Day: February 18, 2026

Truth is that I am not as certain as I might be about getting a HD pickup truck. But I think the half-ton trucks right now are such crap with the EPA fuel economy regulations with their thin oils and blown turbo-charged engines. It just seems like both GM and Ford half tons are complete crap these days, and even Toyota Tundras are having issues. Even the compact trucks are pretty bad, Toyota Tacomas included have reliability issues, but maybe not that bad. The Godzilla is a very reliable engine, but there are still people who have issues with it and even more so with older versions of the 10R100 or 10R140 tranny. If I had to get a non-HD truck I am pretty sure I would go with a Tacoma. My neighbor has a Taco truck, he apparently likes it, he got a new one when wrecked the one he was driving.

I think a lot about fuel economy and ease of driving in the city, though that is not why I am buying a truck. I’d rather have a vehicle that is difficult to drive in the city, so I can park on the outskirts of the city and take the bus or bike where I need to go. And there is the issue of smaller campsites, though an HD truck ain’t going to be that much bigger then my old lifted Silverado half ton. For a recreational vehicle, who cares if it costs a bit more to fuel up – the past years I’ve been averaging only about 6,000-7,000 miles primarily recreationally, with winters racking up less then 200 miles some months.

But the bigger problem I have Taco trucks – besides my ego and my broke penis – is they are just too damn small for a week plus worth of camping gear. I’ve just acquired a lot of crap that I use and set up at camp. It’s a lot of food, tarps, gear, heaters, tables, etc. that I bring to camp. I guess I could get rid of some of my stuff, camp more minimally, but that sucks. If anything, I want to add more gear for winter and late autumn camping, like the diesel heater. With the enhanced battery and solar set up, and bigger alternator of SuperDuty, I should be able to pack enough gear to head out to wilderness for a week or more without ever going to town. But if I go the Taco truck route, I was considering getting a utility trailer, to tow behind for all that gear, I can’t fit in the small cap. Then, it doesn’t improve fuel economy or maneuverability over a SuperDuty. Add in the cost of utility trailer and the Taco truck doesn’t actually save money.