Ram vs Tundra

[BIGPAPIGREG]

$12,000 off on Dodge Ram quad Cabs at North Star Dodge in San Antonio......

 

[cbigclarke]

$12,000 off on Dodge Ram quad Cabs at North Star Dodge in San Antonio......

Roundtrip!!

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[TexasBrandon]

If they can afford 12k off, how over priced is their shit...and I do mean shit.

 

[Vaquero]

Since you are just asking for opinions - My wife's godfather has had decked out Chevy 1500's, crew cab Fords, Dodges etc. Then got a Tundra. He said it is the best truck he's ever had and I know there's over 100k on the clock.

FIL got a decked out Ram1500 crew cab eight years or so ago, that was a good enough truck for him that he traded it in on a Ram 2500 for more towing power. Then, there's the guy at work who was going to his ranch in his Ram 2500 and it started to shake. He looked out the driver's side rear-view and the rear wheel was about a foot outside of the body. He had to buy a rear end from some place in Kansas or somewhere.

I'd go for the used Tundra.

I'll bet beer,
that axle told him it was going out way before it did.
Like days if not weeks.

He didn't look or listen.

 

[grasshopperglock]

Some good insights in this post...

Any tips for buying used cars from a dealer?

Look up trade in value on the car you want. Assume they paid Prolly $200 bucks less then that number. Everything above that number is Mark up.

Used cars make the most money for a dealership. It's extremely difficult to tell what they paid for it but Mark ups of $3000-$5000+ are common.


Now remember it's all subject to the market. If the dealer paid $500 bucks for the car, then marks it up $4000. Don't expect to buy it for $1000 if there's 10 other people that want it. One of those folks will pay more then you...up to a point. Usually fair market value. Used cars are the money makers.

New cars have very little profit outright. The money off those comes from the financing. Used cars have high profit and financing.

Expect the salesman to try to switch you to used. He or she gets about 10-15% of the profit above cost. Then 15%- 20% of what the finance manager can rape you for. On new cars, the mark up usually gets slashed up. When the profit off new falls below that 10-15% threshold, it's called a 'mini'. The dealership pays the salesman a flat fee of around $100.

If he can sale a used car at $1500 over cost. He gets $150-$200. I've seen used cars get sold that had $4000 on the top end. ( profit over cost). Then more commission on the 'back end' (what the finance manager makes off interest points, warranty, insurance).

 

[BIGPAPIGREG]

If they can afford 12k off, how over priced is their shit...and I do mean shit.

I always think the same thing when I see these offers from any dealer.

If I didn't know any better, I'd think you didn't like Dodge. Guess I've been lucky with the two that I had/have. They have been good to me. Then again, like my pappy always said, "Son, they are all good when they are running.......aint none of them worth a shit when they don't."

 

[Shotgun Jeremy]

Damn, you're just a wealth of info, GHG! You do have me nailed - I don't mind doing pretty much anything to my vehicle. The part I don't like is making huge payments and still having to worry about buying parts. Right now, when something goes bad, I just shrug it off because it's cheaper than my non-existent car psyment. Besides, I wrench for a living, so it doesn't bother me if I don't get as much wrenching time at home.

I'm gonna keep the other tips in mind though - especially when I'm pricing a new (to me) truck. I'm 100% sure I'm buying used simply because of the value drop once you drive a new car off the lot. I tried checking out a tundra at Auto Max in Killeen a few months back and found out through Edmunds that they were trying to sell me a Tundra at $8,000 over its average value. Hey, I guess if they have soldiers willing to pay that crap....
I checked out the Toyota dealership in Belton, and they seemed pretty decent. I never made it to the price haggling part with them, though.

 

[BIGPAPIGREG]

them Tundras are high dollar, but then again, all of em seem to be high priced.

 

[cbigclarke]

them Tundras are high dollar, but then again, all of em seem to be high priced.

You ain't kidding there

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[BIGPAPIGREG]

they always laugh when I give em MY payment options.....

 

[cbigclarke]

I haven't played the game in seven years. I dread having to do it again

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[BIGPAPIGREG]

The 1st (and only) new truck I bought cost me $22K back in 1996...............don't think I'll ever see that price range again

 

[Shotgun Jeremy]

Same here, Clarke.

Right now, I'm wanting a Tacoma but I may be limited to a used ram budget. Lol

 

[karlac]

I always think the same thing when I see these offers from any dealer.

If I didn't know any better, I'd think you didn't like Dodge. Guess I've been lucky with the two that I had/have. They have been good to me. Then again, like my pappy always said, "Son, they are all good when they are running.......aint none of them worth a shit when they don't."

In the construction business, I buy a 1 or 2 year old, low mileage, used truck every three years, take care of it, then trade it in on another.

Done that for years now and, while I've had the rare problem, sticking with one of the top three has been mostly cost effective, which is about all you can ask for.

Last two just happened to have been RAM 1500's.
Neither love on 'em, nor hate on 'em.

Pappy was a smart man ....
Any opinions otherwise, treat like a French model on the Interwebz.

 

[Tejano Scott]

I've loved my Tundra. Literally, most maintenance free vehicle I've ever owned. that being said, I'm done with pick ups for a while.

 

[shortround]

The best Damned truck I ever owned in my sixty years on planet earth was a 2006 Dodge 2500 with the 5.9 Cummins six-cylinder turbo diesel.

The ride was a bit harsh, but the powerful AC, auto trans, and radio/cd made up for it in spades.

Unloaded, that truck gave me 21 mpg on the highway, and 16 mpg towing a 7,500 lb trailer at 70 mph.

I would have kept that truck until my dying day.

Until a bunch of illegal aliens stole it to haul more illegals from points south to points north, east, and west.

In all the years I drove that truck, never once had a maintenance issue.

As my buddy in LEO told me: "Those wet backs stole the best maintained truck in Texas!"

Be well.

 

[grasshopperglock]

.

 

[TexasBrandon]

The 1st (and only) new truck I bought cost me $22K back in 1996...............don't think I'll ever see that price range again

22k might get you a bottom of the barrel colorado with TTL out the door these days and yes, if you've seen my other posts about Chrysler Corp, you know how much I despise them. To each their own though, I've had to many bad experiences to warrant trying a third time.

 

[robertc1024]

Edmunds is a good place to go to SJ. Steered me right plenty of times.

 

[Se7en62]

I'm truck shopping at the moment as well:

Toyota Tundra's...great truck, but horrendous gas mileage, far below what's advertised. Two buddies have them and they get about 8mpg in the city and 12-13mpg on the highway. If you don't mind the mileage and the high prices on used ones (they do hold their value well), this is a solid option. I'm not interested in a Tundra at all...the wife loves their looks, but beyond that I just can't seem to like them.

Ram is solid and they offer a EcoDiesel which is a solidly built Fiat Diesel that's been for sale for a long time overseas in Europe in different chassis'. My best bud is a Dodge mechanic and he says they are bulletproof and he hasn't seen a single one in for repair in the year or so since they've been released stateside in the 1500. The Dodge Dart however, he says is a complete POS with problem after problem. A Ram is #3 on our list, as they are available at great prices, but the EcoDiesel is harder to find and quite expensive when found. We're also not sold on the Ram's looks as a long-term purchase...if it doesn't age well, resale will drop significantly.

Nissan makes a solid Titan, powerful, reliable, solidly built, mostly American made, but the new Titan out next year is going to offer a 5.0L Cummins Diesel V8. That said, look for the 2014's and 2015's to be available at STEEP discounts in the coming end of year months. My Dad had one of these in 2004, one of the first in Texas. It was solid as all get out, powerful, well built, but being a first-year-run, it had some issues which he decided he'd had enough of and moved on to a Tacoma. A Titan is #2 on our list.

The new F150 with the EcoBoost V6 makes more power than the V8's, get 23mpg, and can tow 10,000lbs+. The newest Aluminum version being 700lbs lighter than the previous year is the one we want and they are pricey, so you may wait another year if you want the more updated chassis and engine combos. Also, if you aren't looking for a Crew Cab, pass on the 2015 F150, as it's crash ratings are lower because it doesn't have steel reinforcements in the crumple zones, so it's less safe than the Crew Cab variant; Ford will be updating all version of the new Aluminum F150 next year with these same steel reinforcements. An F150 is #4 on our list, mostly knocked down because of their high prices and untested (3rd party) chassis strengths.

Chevy/GMC 1500 is also a solid as well and can be had for great deals all over in a multitude of variants. If the right deal comes along on a GMC Sierra 1500 4x4 LT or LTZ, I'll pick one up instead of the F150. A Sierra/Silverado is #1 on our list, as they are just good looking, well built, get the job done, type trucks...problem is that there are just so many to choose from.