Need advise- pickup engines to avoid

[Shobbles]

I’m hunting for a half ton pickup. I’m leaning toward Ram simply because they’re more comfortable and seem nicer on the interior. I really have no need to haul heavy stuff... just need to haul 2x4s, furniture, a mower... just typical bulky stuff.

I’m looking for a mechanic/ enthusiast to tell me what to avoid. Which engines are great, which are crap, which trucks have huge problems..... Stuff like that. I’m trying to stick with 2010 and newer with around 100k.

when I google this stuff, I get a bunch of articles on new trucks but not how they age.

 

[SAWMAN]

Have you looked at the Toyota Tundra. Looked at them all several years ago. My Tundra is at least as big inside as the Ram's. Seemed bigger than the Ford,Chevy,and GMC's.
Another option to consider would be the size of the bed. Your choice will be - -> smaller bed and bigger back seat or bigger bed and no "real" room for 4.
Tundra's hold their value so that could be one drawback when considering a used truck. ---- SAWMAN

 

[Shobbles]

I haven’t ruled anything out. The Japanese trucks do hold value very well so that gives them a price disadvantage. I do know that I’m biased against Ford. Have had a bare bones Ford work truck that was incredibly uncomfortable... of course the consumer trims are probably better, but I’m still biased against them.

looking for full crew cab. The diesels get better mpg and seem to be just as affordable as V8s...but they’re hard to come by. I’d love to get a 3/4 ton with the full crew cab and 8’ bed, but 9mpg is a no-go.

 

[JWlineman]

I've had great luck with the 5.3l GM motors in my trucks. I've avoided the 07-13 year range due to issues with the 4cyl mode and oil sending units(pump). My 06 and '14 have been very reliable of course this is an opinion of one.
That said my '10 Tundra was still my favorite and I'll probably buy another Tundra is the next year or so. The GM trucks seem to have a better interior with a little more plush options but the Tundra is a virtual tank.

 

[ls1_guru]

The GM stuff is good except for the mentioned above, the Active Fuel Management System in them is a good idea in theory, the lifters fail, and the Oil Pump does also for some reason in some of them. I work with a lot of them type of Engines, the O-Ring on the pickup tube going into the pump is the main reason of failure, loses the seal and allows air to come in, so it doesn't pull up as much oil as it should. I've replaced the O-Ring in some and that is all it took.
The 4L60E Transmission holds up for a bit, they don't handle a bunch of towing over time. I've had buddies with these trucks, the 5.3l and 6.2l, we take out the AFM stuff, put the normal stuff in it, and I turn it off in the factory tuning. Spot on after that.

The Ford Triton Engines over time will drop valves, once that lifter starts ticking it's a time bomb after that. Dodge has their normal Transmission issues they are know for.

Each one has it's pros and cons, me personally I prefer the GM stuff, easier to work on and they make good power. I'm not a Ford guy but the EcoBoost V6 Trucks work decent if you want to play with a little turbo engine.

 

[JWlineman]

I forgot to mention I have removed the 4cyl mode on my '14 Sierra and had an 87 octane tune made. Night/day difference

 

[Duckyou]

I’m hunting for a half ton pickup. I’m leaning toward Ram simply because they’re more comfortable and seem nicer on the interior. I really have no need to haul heavy stuff... just need to haul 2x4s, furniture, a mower... just typical bulky stuff.

I’m looking for a mechanic/ enthusiast to tell me what to avoid. Which engines are great, which are crap, which trucks have huge problems..... Stuff like that. I’m trying to stick with 2010 and newer with around 100k.

when I google this stuff, I get a bunch of articles on new trucks but not how they age.

My brother has had nothing but Rams for 15+ years.

He spends a ton on repairs - mainly steering, axles, etc.

F-150 with the v-8 seems to last the longest from my experiences.

 

[ls1_guru]

Lol all of them Dodges with wore out front bushings, sounds like an old wore out mattress....

I forgot to mention I have removed the 4cyl mode on my '14 Sierra and had an 87 octane tune made. Night/day difference

Yea, it does. I've done dozens of them.. not sure how far into it you went but there is a little relief valve in the Oil Pan, we would put a plug in it. That valve opens up at 55psi oil pressure.

 

[Shobbles]

Yeah all that fancy stuff scares me. Any thoughts on the little 3l or so diesel engines? Power is close enough to make no difference to me and there seems to be a significant mpg boost. Are diesels much different to do simple repairs (like belt drive components) than on a gas engine?

 

[ls1_guru]

Diesels are more expensive to work on, all day. Just depends on what it is.

 

[Raven]

The GM stuff is good except for the mentioned above, the Active Fuel Management System in them is a good idea in theory, the lifters fail, and the Oil Pump does also for some reason in some of them. I work with a lot of them type of Engines, the O-Ring on the pickup tube going into the pump is the main reason of failure, loses the seal and allows air to come in, so it doesn't pull up as much oil as it should. I've replaced the O-Ring in some and that is all it took.
The 4L60E Transmission holds up for a bit, they don't handle a bunch of towing over time. I've had buddies with these trucks, the 5.3l and 6.2l, we take out the AFM stuff, put the normal stuff in it, and I turn it off in the factory tuning. Spot on after that.

The Ford Triton Engines over time will drop valves, once that lifter starts ticking it's a time bomb after that. Dodge has their normal Transmission issues they are know for.

Each one has it's pros and cons, me personally I prefer the GM stuff, easier to work on and they make good power. I'm not a Ford guy but the EcoBoost V6 Trucks work decent if you want to play with a little turbo engine.

I had a lifter spring go on a 2001 F150 six cylinder and the dealer wanted $5,000 to fix it. Thank God I had an extended warranty on that one. I'm on my second six cylinder EcoBoost F150 now and so far no problems

 

[Duckyou]

Diesels are more expensive to work on, all day. Just depends on what it is.

Oil changes cost a lot more (hold more oil).

 

[ls1_guru]

Yea, the bigger ones do, the smaller ones are on par with a gas engine.

I had a lifter spring go on a 2001 F150 six cylinder and the dealer wanted $5,000 to fix it.

It probably wasted the whole engine, why they wanted that much money.

I have a 2001 GMC Sierra 2500HD, ext cab short box. Had that truck for almost 10 years now, the one before that a tornado wiped out when I was stationed in Little Rock. Almost 200k on it, 6.0l gas burner in it that I've put a Cam in, some tuning on it, few other mods like EGR Delete and electric fan conversion, and it runs good. Had to do an oil pan gasket a few years ago, at that time I replaced the O-ring on the pickup tube and it bumped the oil pressure up 10psi, cold and hot. When that rubber O-ring starts to go bad, oil pressure goes down with these engines. It's a tank, does everything I need it for, I've pulled 26,000lbs behind it at one point, not something I use daily for that, if I needed to I'd have a Dodge 3500 with the 6.7 Cummins in it.

 

[Armyvet35N]

I drive a mexican-made 2017 GMC Sierra, the transmission is clunky and sometimes kicks when shifting from 1st to 2nd gear.

I regret buying it and wished I had gone with the Toyota Tundra. Also, Tundras are made in America

 

[Norm]

Prior to retiring a couple of years ago, I was responsible for a fairly large oil and gas production unit in W Texas. Between the various groups in the unit; drilling, completions, producing ops etc., we had well over 100 company trucks. Most were Ram due to a corporate contract, with the balance being Ford and Chevrolet. Our experience with our trucks, if you work them, and I’m talking hard oilfield work in the desert, various loads, idling a lot, rough desert driving...... The Ford is the toughest and seemed to be the most dependable but it’s like driving a covered wagon. The Chevrolets followed the Fords very closely and didn’t beat you to death driving them. The Rams weren’t even in the same class as either the Ford or Chevy. They wouldn’t hold up. The number one problem was electrical. Had many entire wiring harnesses replaced, followed by transmission problems followed by suspension problems. My co truck was a Ram and I never had a problem with it. But mine traveled mostly on pavement with a trip to the field about once a week to keep everybody honest.

 

[FrommerStop]

Those that were mechanics say about 20 years ago chose dodge ram engines. But that was 20 years ago.

 

[stage20]

You want reliable and easy to work on? 1999-2006 chevy or gmc. Hard to find low mile trucks but parts are cheap and you can fix it yourself. If you do have someone work on it it's minimal.

As far as going the 3/4 ton route, the newer diesels will get 16-18mpg stock. In the low 20smpg if you tune them.

 

[Duckyou]

Diesel - hands down best engine is the international 7.3 l power stoke is the best made. Fords 1999-2003.

 

[Norm]

Yup. I've got 15 years in the oilfield snubbing. We BEAT THE EVER LIVING FUCK OUT OF THOSE TRUCKS.....I can't put it any nicer than that. Ford F250s by and large would outlast anything else on the road. I'm talking putting 2 tons of BOPs in the back of a 1 ton truck and sending it across country or down some of the worst lease roads you've ever seen. Our F150s weren't awful aside from the spark plug issue, but we got them swapped out at more frequent maintenance intervals than what factory called for. My Tundra is good for what it is. I'd take my old F250 king ranch over it any day of the week though. Steer clear of Rams and any of the Chevys with the 6L80 and the 4 cylinder mode. I personally own a 2000 Chevy Silverado, a 2010 Silverado, and a 2010 Tundra. I'll take the Tundra over the other 2 all day.

15 years snubbing..... yeah, you know what I’m talking about....Rough work, Rough roads and Rough men.

 

[stage20]

Diesel - hands down best engine is the international 7.3 l power stoke is the best made. Fords 1999-2003.

It only stays together and is reliable because it doesn't make any power. Lol