New $20k haulers: comparison test

The average new car costs north of $30k these days. That set me to thinking. What does $20k buy, if you want to haul stuff around? I had some free time today, and did comparison test drives. This might seem like apples to oranges, but bear with me.

First up: 2013 Chevy Silverado WT short box. Totally stripped out, only option was positraction axle. Final price: $21,500 + tax title plate.

This is, as they say, your basic truck. The 4.3/4-speed automatic is about the same drivetrain as you'd find in a 1993 Chevy of the same spec. It's agricultural. That's not necessarily a bad thing in a truck, but it might not be what I'd want to drive every day or on a road trip.

Tows 4800lb, hauls 1950lb. EPA rated 15/20

Second test: 2013 Dodge Caravan, with "American Value Package". These pretty much only come one way, decently equipped, with way more toys than the Silverado. Final price: $19,500 + tax title plate.

You get a 283-hp, 3.6L V-6 with a six-speed automatic. This powertrain is light-years ahead of the 195hp Chevy. Power is smooth and shifts are barely noticeable. Overall, the GC is a really decent ride, and relative to other $20k vehicles, in many ways the Grand Caravan AVP may well be this year's top transportation bargain, bar none.

Tows 3600lb, hauls 1500lb. EPA rated 17/25

Yes, a FWD minivan is not a truck. That's both good and bad, but in the big picture, you can fit a whole lot in either vehicle. Oh, and the Grand Caravan will swallow 4x8 sheet goods, safe from the weather, etc, while the short box Chevy won't :)

Just some thoughts from a guy with too much free time on a Friday afternoon.

2013 RAM 1500 TRADESMAN 4X2 REGULAR 6'4" BOX

(It's new, like brand new.)

4.7-liter V8 engine producing 310 horsepower at 5,650 rpm and 330 lb-ft of torque at 3,950 rpm. 14/20 city/highway

(if you want to bump the cost by $1,050 you can get the new 3.6 24v w/8spd)

GVW Rating: 6025 lbs

Payload Capacity - Standard:1340

Towing Capacity - Maximum:9250

Towing Capacity - Standard:6450

3.55 rear axle

$23k and change

Not a stripper, but it's a good truck for the value. Regular cabs will be going out of style soonish, as the rumor goes, so it's a good deal in my mind. The new 3.6 24v/8spd is brand new, and I couldn't find much info. You can spend $1500 more roughly and get the Hemi.

Fun game!

My F-I-L used to have an S10 with a cap and a T&C Chrysler minivan, Stow/go. Whenever something needed to be moved, he was always quick to offer the S10.
I could never seem to get it in his head that the minivan was far better at hauling than the S10 ever was.
Load something in the S10, hit the brakes hard and then you were on your hands and knees crawling into the bed to get that something out. In the Minivan, just open the convenient sliding doors.
Moving a recliner chair in a S10 with cap is difficult (not enough headroom.) In a minivan, you can even sit in the recliner while it is being transported.

Go pick up a load of mulch/gravel/limestone with a minivan....

RealMiniDriver wrote: Go pick up a load of mulch/gravel/limestone with a minivan....

U-haul is right around the corner, and $20/day + $1 a mile. Why not mess up someone else's brand new truck?

Touche.

Having lived with both a mid-size van (long box Aerostar) and a pickup, I can honestly say that although I value the utility of the van, I can't really picture life without a pickup now that I've had one.

And although I'm plenty comfortable in my manhood that I can drive slightly garish Miatae, I still can't help but feel impossibly lame behind the wheel of a minivan. No offense to any minivan fans - this is totally an internal problem of my own. Whenever I feel the need for a van again, I'll have to compensate by getting one in 4x4 with a slightly silly lift.

my astro van moved stuff far better than any full sized pick up i've used... I miss mine... untill I think about working on it and then I remember why I don't have another.

that being said I'd rather have a small car with a hitch and a 4x8 trailer than a pick up for 99% of life... growing up we always had a 4x8 utility trailer handy, add a hitch to the back of the plymoth horizon and our family of 5 could make the trip across the country without issue (granted we were ranging from 4-8 in the back seat at the time)... when dad had a job for sheetrock or roofing or needed lumber we'd hook up the trailer and go pick stuff up. When I got married I moved all of our free furniture with my '85 tercel and that same 4x8 trailer. I miss that trailer (now that it's 1000 miles away)...

Ram offers the minivan in a cargo version. Even cheaper, hauls and tows more.
25 mpg on the highway.

http://www.ramtrucks.com/en/2013/ram_cv/#tradesman/stone_white/mono

In reply to alex:

Oddly enough, I'm the opposite. I went from a full size van to a long bed truck. Other than the few times I was hauling bulk mulch I missed the van in every situation. It was simply a better cargo hauling tool.

I recent got rid of my full-size pickup w/topper for a cargo van, and have found it to be much more useful. But I don't ever haul mulch, etc.

We rented a new Caravan for vacation last month & really liked it a lot. I'm not sure I'd trust the transmission though. With only 19kmi on it, it was already doing some weird things.

petegossett wrote: I recent got rid of my full-size pickup w/topper for a cargo van, and have found it to be much more useful. But I don't ever haul mulch, etc. We rented a new Caravan for vacation last month & really liked it a lot. I'm not sure I'd trust the transmission though. With only 19kmi on it, it was already doing some weird things.

It was a rental. I bet it was learning your driving habits. They do act odd when they are learning, something rentals are always doing.

DoctorBlade wrote: 2013 RAM 1500 TRADESMAN 4X2 REGULAR 6'4" BOX (It's new, like brand new.) 4.7-liter V8 engine producing 310 horsepower at 5,650 rpm and 330 lb-ft of torque at 3,950 rpm. 14/20 city/highway (if you want to bump the cost by $1,050 you can get the new 3.6 24v w/8spd) GVW Rating: 6025 lbs Payload Capacity - Standard:1340 Towing Capacity - Maximum:9250 Towing Capacity - Standard:6450 3.55 rear axle $23k and change Not a stripper, but it's a good truck for the value. Regular cabs will be going out of style soonish, as the rumor goes, so it's a good deal in my mind. The new 3.6 24v/8spd is brand new, and I couldn't find much info. You can spend $1500 more roughly and get the Hemi. Fun game!

You can get the V8 Hemi Express with power windows 20' wheels, the upgraded interior and big stereo out here for 18,910$

wearymicrobe wrote:

DoctorBlade wrote: 2013 RAM 1500 TRADESMAN 4X2 REGULAR 6'4" BOX (It's new, like brand new.) 4.7-liter V8 engine producing 310 horsepower at 5,650 rpm and 330 lb-ft of torque at 3,950 rpm. 14/20 city/highway (if you want to bump the cost by $1,050 you can get the new 3.6 24v w/8spd) GVW Rating: 6025 lbs Payload Capacity - Standard:1340 Towing Capacity - Maximum:9250 Towing Capacity - Standard:6450 3.55 rear axle $23k and change Not a stripper, but it's a good truck for the value. Regular cabs will be going out of style soonish, as the rumor goes, so it's a good deal in my mind. The new 3.6 24v/8spd is brand new, and I couldn't find much info. You can spend $1500 more roughly and get the Hemi. Fun game!

You can get the V8 Hemi Express with power windows 20' wheels, the upgraded interior and big stereo out here for 18,910$

Which would be a great deal.

In reply to DoctorBlade:

I bought a 2011 that was optioned just like that. I think I paid just a hair over $20k OTD. I added a class IV receiver but it had the 7 pin trailer plug already wired in. I was a great truck. I miss it sometimes. Shameless pictures:

At the dealership:

Before I sold it:

EvanR wrote: and shifts are barely noticeable.

Exactly the behavior I don't want in an automatic equipped hauler. Super smooth shifts = more slipping = more wear. And 6 speed = more shifts.

The 6 speed in the Caravan shifts like crap mostly because of the programming to make gas mileage. They do 'learn' but honestly even after that's 'done' (never really ends) it still shifts like crap. The M38 recall is supposed to fix that, nope it doesn't really. They can and do roast O/D clutch packs, too. Were it me I'd skip the van and go to something with a stouter transmission.

Think of it this way: the engineers crammed a six speed transmission and a differential in an area roughly 3/4 the size of the 6 speed transmission only in a pickup. Compromises were necessary. What makes people think it's going to last as long under hard use?

All good in theory... But then you have to own a Dodge. I wouldn't give 2k dollars for a 2013 model. I'd take the stripped chevy (with a v8) or a leftover Ranger.

FranktheTank wrote: All good in theory... But then you have to own a Dodge. I wouldn't give 2k dollars for a 2013 model. I'd take the stripped chevy (with a v8) or a leftover Ranger.

While I am a gm lover, I can get a 2013 dodge crew cab 4x4 v8 for $25k cdn. Crazy deal, plus the coil springs ride soooo nice, plus the interior is phenomenal!