No Gladiator but did get a Colorado

[charlsara]

They won in court but the media reports destroyed their sales. Only later was the Sami popular with 4wd people. I haven’t read CR for years but I remember they measured everything against the Honda Accord. Almost all vehicles are better now. I am no Chevy fan but the Colorado is probably pretty reliable.

[ZachO]

I have yet to find any major car company that doesn't have hardcore loyalists. They can't all be idiots. Clearly Chevy has a following, and I don't think those people are wrong. The people who base their purchase 100% on reliability are very rare. Most people have their favorite and are willing to put up with whatever issues happen to come with that brand.

I have a very abused Silverado for a work truck and it drives great, and hasn't had any major problems since I've been using it.

I agree that the reviews need to be read with a critical mind. I hear Tacomas getting a bad rap for essentially feeling like a truck. Personally that's a plus for me. I like trucks. It's hard to come up with a completely objective standard to compare different brands. Different people want different things.

I don't know much, but I think the Chevy was as good a choice as any.

I have the feeling I'll always be biased toward Toyota. They're what I've always had and I know what to expect. I have a 98 Tacoma with 270,000 miles on the original engine, clutch and transmission, and if I needed to jump in it today and drive across the country I'd have no hesitation. All minor annoyances aside, that's what makes me a Toyota fan. I know there are people who feel that same way about Chevy, Dodge and Ford. I don't question their choice.

I only get annoyed when they question mine.

[Jon in AZ]

As to Consumer Reports, most of the information they have written about vehicles I have actually purchased has been fairly accurate, both the good and the bad. I tend to take the overall ratings with a grain of salt, since they are weighted averages based on their own priorities, but I do pay attention to the details about strengths and weaknesses. The reliability data broken down by vehicle subsystem has been a fairly accurate predictor of the kinds of issues I actually experienced. A big weakness of CR is they only track vehicles for 8 years, and we tend to keep ours for 10-12 years.

[ZachO]

Yes. It's hard to get good data on the reliability of a vehicle that's 10 years old and over 100,000 miles. Especially since maintenance plays such a huge role in how reliable they'll be at that point.

When I *gasp* start considering buying a truck other than a Toyota and ask around about reliability, everyone tells me their {insert your favorite truck brand here} never gave them a single problem! When I ask how old and what mileage they sold it at, it's usually less than 10 years and under 150,000 miles, which unfortunately doesn't tell me anything I need to know.

[Steve Carlson]

Originally Posted by Jon in AZ

I tend to take the overall ratings with a grain of salt, since they are weighted averages based on their own priorities...

This is key... look at how they are weighting their rankings, especially the overall rankings. They may be placing emphasis on something you don't give two figs about.

Many years ago I sold stereo equipment, and we used to groan when somebody came in toting CR under their arm, as in our opinion CR placed way too much emphasis on bells and whistles rather than, um, sound quality.

[Steve Hammel]

Originally Posted by Uplander

Congratulations you now own Consumer Reports “worst pickup truck” award winner.....you just sold the most dependable pickup truck on the road.
Jury is still out on that Jeep truck but the Wrangler was considered a disaster by anyone I talked with who owned one.

I always do some research before I spend my hard earned money.
Television commercials tend to confuse the issue.
A subscription to Consumer Reports is a good investment.

Considering the fact that you had two Toyota trucks that served you well why on earth would you buy a Chevy ?

Wow a little bit of Chevy anti-bias here? You do realize that the Colorado was the truck of the year by several different publications over the past 4 years don't you? I bought a 2016 Colorado with the Duramax diesel 3 1/2 years ago. All I have to say after 85k miles is it's the best truck I have ever owned. 30 mpg without a load on the highway 22-23 while towing. After the first year my wife wanted a new vehicle for herself. We dumped her Toyota and bought a 2017 Colorado with the V6. We love it also. No problems, drives like a dream, and not one single issue with either truck.

[Radar1]

Originally Posted by Uplander

Congratulations you now own Consumer Reports “worst pickup truck” award winner.....you just sold the most dependable pickup truck on the road.
Jury is still out on that Jeep truck but the Wrangler was considered a disaster by anyone I talked with who owned one.

I always do some research before I spend my hard earned money.
Television commercials tend to confuse the issue.
A subscription to Consumer Reports is a good investment.

Considering the fact that you had two Toyota trucks that served you well why on earth would you buy a Chevy ?

Ironic that you reference Consumers Report as the truck authority. If that's the case, then check out the 2020 annual buying guide. For compact pickup trucks road test scores, the Colorado/Canyon V6 and diesel versions scored higher than the last place Toyota Tacoma. Even the Jeep Gladiator had a better road test score. Their recommended truck was the Honda Ridgeline. The latest Tacoma did rate "average" for predicted reliability though.

[thrifty bill]

Where Jeep and other Fiat/Chrysler products continue to score poorly is long term reliability.

Typically Toyota and Honda rate the best on long term reliability. First couple of years, most vehicles do fine.

If I was looking for an SUV to tow with, I would have either a Toyota or a Lexus (Toyota built).

+10 The CR reliability scores tend to be on more recent models. I'd like to see 10 to 15 year old vehicles, as I tend to keep mine at least that long, if not longer.

On pickups, I'm a full sized truck guy. The mid sized trucks have all gotten a lot bigger over the years, so the savings in size is not much. My 2010 F150 is 1 1/2 feet longer than the new Ranger, and the new Ranger is 7 inches WIDER!

Pricing wise, I do not see much savings in the mid sized trucks over full sized.

I owned a 1981 Toyota SR5 pickup, that was a great one! (but not a good TV). The big 3 continue to dominate the full sized truck market. Ford is all in on trucks right now.

[Justus C]

Originally Posted by thrifty bill

Where Jeep and other Fiat/Chrysler products continue to score poorly is long term reliability.

Typically Toyota and Honda rate the best on long term reliability. First couple of years, most vehicles do fine.

If I was looking for an SUV to tow with, I would have either a Toyota or a Lexus (Toyota built).

+10 The CR reliability scores tend to be on more recent models. I'd like to see 10 to 15 year old vehicles, as I tend to keep mine at least that long, if not longer.

On pickups, I'm a full sized truck guy. The mid sized trucks have all gotten a lot bigger over the years, so the savings in size is not much. My 2010 F150 is 1 1/2 feet longer than the new Ranger, and the new Ranger is 7 inches WIDER!

Pricing wise, I do not see much savings in the mid sized trucks over full sized.

I owned a 1981 Toyota SR5 pickup, that was a great one! (but not a good TV). The big 3 continue to dominate the full sized truck market. Ford is all in on trucks right now.

I started tracking data on several 2019 and 2020 mid-size and 1/2 ton trucks this year. I was surprised after doing the cost vs. capability comparison and comparing EPA fuel ratings.

There are some strong up-front cost savings. I don't think any mid-size truck comes in "work truck" (single cab) variety, so that's a tough comparison. But extended cab mid-size trucks come out ahead in terms of affordability. A base model Ranger ($24410) is $4,500 less than a single cab base model F-150 ($29000). A base Colorado ($22395) is $6,600 less. Both of those mid-size trucks will out-tow the base model F-150, not to mention some of the more expensive trims. Even a base Ram 1500 Classic is $27,645.

If you need a truck in the "family friendly" variety (full size rear seat aka sedan with a truck bed) depending on your additional needs from the truck, the mid-sizes can still be a much more affordable option. The 7,500 lbs tow-rated Ranger, compared to a similarly capable and optioned Ram 1500 or Silverado 1500, is about $5,000 less and has better fuel economy by 1 or 5 MPG, respectively. But it's payload falls shy by 200 or 400 lbs, respectively.

I have read that all mid-size trucks (with the exception of the Ridgeline) suffer from cramped rear seats. I've seen no such complaints from full size trucks. Is it a $5,000 difference? Guess it depends on how often you have people in the back seat and how big they are.

Once you get past needing about 7,000 lbs tow capacity or about 1,500 lbs payload capacity, the mid-size trucks simply aren't an option anymore.

What was more interesting was the EPA-estimated fuel economy. I've been looking specifically at the 4wd, crew cab (or equivalent) Colorado V6, Ranger, Ram 1500 V6 etorque, Silverado 1500 V6, and F-150 2.7L V6. Similarly optioned, with similar capabilities, the combined fuel economy ratings are Ranger 22, Ram 21, F-150 20, Colorado 19, and Silverado 17. The Ranger tows about 130 lbs more than the Ram 1500, but the Ram has higher payload capacity and much more interior space. I guess I just expected that the mid-size trucks would be far ahead of the full size in terms of fuel economy.

The new crop of 6-cylinder turbodiesels are a clear win for the full size camp. If one wants a diesel truck, there is no competition between the full size Ram 1500 or Silverado 1500 and the Canyon/Colorado. I have yet to see payload capacity, but in every other metric (ok, except price) the 1/2 tons outperform the smaller diesels. And even the price may be close based on media reports! It's crazy and makes me wonder when Chevy is going to discontinue the smaller diesel trucks.

[Justus C]

Originally Posted by Radar1

Ironic that you reference Consumers Report as the truck authority. If that's the case, then check out the 2020 annual buying guide. For compact pickup trucks road test scores, the Colorado/Canyon V6 and diesel versions scored higher than the last place Toyota Tacoma. Even the Jeep Gladiator had a better road test score. Their recommended truck was the Honda Ridgeline. The latest Tacoma did rate "average" for predicted reliability though.

At least they got one thing right.

The Ridgeline: Not the truck anyone wants, but the modded minivan everyone needs!