Ok so I’m in the process of buying a new vehicle for my business but I’m kinda stuck on selecting between a Ford F-150 or a Chevy or Gmc Astro/Safari van. I like the look of the Ford F-150 but what scares me away from buying it is storing our buckets in the bed of the truck during the winter in fear of it freezing up or causing the water to get cold. Our winters in Ohio are fierce! with the vans I have the luxury of keeping them inside where they won’t be as affected as much but the cold air from the buckets being kept on the inside until we reach the job sites. I really wanna buy an F-150 and they are everywhere for sale but it’s kinda hard to come across a good Chevy Astro or GmC safari IN THIS AREA. i ALSO LOOKED AT THE F-150 and saw that they have the extended cabs and I thought maybe i could somehow put my buckets in that part. Lol…I guess I’m reaching but I would love to have you guys opinions. Sorry if I confused any one. Tried my best to explain my situation. Thanks in advance
I’ve got a 97 F-150 with almost 200k miles on it and I have never had to do any work on it other than change the alternator 6 months ago. With that in mind, I would buy another Ford product in a heartbeat.
Why don’t you get the truck you want and put topper on the bed? I would both protect against the wind and add some security to the equipment you store there.
If I had the choice I would get a F-150 and put a top on the bed as Sam mentioned.
I have a Astro. No complaints about it, but a F-150 with some sort of an extended cab would be sweet!
I have 3 astros and 1 safari.
Safari (1995) 184,0000
Astro (1993) 245,000
Astro (1994) 147,000
Astro (1995) 252,000
They all run great and have been very reliable. The body shop owner behind our building said to me one day that he never sees me working on them. The 4.3 liter V-6 is very reliable up until around 1998 and later. GM decided to make a little more money by substituting the intake manifold gasket with a cheap plastic one. The “developed” a “NEW” better coolant called DEXCOOL that was supposed to take care of this problem (bandaid). They chevy astro, blazer, venture,silhoutte, to name a few, all fell prey to this stupid decision to cut cost by GM. I would recommend buying 1995 and older if it were me. There is one in my area that has over 500,000 on it and still runs good.
I drive a 06 nissan frontier plans are to buy a commercial topper. Id like to keep all my equipment inside n safe. Consider future wc equipment you plan to buy will it fit in the truck? Or does the van with all the storage space sound better. I love my truck but I would love a chevy express van for there room I could keep all my wc equipment in there safe n secure. Hey nissan is coming out with the NV Van looks pretty decent too you should check it out.
I prefer vans for the security and storage options. Plus there’s more headroom in a van than a truck w/ a topper which makes it easier to get to everything.
Thanks to all who has commented back…Your opinions were greatly appreciated. Today I went and looked at a 2000 GMC Safari AWD. It actually looks like a good buy and has a lot of space to add a sign for our company name. I’m actually going back tomorrow along with my mechanic to check everything out thoroughly before I purchase it. It only has 102,000 miles on it and I think it will be a good buy for us being that I am a newer company. I still can’t shake the idea of a pick up truck but I think a van will serve us better at this point. Keep the opinions rolling in because I have took into account all of what you have said. Any feedback is appreciated!
I think that was the deciding factor for me was the access to the equipment with the van as compared to the truck. Just seemed more simple
Go for the Chevy, I’ve never had a Ford that didn’t have all sorts of brake problems
I had problems with my Ford. But I am not the only one having the same problem.
Consumer complaints about Ford Engines - Spark Plug Defect
I wanted a full size van and went with a Chevy/GMC. I won’t buy another Ford (still have an Expedition, but it’s paid for)
The ford. No the chevy. Wait the ford. No no the chevy. no the ford. buy the chevy. hold on buy the ford. yeah the ford. thats the one. nope. changed my mind again the chevy. No. Go with the dodge diesel
I have a Ford E350 Cargo van with 163K miles, and am very pleased with its performance. Although I also have a full-size pickup with shell, the van is most definitely my choice for WC’ing due storage space and convenience, security, and space for advertising
Ahhhhhhhhhh, Fords VS Chevy- the same as gg4 vs Dawn. Now pickup VS van is a bit different. You already stated the obvious advantages of a van so I will not add to that part of the discussion. However, you do like that Ford f-150 and it looks cool (you can totally see yourself driving it right?). Well how about the F-150 and a covered trailer? You can find good deals all over (Craigslist…etc) this gives you the vehicle you really want- plus the benifits of a covered storage area. Also, you will have extra space for company logo and graphics, and extra storage space as your business expands. You will have the best of both worlds! Just unhook the trailer on your days off and go 4wheeling or whatever and dont worry about all your equipment.
If your not sure about hauling a trailer dont worry- it’s easier than you think. As a former truck driver I can attest to how to back trailers up. You learn quick and then it becomes automatic. Try rolling through New York city with a 53 ft trailer…ok that can be a pain but a small cargo trailer is a snap.
I have a Chevy Astro and a full size GMC Sierra. The Astro is great but I kind of wish it was a little bigger. A full size van would be better for me at this point. With the the WFP, hose reels, ladders…etc, it’s jam packed. The GMC SIerra is my daily driver and we haven’t used it yet for WC. Another thing to be very aware of, your probably not going to be pulling much with a Chevy Astro or a small truck. I have a commercial job next week where I will have to pull an aerial lift behind me. The GMC can do this fine, but the astro will not.
Ping. Just sold my Business in Oregon. Left behind an astro 174k, ran like a top. Watch out for the all wheel drive models, as maintanence levels are higher.
Glen
Thanks again to everybody for chiming in on my post. It really helped. Again I ended up buyin a GMC Safari 2000. I love it and it’s much bigger than what I previously had. very clean vehicle and runs great in fact I’m scheduled to have my signs put on tomorrow so i will post pics of it some time this week.Thanks guys again for everything!!!
