(Sorry for the long post; thanks in advance for helping)

Braintrust,

I’m in need of some help working through a dilemma with my vehicle situation. I have a 2016 Chevy Equinox LT with a 2.4L EcoTec engine. It has 119xxx miles on it, mostly trouble free. Recently, it started making an odd noise at 1.5-2.5K RPM. This was accompanied with a surging/lurching that happened when stopping. I took it in to my mechanic and they found out it was down 3 quarts of oil. I had it changed in August to a full synthetic, which is supposed to go 10K miles. It’s been about 5500 since that change.

As it turns out, the 2.4L EcoTec is known to consume oil. It’s also just generally a garbage engine and has a lot of issues with timing chains which are not generally diagnosed until the engine is destroyed. The shop topped off my oil and the problems are fixed, but I was basically told it’s a ticking time bomb since the engine is a known pile of shit.

I’m looking at new (to me) vehicles now. I want a truck, and am primarily looking at an F150, Silverado 1500, Sierra 1500, Ram 1500, or Tundra. I am not opposed to a Ranger, Silverado, or Tacoma. I do not need to tow or haul anything substantial, I just want a truck.

My commute to and from work is a total of 20 miles every 7 days, but we generally drive my car for all of our errands and such. Until this past August, my work commute was 45 miles round trip per day. With my other driving I would frequently put 25K miles on my car in a year. I’m pacing closer to 12-15K

My dilemma is as follows: The Equinox is paid off, but it is going to need some maintenance items like shocks, struts, and a transmission drain and refill. Brakes and tires are good for a while as I had them done last year. The crap engine could quit in 5K miles or it could last me 100K, it’s hard telling. I have a trusted mechanic that fixes all the issues I have in a timely manner and at a fair price.

On the flip side, I could get out of the Equinox now because it’s not getting any more valuable, and get into a vehicle I actually enjoy and that has some utility. I make plenty of money to be comfortable at even a $600-$700 payment but would prefer to be under $500; for the sake of the scenario, I don’t have money budgeted for a down payment and the only money down would be the value of the Equinox on trade-in. My credit score is in the 760s.

So my questions:
Should I…

1. Keep the Equinox til it dies while squirreling away money for a down payment when the Equinox quits
OR
2. Trade it in now and get a gently used, low mile truck (less than 40K miles, 2018MY or newer, $35K-$45K) to drive long term
OR
3. Trade it in now, get an older truck with more miles for less money (80-100K miles, 20K-$25K) and have a cheap car payment while saving up for a nicer/newer truck in 3-4 years

Additionally, suggest a make/model/year of truck for me. I don’t have any real brand loyalty except I don’t think I’ll do Nissan because there are just better options. I know the Tundra is probably the best investment but the 13/17MPG is disappointing. Ford’s 3.6L EcoBoost engine sure sounds appealing at 18/24MPG, but I don’t know what problems they have long term. I am leaning toward Option 3 above because with a 36 month loan on an older (early 2010s) truck, I would have it paid off at a time where the electric truck market is hopefully becoming more viable and could consider a Ford Lightning or Silverado Electric.

Really looking for some input from people who know how these trucks are mechanically if you’ve got some insight into that, as I don’t want to trade one rat’s nest for another.

Thanks all.

If it were me I’d go option 3 and go for a 2016 up Tacoma and not look back. 3.5L V6 with over 100k miles is nothing if it’s been taken care of.

I've faced similar quandaries over the years.

My most recent solution was to buy a new 2020 Ranger 4x4 mid-size pick up. It's a Lariat model with most of the bells but lacking a few whistles. I do tow a bit for garden, firewood, various home chores, etc.

At 19000 miles now, the Biggest Issue was some chip gremlins following failure of cruise control. Warranty fixed that a couple weeks ago, so far no more gremlin electrical alerts.

It's hard for ME to drive it hard enough to get under 23mpg. I'm a conservative country geezer and avoid city traffic. I've come to appreciate the 'auto off/on' motor for stop lights etc. It seems odd now riding in rigs without that feature. At first I hated it but it really grew on me.

Go down & drive one if you're curious. The 2.3L turbo boost has plenty of power, and the 10-speed auto so far has been nearly flawless.

Ford got this model right IMHO.

#2. F150.

door number 3 also. A Tundra is the best of the bunch, by a bunch. But will cost more. But a Tundra with under 125k miles will be like the rest with half the miles on them in terms longevity and resell down the road.
Curious, what part of the country are you in?

I'm no help here, I want a Denali HD Duramax...

Changing shocks/struts is a great selling point but very difficult to get ROI on. Especially if someone else does the work for you. If you don't trust your current vehicle, walk away from it.

If you're just looking for a basic, but nice 2wd truck with none of the upgrades I'd suggest the Ford Ranger or F150.

The Taco is a great truck but they hold their resale value so you aren't really going to find any deals on a used one. New ones aren't cheap.

quote:

Originally posted by old rugged cross:
door number 3 also. A Tundra is the best of the bunch, by a bunch. But will cost more. But a Tundra with under 125k miles will be like the rest with half the miles on them in terms longevity and resell down the road.
Curious, what part of the country are you in?

I am in Iowa.

before you get ready to spend big dollars, I dont know if that GM engine has q PVC valve but that would be my first check. Replace with a GM part not aftermarket. Had a 2009 Jeep with the v6 that started using oil, changed PVC valve with Mopar part and resolved my issue, this fix was on many Jeep forums and youtube videos for an answer to issue. Good luck

Your initial post seems to imply you didn't check the oil for 5500 miles? If that is so you might want to check it more often than that. You also may want to consider what gas prices are likely to do in the next few years. The vehicles you list are going to use more fuel than your present vehicle. Do you want to deal with that every time you fill up? We have a GMC Sierra which we like but we use only when we need a truck. We have other vehicles for daily drivers that deliver 26 to 35 mpg. Trucks and large SUV's are not very fuel efficient.

If you buy from the big three, you’re a beta tester for them.

Go with Toyota and don’t look back.

I say #2, if you can find something you like for the right money. Trucks are insane right now. I'm not even sure that #3 is a realistic option for that money. I just bought a Yukon in November and a 2018 truck with under 100k miles was over $30k here in Atlanta. Maybe a bare bones truck could get you in the right range.

I wouldn't put another cent into the Equinox if it were me. But I wouldn't trade it in, I'd sell it privately. That car should be worth $10k or so, right? So a $40k truck would be a bit over $500 a month with 4% financing for 60 months.

#1. That 2.4L might have a bulletin on it, meaning extra warranty coverage. If you want, send me your VIN# and I can look it up for you

If you can avoid buying a vehicle right now, do it. Used truck prices are INSANE. You will be under water when things get back to somewhat normal

I have a Tundra with the 5.7 motor. It is a superb truck but thirsty. My brother has an f150 with the eco-boost. He has the power when he needs it but the mileage when he is just commuting. He’s had that truck for seems like 10 years which for him is remarkable. He’s notoriously hard on vehicles. Doesn’t maintain them, drives them hard and puts them away wet. In your scenario I’d recommend looking into the f150 eco-boost.

Used vehicle prices are crazy right now. Gas is supposed to keep going up.

Check the oil on a regular basis (like you should be doing), top off as needed. It gets decent mileage.

Most of what you listed is basic maintenance items, which, if you find another used vehicle with 100K miles on it, you're gonna have to do the mx items anyways.

I had an Outback 3.6 that just went through a quart and a half of oil between changes (7500 miles). Had 120k on it when I sold it and no issues aside from using oil.

Unless you have money just burning a hole right now, it is not a good time to buy a new vehicle.

IMO Keep the Equinox (it is paid off), upgrade when the car market settles down.

quote:

If you can avoid buying a vehicle right now, do it. Used truck prices are INSANE. You will be under water when things get back to somewhat normal

^^^ This!

Also, change your oil more often. I don't care what anybody says, 10k is too long. I change mine every 3k, even when running full synthetic (I buy the cheap walmart full synthetic, though). Yeah, maybe a bit excessive, but for less than $25 an oil change, it's cheap insurance. I run my cars till the wheels fall off, and I have yet to need to replace a motor. Rust gets everything eventually around here, but my current vehicles have 405k, 220k, and 110k, all still going strong.

Since you're not hauling or towing "anything of significance", I'd opt out of the half ton truck options. Given a smaller truck, I'd opt for a Tacoma, but would likely go for a new one given used ones run almost as much as new ones, and the new one will obviously comes with a full warranty.

I would trade it in while its value is up, but work to find a dealer that will give you a new F150 that meets your payment needs.

I have to state, that you shouldn't buy a new vehicle based upon monthly payments only, that is how you get upside down real quickly.

But if its a ticking time bomb then get out while you have some value for it in this hot used car market, but you have to buy new smartly, which may take some time and repetition and luck perhaps.

HK Ag

As hot as used market is I'd buy new.

No GMs 2014 or after. Voice of experience.

2021 or before Tundra or Tacoma, for sure. Have dumped all GM and couldn't be happier with the Toyotas.

2022 has a hybrid engine, which doesn't add that much MPG and is still new.

Look carefully at what you can find new, and contrast to used. Wouldn't be scared of a well documented used Toyota at all, but as noted above with present market values hard to save much on a recent, low mileage used model.