With this whole Toyota vs Nissan p/u truck war going on its added some confusion to my previous ideas of buying a Chevy/GMC diesel to tow the race car. The specs look great on the new 5.7 liter Tundra. I just wish Honda had something to add to this but I think they are making a smart move staying out of it. Maybe we will see a v8 Ridgline type truck in the future.

 

i'm a HUGE fan of powerstroke diesels (ford super duties). we own 4 at work. one has 321K on it. original turbo/trans/engine/everything (except alternator/waterpump, and a few sensors)..

it pulls a trailer (medium, not super heavy) about 1/3 the time, and driven by my father, so its well taken care of. its a 99

our 03 dually has 135k on it. seems solid, has pulled a 5th wheel trailer its WHOLE life.

our other 03 has 100k on it. never a problem, pulls a trailer (medium, hitch, not a dually) 100% of the time.. well taken care of. no problems for us yet

my 05 (different engine, newer powerstroke) has the most power of them all, pulls the most weight, and has 45k on it. only had one problem yet (sensor, under warranty). its a dually, pulls a lot (always, only a couple thousand miles without that trailer), and starts great, even in sub zero temps..i just let the glow plugs run for several cycles.

we had an 03 duramax diesel (chevey ext. cab, non dualy), pulled a medium hitch trailer for us for 30k. tons of little cab problems, (squeaks, broken power mirrors, weird seat problem, etc), all fixed under warranty (didnt quite fix the squeaks though).

we sold it to buy my 05 dualy. it had worlds of power, was a nice truck, but i wont buy another..dont like the fit/finish of the truck, and it had injector problems (common on that year duramax).

good luck!

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by NirVTECn2o &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">With this whole Toyota vs Nissan p/u truck war going on its added some confusion to my previous ideas of buying a Chevy/GMC diesel to tow the race car. The specs look great on the new 5.7 liter Tundra. I just wish Honda had something to add to this but I think they are making a smart move staying out of it. Maybe we will see a v8 Ridgline type truck in the future.</TD></TR></TABLE>

How much towing capacity do you need? The Honda Ridgeline has a 5000 lbs. maximum towing capacity and 1558 lbs. payload capacity, so it might be enough to haul your race car. Andy Hope hauls his 06 Civic Si with his Ridgeline.

If you don't need more towing capacity than that, why sacrifice handling and ride quality, not to mention safety features and build quality Honda is known for. If you test drive a Ridgeline, you will feel that it drives more like a car due to its 4-wheel Independent Suspension. The 3.5 liter V6 with 247 Hp and 245 torque is more than enough to tow 5000 lbs and 1558 lbs of stuff in the bed.

Compare the specs of the Ridgeline with the others you are looking at: http://automobiles.honda.com/t...RURL=

If you are in Southern California, give me a call on my cell # 949-689-7163 and mention honda-tech, so I can get you a test drive and hook you up with the best deals for any new Hondas, but you must ask for Rob Montinola only or else you may not get the best deal.

 

if your payload is 4000lbs, which truck works harder? one rated to tow 9000 or one rated to tow 5000?

im sorry but the ridgeline is not an acceptable regular use tow vehicle. its a unibody, it has a V6, its FWD (for the most part, and for sake of argument) and it only has a 5k payload capacity.

I have a titan, and LOVE it. I tow around 5500lbs with all my **** and the truck barely notices it. tows straight as an arrow at speeds, smooth as glass loaded down, it has more power to pass than i need at freeway speeds and at 75mph cruising with my racecar on the trailer i get 15mpg. the only problem i have had is the brake judder issue at about 1500 miles but that was fixed quickly and its been flawless since (now have 17,500 on it).

the new tundra is supposed to be really good too. i cant wait to drive one.

but basically it boils down to how often you are gonna be towing, how much weight, and how far. diesels are the kind but if you only have a 20 minute drive to the track its worthless to have a diesel

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by RMR &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">
Compare the specs of the Ridgeline with the others you are looking at: http://automobiles.honda.com/t...RURL=
</TD></TR></TABLE>

That only compares the mid-sized competition. The Ridgeline doesn't come close to the towing capacity of the Toyota Taco or Nissan Frontier (6500 and 6100 lbs respectively), let alone the full-size trucks.

The Ridgeline is a unibody SUV with the rear roof section missing, but not really a truck


<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by RMR &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote"> If you are in Southern California, give me a call on my cell # 949-689-7163 and mention honda-tech, so I can get you a test drive and hook you up with the best deals for any new Hondas, but you must ask for Rob Montinola only or else you may not get the best deal. </TD></TR></TABLE>

 

Everything is balance...

Using TOW vehicle as a daily? Then I would buy a Ridgeline, Tacoma, etc.

Using specifically for Towing? Then get a full-sized truck

Want to bring everything with you to the track? Then get a full sized truck.

I tow with a '98 V6 Tacoma 5sp Xtracab and had ZERO problems and was very content with the amount of power, braking ability and capacity to carry my stuff (I just added a leaf to the rear)

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Kamin &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">
but basically it boils down to how often you are gonna be towing, how much weight, and how far. diesels are the kind but if you only have a 20 minute drive to the track its worthless to have a diesel </TD></TR></TABLE>

Yes, you are right. The Ridgeline can't beat the towing capacity of the full size trucks, but if you are only towing 5-10 times a year and using the truck everyday for city driving, then it may be wise to consider the Ridgeline too.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by nonsense &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

That only compares the mid-sized competition. The Ridgeline doesn't come close to the towing capacity of the Toyota Taco or Nissan Frontier (6500 and 6100 lbs respectively), let alone the full-size trucks.

The Ridgeline is a unibody SUV with the rear roof section missing, but not really a truck


</TD></TR></TABLE>

If you click on the compare link for "Custom Make & Model" you can enter any vehicle you want.

Thanks for the I can hook you guys up with the best deals for any new Hondas including the new Civic Si. My way of saying thanks to all Honda-Tech members for all the years we have been here. We have made many good friends on and off the track from Honda-Tech.

 

'01 Ford F-250 w/ v10.

We use to tow our boat no problem. And the occasional honda is like towing nothing.

 

I want a new 2007 Dodge 6.7 cummins. Reading articles about it. Sounds like a killer.

Depending on how much you want to tow and if its goign to be your daily. If its not getting used everyday i would get a nice older powerstroke. 7.3. Those are beast of a motor. Or dodge diesel. But im bias towards the dodge. The engine is very similar to there semi truck designs.

 

we have a 1995 Ford F-250 Powerstroke Turbo Diesel (non intercooled). It tows our inclosed trailer and race car no problem.

Its got about 86k on it and we havent had any problems until just lately. The front end has some violent crazy shakes randomly. bad enough to where you have to pull over. The front seal on the rear diff is also leaking. Other than that its a good truck and gets decent mileage. about 10mpg towing and 13-16 regualar driving (city and hwy)

we're looking to upgrade to a new F-250 or Chevy 2500HD soon.

 

2004 F350 crewcab dually towing a 38 TPD goose

 

Dodge Ram 3500 610 Cummins 6spd

 

Its going to be daily driven with towing about 10-12 times a year or more. Most of my track days are 3hrs+. I work for ACURA and a used MDX may be a nice setup to run with for now. I am going to test drive the Tundra to see what its all about...For now I will be towing the most basic single car open trailer I can find but for the Future I see myself with a Delux Enclosed trailer.
Thanks for the input everyone!
To add, alot of my driving will be through hilly areas where the uphills are brutal.
Does anyone know what the average Basic open car trailer weighs in at? 1500-2000lbs? My car is about 2600+ all my tools and extra crap.
The reason I was considering a Diesel is fuel economy. I rented a Uhaul a couple of times and the FORD V8 was getting about 6-7mpg towing about 6000lbs.....Just horrible!

 

If going with a MDX, make sure to get a tranny cooler, weight distribution bars for the trailer and possibly airbags for the rear springs.

 

Ya some diesels can be nice under a load. I have read people getting in the 20s well hauling a trailer. I am of course assuming at least a programmer is on the truck.

 

I tow with a 2006 (early year not the one with more hp and tq) 2500 duramax, I just tow a little 18' foot open car trailer. I also daily drive this truck, i love it.

 

Going to look at some Used Tundras today! I am looking at 2003-04 Ext Cab 4x4 Limiteds. I talked to my friend at Toyota about a NEW one and he said when they get there, they will be going for Sticker and Beyond........

 

I've been towing with my Astro vans for a few years now. My current van has a TBI 5.7 V8 instead of the stock 4.3 V6. With the V8 it gets about 21 MPG highway, and about 18 MPG while towing my ITA CRX on the open trailer at an average of 75 MPH. With the V6 I got 18/15 MPG and it took a little longer to get up to highway speeds. It is very nice to be able to pack all my spares, tires and tools into the van. If needed I can camp out in it as well. The weak link on these vehicles is the trans. Just get a tranny cooler and or run good synthetic ATF. I have towed over 6000lbs on a couple of occasions, with no problems. There has been over 11,000lbs hanging off the back, please don't try this at home. Another suggestion, don't lend your tow vehicle and trailer to a friend of your brothers'!

Jason

 

Who needs a hotel room? Last guy who owned it pulled a construction trailer with a bobcat with it. Has not problems with a uhaul open trailer. And with a higher FD for towing and trailer brake control installed by the previous owner. For $2300 ya can't beat it.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by RacerZook &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">
. </TD></TR></TABLE>

nooooo fehkn way dude, ahahahhaha that this is saaweeet!

 

got love the sweet gauge on the dash. is that a tach?

 

Sure is!! It's got a compass too.

 

I use an 1995 Isuzu Trooper 3.2 V6 to tow my ITR on a flat bed trailer to the race track about a year ago with no problem. In some uphills it gets a little slow but overall is fine.

 

i'm going to be buying a 7.3L Powerstroke excursion in the next few months.

Need it for the Irish Setters, tow vehicle, and will be a daily driver for a long time so going the diesel route.

Will shortly move to a trailer queen autox/track car as well and want this moose of an SUV to handle it all.

Seems like the 7.3L PS gets thumbs up all around....I have read that the cam position sensors on these are common failures and ez to replace. Other than that it's standard maintenance w/ fuel filters, oil, air, etc..

I plan on a 4" TBE and some sort of engine computer for a little more fun.