Personally I'd tend to avoid the "1/2" ton pickups from any
manufacturer, as far as I can tell this line is where all their profit
margins are and the seem to get really lax at building an actual
"truck".

The heavier you go i.e. 3/4t or 1t there seems to be less difference
between brands and there seems to be more "truck". Another good thing is
that in those classes you can get one over 8,600 GVW so it doesn't come
with a claymore, er... airbag in your steering wheel.

Diesel is nice, but not essential and it does add several thousand
dollars to the cost. Automatic transmission is also not essential. Axle
ratio *is* essential, if you primarily want a vehicle for towing then
get a 4.56 axle. It is easier to change to a larger tire size if you
find the axle is a little too low for your tastes than it is to change
the axle gears.

Personally I hate automatics, and I find that the diesels in even the 1t
trucks are a little to tinney / noisy for my taste. I like the diesels
you find in the mid sized box trucks like the International 4300s.

I have a 97' Chev K3500 with the 7.4l gas engine, 5sp manual, 4.56 axles
and dual wheels and it tows heavy stuff quite nicely. On one recent haul
I had a 1,571# electric forklift battery in the back of the truck over
the axle and the remaining 4,700# forklift on an 18' flatbed trailer in
tow and it did just fine. I backed that collection up a 650' narrow
winding uphill driveway without issues, even with the manual.

The last big tow I did was 1,700 miles pulling a 24' auto/cargo trailer
that weighed about 6,000#. Up hills, down hills, mostly on cruise
control, mostly in 5th gear, only downshifting on the worst hills to
4th, no problems. Granted I got about 9.5 mpg on that trip down from
the normal 11.5 mpg, but it sure handled fine.

Pete C.


0_Qed wrote:

Richard Ferguson wrote:

...snip...

Added to what Richard suggests ...

A 92_ish GMC turbo diesel V-8 aughta do nicely ...
18 to 20 mpg unloaded ... 10mpg at 70mph w/7000lbs of cargo trlr ...
but ...
=locate= a good GMC diesel tech 1st ... .

I'd opt for all_whl trlr elec brakes, a class IV recvr, & an equalizer
hitch .
The hydraulic 'assist' tends to "push" & jacknife.
'Elec' is the best on 'wet' & 'snow'.
3rd wheel( & goose neck ) is nicer, but pricy.

Its been my observation( good or bad ) that 3/4T used gassers arent
quite
a s well maintained as 3/4T used diesels.

OD use on an 'auto' is OK on the 'flat' .. with a big diesel ...
else, 'hills' ... use 3rd & slo down a bit ... 60 ???

"Toys' tend to get bigger, & more expensive,
as boys change "sizes".

Ed.