# What should I look for in a truck?



## Speed Racer (Oct 21, 2009)

You can use a half ton (F150), but you have to make sure to get the right sized engine, and make sure it has a transmission cooler, along with a tow package.

I just bought a 'new to me' 2008 F150. It came with the towing package and transmission cooler, so all I had to add was the brake controller. A local trailer place put it in for me.

A V8 with a 4.6 liter or bigger is recommended. Don't go anything smaller, engine size wise.

Also, make sure you don't buy a trailer that's too much for the truck. You shouldn't go any larger than a 2-horse.


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## smrobs (Jul 30, 2008)

I don't know a whole lot about engines and towing packages and all that, but one thing I will suggest is that you avoid diesel trucks if you can. The price of fuel isn't all that much different but the cost to take it to be serviced or if it breaks down can tempt you to sell your firstborn child just to pay off the bill.


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## ShinaKonga (Jun 24, 2010)

Speed Racer said:


> You can use a half ton (F150), but you have to make sure to get the right sized engine, and make sure it has a transmission cooler, along with a tow package.
> 
> I just bought a 'new to me' 2008 F150. It came with the towing package and transmission cooler, so all I had to add was the brake controller. A local trailer place put it in for me.
> 
> ...


I seriously just copy and pasted your post onto a document to save it- thank you. As for a two horse, that's all I need right now, and probably all I trust myself hauling.


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## ShinaKonga (Jun 24, 2010)

smrobs said:


> I don't know a whole lot about engines and towing packages and all that, but one thing I will suggest is that you avoid diesel trucks if you can. The price of fuel isn't all that much different but the cost to take it to be serviced or if it breaks down can tempt you to sell your firstborn child just to pay off the bill.


That's good to know- I didn't plan on doing anything with diesel, but now I know why not to.


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## Tianimalz (Jan 6, 2009)

Flintstones it.


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## ShinaKonga (Jun 24, 2010)

Hey Tia... 

http://burymeinstyle.files.wordpress.com/2011/02/anchorman-go-back-to-your-home-on-*****-island.jpg?w=500&h=271


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## Tianimalz (Jan 6, 2009)




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## ShinaKonga (Jun 24, 2010)




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## Tianimalz (Jan 6, 2009)




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## ShinaKonga (Jun 24, 2010)




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## Tianimalz (Jan 6, 2009)




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## ShinaKonga (Jun 24, 2010)




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## Tianimalz (Jan 6, 2009)




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## Joe4d (Sep 1, 2011)

I have posted this in other places, the answer is the same,:
You must know the weight of the trailer you want to pull,
You must have a trailer brake controller,
You must know the tow rating of the specific truck you are looking at.

All manufacturers have a tow guide, but you must know the options your truck has, just becasue it is a F150 or toyota tundra or this that or the other is meaningless, SOme are great tow vehicles some are not. They come with different parts. different engines, different gears.

If you dont want to take the time to learn the difference between a 3:31 rear end and a 3:73. or what the "liters" mean on a truck, I strongly suggest you buy a F250 ford or a 2500 GM. Not sure what dodge calls there 3/4 ton... probably a 2500.


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## VT Trail Trotters (Jul 21, 2011)

fftopic: Wanted to use that forever, any way. I am a big truck guy and know a lot. I am guessing you will be hauling 1 to 2 horses on a normal trip. So that equals with the trailer weight ... 5,500 lbs a rough guess. For 2 1,000 lbs horses and a the trailer weight. Out Jeep Liberty can haul it, but go with a Dodge 1500 or 2500. The Cummings are very strong and have a 25,000 lbs towing capacity. The Ram (Dodge) has a V8 or the V8 Hemi which is one bad azz engine and LOTS of power. And for the 2011 Dodge Ram 1500 ST (the lowest model) the towing capacity is 7450 lbs. And that is great, and can easly tow the horses. And this is a V8 not the Hemi. The Hemi has 10,250 lbs for the same model. So Dodge may be your way to go.


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## ShinaKonga (Jun 24, 2010)

VT Trail Trotters said:


> fftopic: Wanted to use that forever, any way. I am a big truck guy and know a lot. I am guessing you will be hauling 1 to 2 horses on a normal trip. So that equals with the trailer weight ... 5,500 lbs a rough guess. For 2 1,000 lbs horses and a the trailer weight. Out Jeep Liberty can haul it, but go with a Dodge 1500 or 2500. The Cummings are very strong and have a 25,000 lbs towing capacity. The Ram (Dodge) has a V8 or the V8 Hemi which is one bad azz engine and LOTS of power. And for the 2011 Dodge Ram 1500 ST (the lowest model) the towing capacity is 7450 lbs. And that is great, and can easly tow the horses. And this is a V8 not the Hemi. The Hemi has 10,250 lbs for the same model. So Dodge may be your way to go.


Yes, me and Tia usually get carried away any time we end up on the same thread. :lol:

You can haul with a Jeep Liberty? Dang, if I was a jeep girl I'd be in luck! As for the Dodges, hows the gas mileage on them? I can only be having one car right now, and I don't want to be shelling out 13-15 mpg to drive to work if I have another option.
V8 is an engine term, right? Is that the amount of cylinders, such as the six I have in my Ranger? Taking a guess here so I don't start assuming things.


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## Joe4d (Sep 1, 2011)

Yes you are correct, but number of cylinders isnt really the best indicator or power. 
8 small cylinders can have less power than 6 big ones. My 94 6 cylinder F150 had much more towing capacity than my 2004 8 cylinder,
The meaningful number you are looking for is the total displacement. Basically the total size of the engine cylinder. Usually expressed in Liters, like your ranger is a 4.0 meaning 4 liters, My current truck is a 5.4 liter engine. The Ford diesels run between 6.0 and 7.3 liters. More liters is better.
Unless you get something pretty new that I havent got any experience with. You will be hard pressed to get any better than 18 mpg out of a vehicle that is heavy duty and powerful enough to tow a couple horses. 
Pretty sad actually. My 2007 F150 gets the same gas mileage my 1994 did, and my Grandfathers 1968 model. But they tell us car makers are trying, yeh right.


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## Darrin (Jul 11, 2011)

When talking tow rigs you can expect a fuel mileage in the sub 20mpg range. They are big, heavy and designed to exchange fuel for power. That's why diesel pickups have become so popular. They produce more power then gas and give better mileage doing it.

Even though I'm not happy with people using 1/2 tons to tow horses, they will give you better mileage in your day to day driving. The newer ones can get you into the low 20's when empty if you don't treat the gas pedal like an on/off switch. Step up to a heavier gas powered tow rig and 18mpg empty is about as good as it will get and that's with a smaller V8. The larger V8's will be 15mpg empty and can get below 10mpg fairly fast with a heavy load and lead foot.

As for Dodges, they've never been known for fuel mileage with the exception of their Cummins diesel.


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## shovelhead13 (Sep 21, 2010)

I got two Arabian mares and one long horn cow. That's why I get them big round roller bales of hay. I got a 2006 Chevy 3/4 ton Silverado four wheel drive. It doesn't have an extended cab nor automatic transmission. Usually I use my flat bed trailer to haul two of them large bales of hay in. This year the hay was hard to get. I only found some small bales and three of them big roller bales. After the small bales got hauled and stacked I had to get them big bales before they got ripped off. My Chevy Silverado could haul two bales in the trailer and one in the bed. I just had to be carefull so it didn't rolle up and hit the cab. That load didn't bother my old style three quarter ton a bit.


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## ShinaKonga (Jun 24, 2010)

shovelhead13 said:


> I got two Arabian mares and one long horn cow. That's why I get them big round roller bales of hay. I got a 2006 Chevy 3/4 ton Silverado four wheel drive. It doesn't have an extended cab nor automatic transmission. Usually I use my flat bed trailer to haul two of them large bales of hay in. This year the hay was hard to get. I only found some small bales and three of them big roller bales. After the small bales got hauled and stacked I had to get them big bales before they got ripped off. My Chevy Silverado could haul two bales in the trailer and one in the bed. I just had to be carefull so it didn't rolle up and hit the cab. That load didn't bother my old style three quarter ton a bit.


I'm talking about hauling horses...


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## VT Trail Trotters (Jul 21, 2011)

ShinaKonga said:


> Yes, me and Tia usually get carried away any time we end up on the same thread. :lol:
> 
> You can haul with a Jeep Liberty? Dang, if I was a jeep girl I'd be in luck! As for the Dodges, hows the gas mileage on them? I can only be having one car right now, and I don't want to be shelling out 13-15 mpg to drive to work if I have another option.
> V8 is an engine term, right? Is that the amount of cylinders, such as the six I have in my Ranger? Taking a guess here so I don't start assuming things.


Well Shina, on a 2011 Dodge 1500 with the Hemi it is 20 mpg better than out V6 Jeep. That only gets 15 mpg, makes no sense to me.


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