Let's
talk trucks! Questions and hopefully answers. Below in
the box is a link to a great website for mechanical questions. Here,
lets talk about what you like or don't like about your truck and SUV.
Such as towing questions for trucks and SUV's. This forum
is interactive, so share your experience with all of us, just click
MESSAGE BOARD
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Come on in and talk about your favorite truck or
your nightmare! I could talk for days about the early eighties holy frames
on the Ford's, saddle tanks on the Chevy's, metric transmissions from GM and
putting Perkins combine diesels in pickups until we finally have a diesel in a
pickup from Cummins. But now I'll let you spill your guts. Get it all out, you'll feel better!
If you are like most
people planning on buying a pickup truck or SUV, you're
wondering exactly what truck you really need.
Trucks can be confusing with
all the options & configurations. I've owned, Ford,
Chevy, Dodge, Isuzu, Toyota & Mazda. I was an auto
broker for AAA, selling all makes and models. Most
dealerships have new salespeople with little experience
with trucks. You need the right information to make an
intelligent decision.
Trucks can last several
decades, so can the wrong choice.
Don't
depend on the salesperson to know the answer.
They've only been selling trucks
for 2 days, 2 weeks, or 2 months! In my 32 years
on the farm, I've put over 1,000,000 miles pulling heavy
trailers and wearing out pickup trucks like only a
farmer could! Your guide to the
inside. Read my,
Truth About Trucks! Get the
Best Truck. Gas or Diesel?
Free
Truck/ SUV Reviews.
Comparing
Trucks
I believe in long test drives and
several of them. Always remember it's your money and you are in control. If the
salesperson doesn't want to accept those terms, I borrow from a phrase I heard
from Amway, "some will , some won't, so what, next!" When you compare different
brands of trucks to find the one to keep, look at things like the size of hinges
on the doors, hood and tailgate. Then get real nasty and unscrew a rear tail
light and look at the gauge of the wires. Then get the creeper out and get under
the truck and look at how the frame is joined and how the front axle suspension
is attached. Note the thickness of the metal under the truck. Next take a good
look at the seats and under the seat to see the springs. Note the thickness of
the fabric and the stitching. Some fabric is sewn and glued to the foam and some
is just stitched. Examine how the bed is attached to the truck.
Check out the plastic in the cab and how sturdy and well attached it is. Get a
feel for how the inside controls are, can you reach them without be distracted
from the road? It's easier to get statistics on engines and drive-trains than
the over all quality of a truck. And the quality of workmanship is not getting
better. Some years a better than others, some plants are better than others.
Competition has improved dramatically in the last two years, which is the
driving force for quality.
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MrTruck’s Research
Help narrow truck buying
research down to your best choice.
Questions are a good thing.
I have plenty of them. Trucks are changing dramatically and the competition is
heating up, which is good for you. My job is to give you a different view than
what you’ll get on the street or in a dealership.
After
the research, and many test-drives check out my online services page,
quote to get some real quotes on the trucks. I’ve
narrowed the online buying services down to the two that do it the best, try
them both, they are free to you and they can get a quote on new and used.
Carsdirect will send you a quote,
Autoweb will have an Internet salesperson send you a quote. For used trucks
only I like
Autotrader, they are the biggest and I sold many trucks to folks who
came over 200 miles to buy from me because they saw the ad in
Autotrader. They
have dealer and private trucks. For the two-ton trucks and larger they also have
Trucktrader.
I've
completed my research into a used truck inspection service that I could
recommend to the members of our club. Some of you suggested Magoo's.
I haven't found anyone better.
So check them out if you are looking for a used truck. You are in this club to
give yourself an edge in making the right choices.
Here is one more tool. If you're not a mechanic with the resources to
thoroughly inspect the physical and mechanical condition of your prospective
used truck, then this will save you money and sleep, click.
Now I
want you to have the opportunity to have price discovery on the trucks
you’re looking at. To do this for free and often, use the websites of
Autotrader,
Yahoo and
KellyBlueBook. AutoTrader and Yahoo use Chrome Data, the same place thousands
of new franchised auto dealers use to order vehicles direct from the factory. I
use all three websites and compare the prices. You can build new trucks with the
options you want and also get used truck prices.
With new trucks be sure
to add the national advertising that those programs have and ad another 1% for
regional advertising which is all built into the factory invoices. The “Prep
Fee” or “Dealer Handling” charges very a lot across the country. It is a bogus
fee for extra profit. The majority of manufactures pay the dealer to get the
vehicle ready for delivery and is itemized on the federal law mandated Marony
retail sticker on all new vehicles window. But some dealers will take the Prep
Fee or D&H Fee off and some won’t. Use these three websites to get a close
invoice price and average used price so that your price is negotiated up from
dealer cost not down retail sticker price.
Always remember to get your money first. You can always take 0% interest from
the manufacture financing when available, but be prepared with your own options.
The two online loan services I recommend are on
Loans.
Don’t forget an equity loan on your house and then deduct the interest off
your taxes. Ask your bank or credit union for details.
Before you get talked into the dealer extended warranties, do your own research.
Sometimes your credit union or insurance companies have better warranties. To
check out the two online warranty services go to,
Warranties.
Keep
checking back on the latest Rebates, Recalls and Interest Rates, which can
change each month at
RecallsRebatesRates. There is also crash tests and EPA
mileage on trucks 8500 GVWR and lower.
Even
if you don’t want a diesel or weren’t planning on a diesel, I just want you to know
the facts.
Diesels generally cost
between $4000 & $5000 new as an option and bring closer to $2000 to $3000 more than a gas engine
in a used truck.
It generally takes
100,000
miles (Revised) before the extra fuel economy of a diesel pays for
the extra cost of a new diesel. And then the oil changes cost 2 to 3 times more;
the noise and the smell if it gets on your hands while filling the tank. If I
didn’t plan on keeping a truck for over 100,000 or haul often, I wouldn’t get a diesel and I love diesels!
But if you drive over 20,000 miles a year and love power when pulling a trailer
then consider the diesel. Consider the extra cost of a diesel on a 5 year loan
adds approximately $100 a month.
One
way to look at buying a truck new or used is your future needs. Find the
salesperson and dealership you trust and build a relationship. There are some
good ones out there. I did discover if the dealership names itself “Friendly
Motors” run. The month I got out of the business, my oldest son rolled his truck
and we had to go truck shopping. I had forgotten how hard it was. We started out
going dealer to dealer, reading the paper, looking on the Internet and I just
tagged along as dumb ole dad playing with my granddaughter. After my son and
daughter-in-law got tired of it and after changing their mind several times on
which vehicle they wanted, they asked for help. I got on the cell phone and
called one of the veteran salespeople I bought from and trusted as a broker. I
told him what I needed and then we went and picked it up.
Of course I have the
advantage, knowing the dealer cost of vehicles and who to trust. But the point I
was trying to make to my kids was, you’re going to buy a lot of vehicles over
your lifetime. Find the salesperson and dealer you trust and build a
relationship and send them your friends. You still need to do price research to
keep everyone honest, and let me help you sort which truck is your best
choice, but in the same areas of the country used and especially new, cost all
the dealers very close to the same. I would think a positive relationship with a
dealer you trust would take some of the stress out of something you would do
more than once.
Being
in the business I use to see some amazing things. Retired people were always a
target for salespeople, they were old school and got used to believing some of
the wild stories from salespeople and they didn’t use the Internet for research.
Next in line for the land sharks used to be women, which has totally changed, I
talk about this on my web site, salespeople use to be able to intimidate women
who would come to a car lot by themselves. I’ve seen this evolve to the point
now that a single man coming to a car lot is the target. But if he’s married no
one will talk to him without his wife. Today’s women buyers are educated about
what they are looking for, do more research and ask a tremendous amount of
questions. And they put up with less BS.
It’s
not easy to find a superstar salesperson and most big dealerships have a 70%
turnover rate of salespeople. When my customers had a problem with the service
department, I was in the middle of it getting things done, when my clients had a
problem with warranties, I was calling the regional manufactures managers
getting things done. What I saw with most other salespeople was, they only went
out of their way to help customers who made them big money. We all know that’s
not right but it’s true. Just like I know several small franchised auto dealers
who will service your “under warranty” problems only after customers who bought
from them are taken care of and them some. That’s against all manufactures
franchises rules, but it’s the real world.
New Dodge Trucks at Fleet
Deals: Ask for Kathy or Linda in fleet at 1-800-880-1940,
Tell them MrTruck sent you.
Quality salespeople know that if you are happy, you are the best advertisement
for them. In my years in the auto business I saw how happy people were, to come
back a few years later and get to work with the same salesperson, someone
they trusted and sent their friends and even their relatives to. Words of
caution here, even with a trusted salesperson, always do your homework and
research prices, interest rates and rebates. As long as salespeople are paid on
a commission of what they make the store, it’s human nature to try to make more
on you if given the chance. We all are trying to feed our families and I
don’t expect people to work for free. But that’s just me, the older I get the
more I can see both sides of any argument.
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What to you think, tailgate up
or down? Read this article and give me your opinion in the message board.
http://www.awtrucks.com/tailgateup.htm
 
Just enter your email and join
in.
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Friends
don’t let friends buy the wrong truck!
In my ten
years of answering questions on trucks and trailers publicly, I have
learned 2 basic truths. #1 Right or wrong folks will disagree with you,
which is a good thing. #2 It's hard to find the right truck, a lot of
people don't have the ideal vehicle that they need. So I can either, (a)
recommend everyone get a 2-ton dually, or (b) tell you my opinion of
what you can do with your present vehicle and what help it needs, or if
you can't get there from here, tell you what dangers you face. |
 Mission
Control, where 300 to 500 emails come in and are processed, monitoring 7
message boards on 15 websites. Truck library and data base on the left,
laser printers, scanners, speech recognition system. On right toy truck
and tractor collection, view of apple tree, coffee machines back side,
exercise machine, boxing bag, bat phone. Backup keyboards, hard drives.
Night goggles, generator, gas mask, red phone, tunnel to helicopter pad.
All below blast level where MrTruck never sleeps. |
NEW verses USED Revised
We all know how nothing stays the same. Markets change, economies change, my
weight changes. With the recession of 2001 and that darn 0% financing on new
trucks that seemed great at the time, we now have too many used trucks. This
year, 2002 we can hardly sell any new trucks. Free money, 0% interest, took
folks way into the future out of the market by buying early. And you can only go
so low on a new truck and then you have one of those bankruptcy sales.
Used trucks get churned over and over at the dealer auction when things get slow
and finely some dealers gets great bargains. One year old trucks are still too
close to a new truck but 2 years old and older trucks are way down there.
Now of course you know what I say about used 4x4's, they need a great extended
warranty Click Be sure to
check or have checked a used truck over carefully. I'll be coming out with a
list of what to look for soon.
We have all heard how much you loose when you
drive a new car off the lot. Cars drop like a rock no matter whether they were
used or new. The people you hear this saying the most from are the USED CAR
SALESMAN.
They make more money on used than new. You don't
have an invoice on used vehicles and you have no way of knowing exactly how much
they traded it in for. Very few people pay full retail for new vehicles and then
there are those rebates. It would surprise you how close the actual sales price
of a new vehicle and a one year old one are. And you know the new one wasn't
raced to the airport by 100 different people. I actually know people who trade
every year and never change their oil. Some of the used vehicles make it all
over the US that have come from the last hurricane. You can see the water damage
on the starters and exhaust systems. Some manufactures, especially Ford have
different settings from the factory by the altitude too.
Now in trucks, since they have better resale value and generally last longer,
can priced even higher at one year old than new. I have seen that happen often.
To see a significant difference, you need to go back 3 years in trucks. The 3/4
ton's also hold their value better than 1/2 ton's and extended cabs or crew cabs
4X4's are the kings. In 4X4's used, can be a whole new experience. Since you
won't know how much off road use it had, a 4X4 can create it's own payment! It
seems that every part on the bottom of a 4X4 costs $2000. If you are the first
owner of a truck, especially a 4X4 or diesel and you take care of it can last
you decades. I see a lot of people buying diesels that don't know anything about
how to take care of them.
Amy of MI knows how to haul those round bales with two trailers!
We
all need batteries, especially diesels, why not have the best.
"Uncle Jerry" farming the depleted
soil. Not too many "Buffalo chips" left. This is where I would love to be! I
could fill a web site about what I miss from turning over spring soil to sorting
and branding cattle!
The Truth about Auto Loans.
Good credit or not Good credit
learn the inside secrets that make auto dealers their biggest profit! Don't go
unarmed and at their mercy. Bring your own loan with you! Know your rate and
payment first. Now you can deal like you are buying with Cash! Being a Farmer
for Decades gave me a Natural Distrust of Banks. I Love Giving them Competition!
Click here!
Interesting Sites-More Research
The Fence Post, farm
magazine, Windsor CO
The best weekly magazine I've found. They have a
tremendous reach with their classified adds. A very entertaining and informative
magazine.. I started a monthly truck column with "The Fence Post" farm
and ranch magazine on Nov. 13th, 2001.
Report 1.0
Which truck do you need.
Report 2.0 SUV's and Trailers and Wheelbases.
Report
3.0
Why your child's First car should be a Truck.
Report 4.0
Why not a 2-ton
medium duty dually.
Report
5.0 Used Truck Judging 101. "Insider" version.
Report 6.0
Truck Future: camless diesel, ESC, and lane departure warning.
Report
7.0
Do I need a diesel? Is maintenance & mileage different? Are emissions
different?
Report 8.0 Who has the best loans and warranties?
Report
9.0 Which fuel does it use in the winter?
Coming
#1 How big of trailer can I pull? What is a camper
package?
#2 Which axle ratio do I need? What is limited slip axle?
#3 What size is the box? Will my camper or shell fit?
#4 What is the brake in period for the engine?
#5 What is the fuel shut off switch? What is an off-road package?
#6 What is the mileage difference between engines?
#7 Is a used truck really cheaper? Read above
#8 Which bed liner is better for me?
Had a Ford E-150 conversion
van for 17 years..375,000 miles and never had the heads off! Still running
fine when I gave it away to charity. I was lonely for a truck and mom just
let get a 1996 F-150, Eddie Bauer with the I-6. Sweet truck and I hope it
lasts as well and as long as the first...You have a neat
site...Thanks...Pete B, Chula Vista , CA USA
- Don’t buy a used car without Carfax!
- Get the real history of any used car.
- People do some strange things to cars…
- Don’t make a $10,000 mistake!
.jpg)
-
This is important, have the VIN checked
out with the truck brand service department's national database computer
and check for recalls, repairs, and they can tell you exactly how many months or
miles of the factory warranty is left if any, for free. Which is very important
to check that it's not a buyback lemon from the truck manufacture. A buyback
lemon won't have any warranty from the factory regardless of the miles or
months. And you don't want to miss any recalls than haven't been fixed for free.
The VIN is usually on the base of the windshield. Get if off the truck not the
paperwork, but do check the VIN of the truck against the title paper work.
Now on with the show! The Right Truck
for you!
Here are some tips car buyers should follow to avoid being
scammed: Supplied by CARFAX to protect you from odometer rollback
-
Examine the tires. If the odometer on your car shows 20,000
or less, it should have the original tires.
-
Always request the vehicle's maintenance, inspection and
emission records. Then compare the mileage on the odometer those on the
records.
-
Get a detailed CARFAX Vehicle History Report to check for
odometer discrepancies in the vehicle's history.
-
Compare the title of the vehicle with the mileage on the
vehicle's odometer.
-
Look at the wear and tear on the vehicle -- especially the
gas, brake and clutch pedals -- to be sure it seems consistent with the amount
of miles displayed on the odometer.
LOVE YOUR WEB SITE, IT HAS
BEEN VERY HELPFUL IN BUYING MY NEW TRUCK. FORD SD F250 V10 AUTO. LOVE
IT AND IT DOES THE JOB WITH LEFTOVERS. R A. VADNAIS HTS. MN.
USA
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is an ideal electrical
connection for your trailer.
Roadside Assistance for Equestrians.
