Pickup truck vs. car + trailer

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I only get 19MPG average but drag around a utility trailer behind my Acura MDX when needed. I am lucky as I have access to a utility (electric) dump trailer and small one that a adjacent neighborhood shares. Interestingly not one of the people owns a pickup truck, SUV's and cars yes.
 
Originally Posted By: bigdreama


How are you guys dealing with $4 gas?


Certainly NOT by ever putting a trailer of any type whatsoever behind a front-wheel-drive vehicle.

Yeah, I know it can be done, but you just won't catch me doing it. I'll always have at least one rear-drive vehicle with either a good towing capability, a bed, or both.

I'm dealing with gas prices by gritting my teeth and being thankful my daily commute is short. My truck gets ~16 mpg commuting, and my SRT is getting 17+ in most cases. Good enough for me not to go looking for an econobox with more mileage. When it comes time to replace the wife's PT Cruiser, we'll probably lease a plug-in hybrid of some sort (not a Prius, but maybe a Volt or Ford C-max (she likes a hatchback).
 
Originally Posted By: Malo83
Originally Posted By: millerbl00
I drive what I choose. Life's too short.

X2, still drive my 83 Silverado that I bought new, would never consider getting rid of it regardless of gas prices
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Is that silver or primer?
 
Odd , my Cummins Diesel gets 25 m.p.g. on diesel that is closer to your $4.00 price, low in K.C. market was $3.60 , high was $3.73
why would I want to drive a 18 m.p.g. pickup on gas thats $3.39 per gal ?
 
Having a tow-capable car and a trailer has 99% of the utility of a pick-up truck with almost none of the downsides.

Had an OE hitch on my previous car (Volvo 850) and used it to pull my motorcycle up to Chicago from Atlanta, plus a few random errands with a rental trailer.

In 2010 I put an OEM hitch on my Golf and pulled a 4x6 Uhaul trailer from Baltimore to Chicago... 30 mpg is pretty abysmal in a TDI but sure beats what it would have been in a truck or van! My brother was following in our other car (2000 Beetle TDI) and got 49 mpg for the entire trip.

Rented their open trailers several times since then and finally bought & assembled the venerable Hazard Fraught 4x8' folding trailer w/12" tires. I've hauled enormous piles of cardboard to the recycling center, brought home appliances from Abt, made several enormous Costco and Ikea trips and brought home 25 rolls of sod one rainy afternoon (likely putting the trailer over its weight limit). Nary a bit of trouble from the trailer or the car.

I've almost always had or put a hitch on cars and it's always come in handy.
 
Originally Posted By: scurvy
Having a tow-capable car and a trailer has 99% of the utility of a pick-up truck with almost none of the downsides.

Had an OE hitch on my previous car (Volvo 850) and used it to pull my motorcycle up to Chicago from Atlanta, plus a few random errands with a rental trailer.

In 2010 I put an OEM hitch on my Golf and pulled a 4x6 Uhaul trailer from Baltimore to Chicago... 30 mpg is pretty abysmal in a TDI but sure beats what it would have been in a truck or van! My brother was following in our other car (2000 Beetle TDI) and got 49 mpg for the entire trip.

Rented their open trailers several times since then and finally bought & assembled the venerable Hazard Fraught 4x8' folding trailer w/12" tires. I've hauled enormous piles of cardboard to the recycling center, brought home appliances from Abt, made several enormous Costco and Ikea trips and brought home 25 rolls of sod one rainy afternoon (likely putting the trailer over its weight limit). Nary a bit of trouble from the trailer or the car.

I've almost always had or put a hitch on cars and it's always come in handy.


I've been toying around with the idea of putting a hitch on the Focus for the bike rack or if I plant it in a ditch. However, I'm worried that Ford might void my warranty and say I was towing.
 
Originally Posted By: Miller88
Originally Posted By: scurvy
Having a tow-capable car and a trailer has 99% of the utility of a pick-up truck with almost none of the downsides.

Had an OE hitch on my previous car (Volvo 850) and used it to pull my motorcycle up to Chicago from Atlanta, plus a few random errands with a rental trailer.

In 2010 I put an OEM hitch on my Golf and pulled a 4x6 Uhaul trailer from Baltimore to Chicago... 30 mpg is pretty abysmal in a TDI but sure beats what it would have been in a truck or van! My brother was following in our other car (2000 Beetle TDI) and got 49 mpg for the entire trip.

Rented their open trailers several times since then and finally bought & assembled the venerable Hazard Fraught 4x8' folding trailer w/12" tires. I've hauled enormous piles of cardboard to the recycling center, brought home appliances from Abt, made several enormous Costco and Ikea trips and brought home 25 rolls of sod one rainy afternoon (likely putting the trailer over its weight limit). Nary a bit of trouble from the trailer or the car.

I've almost always had or put a hitch on cars and it's always come in handy.


I've been toying around with the idea of putting a hitch on the Focus for the bike rack or if I plant it in a ditch. However, I'm worried that Ford might void my warranty and say I was towing.


Read your manual, if it says you can tow then tow.
 
The manual says you can't tow. I don't intend to tow with the car ... and that's what I'm worried about. I don't want Ford to see the hitch and void the warranty for something I never planned on doing.
 
Originally Posted By: Miller88
The manual says you can't tow. I don't intend to tow with the car ... and that's what I'm worried about. I don't want Ford to see the hitch and void the warranty for something I never planned on doing.


There are tons of receiver-mounted gizmos out there, everything from cargo platforms to 4-slot bicycle racks. Having a hitch just doesn't really mean "towing" anymore. I suppose they might try to argue that you had towed, but legally it seems like they wouldn't have a leg to stand on unless the manual also said you couldn't use a receiver hitch for ANY purpose.
 
Obviously no one in this thread has 2 acres and is picking up a cubic yard of gravel, a cubic yard of dirt, a 3000 lbs pallet of cottage stones or a travel trailer.

The Civic would not move that stuff.

How about trailer brakes? Lots of states require them for anything over 2000lbs. Washington is even less.
Have an accident and be over GCVW. The cops and lawyers will love you.

My truck is my 4th vehicle and I use it tow a 35 foot 7500 lbs trailer. No car in this thread will tow that to a campsite comfortably.
 
Honestly in retrospect, I should have purchased a tow vehicle/trip car to complement my Echo, rather than buying my B2300; A CV or GM with a hitch would have been a good choice.

The B2300 is a good 2nd vehicle but is severely limited in snow and when I do errands with my friend she can't even put grocery bags in the pickup due to its limited cab size.

Not too concerned about $4 gas. Both get envious mpg.
 
Originally Posted By: ls1mike
Obviously no one in this thread has 2 acres and is picking up a cubic yard of gravel, a cubic yard of dirt, a 3000 lbs pallet of cottage stones or a travel trailer.

The Civic would not move that stuff.


So? Those guys deliver. Even furniture, mattresses, and big TVs get delivered. I tip the guys and still come out way ahead, not even counting having a small sedan and not "hauling air"

Insurance, excise tax, registration and inspections on a total beater truck here alone would be $400 a year. My trailer is $10.50 a year in fixed costs.
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I think having stuff like gravel and dirt delivered being cheap depends on where you live.

Around here getting a truckload of stone delivered is over $100.
 
Originally Posted By: cchase
I think having stuff like gravel and dirt delivered being cheap depends on where you live.

Around here getting a truckload of stone delivered is over $100.


Same here, but it includes 10 tons of stone; it helps having the quarry 3 miles away.... lol
 
I'm a big trailer fan. I can drive a fun, efficient car on a daily basis and every month or two I hook up the trailer and haul what I need to. Versus having an extra vehicle around (pickup or SUV): the trailer is basically zero maintenance, requires almost no repairs, does not need to be registered every year, does not need insurance, will easily last >30 years and doesn't have to sit outside as I can fit two cars and my trailer in my two car garage. Total no-brainer for me. But then again I don't need to haul anything over 1,500 lbs., which would require a bigger vehicle obviously.

My Aluma AE58. Awesome trailer. Enclosed is the way to go too. On rainy days I chuckle at the pickup trucks getting all their stuff soaked. My stuff stays locked up and dry.
tow58.jpg
 
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My "pick up truck" is my Integra hatch back. You can haul a lot of light weight stuff in it if you leave the hatch open.

1. Trendmill: Sears crew asked me to sign a waiver before letting me pick it up. It went home no problem.

2. Twin Mattress: also no problem if you let it stick out of the hatch with a string tying the hatch it down.

3. Crib: load up a taken apart large crib with mattress no problem.
 
In Florida, it's cheaper to register a car and trailer, vs. a full sized F150.

But, I drive what I like, and I don't like small cars. Nor, do I want to tote my ATV and KTM dirt bike in a trailer 1000 miles to TN behind an econobox, that's too small for the family.

Tried that once in a Jetta TDI, never again. Thought I was being so smart, getting 42MPG. Wow, that was uncomfortable.

And, when heading out to off road locations, a Jetta TDI is not exactly the vehicle of choice.
 
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Originally Posted By: ls1mike
Obviously no one in this thread has 2 acres and is picking up a cubic yard of gravel, a cubic yard of dirt, a 3000 lbs pallet of cottage stones or a travel trailer.


No.... I've got a tad over 90 acres plus about an acre in town to deal with since my folks passing. Hence the Ram, still keeping the Jeep, and probably purchasing a dump trailer soon.

I probably sounded really snarky in my first post, and I apologize on re-reading it. But even if all I had was a big back yard and a motorcycle or watercraft, I really do think towing anything with an FWD car is risky- even if the manufacturer gave it a hitch and a tow rating, I'm just not a fan of the dynamics of towing with all the vehicle weight on the front tires and having the trailer mass shove the rear end all around. JMO, no insult intended if you do choose to tow with an FWD.
 
Originally Posted By: E365
I'm a big trailer fan. I can drive a fun, efficient car on a daily basis and every month or two I hook up the trailer and haul what I need to. Versus having an extra vehicle around (pickup or SUV): the trailer is basically zero maintenance, requires almost no repairs, does not need to be registered every year, does not need insurance, will easily last >30 years and doesn't have to sit outside as I can fit two cars and my trailer in my two car garage. Total no-brainer for me. But then again I don't need to haul anything over 1,500 lbs., which would require a bigger vehicle obviously.

My Aluma AE58. Awesome trailer. Enclosed is the way to go too. On rainy days I chuckle at the pickup trucks getting all their stuff soaked. My stuff stays locked up and dry.
tow58.jpg



Nice trailer. I love Aluma trailers although the enclosed one would really limit me since I tend to trade motorcycles and need to haul them pretty often.

I picked up this Aluma late last year:
001-L.jpg
 
Originally Posted By: 440Magnum
Originally Posted By: ls1mike
Obviously no one in this thread has 2 acres and is picking up a cubic yard of gravel, a cubic yard of dirt, a 3000 lbs pallet of cottage stones or a travel trailer.


No.... I've got a tad over 90 acres plus about an acre in town to deal with since my folks passing. Hence the Ram, still keeping the Jeep, and probably purchasing a dump trailer soon.

I probably sounded really snarky in my first post, and I apologize on re-reading it. But even if all I had was a big back yard and a motorcycle or watercraft, I really do think towing anything with an FWD car is risky- even if the manufacturer gave it a hitch and a tow rating, I'm just not a fan of the dynamics of towing with all the vehicle weight on the front tires and having the trailer mass shove the rear end all around. JMO, no insult intended if you do choose to tow with an FWD.


No worries, Magnum. You are certainly entitled to your opinion. We all do what works for us and if we all did the same thing, what would we have to talk about?

I understand your concerns about towing with a car like my Civic but I generally keep the loads on the light side and my 500 lb. BMW is probably the heaviest load yet and I would not even consider it if was an automatic.
 
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