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- #1
As it happened, I was jumping back and forth between two trucks for a while on Friday at work. (I just needed a way to move around, so I got the truck that didn't have anything in it that anyone else needed to use.) I also rode several hours as a passenger in the Chevy.
Both trucks were gas crew cab 4x4s with automatics. Not a clue which engine is in either, but they were both ordered for fleet use...
The Ford is a one-ton longbed, that was nearly empty, and has around 24k miles. XL trim.
The Chevy is a 3/4 ton shortbed, with maybe 800 lbs (really rough guess- could be a fair bit heavier) in the bed, and around 35k miles. LT trim, I think.
We were surveying (running traverse), so I spent a lot of time turning around and driving up and down the road a quarter mile at a time. Neither truck is exactly ideal for 3-point turns, but I was somewhat surprised to find that the Ford actually turns a lot better than the Chevy, despite an extra 2 feet of bed. You can tell it's longer, but the turning radius is tighter.
The Chevy is definitely more comfortable, though I think it's a higher trim level. Rides better, too, which is undoubtedly helped by being a 3/4 ton with some weight vs. an empty one-ton. It's also noticeably quieter.
The dashboard in the Ford said average MPG ~14.6; the guy who's been assigned the Chevy since it was new told me he usually gets around 14, too, but if it didn't have a governor (70 mph) he thinks it'd probably do more like 17.
Tires and loading play in, of course, but for as many times as I pulled to the side of the road then back into traffic, I only spun a tire once in the grass- in the Ford. The Chevy seemed to have smoother throttle tip-in, which in combination with the extra weight made it easier to drive, even with worse tires.
Much as I hate to admit it, if I was given the choice of these trucks as a fleet rig to drive for the next several years...I'd take the Chevy. The tighter turning in the Ford was handy, but they're both such big pigs it's almost irrelevant, and the Chevy does just about everything else better. Add in the lower ride height (easier to load/unload stuff) and, well...
Both trucks were gas crew cab 4x4s with automatics. Not a clue which engine is in either, but they were both ordered for fleet use...
The Ford is a one-ton longbed, that was nearly empty, and has around 24k miles. XL trim.
The Chevy is a 3/4 ton shortbed, with maybe 800 lbs (really rough guess- could be a fair bit heavier) in the bed, and around 35k miles. LT trim, I think.
We were surveying (running traverse), so I spent a lot of time turning around and driving up and down the road a quarter mile at a time. Neither truck is exactly ideal for 3-point turns, but I was somewhat surprised to find that the Ford actually turns a lot better than the Chevy, despite an extra 2 feet of bed. You can tell it's longer, but the turning radius is tighter.
The Chevy is definitely more comfortable, though I think it's a higher trim level. Rides better, too, which is undoubtedly helped by being a 3/4 ton with some weight vs. an empty one-ton. It's also noticeably quieter.
The dashboard in the Ford said average MPG ~14.6; the guy who's been assigned the Chevy since it was new told me he usually gets around 14, too, but if it didn't have a governor (70 mph) he thinks it'd probably do more like 17.
Tires and loading play in, of course, but for as many times as I pulled to the side of the road then back into traffic, I only spun a tire once in the grass- in the Ford. The Chevy seemed to have smoother throttle tip-in, which in combination with the extra weight made it easier to drive, even with worse tires.
Much as I hate to admit it, if I was given the choice of these trucks as a fleet rig to drive for the next several years...I'd take the Chevy. The tighter turning in the Ford was handy, but they're both such big pigs it's almost irrelevant, and the Chevy does just about everything else better. Add in the lower ride height (easier to load/unload stuff) and, well...