What did you do today?

[Jfitz]

1 hour ago, Chestnut said:

Brings that our humor has gone down the drain... 

  https://www.barstoolsports.com/blog/2096060/mayor-leaves-mic-on-after-pardoning-himself-from-coronavirus-meeting?fbclid=IwAR25xO1ux2sGBLEpB-1p9xqY2cBozHf6t8_pOyAXu5_m7nHokJ4csxasvTE

 

And....

 

 

 

 

 

 

[wtnhighlander]

New tool acquisition day:

Lumber runs have never been sweeter!

[treeslayer]

Awesome Ross “ that thing got a Hemi” sorry just had to say that. Nice looking ride, lots of room for people and wood. Well done sir!!

[Coop]

Dang dude, nice ride. I’m on the fence right now, weighing between the big three. What turned you toward the Ram? 

[Coop]

Not to make light of this situation but I just googled and got Market Watch, for however accurate that is and, it says that 29 million people have gotten the flu this season (and they didn’t define season). And of those, 16,000 have died so far this year. And they have a vaccine for the flu. Rant over.

Did I tell you Ross that I like your truck? 

[wtnhighlander]

Coop, here is the deal...

Price.

Room.

Ride.

This is a 2016 model, one owner. Very well cared for. I couldn't touch a Ford or Chevy for what I paid. GM products are outrageously priced, even well-used ones. Fords are better, but ride like a truck, and the seemingly-roomy crew cab is an illusion. The back seat appears spacious because your butt is on the floor. Frankly, the Toyota Tundra crew cab has a back seat like a limo, but my head rubbed the roof in front, so that was out, too.

The Ram crew cab is generous and comfortable, front and rear. There are more storage cubbies in it than a roll-top desk. The coil spring independant suspension provides a smooth ride, although carrying capacity is slightly reduced. That much is standard across all models. This one happens to be an SLT model with the Bighorn package, and the 'Rambox' storage system bed. Also the trailer brake controls and air suspension with auto-leveling. The air suspension can vary ride height by about 6 inches.

The 5.7L Hemi averaged 18.2 mpg on the 40+ mile drive home, a mix of highway and county backroads. That's about 1.5 mpg better than the 3.5L in the Avalance I traded.

The biggest factor in trading at all was my wife refusing to ride in the Avalanche any more. After 16 years and 331000 miles, she worried it would evaporate into a cloud of dust going down the road.

So, Happy (a little early) Birthday to me!

[wtnhighlander]

5 hours ago, Chestnut said:

No wonder you use linux....

No kidding. Windows updates would take YEARS.

[RichardA]

12 minutes ago, wtnhighlander said:

Coop, here is the deal...

Price.

Room.

Ride.

This is a 2016 model, one owner. Very well cared for. I couldn't touch a Ford or Chevy for what I paid. GM products are outrageously priced, even well-used ones. Fords are better, but ride like a truck, and the seemingly-roomy crew cab is an illusion. The back seat appears spacious because your butt is on the floor. Frankly, the Toyota Tundra crew cab has a back seat like a limo, but my head rubbed the roof in front, so that was out, too.

The Ram crew cab is generous and comfortable, front and rear. There are more storage cubbies in it than a roll-top desk. The coil spring independant suspension provides a smooth ride, although carrying capacity is slightly reduced. That much is standard across all models. This one happens to be an SLT model with the Bighorn package, and the 'Rambox' storage system bed. Also the trailer brake controls and air suspension with auto-leveling. The air suspension can vary ride height by about 6 inches.

The 5.7L Hemi averaged 18.2 mpg on the 40+ mile drive home, a mix of highway and county backroads. That's about 1.5 mpg better than the 3.5L in the Avalance I traded.

The biggest factor in trading at all was my wife refusing to ride in the Avalanche any more. After 16 years and 331000 miles, she worried it would evaporate into a cloud of dust going down the road.

So, Happy (a little early) Birthday to me!

Ya gotta admit, an Avalance is kind a down hill ride all the way.

[Woodenskye]

Ross nice ride.  I got a 2019 Ram and love it.  I also thought the Chevy was over priced and the ford wasn't a good ride and was dated on the inside.  I got the Rambox as well and they are great.  I didn't really want the V8 so the dealer was able to locate the only V6 in the US equipped as I wanted.  Gas mileage has been great, not far off from the Kia I had before.

[legenddc]

What kind of mileage are you getting with the V6? I'm itching for a new vehicle, just can't figure out what to get and a new Ram v6 keeps coming up in my short list.

Thanks for the videos, you guys are cracking me up. 

I saw my former college is online only for the rest of the semester and a pro-rated room/board will be refunded soon. Crazy times.

I have 3 straight days of 5 hour conference calls next week. If the weather cooperates I may take them on our deck so I can sand the kid's picnic table I made maybe 2 years ago. It needs to be refinished and I'd rather not fully pay attention to these calls.

[Coop]

Thanks Ross. I noticed that the Ram makes use of every square inch of space. I also found that Chev was the most unforgiving as far as price was concerned so, Ford and Ram are in the running. Our councilman too has a new Ram and loves the ride. You’ve really helped me narrow it down. Thanks. 

[wtnhighlander]

Coop, if you haven't made up your mind in a couole weeks, I'll give you a more hands-on review. Right now, I'm still figuring out how to blow the whistles and rung the bells, and there are quite a few to learn!

Feels like I'm in a Cheech & Chong movie to pull into the garage running "off-road" mode, and drop the suspension to "entry/exit" mode.

Low-rider, baby!  

[Woodenskye]

54 minutes ago, legenddc said:

What kind of mileage are you getting with the V6? I'm itching for a new vehicle, just can't figure out what to get and a new Ram v6 keeps coming up in my short list.

I'm getting around 19 mpg.  I do a lot of short city drives.  On my last long highway dominated drive, I believe it was around 25 mpg.  I generally don't track closely, but I did for the first couple of months.  

[pkinneb]

11 minutes ago, Woodenskye said:

I'm getting around 19 mpg.  I do a lot of short city drives.  On my last long highway dominated drive, I believe it was around 25 mpg.  I generally don't track closely, but I did for the first couple of months.  

Man that’s almost as good as what I get with my half a pickup

[Coop]

Not to sound sexist but I don’t mind buying my wife a six cylinder (Chevy Traverse) but I’ve always enjoyed an 8 cyl. At the end of my gas pedal. So I’ll probably be looking at the Hemi or the Ford V8. Although the 3.5 6 cyl. Ford is an option. 

[Chip Sawdust]

My first pickup was a Dodge, a ‘65 D200. Dang good truck with the old 318 in it. 
Second pickup was another Dodge, a D100 with a 318 and automatic. Not as good a truck. 
Had a few “mini” pickups, S15 GMC, Ford Ranger, and for the last 28 years a Chevy work truck with the 4.3 and a stick. It’s been a good truck but i am thinking about “refreshing the fleet.” Lots of folks around me have bought the Ram pickups and really like them. I haven’t had a Dodge in 30 years and now they’re Fiats so I’m hoping they’re still good trucks. A friend of mine had a very tasteless joke about Dodge trucks back in the day....

I like the Chevy ride. Fords ride like buckboards. 

[wtnhighlander]

I read lots of reviews on the Ram V6, and most were very positive. Some loss of towing power, but great as daily drivers. Certainly helps the used market price, too. But in my area, the 5.7 Hemi out numbers the V6 by a vast margin.

For mileage, check into the V6 Ecodeisel. Some bugs in the early versions, supposedly ironed out now. EPA ratings near 30 mpg. Reviews say towing power is between the gas V6 and V8, but acceleration is a bit sluggish.

[Chestnut]

11 hours ago, pkinneb said:

Man that’s almost as good as what I get with my half a pickup

Your half a pickup is more capable than the half ton pickups from the 80s.... it blows my mind how far vehicles have progressed in the last 1 years let alone 30-40.

 

11 hours ago, Coop said:

Not to sound sexist but I don’t mind buying my wife a six cylinder (Chevy Traverse) but I’ve always enjoyed an 8 cyl. At the end of my gas pedal. So I’ll probably be looking at the Hemi or the Ford V8. Although the 3.5 6 cyl. Ford is an option. 

In the phrase  "there is no replacement for displacement" My answer is Turbocharger. the 3.5L ecoboost in the fords are great engines. I've heard from multiple V8 loving persons that they'll never go back to a v8 after driving the 3.5L ecoboost for a while. There are exceptions where people had a bad experience but they are few and far between. My garage is filled with 4 bangers... they make more than enough power to get what I need done. my Colorado has been consistently getting me 22-25 mpg city and i see low 30s on driving ~60 on 2 lane highways. Yeah it struggles a bit towing a 3,500 lb trailer up a hill on the highway but I do that maybe once every other year.

[wtnhighlander]

Small and mid-sized trucks are great, I used to drive a Datsun / Nissan that was tough as nails. But at my size and age, folding myself into the smaller cab isn't a pleasant expeience. And I've learned that safe and effective towing of heavier loads requires mass and power in the tow vehicle, brake controls or not. 

Not that I tow much. I mostly want a roomy, comfortable ride, but need a truck bed for light hauling pretty often I'd rather drive a truck than an SUV with a trailer.

[pkinneb]

35 minutes ago, wtnhighlander said:

Small and mid-sized trucks are great, I used to drive a Datsun / Nissan that was tough as nails. But at my size and age, folding myself into the smaller cab isn't a pleasant expeience. And I've learned that safe and effective towing of heavier loads requires mass and power in the tow vehicle, brake controls or not. 

Not that I tow much. I mostly want a roomy, comfortable ride, but need a truck bed for light hauling pretty often I'd rather drive a truck than an SUV with a trailer.

Yeah I went from a Avalanche to a 4dr Jeep JK and now have been in my GMC Canyon 4 dr for about 5 years, its perfect for my needs and I really like it. I am with you on the trailer that was a PITA when I had the Jeep not to mention the 14 mpg I got lol

[Mark J]

I prefer the idea of those "sandle bag" storage compartments to the "trunk" in my Ridgeline.  Having the separate compartment on my truck is really great, but the cargo bed has to be empty/emptied to get to it.  A real pain if you have to get to the spare while carrying a load.  

If I were looking to replace my Ridgeline I'd definitely begin the search at Dodge.  But I also love the 60/40 split swing out tail gate they're doing.

[Chet]

16 minutes ago, Mark J said:

But I also love the 60/40 split swing out tail gate they're doing.

I thought they were a nice thing too.  Then I started wondering how it would work if you had an extended load where normally you would have your tailgate down to extend your bed for the load.  

[legenddc]

1 hour ago, Chet said:

I thought they were a nice thing too.  Then I started wondering how it would work if you had an extended load where normally you would have your tailgate down to extend your bed for the load.  

They fold down too.

I currently have my grandfather's 1991 Toyota pickup (Tacoma before they named it that). 4cyl, 5 speed, 4wd extended cab. It needs some work, but it's fine for short errands. No airbags so I try to avoid 50+mph and can't stick the kids in it which really limited when I'm able to drive it. I'll probably never use a new truck to tow anything and if I really needed to my neighbor has a F350 diesel. I would love to get a new Tacoma but there's not enough room in the back for the kids in carseats and me (6'1") in the front. Maybe we'll get a 4Runner and another Wrangler.

We both work close to home but stoplights and traffic means city mpg average at best until we're going on a trip.

 

[Mark J]

2 hours ago, Chet said:

I thought they were a nice thing too.  Then I started wondering how it would work if you had an extended load where normally you would have your tailgate down to extend your bed for the load.  

As legenddc said they also fold down.  On the Ridgeline the tail gate folds down or swings out like the tailgate on the old station wagons.  It is extremely convenient.  I would say 9 out 10 times I open the gate I swing it out.  It's great to be able put something into or out of the bed without reaching over the tailgate.  But it's a long door and having it split in two would not be unwelcome.  The GMC fold out steps are cool, but personally if I had to choose between that and a swing out door like Honda or Ram I'd take the swing out (Ford, are you listening).  

[Chestnut]

3 hours ago, wtnhighlander said:

Small and mid-sized trucks are great, I used to drive a Datsun / Nissan that was tough as nails. But at my size and age, folding myself into the smaller cab isn't a pleasant expeience. And I've learned that safe and effective towing of heavier loads requires mass and power in the tow vehicle, brake controls or not. 

Not that I tow much. I mostly want a roomy, comfortable ride, but need a truck bed for light hauling pretty often I'd rather drive a truck than an SUV with a trailer.

I'm frigging tiny so i love small cars. They make driving around cities really nice and easy, which is something i have to do frequently. I totally agree with the pickup box, I feel like i need to post that picture of my poor old ranger again just for the laughs....

2 hours ago, Mark J said:

A real pain if you have to get to the spare while carrying a load.  

Carrying a load increases the likely hood of needing to get to that tire a lot higher as well. That's an unfortunate catch 22.