Just a couple weeks into it, I'm really starting to dig the new truck. What's nice is that all of the things I used to have to worry about when I was driving the Corvette are no longer, now that I've traded it in.
The truck is a Dodge 1500 Quad Cab with a 5.7 Liter Hemi. It's like the one pictured here, except it's Patriot Blue instead of Red.
The Dodge was great in Maine. I could fit all five guys in the truck when we went into town, out to bars, etc. Plus, my quad fits neatly in the back. (On the return trip, I strapped it down in the bed and drove to the Cross Sound Ferry and drove the truck right into the boat.)
So far, I've been four-wheeling with it a couple times. The first time was in Maine, when Craig and I decided to go explore some of the Jeep trails around Machias. The Dodge performed admirably, handling rocky hill climbs with no problems whatsoever. The second time was on the beach this past weekend at Smith Point out on Long Island. Dennis and Cami were camping on the beach and Sara and I went out to visit them. I bought a day permit for the truck, let some air out of the tires and then took it down the beach to their campsite. There were a couple trucks stuck down there, but I didn't have any problems at all running 15 lbs. in each tire (down from 40 psi). The shift-on-the-fly 4WD is great. You don't even need to stop when shifting from 2WDH to 4WDH.
Probably the best thing about it, though, is that I don't have to worry when I need to haul some stuff around. My family is thinking about picking up a freezer in the next couple weeks, and the truck will easily haul it.
On Sunday, I took advantage of overcast skies to strip all the factory wax off and use the Mother's three-stage kit to put a fresh coat on. I did the same thing when I first got the Corvette, because for some reason, these new vehicles are coming from the factory with piss-poor wax on them. I noticed the first time some rain fell on the truck that the water wasn't beading, so I stripped the factory wax off, hit it with some glaze, and then put a new coat of wax on it and it looks phenomenal.
I also like all of the neat add-ons available. Before the winter, I'd like to get some nerf bars, a brush guard for the front, and maybe some sort of carrier for the hitch receiver (cooler rack with fishing pole holders). Thankfully, many catalogs sell aftermarket stuff for this truck, so I don't think I'll be at a loss for finding vendors to help me customize it a bit.
If there's one drawback, though, it's the fuel economy. I'm getting about the same mileage as I did in the Corvette (18 on the highway, less about town). I can also put 89 in it instead of the more pricey 93 the 'vette required. But the fuel tank on this thing is huge. If I want, I could probably fill it up twice a month if I don't go on any long trips, but every time I fill it up, we're talking over $100. With the Corvette, I'd fill it up every week for $50 or so. The truck needs to be filled up much less often, but when you do fill it up, it's a doozy. I'm hoping to get to the pump tonight before prices go up significantly for the weekend, and save myself a few dollars.
All in all, though, so far it's been a great vehicle.
