Midsize Pickup Comparo - READ ONLY

751 messages, Last post on Nov 28, 2007 at 10:44 AM

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What is this discussion about? Honda Ridgeline, Nissan Frontier, Toyota Tacoma, Chevrolet Colorado, GMC Canyon, Dodge Dakota, Ford Explorer Sport Trac, Car Comparisons, Truck

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#729 of 751 Re: Dodge Dakota [poncho167] by xscout Oct 30, 2007 (12:30 pm)
Replying to: poncho167 (Oct 28, 2007 4:50 am) I agree the Dakota and Ram are a bit to close in size. I saw two sitting side by side the other day and other than the Dakota's cab being narrower they were pretty close in size. You may be right about the Dakota leaving in three years or so but it won't be right now. I owned one of the first Rangers back in 1982 and thought it was a nice size. A redesign that keeps it about the same size would be a good move in my opinion because there are still a lot of customers out there that don't need the bigger size. The Ranger is still selling because of this despite it's dated design. Replies to this message: jfritsch (Oct 30, 2007 6:03 pm)
#730 of 751 Re: Dodge Dakota [xscout] by jfritsch Oct 30, 2007 (6:03 pm)
Replying to: xscout (Oct 30, 2007 12:30 pm) Ranger and the Colorado have the compact market covered. The colorado even has a quad and regular cab option. The world has moved on. --jjf
#731 of 751 Bring back the smaller ones!! by 462 Nov 08, 2007 (5:35 pm)
I have a 98 Nissan Frontier. It has the 2.4 liter 4-banger. Perfect little commuter, you can still haul most of what the average homeowner needs. I get about 24 MPG in town!! Keep it tuned and change the oil every 3-4K and they never seem to die. Fits easily in the garage and I don't have to worry about dinging the wife's SUV. Wish I could get another this size when the time comes...a small one with a diesel would be a bonus!! Replies to this message: kipk (Nov 09, 2007 5:04 am) asa (Nov 11, 2007 7:41 am) kipk (Nov 12, 2007 2:41 am)
#732 of 751 Re: Bring back the smaller ones!! [462] by kipk Nov 09, 2007 (5:04 am)
Replying to: 462 (Nov 08, 2007 5:35 pm) 462, Your wish may well come true. Saw on the news a day or so ago that gas is $4 a gallon in parts of California. A lot of folks that thought they "needed" a mid to full size truck, might begin to re-think the NEED vs. WANT ratios. Towing and hauling can/will dictate the size and power of our truck "NEEDS". What about "wants"? Even though I don't really have a need; How do I look driving it, how do I feel driving it, am I making a statement, are "WANTS" based a lot on ego? And yes!... In my minds eye, I looked darn good driving around in my full size White Ram Sport. It is interesting that at my place of part time employment ( a shooting range/gun store) most of the guys drive full/mid size pickups. The guy with the old '80s 4wd Toyota and the guy with the Ranger seem to always have something or other in the bed to take home or take to the dump.. The full size and mid size trucks rarely do, and when they do, it is usually something that would have fit in a Ranger bed. However those owners are complaining about the $75+ fill ups every week or so. We are seeing more and more small Suvs becoming available. I expect to see a similar trend for Pickups in the near future, along with "interesting" engine choices. Kip Replies to this message: asa (Nov 11, 2007 7:41 am) kipk (Nov 12, 2007 2:41 am)
#733 of 751 Re: Bring back the smaller ones!! [kipk] by asa Nov 11, 2007 (7:41 am)
Replying to: kipk (Nov 09, 2007 5:04 am) Right on Kip! I've read several articles that show a direct coorelation between US vehicle size and America's obesity. Big people want big vehicles. I love my '06 Nissan Frontier SE Crew Cab and with the 6-Speed I get 22-1/2 to 23-1/2 MPG on the highway. If Nissan had made it several inches narrower, it'd be even more perfect for a thin family like ours. It's been my theory too that s long as people can put gas on a charge card, it doesn't 'hurt' their finances as much as if they had to instead peel off three or four $20 bills. The average American houshold has $8500+ of credit card debt, thus hasn't done a real good job of watching costs on anything. Replies to this message: kipk (Nov 12, 2007 2:41 am)
#734 of 751 Extended cab storage bins by moparbad Nov 11, 2007 (1:14 pm)
Isuzu Truck I wonder why GM or Isuzu do not offer these storage bins on US trucks, at a minimum they should offer them to commercial customers.
#735 of 751 Re: Bring back the smaller ones!! [asa] by kipk Nov 12, 2007 (2:41 am)
Replying to: asa (Nov 11, 2007 7:41 am) asa, "It's been my theory too that s long as people can put gas on a charge card, it doesn't 'hurt' their finances as much as if they had to instead peel off three or four $20 bills. The average American houshold has $8500+ of credit card debt, thus hasn't done a real good job of watching costs on anything." I agree. I tend to spend much less when paying with cash. Odd how that works, isn't it? The truck mfg are simply catering to our belief that bigger is better and our "Want" of instant gratification. Five and six year financing (and sometimes longer), interest only payments, and the credit card have enabled the small Pickup to grow in size, and therefore in price, to equal the full size ones. It is not hard to spend $30K +/- on a mid or full size truck. Either, with what would have been considered "Well Equipped" 5 years ago, can be purchased for much less than $30k. But with all the latest gadgets and long term financing we "Need" the $30+K one. I remember paying about $3,300 for a new '73 Chevy Cheyenne P/U, "LOADED" with everything except leather. Even back then I thought I "NEEDED" all the bells and whistles. We feel we "Need" all the GEE WHIZ bells and whistles. And we can have them at the "same low monthly payment" as a lesser truck. All we have to do is to stretch payments out (with more interest) 12-36 months longer. If we had to save the money to pay cash, and unfold those bills during the purchase, we would be a lot more careful when balancing the "Needs" and "Wants" act. After the initial shock, $4-$5 gas will become a way of life and just another thing to complain about and add to the plastic card. And Visa will dance with Glee! Kip
#736 of 751 Dakota Hauler vers Other Midsize by wrench1 Nov 22, 2007 (5:53 am)
I own a 2006 SLT Sport CC Dakota 4.7 and tow a boat and other loads. I also own and tow with a 2006 Nissan Xterra 4.0. The Nissan pulls just as well, and gets avg 19 MPG towing while the Dakota drops to 15 MPG. The Dakota can really haul more on the road but for everyday day driving in town, the Xterra/Frontier 4.0L gets 23 MPG. Great gas mileage for 266 HP. My 2001 Ranger SC4.0L got 19MPG on the highway, 15-16 in town. Only rated 207 hp, had horrible brakes. The Dodge is a rock solid truck for the big hauling jobs and too me a Frontier/Tacoma/Ranger/Ridgeline/Colorado would work in any other everyday situation except rock crawlin, which is a sport all to itself. Then one would have to evaluate thr truck versus needs as someone has already said. Different strokes for different folks!
#737 of 751 The "Supersizing" of little trucks. by tigger32 Nov 24, 2007 (7:28 pm)
I have been watching the size increasing on our beloved small trucks and I ain't happy about it. I inherited my father's 1965 Ford F-250 Camper Special about 20 years ago. I sold it off because I didn't use enough (still had my Chevy Van) but when I did sell it, the small trucks were a fair bit smaller than it. Now the Dodge Dakota is just about the same size! At the recent L.A. car show, I sat in the Ford and Chevy full size trucks and was amazed. In my Dad's old truck I could reach across to the door handle and window crank on the passenger side. It was a long reach but I could do it. These new trucks had my hand waving around a good foot to a foot-and-a-half away from the door. And the climb up into the cabs is getting ridiculous. The old F-250 had a seat height that was perfect; just sling your keester sideways and in you went. Not now. You need oxygen and a small lunch to go up that high. Our "compact" trucks are definitly the size of the old trucks, so that is where my money will go when the time comes for the next P/U purchase. Tigger 32
#738 of 751 Fuel prices and the new Diesels. by tigger32 Nov 24, 2007 (7:39 pm)
I have heard rumors of new Diesel engines being built for Dodge by Cummins. I am hearing that there is a new 4.6 litre V-6 and a 5.6 litre V-8. The small engine is aiming for 30 mpg and if that is true, it will be a huge seller, I bet. Especially if it is offered in the Dakota. I have also heard that Chevy/GMC is going to have a 4.5 litre Diesel coming out although I have not heard any specs on it. All this is to ponder the question, "Will Nissan, Toyota, Ford, etal. answer the call and give us some good mileage Diesels in our small trucks? Heck, Mercedes has the Sprinter Van with it's 2.7 litre 5 cylinder that is doing great in the delivery van / motorhome business. We can only hope. Tigger 32 Replies to this message: asa (Nov 25, 2007 6:27 am) jfritsch (Nov 25, 2007 11:05 am) kipk (Nov 26, 2007 3:50 am) moparbad (Nov 26, 2007 6:11 am) and 1 more... moparbad (Nov 25, 2007 7:18 pm) asa (Nov 26, 2007 12:06 pm)