Have a 2001 Ram 1500 that I am seriously considering selling and was considering picking up a lightly used 2013-2015 half ton with less than 35,000 miles. However, I have read of some potentially large problems with their AFM and the Chevy shake.

I know no truck is perfect but if Im going to spend 30-35K I want the most dependable truck possible.

Have had a good experience with Ford: my dad owned an 2006 for 110k miles and 7 years with only basic maintenance. Never had a problem and towed a decent amount with it

What I am considering:
Silverado 1500 (V8 and 4x4)
Ram 1500 (V8 and 4x4)
F-150 (V8 or V6 and 4x4)

Why should I pick a Ford??

 

All of them have the potential to give you some problems. I'm on my 6th Ford truck and never had any major problems with any. I find the Ford's build quality is better then GM and Ram. Good luck with your decision!

 

Because I did, and it will justify my choice.

I like the ecoBoost. I tow a travel trailer. It works for me, and I had one before.

 

Why pick any brand? Really though, there is tons of information as to why or why not NOT on this site.

I picked ford because I like the look of them, thought they were a better value than most brands, and I don't find them any LESS reliable than the major options. They are far from perfect, but a nice truck in my opinion. It's all personal preference in the end, really.

 

Chevy has square wheel Wells. Sorry kills it for me
Dodge nice trucks don't know anyone that has problems with newer ones.
Ford avoid the 15, first year redesign bugs.
Also with that budget look at brand new left overs. Best of luck I'm sure you'll love what ever you pick

 

Why not?

Seriously though, I've honestly never looked at chevy, the look of wheel wells and those stupid 3 inch deep "steps" in the bumper look terrible to me. I drove a ram as a rental for about a week right before buying my f150 and here's what I noticed:

Ram ride quality was awesome. Their crewcab is a joke, what's the point of the 4 doors? If your going to do an extended cab i like fords setup better. I believe their super crew is a quadcab? Not really sure what they call it.

besides ride quality, bigger mirrors and having fun with 5.7 V8 hemi (which isn't fun on gas) I hated it. It was an SLT which I believe to be on par with Fords XLT or "midline package". I constantly felt like it was cheap inside. The tiny 4 inch touchscreen was awful. Hard to navigate and trying to change the settings for the cluster through it made no sense. It didn't have a back up camera, that god awful giant want to be FOB that you actually have to still plug into the dash was clunky at night trying to line it up. I had the flip down console and it didn't have a ton of space. Never had a truck where I was trying to figure out where to put stuff. The steering wheel controls were awful too. No volume controls, instead of a D-pad to control cluster screen they thought it'd be better to put up and down together and left and right together. Up and right both are a ">" symbol down and left are both "<". It's not a user friendly setup and while you might get used to it, I had to look down multiple times to figure out which set I was on and remember which set was for which direction.

Just feel like at to me at that level an XLT had more options and little features and the RAM was just an afterthought. I was also shocked by how thin the door panels inside were and you were reminded of that by the speaker system rattling with any bass adjustment at all.

wanted to like the RAM but I just couldn't. Not feeling all the bumps and smooth ride wasn't worth all the other garbage I mentioned and after all I bought a truck I wanna feel some bumps!

 

If any one was really THAT bad they would be out of business. It's personal preference.

My F150 is a 2004 (first time truck buyer who wanted the stepside bed, contoured window droop, and yellow color) so I can't comment on the newer ones.

 

I have a 16 silverado and a 16 f150 in my garage right now. The f150, has more power, has more space, has more tech, handles better. The chevy's afm actually helps with mileage on the eco tech but it's annoying when it switches. The cab feels cramped, you sit much lower than the ford, vision is not as good out of the chevy cab, rides too plush, too much body roll. I like almost everything more on the Ford. Headlights are the biggest pro on the chevy. The fords suck in comparison.

 

Great question. First time truck buyer here and first time Ford owner. I got the 2016 SCREW because my Dad still has his 20 year old Ford Ranger that is going strong. I also love the look of the truck and the large windows. Ford interior trim also seems to hold up better over time. And Ford's 5.0 V8 is a technological Mighty Mouse compared to the less powerful but larger 5.3 Ecotech and almost as strong as the bigger Hemi. Also like that although Ford has been number 1 in truck sales for decades they constantly continue to update and introduce innovative powertrains and features.

My family's luck with GM products has not been good and I didn't want to repeat the nightmares. And as good as GM's small block V8 is it's time to introduce some new engines. The Fiat part of FCA bothers me about the Ram. They aren't putting money into developing new technology for the Chrysler part of the family. And it's only a matter of time before the Chrysler division goes up for sale again.

 

I'll admit I have been a Ford guy for a long time, so when I started looking I was a bit biased. I said NO to a dodge because I have a friend who is a mechanic at a large dodge dealer, and they are having a lot of trouble with the new Fiat garbage. Electrical, transmission, etc etc.. I will steer clear of anything dodge makes as long as they are partnered with Fiat. I said NO to Chevies because they feel cheap to me. I have friends that have decked out silverados and denalis, and I just don't see it.. To me Chevy hasn't pushed the envelope for years and are way behind in technology. Not to mention the afm and vibration issues are a total disaster. The only other 1/2 ton I even remotely considered was a tundra. I think they are good trucks overall, but I don't think they are a good "value". They are coasting along on the Toyota name and really not much else. They haven't been redesigned in years, the 5.7 although powerful, is a gas guzzler. The interior is blah, the frames are not that strong.. Etc etc.. And they aren't cheap. It's not apples to oranges, but my bro in law just bought a new 17 Tacoma trd off road. It's a nice little truck, but he paid close to 40k for it! My truck was a similar price, but I feel I got a lot more truck for the money. Mine has a lot of options his does not.. So to me Fords are by far the best value.. My .02