School me on TRUCKS

[GTS Jeff]

I normally like to research the shit out of things before I buy. But in this case, I don't want to. I am in search of a truck but I have no idea what's good or bad, what criteria to pay attention to, etc. So I'd appreciate everyone's thoughts here:

Requirements:
Budget $20k
Reliable as hell (will be shitkicked and driven on rough roads, and be wife-maintained, that is, occasional oil changes if you're lucky but not much else, and planned to last for many years)
Safe.
Can comfortably accommodate a family including 2 kids and a dawg.
AWD/4WD
Also needs to be able to pull a horse trailer. I know nothing about weights here though.

Good resale would be nice, but not a requirement since the truck would be kept a long time. Thoughts?

[killramos]

Buy a Tacoma?

4 people and a dog is going to feel pretty tight for any pickup imo, unless said dog is riding in the bed.

[bjstare]

Tacoma fits the bill if it’s a small dog. I haven’t done any research lately, but good luck on not getting a miled out shitbox for <$20k.

[GTS Jeff]

Oops, edited to say also needs to be able to pull horses in a trailer.

- - - Updated - - -

Don't care as long as it's reliable. But then again, if the budget isn't reasonable, I guess my next question is, what is the sweet spot for budget where you can start not getting shitboxes?

[ExtraSlow]

Not a Tacoma then. F250/F350 is what you want for pulling horses.

Although, I should warn you, at that price, you will be getting some very beat-to-shit and miled out trucks. Like 300,000 km former rig trucks etc. @Twin_Cam_Turbo what do you think?

[Darell_n]

$20k for a HD 4 door pickup will be a unicorn unless you don’t mind a 20 year old truck or one with 300,000,000,000 km. (place a decimal somewhere in the 2nd half)

[dirtsniffer]

pulling horses? double the budget

[Twin_Cam_Turbo]

When you say horse trailer, how much weight? One horse in single horse trailer? Four horses in a massive trailer? You’re not going to be getting anything newer for $20k, unless it’s got a TON of mileage. Without knowing more you’re probably looking at a gas F250/350 or GM 2500/3500 with AT LEAST 200k or 12+ years old.

[ExtraSlow]

Change your criteria to "I'm planning to spend $40k, but I'll actually end up spending $60k, and my wife will still hate it because it'll be beat to shit and smell like welder farts and she'll blame me if it ever needs repairs."

That's more likely.

[killramos]

Horses amirit

[ExtraSlow]

And if you show up to ANY horse event with a truck over 4 years old, you may as well wear blackface too, because they'll treat you like the help either way.

[Twin_Cam_Turbo]

I hope you have an extremely healthy budget for fuel as well.

[schurchill39]

The take away here is that truck shopping is not what it was 4-5 years ago so take anything you might think you know about what a truck should cost and 2.5x that amount

[ExtraSlow]

And it was bad enough 4-5 years ago. Lolllerzzz

[sxtasy]

GM 3/4 ton with 6.0L gas engine. Very reliable, can be found in your price range. Has good payload capacity, large cab for the family. Will guzzle the fuel when pulling.

[ExtraSlow]

I can agree that the 6.0L GM engine is better than the Ford gas 5.4 engine.

[killramos]

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I can agree that the GM engine is better than the Ford engine.

This is generally accurate

[Darkane]

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I can agree that the 6.0L GM engine is better than the Ford gas 5.4 engine.

But if his budget allows a 2011 HD frame, they came with the 6.2L standard.

6.0<6.2 when it comes to inches

[littledan]

another vote here for 2500hd chev w/ 6.0 gasser.

[ThePenIsMightier]

OmG come on!! Gassers pulling will drain about 30L/100km. How much time can you budget for pulling over and looking for the hole in the fuel tank repeatedly?