Comments on: Buy a Truck for Towing…Or a Small Car?

By: Heather

Heather — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 20:36:32 +0000

If you are serious about possibly purchasing your own truck, whether it is for a small business or other, may I suggest checking out that Uhaul has to offer. They sell out their old uhaul trucks for pretty inexpensive and most of them are in pretty good running condition! check out their website if you’d like to find out what they have to offer!

http://www.uhaul.com/trucksales/

By: joseph

joseph — Thu, 28 May 2009 19:20:08 +0000

i have a 03 toyota camry. could i tow a small 16′ travel trailer that weighs 2,000 lbs?

By: Marci

Marci — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 15:52:48 +0000

My Forester is a 2001. It has been very reliable and problem free. At 112,000, with regular oil changes etc, it has only had one wheel bearing go out at 75,000 miles, which apparently, was a problem with that year. It has made several hunting/camping trips – loaded with camping gear, it still brought home two mule deer in the back end this last fall, 425 miles with no problems, up hill and down

I bought it for 200,000 miles or 10 years…..I said which ever came first, but I am thinking it will be whichever one comes last now as I am almost to 8 years. I plan on just running it as long as it will make it down the road. Mine gets 25 mpg which I find acceptable for what I can do with it, and for it’s versatility.

By: Clever Dude

Clever Dude — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 15:34:14 +0000

@Marci, actually, the Forester is on my short-list of vehicles that I would actually trust as a truck replacement. You nailed it when you said it fits a lot of stuff (it’s basically a box on wheels), and it can tow too. The newer models ride even higher than the older ones and the newest model year is quite a big longer than even last year’s. I know women drivers love it because it gives them more confidence as it rides higher than a car and it has amazing visibility all around.

By: Marci

Marci — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 15:28:48 +0000

I’ve got a Subaru Forester, 8 yrs old with 112,000 miles on it…. you’d be surprised what you can fit in one of those things! I have hauled a LOT of firewood in it, and moved 4 times (closeby) I had friends or family with pickups move the bigger stuff.

But, inside that mini SUV you can haul something 6 ft long and 4 ft wide… and if the something is long and skinny, like lumber or trim, it can be 8 ft long. Plus it has the roof rack that something like plywood or a single bed can be hauled on.

But, once I made this final move, to my permanent home (altho still a remodel construction zone), and am relying on wood for primary heat, I find that the car is just getting really really dirty with all the firewood I am hauling in it. So I bought an OLD 1974 Datsun pickup for $400….. that’s what I take now to the dump and after firewood…. insurance is about $10/month, and for me that is worth the convenience of having the little truck.

Maybe you can just get a little old junker truck? Nice thing about the ’74 is that there are NO computer anythings in it, and the repair books are available online.

But yes, sometimes I wish I were sitting up a LOT higher than I am in the little Datsun or my Forester.

By: Foxie

Foxie — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 03:38:36 +0000

Don’t underestimate the MINI. I’ve seen them towing some pretty cute little trailers behind them… I also know one or two guys that have tiny trailers for their Miata’s, just to haul tires and other track paraphernalia around.

Now, this doesn’t mean it’s practical for most towing instances, but it has been done before. (And they look rather cute doing it, IMHO.) After all, I’ve seen Corvettes and plenty of motorcycles with their driver’s belongings in tow as well. (While the Vette is torque-y, it’s not torque meant for work in quite that way… Though I bet it’s not half bad.)

At any rate, my husband and I own two two-seater sports cars. We’ve depended on delivery and family help to bring home anything we’ve needed that hasn’t fit into either car… And, to be honest, that’s only been three times in the past year and some. (Once moving in, once getting furniture delivered and once for our 120 gallon fish tank.)

By: Sam

Sam — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 04:51:11 +0000

When I did one project for a client, and so happens my own truck failed on me, I just went for the Home Depot truck. Not bad it only cost me $20/hour. But if you’re going to tow often, you better buy one to save cost.

By: jay

jay — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 02:30:05 +0000

Maybe you could swing by the dealer and see what you could sell it for at this time, as well as looking in the classfieds. Then you’d have some concrete data to work with. Certainly having more vehicles than you need is always foolish. There’s really no upside to it.

By: Clever Dude

Clever Dude — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 22:55:19 +0000

@jay, since we do have the option of using our third vehicle (which would be our 2nd vehicle if we sold the truck) and just renting/getting delivery when we need it, keeping the truck payment when we don’t need the vehicle is actually pretty foolish. But this is also an emotional decision and I’ve been known to be foolish.

But anonymous is right that I might have a hard time getting a good price for the truck. Really, I only owe about $16,500 since I can get a full refund on the extended warranty, but the loan is about $18,000 and unless I cash out now, I will have to pay the difference on the loan to satisfy it fully.

By: jay

jay — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 22:34:20 +0000

Since you most likely won’t cover your loan by selling, use it and take care of it! We drove a Toyota into the ground (it was about 15 years old when it gave up) but it took a lot of convincing of dh not to buy another. If you hadn’t a truck, I’m pretty sure delivery or rental is cheaper in the long run, since you wouldn’t have the loan (and its ding on your credit score), insurance, fees of owning.