesn't matter if it's loaded or empty. You'll never wear it out and other than basic maintainence, you'll probably never work on it.

 

[Tjbell]

That's a really good point Jnich77. I come from the world of euro cars where most reported problems are large scale. My last 2 vw have been nothing but problems. My father always had ford's so that's why I'm looking that way. I like the idea of the 3.5 for sure, as do I the 5.0. I might look more into the expedition El. Seems to check all the boxes for me. I'm not really interested in a slide in camper for a truck because I have limited storage space at my house

 

[Explorerinil]

At work we have a fleet of ford police vehicles. The explorers have had allot of engine issues. We have one f150 police responder, I drive that. It has a 10 speed and a 5.0. It’s had its share of trans problems, often gets stuck in 7th gear and the engine randomly leaks oil from somewhere when it gets below zero degrees. The f150 isn’t bad, it’s been pretty reliable, personally for a half ton I would look at a tundra.

 

[badm0t0rfinger]

Also, the 6.2 is pretty bullet proof, but is thirsty, doesn't matter if it's loaded or empty. You'll never wear it out and other than basic maintainence, you'll probably never work on it.

The 6.2 still gets better mileage than what a lot of people with smaller V8s claim to get.

 

[Deleted member 9101]

That's a really good point Jnich77. I come from the world of euro cars where most reported problems are large scale. My last 2 vw have been nothing but problems. My father always had ford's so that's why I'm looking that way. I like the idea of the 3.5 for sure, as do I the 5.0. I might look more into the expedition El. Seems to check all the boxes for me. I'm not really interested in a slide in camper for a truck because I have limited storage space at my house

I feel ya on the storage. My camper lives an hour and a half away...lol.

Expeditions are nice...and can be really nice depending on the options. Trying to sleep three people in one comfortably might be a stretch though.

At work we have a fleet of ford police vehicles. The explorers have had allot of engine issues. We have one f150 police responder, I drive that. It has a 10 speed and a 5.0. It’s had its share of trans problems, often gets stuck in 7th gear and the engine randomly leaks oil from somewhere when it gets below zero degrees. The f150 isn’t bad, it’s been pretty reliable, personally for a half ton I would look at a tundra.

What motor is in the Explorers? We looked at getting them, but the transverse mounted 3.5 EcoBoost seems to be problematic if it idels for long periods of time.

 

[CountryboyNC]

I had a 5.0 with 0 motor problems for 150k miles and now trying the 3.5. He is right, people don’t complain about reliable vehicles online, they come to forums to vent and fix issues they are having. On a side note Jnich... I tried to talk work into getting me a pursuit rated F150 this go around (I’m a k9 handler) and they got me another Tahoe, I absolutely hate it. My 2011 and 2015 Tahoe’s were great, 2018 is horrible.

 

[phsycle]

The f150 isn’t bad, it’s been pretty reliable, personally for a half ton I would look at a tundra.

I would go a 3/4 ton before a tundra. Same MPG and 2x the capability.

@Tjbell - if you’re going to haul or tow on a regular basis, I’d go 3/4 ton. If not, 1/2 ton makes sense.

 

[Deleted member 9101]

I would go a 3/4 ton before a tundra. Same MPG and 2x the capability

They also ride about the same too...haha.

 

[Deleted member 9101]

On a side note Jnich... I tried to talk work into getting me a pursuit rated F150 this go around (I’m a k9 handler) and they got me another Tahoe, I absolutely hate it. My 2011 and 2015 Tahoe’s were great, 2018 is horrible.

I wanted one too, but I need a 3/4 ton due to the trailer I have to drag around...lol.