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The Best New Trucks for Working and Towing

Pickup trucks are some of the most popular vehicles in the U.S. But, they don’t come cheap. Fully optioned models can fetch prices well over $70,000. Not all consumers want a truck with more bells and whistles than a BMW. Here are my suggestions for the best trucks for working and hauling. If you’re in the market for a new work truck, or know somebody that does, this might be helpful for them!

  • Nissan Frontier: Midsize pickups are probably the best vehicles for deliveries in congested urban areas. The Nissan Frontier King Cab SV V6 4X2 should fit the bill for you. It has a payload of 1,471 pounds with a six speed manual and 1,449 pounds with a five-speed automatic. Let’s say you are a fleet owner in a big city like Los Angeles. The 22 pound decrease in payload will save more money in the long run. You won’t have to worry about burning up the clutch. You can tow up to 6,500 pounds with either transmission. The King Cab SV V6 4X2 configuration has the highest tow/haul capacity of any Nissan Frontier configuration.nissanfrontier
  • Toyota Tacoma: This is the main competitor to the Nissan Frontier. You can get a 2015 model for relatively little money, as the redesigned model is coming out next year. There are going to be massive incentives and discounts on this generation of the Tacoma. The models with the available, sturdy 4.0-liter V6. The PreRunner model with 2WD has a payload rating of 1,500 pounds and can tow 6,500 pounds. Stepping up to the Double Cab (crew cab) will retain the towing capacity, but payload drops to 1,305 pounds. It just boils down to whether you want a Toyota or a Nissan.toyotatacoma
  • Chevrolet Colorado/GMC Canyon: The Chevrolet Colorado and the GMC Canyon used to be only good for work trucks. However, the redesigned Colorado and Canyon are incredibly refined trucks. Their ride has been compared to a car’s. An extended cab with 2WD, a four-cylinder engine, and a six-speed automatic is the most affordable model. That truck can haul 1,580 pounds and tow 3,500 pounds. Should you need to tow more, you can get the Z82 trailering package, which bumps the towing capacity up to 7,000 pounds, regardless of configuration. The highest payload rating for the V6 model is 1,560 pounds with the crew cab body, the short bed, and 2WD. The new 2.8-liter Duramax diesel engine will arrive for the 2016 model year (fall of 2015). That model will tow 7,700 pounds with 2WD and 7,600 pounds with 4WD.chevroletcolorado gmccanyon
  • Nissan Titan: The outgoing generation of the Nissan Titan is old. It hasn’t had any updates since it’s release in 2004. That’s why Nissan is selling the new generation of the truck next year. In the meantime, this generation of Titan is a perfectly good work truck. The Titan King Cab S 4X2 has a maximum payload of 2,102 pounds and can tow up to 7,400 pounds. That’s more than enough for most people. The truth is, if you need to tow and haul more, step up to a heavy duty pickup. Should you need to tow more, the Titan King Cab SV can tow up to 9,500 pounds, but payload drops a little bit to 2,053 pounds. The Titan is outdated, and it shows. The interior looks like it’s from the 1990s, but the powertrain is punchy and the truck handles itself well for something it’s size.nissantitan
  • Chevrolet Silverado/GMC Sierra: The Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra are true workhorses. Getting a Regular Cab model with the long bed will net you a very good work truck for not very much money. In addition, the 4.3-liter V6 that comes standard with these trucks makes 297 horsepower and 330 lb-ft of torque. That’s more than some V8s! In fact, it produces the most torque of any V6 engine in any pickup truck! The Silverado and Sierra can haul 1,980 pounds and tow 5,900 pounds in this configuration. Should you need a V8, the 5.3-liter V8 is a very good choice. It increases the tow rating all the way up to 9,800 pounds without sacrificing any hauling capacity.chevroletsilverado gmcsierra
  • Toyota Tundra: Toyota has several Tundra models, but a 2WD regular cab with the long bed and the optional 5.7-liter V8 has the highest payload rating of 2,080 pounds. It can also tow 10,500 pounds. That’s what heavy-duty pickups were rated to tow five or six years ago! No matter how else you spec out this truck, this combination is the strongest.toyotatundra
  • Ram 1500: Long one of my favorite trucks, the Ram 1500 is a fine looking work truck. It’s got sharp, clean lines. It doesn’t look big and blocky like the current Ford F150. In it’s most basic configuration, it can haul 1,900 pounds of whatever you want in it’s long bed. If you get the available 3.55:1 rear end gear ratio, it can tow a whopping 7,280 pounds! Step up to the available 5.7-liter HEMI V8 to tow 10,650 pounds, but payload will drop slightly to 1,720 pounds. If fuel economy matters more than towing and hauling capacities, get the Ram 1500 EcoDiesel. The small diesel engine delivers in spades. The maximum payload rating for the EcoDiesel engine and the 3.92:1 rear end gear ratio is 1,500 pounds, and it can tow 9,200 pounds. That’s still more than most people will ever use.ram1500
  • Ford F150: While the Ford F-Series Super Duty is one serious work truck, most people don’t need something that heavy duty. The new Ford F150 shows promise. The F150 XL Regular Cab with the long bed and the standard 3.5-liter V6 is an affordable lighter-duty work truck. It can haul 1,910 pounds and tow 7,600 pounds. If you need to step up a bit, the F150 comes with an optional 5.0-liter V8. With this engine, it can haul 3,300 pounds and tow 11,100 pounds. If you want to get turbochargers with your F150, get the F150 with the 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6. It can haul 3,270 pounds and tow an insane 12,200 pounds.fordf150
  • Chevrolet Silverado 3500HD/GMC Sierra 3500HD: These heavy-duty twins offer more bed/cab/engine transmission combinations than McDonald’s does with their happy meals. A 4WD 3500HD Regular Cab with the long bed, dual rear wheels, and the Duramax diesel V8 can tow 23,200 pounds from a fifth wheel hitch in the bed, or 16,000 pounds from a standard bumper receiver. It can also haul 5,817 pounds in the bed. If you don’t tow very often with a fifth wheel, but do tow a lot with the standard receiver, you should go with the aforementioned model, but with a Crew Cab. That model can tow 19,600 pounds with the standard receiver or a still-impressive 22,600 pounds from the fifth wheel. Payload for that model is rated at 5,205 pounds. If all you care about is hauling stuff in the bed, get a 2WD Regular Cab with the long bed, dual rear wheels and the 6.0-liter gasoline-powered V8. That model can haul 7,374 pounds and still tow 14,200 pounds with either hitch.chevroletsilveradohd gmcsierrahd
  • Ram 3500 Heavy Duty: The Ram 3500 Heavy Duty Regular Cab 2WD with dual rear wheels and the 6.7-liter Cummins diesel inline six cylinder engine can tow 30,000 pounds. Payload for that model is a respectable 6,580 pounds. The 2016 model (I’ve been talking about the 2015) can tow as much as 31,200 pounds. Going from the diesel engine to the 6.4-liter HEMI V8 will diminish towing capacity to 16,520 pounds. However, payload capacity goes all the way up to 7,390 pounds.ram3500
  • Ford F-Series Super Duty: If all you want to do is tow, go for the Ford F450, which delivers in spades. The monster comes in one configuration only: Crew Cab, long bed, dual rear wheels, 4WD and the 6.7-liter Power Stroke turbodiesel V8. It can tow 19,000 pounds from the standard receiver and 31,200 pounds from the fifth wheel. It can also haul 5,450 pounds. For those who don’t care as much about towing, but hauling is more important, there is an F-Series Super Duty for you. The 2WD F350 Regular Cab with a long bed and dual rear wheels can haul 7,260 pounds. It doesn’t matter if you get the 6.2-liter gasoline-powered V8, or the Power Stroke if you want to tow – it will tow 12,500 pounds from a standard receiver.fordf450 fordf350

You know that automotive technology has advanced so far that you realize that when you throw around terms like “respectable” for trucks that can tow and haul massive amounts of whatever you want! Tell me your choice of truck, and if you have one of these trucks! If you’re in the market for a new work truck, I hope that this list helped you narrow it down somewhat!

 

zoomvroom Car Culture, Random

Hilariously Cheap Winter Beaters!

So, we all remember that big post I did a while back on the best cars for winter, right?  Well, these cars will fit into almost everybody’s budget.  They’re sure to put a big smile on your face, and you’ll miss them because of the fun factor – not for being collectible.

Any Subaru (preferably turbocharged):

Subies come in all shapes and sizes.  The older they get, the cheaper they get.  They also come with less amenities than your couch.  That being said, any Subaru from the last 20 years will likely only need basic work done to it (tires, alignment – if you’re lucky.  All Subaru engines need a new head gasket at some point).  It will take you through all kinds of weather, and the AWD will save your butt all over the place.  Plus, they are fun to drive, and they don’t need tire chains in the winter!

This is a Subaru in it’s natural element…

If you can’t swing the WRX, go for something older.

This is the Subaru SVX.  It was Subaru’s much-maligned sports car of the early 1990s turbo hype.  It wasn’t very successful on the racing circuit, but you can stuff a late-model Subaru engine into one without too much work.  It looks funky, but it will be the only sports car from the 1990s that is driving around your town in the winter.

Long-bed, full-size pickup trucks:

They come in all shapes and sizes.  You can get them with a regular cab, extended cab, or crew cab.  They come with engines in all shapes and sizes.  If you get a heavy-duty version, you can get a job as a snowplow driver with it.  You just go to the dealer and have them install a snowplow kit, go to the local chamber of commerce, and become a snowplow driver.  Snowbelt towns are always in critically low supply of snowplow drivers (for very good reason), but they lure folks in with benefits (hot drinks) and reasonable pay.  You can pick them up for next to nothing, but make sure that it is in good running condition.  Oh, and it should be 4X4.  If it’s a GM pickup, you can yank the engine out and put it into that poor project car in your garage that just needs an engine.  It will run forever, and you can go to any junkyard in the country and find parts for it.

1980s Chevrolet Camaro:

You know/remember them well.  The IROC-era Camaro’s that had little more than big wheels and body kits on top of pitiful engines.  Well, most states don’t require smog for cars like that.  That means you can go straight to nelsonracingengines.com and get yourself a 2,000 horsepower, twin-turbo Chevy small-block V-8.  Oh, and get a set of studded tires.  You’ll never be stuck again.  Or, you can just get a crate naturally-aspirated small-block Chevy engine for a few thousand.  You can throw on a better set of suspension, have good summer tires in the garage, and go autocrossing and bombing around the roads in the summer.  Sounds like a good package to me.  Oh, and you can get them for a few grand.  You’re thinking what I’m thinking.

This is stock.

This is not stock.

Jeep Wrangler:

It’s a Jeep.  Need I say more?  It will take you anywhere and everywhere without complaining.  You don’t buy a Jeep and keep it stock.  It’s got one of the largest aftermarkets in the world.  You can build a rock-crawler, a dune-basher, an autocross machine, and a dragster.  Oh, and everything in between.  Lift kits can range from about $1,000-5,000.  That leaves you plenty of money for tires, wheels, interior doodads, engine/transmission upgrades, and various other items.  What I’m saying is you can do anything to a Jeep, and somebody else will have done it before you.  There is no first.  Just make sure that the heater works.  Oh, and getting one with the bullet-proof 4.0-liter I6 is a good choice.

This is stock.  Notice how small the wheels and tires are?  Yeah, that will have to change.

This is an infamous Willys.  Look up “LSX Willys” on YouTube for proof.  It’s the ONLY Jeep in the world to beat a Corvette ZR1.  I think all that it needs is a set of studded snow tires and a fearless driver.

That’s all I have for you today.  If you have a hilariously cheap winter beater that you drive all of the time in the winter, tell me in the comments section.  I might even do a part II!