Rod Caster Posted October 16, 2013 Report Share Posted October 16, 2013 My truck would be a useless piece of metal without the 4x4 system. You should see the ruts my brothers 2wd Mazda leaves everywhere....if he ever drives on my lawn I swear I'll tow him into the river. Glad you've been convinced to go 4x4! Enjoy the new wheels! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wormdunker Posted October 17, 2013 Report Share Posted October 17, 2013 Buy a 4x4! I was driving an Uplander at the time, was stuck on a gravel ramp at a remote lake for 4 hours. I walked 2 kms to the highway, hitch hiked to the local truck stop, found a friend who would help out with his Chevy 4x4. I offered him money - he refused. This year I dropped off a case of beer at his camp. I swore up & down I'd never go back to that particular lake unless I had a 4x4 under me. I recently purchased a 2008 King Ranch. Awesome truck to drive. Been to my favourite lake with the gravel/sandy launch no issues & more importantly - peace of mind. Did I mention I love my King Ranch!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChasinTails Posted October 17, 2013 Report Share Posted October 17, 2013 Buy a 4x4! I was driving an Uplander at the time, was stuck on a gravel ramp at a remote lake for 4 hours. I walked 2 kms to the highway, hitch hiked to the local truck stop, found a friend who would help out with his Chevy 4x4. I offered him money - he refused. This year I dropped off a case of beer at his camp. I swore up & down I'd never go back to that particular lake unless I had a 4x4 under me. I recently purchased a 2008 King Ranch. Awesome truck to drive. Been to my favourite lake with the gravel/sandy launch no issues & more importantly - peace of mind. Did I mention I love my King Ranch!! those sure are nice trucks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sinker Posted October 17, 2013 Report Share Posted October 17, 2013 A 2wd truck will do pretty good if you know how to drive it. Throw some weight in the back, plus the weight of the boat on the trailer, and you'd be surprised what it can do. All that said, I won't ever drive anything that doesn't turn all 4 wheels. So much easier on the vehicle too. S. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
porkpie Posted October 17, 2013 Report Share Posted October 17, 2013 Alright I give up even the wife says get 4x4 I was just gonna go bare bones f150 base to keep the price down but will probably keep it 10 yrs anyway so maybe I should splurge a bit. Thanks for the input Good choice! The gas mileage difference will be minimal, but the benefits of the 4x4 are tremendous the odd time you REALLY need it! I couldn't imagine my truck as a purely 2wd vehicle. Have fun with the new ride! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Ironmaker Posted October 17, 2013 Report Share Posted October 17, 2013 (edited) F150, say it isn't true. Look at them all, especially a Chevy, please. There are great deals out there now on 2013's. I bought a new Chevy in November of 2011 and it was about 10K less then the equivalent F150 then with all the rebates for cash and retire your ride. I may have gone Ford if not for the pricing. I didn't even consider Chrysler because of a business partners bad customer service experience and 2 trannys in as many years shortly after the warranty was up. Good shopping and enjoy the new ride even if it is a Ford! Edited October 17, 2013 by Old Ironmaker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
northernpike56 Posted October 17, 2013 Report Share Posted October 17, 2013 Quick question. Not to hijack the thread. Is it a bad idea for me to purchase a 2wd ford ranger to tow a 16 ft hydrostream boat with? Probably 1000 or 1500 lbs i guess. Issue is i probably cant afford an awd f150, and i have not too much driving experience (17 years old). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris.brock Posted October 17, 2013 Report Share Posted October 17, 2013 Quick question. Not to hijack the thread. Is it a bad idea for me to purchase a 2wd ford ranger to tow a 16 ft hydrostream boat with? Probably 1000 or 1500 lbs i guess. Issue is i probably cant afford an awd f150, and i have not too much driving experience (17 years old). no, it's not a bad idea, I'm on my 4th Ranger (2 were 4wd, 2 were 2wd), I don't have any experience with the 4 cylinder engine though unlike most of the other posters, I'm happy with the decision to save the $$$ and have a 2wd pick-up, for what I do, it's rare to need the 4x4, the extra cost was about $4k, there's added weight, more moving parts and the potential for more repairs if money wasn't a factor, for sure I'd have a 4x4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moemoe Posted October 17, 2013 Report Share Posted October 17, 2013 I have had a 2wd chev quad cab for 7 years, my boat package is close to 3500lbs lund package, in the 3 years i have owned this boat and the 4 previous years with a smaller boat, i have never had one issue pulling out of a boat ramp, or even close with spinning tires. that being said I rarely fish when it is freezing out, so april to nov in southern ontario, I think you would be fine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DanD Posted October 17, 2013 Report Share Posted October 17, 2013 Quick question. Not to hijack the thread. Is it a bad idea for me to purchase a 2wd ford ranger to tow a 16 ft hydrostream boat with? Probably 1000 or 1500 lbs i guess. Issue is i probably cant afford an awd f150, and i have not too much driving experience (17 years old). I have a customer here that has towed his 16 foot glass boat with a 4 cylinder Ranger for years. When he first started dealing with me, he had me weld up a hitch receiver to the front of the truck. That's so when he got to the launch, he would unhook the boat from the back and hook it to the front of his truck. Said he never gets stuck, there's a lot more torque in reverse for pulling out of the ramp and he admitted that he couldn't back a trailer up "normally" if his life depended on it. LOL He has a topper on the truck and a bit of weight in the box and I think that is his saving grace for not getting stuck. Dan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joeytier Posted October 17, 2013 Report Share Posted October 17, 2013 Weight in the back is definitely crucial, but the dealbreaker for me was always good quality a/t tires. Rear wheel drive with all seasons or worn out rubber is the most useless configuration going. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garnet Posted October 17, 2013 Report Share Posted October 17, 2013 I tow with 2wd Sierra a 20.5 bassboat never had a problem. 4wd are in constant need of brakes, suspension parts wheel bearings, universal joints. Just a lot more maintenance cost. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lape0019 Posted October 17, 2013 Report Share Posted October 17, 2013 Glad you have decided to look at the 4X4 options. Just bought a 2013 sierra because fo all of the incentives and 0% financing and dont regrett it at all. There are wicked deals out there right now if you look for them. I previousely had a 2004 F150 Lariat and it was a great truck for pulling and all around familly use. The only reason I got rid of it was because it was starting to cost a lot to keep it on the road and it had no rockers or cab corners left. It had 200K on it when I got rid of it. The one weird thing I found is that my F150 sat about 2-4 inches higher than my new sierra (I even have the z71 off road package) which make it difficult to take the boat off of the hitch in my Garage. I had turn the portion of the hitch that holds the ball around and re install the ball to get the clearence I need to get my trailer jack to click into place. I plan on jacking it up a bit when the warranty runs out but for now, it works fine. I personally have only had to use 4X4 at a ramp once but I fish the same bodies of water and launch in the same areas most of the time. The biggest issue I have come to see is the degree on incline on gravel or muddy launches. Other than that, I usually launch in 2wd. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4x4bassin Posted October 17, 2013 Report Share Posted October 17, 2013 Glad you changed your mind , like others have said it only takes one time to get stuck either at a boat ramp (very embarrassing) or in the bush (major pain in the ) and you would be wishing you had spent that extra money on 4WD . Good luck with your purchase and enjoy ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2 tone z71 Posted October 17, 2013 Report Share Posted October 17, 2013 they still make 2 wd trucks !!! useless Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richie Razor Posted October 17, 2013 Report Share Posted October 17, 2013 I tow with 2wd Sierra a 20.5 bassboat never had a problem. 4wd are in constant need of brakes, suspension parts wheel bearings, universal joints. Just a lot more maintenance cost. Not my truck, time to switch to Toyota or Honda. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raf Posted October 17, 2013 Report Share Posted October 17, 2013 honda doesnt make a truck fwd <> truck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richie Razor Posted October 17, 2013 Report Share Posted October 17, 2013 honda doesnt make a truck fwd <> truck Sure they do - ridgeline. It's not a full size, but it's an extremely capable and reliable light pick-up that'll tow about 5k lbs, plus it has 4wd. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DRIFTER_016 Posted October 17, 2013 Report Share Posted October 17, 2013 Actually it's technically all wheel drive, but yes they are much more capable than a 2wd pickup. Just ask the guy in Alaska with the 4wd suburban who got stuck on the beach and me with my widdle Honda got his arse unstuck and pulled out. It pulls my boat, camper and snowmobile trailers just fine too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glen Posted October 17, 2013 Report Share Posted October 17, 2013 I have used a minivan and a 2wd ext cab truck. Capability is about the same. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris.brock Posted October 17, 2013 Report Share Posted October 17, 2013 Sure they do - ridgeline. It's not a full size, but it's an extremely capable and reliable light pick-up that'll tow about 5k lbs, plus it has 4wd. I think Raf was implying the Ridgeline isn't a "real truck" it's funny, once you get out of the city, nobody buys Ridgelines or Avalanches Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DanD Posted October 17, 2013 Report Share Posted October 17, 2013 You can't compare a ridgeline to an Avalanche; but I am thinking of swapping out the spare tire in my Avalanche for one of them there Honda's. It would look cute riding in the box of a real SUV. Dan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ch312 Posted October 17, 2013 Report Share Posted October 17, 2013 I think Raf was implying the Ridgeline isn't a "real truck" it's funny, once you get out of the city, nobody buys Ridgelines or Avalanches Yep. Unibody = wannabe truck Apparently Ford is switching to unibody in 2015 and I imagine those who use trucks for work/offroading will sway away from Ford for that reason. After owning a 2wd truck for a few years and now having a 4wd truck for a couple years, I will never own a 2wd vehicle ever again and can't understand why anyone in Ontario would even consider a 2wd truck over a 4x4. Adding weight to the back does increase traction, but it will never compare to a 4x4. Life is just so much easier when you can turn a knob and have power to 4 tires... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tb4me Posted October 17, 2013 Report Share Posted October 17, 2013 I drive a 4x4 dodge ram 1500 I tow a 18.5 smokercraft. Only once have I had to use the 4x4 to get my boat out of the water..That was when the water was low and I had to almost put the truck in the water to get the boat on the trailer. So ya 2wd you will be ok 95% of the time its that 5 % that would scare me..lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tb4me Posted October 17, 2013 Report Share Posted October 17, 2013 Not my truck, time to switch to Toyota or Honda. Honda...lol that's funny Toyota is a good truck but the cost is int even comparable to ford dodge or chev.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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