Moving up from a Frontier.

[gtbensley]

And buying an older 7.3 or 5.9 with 200K miles is probably not the best option. They are loud and not that pleasant to drive plus the addition of the mileage driven would mean it would have a ton of miles on it in just a few years. Buy something newer and low miles.

 

[js9234]

Ford Ecoboost 4X4's are in close to the same price range as any of the 3/4 and 1 ton Diesel 4X4's. They're phasing out the 3.5 Ecoboost this year to a smaller motor. 3.3 I believe . Maybe the last year of them will be cheaper. They usually have good payload ratings but hear good and bad about the aluminum body. Don't have an opinion on that either way since I've never dealt with them in person, just what I've read online.

Fords 2.7 Ecoboost would be a great fit in the F150. Gets good mileage, wicked smooth and quite with decent fuel economy and can have a decent payload. If the guy has been using a frontier but wants more space he probably doesn't need a 3/4 diesel truck to accomplish this.

The F150 will pull a car easily when needed and they are very reliable. Plenty of the 3.5 ecoboosts with 350K + miles on them and no issues and I imagine the 2.7 will not be any different.

 

[gtbensley]

True, new ones are not cheap....But a one year old or so lease return will have depreciated much more over a diesel 3/4 ton. I too dont have much input on the aluminum bodies although I like the idea of them.

 

[surlydiesel]

I'm brand loyal to Ford and Toyota but if you have been happy with your Nissan, why not look at a used Titan or Titan XD. The XD is in between a true 3/4 and a half. I'm going to vote gas as well but you can certainly test drive the Ram 1500 diesel and the Titan XD diesel. Let us know what you decide.

Cheers,
Jorge


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[Clutch]

Doing that many miles a year, would probably go with an Ecodiesel.

They can be found in the sub $30K mark.

Here is one with only 32K miles on it under $30K

http://www.commercialtrucktrader.com/listing/2015-Ram-1500--120195508

--------------

Though, I have seen the normally aspirated V6 going for under $25K at Dennis Dillion. Seems like the best deal on a fullsize truck. Inventory is low right now, guessing because of all the year end sales.

 

[Clutch]

I'm brand loyal to Ford and Toyota but if you have been happy with your Nissan, why not look at a used Titan or Titan XD. The XD is in between a true 3/4 and a half. I'm going to vote gas as well but you can certainly test drive the Ram 1500 diesel and the Titan XD diesel. Let us know what you decide.

Cheers,
Jorge


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Betcha if you wait one more year, there are going to be some gonga deals on the XD...they aren't selling too well.

http://www.tundraheadquarters.com/blog/2016-nissan-titan-xd-sales/


Brother-in-law, has the regular Titan and loves it, hardly any problems with it.

 

[p nut]

...Though, I have seen the normally aspirated V6 going for under $25K at Dennis Dillion. Seems like the best deal on a fullsize truck. Inventory is low right now, guessing because of all the year end sales.

Yeah, if you can get a new V6 (n/a) for that much, that's the route I'd go. I was fortunate in getting my commute cut down drastically a couple of years ago (from 25k miles/yr to 12k). If I were still doing long commutes, I'd probably have gotten an N/A V6. Still Ford, since the back seats are so humongous, but Dodge would've been a good option as well (sacrificing some rear seat room).
_
I still couldn't justify an Ecodiesel, though. Comparing Ram to Ram, with an annual mileage of 30k, avg gas/diesel cost of $2.39/$2.60 (national avg today), and highway MPG of 23/29 (gas/diesel), it would take 11 years to make up the difference even comparing a used Ecodiesel to a new V6. If frequent towing is involved, this gap is reduced, but I don't think this is the case here.

 

[Clutch]

Yeah, if you can get a new V6 (n/a) for that much, that's the route I'd go. I was fortunate in getting my commute cut down drastically a couple of years ago (from 25k miles/yr to 12k). If I were still doing long commutes, I'd probably have gotten an N/A V6. Still Ford, since the back seats are so humongous, but Dodge would've been a good option as well (sacrificing some rear seat room).
_
I still couldn't justify an Ecodiesel, though. Comparing Ram to Ram, with an annual mileage of 30k, avg gas/diesel cost of $2.39/$2.60 (national avg today), and highway MPG of 23/29 (gas/diesel), it would take 11 years to make up the difference even comparing a used Ecodiesel to a new V6. If frequent towing is involved, this gap is reduced, but I don't think this is the case here.

The high mpg of the Ecodiesel does sound enticing, but the higher buy-in cost, plus so much more to go wrong with it...doesn't sound too appealing.

Ford is probably a better truck, I can't find many crew cabs under $30K, or Chevy's for that matter. Looks like all of the great deals I was seeing the end of last year are mostly gone, even on the Rams. Either that or I am not looking hard enough.

If the OP doesn't need 4WD might suggest look at Transits...recall seeing them around $25K for the base model.

 

[p nut]

Full-size vans may make sense if it will be used in a camper config. like the OP plans to do. To tell the truth, I had been looking at Sprinters, as they would be AWESOME on family camping trips. It would get the girls out without (much) complaining. All that room, especially in high-roof models, would make the trip so much more enjoyable. BUT, it would be too much of a niche vehicle for me. First, I couldn't imagine driving that thing around on a daily basis. I could do it, but I already have issues with the girth of a full size truck. Adding the extra plumpness of the van would add even more anxiety. Second, I've got to have 4WD and high clearance. I don't need it jacked up, but the back roads of Utah require good clearance to get through. And while 2WD may be doable, 4WD makes things so much easier. Sprinter is the only company that makes 4WD stock. But it's expensive and only available with diesel. I would rather get an Econoline and do a conversion. But that's not cheap, either.

Truck offers a more versatile platform, at least for me. If, in the future, I can afford an expensive 3rd vehicle, a full-size van would be it. Until then, truck/suv makes more sense.

 

[Clutch]

Full-size vans may make sense if it will be used in a camper config. like the OP plans to do. To tell the truth, I had been looking at Sprinters, as they would be AWESOME on family camping trips. It would get the girls out without (much) complaining. All that room, especially in high-roof models, would make the trip so much more enjoyable. BUT, it would be too much of a niche vehicle for me. First, I couldn't imagine driving that thing around on a daily basis. I could do it, but I already have issues with the girth of a full size truck. Adding the extra plumpness of the van would add even more anxiety. Second, I've got to have 4WD and high clearance. I don't need it jacked up, but the back roads of Utah require good clearance to get through. And while 2WD may be doable, 4WD makes things so much easier. Sprinter is the only company that makes 4WD stock. But it's expensive and only available with diesel. I would rather get an Econoline and do a conversion. But that's not cheap, either.

Truck offers a more versatile platform, at least for me. If, in the future, I can afford an expensive 3rd vehicle, a full-size van would be it. Until then, truck/suv makes more sense.

A lot of my moto buddies have Sprinters....and they all live in AZ too.

I mirror your thoughts on a van. We are getting record snow fall here in the Boise area...think I have used my 4WD more in the last 4 weeks, than I did in the whole 20 years living in AZ. Locker is coming in very handy too. Chiropractor's parking lot was a fricken ice rink the other day which is in on an incline...most were stuck...put it in 4WD, hit the locker...walked right out of there no problem.


Really hard to beat the versatility of a truck, good bang for your buck too, compared to a van. 4WD vans are cool...gotta pay for it though.

 

[p nut]

Looking at some of the used market truck pricing, I'm thinking I should have saved myself $10k+ and bought one of these:

Truck 1

Truck 2

Some good deals, IMO. Like I've said before, I don't know of a single person with an N/A 3.5L V6 that's had problems. Just a good workhorse of an engine.

 

[Clutch]

Another idea is, buy another fresher Frontier and augment it with a little enclosed trailer for extra storage.

http://wellscargo.com/wellscargo-trailers/mpt-multi-purpose-trailers/

 

[p nut]

That's not a bad idea, either; BUT if this guy's going to be driving 30k miles per year, that's quite a toll on MPG. I'd imagine he'd be down at least 30-40% even with a small trailer. But if he only needs it for a couple of trips, may be a good option. (although--Frontier's are rated worse for MPG (21MPG highway for 4WD) than full-size trucks...)

 

[jreilly2120]

Yeah. My fronty gets 16-17 highway without traffic or wind, with a light load. 13-15 city. Stock sized tires, 4' lift. I do love the van idea but I'm in areas with sketchy enough to need 4wd, and I'm not sure I could stomach driving a van every day (outside of work).

I have had a work van (NV2500) for an extended period and it was awesome. Tons of space and super reliable. I'd recommend it to anyone who doesn't need 4wd. Gets 16-18 mixed, fairly aggressive driving

 

[gtbensley]

4x4 van maybe? What do you have for a lift on the fronty?