Hey Scotty! I'm a long time watcher of your channel. I am thinking of buying a truck camper that weights approximately 3000 lbs. I will need an affordable and reliable truck to haul this and would appreciate your guidance. 1 ton duallies are the most stable for hauling such a heavy weight but some 1 ton SRW and 3/4 ton trucks can apparently suffice with some mods. I do feel like I would prefer the DRW for extra safety. Are there any 20-40 year old trucks that are reliable and up to the challenge? What should I look for? I'd appreciate your guidance.
Much appreciated,
Vanessa
PS: I breathed a sigh of relief when you said that my 09 Honda Element is an excellent vehicle 🙂
Well the old Fords are pretty well made. The only problem is we're talking old and you get something that old. You probably have to do the whole thing over. Everything would have to be rebuilt if you're going to tow stuff with an old vehicle. But then again was the price of new vehicles. It might be worth it to fix an old one
When you're saying everything would need to be rebuilt what are we talking? And approximately how much would these types of repairs cost? Am I in fantasy land hoping I can get a truck with all the repairs done for 8k?
Welcome new member. Sounds like fun. A few thoughts, in no particular order:
- The Ford powerstroke 7.3 was a good motor
- The Ford V10 not so much
- A Ram with a Cummins diesel would certainly work
- Any 20-40 year old truck is likely to have worked hard at some point
- If you want to put that much weight on, I would go dually (though not mandatory), and probably rebuild the rear suspension with good quality springs
- Take a look around the overlanding forums; those guys build some pretty heavy rigs
- Take a look also at forums for people doing the Alaska highway - heavy rigs, rough roads, long distances
- Consider mileage. Sometimes an older, cheaper truck eats more gas than a newer one and is actually more expensive in total cost
Dad, thanks for the input! Do you have a perspective on the sweetspot age / milage of a vehicle I should be looking at? I don't want to end up buying a headache but I would also like to keep costs down. Am I dreaming when I hope that I could find something that with repairs would cost me 5-8k?
Having an OBD-2 port would probably be helpful, which means late-90’s and after. If you can find a 7.3 Ford that isn’t super high miles, it could be reasonably solid (if slow). But really at that price range I wouldn’t be looking for a specific make-model so much as finding a well maintained truck without a lot of rust. I’d keep an open mind in your search and definitely get a pro inspection.
I was thinking of concentrating my search to the carolinas and kentucky etc to find a relatively rust free truck and import it to Canada. Do you have any suggestions on how to find a well maintained truck while searching craigslist and facebook etc? Do you have any idea if it's possible to hire a local mechanic to go out and look the truck over before I travel to see it?
FB marketplace has a rep for listing garbage vehicles. CL too, though less so. Autotrader (and Autotrader Classics) will generally be a step up in quality. And specialty sites like Hemings are likely to have the best (if most expensive). You are right to get a pro inspection. For gas motors, many independent local mechanics will do it, or go with an inspection service like Lemon Squad. For diesel, you are gonna have to do some leg work to find a good mechanic to get the inspection. Good luck!
thank you for your help!