I just bought a 2007 Chevrolet Silverado with a full sized bed. It has the big V8, automatic transmission, 4 wheel drive and all the bings and whistles. I love the thing. I only get about 21 mpg in the summer and it dropped to 18 mpg this winter.
So far it has needed nothing for service other then an oil change. I only have 4000 miles on it. A very smooth driving truck, excellent acceleration, came with Wrangler Radial Tires and seems to go through the snow well, and with the 17 inch tires it sits up nice and high.
My friend drives the new Tundra Crew Cab. They are a Toyota family. All they buy are Toyotas. He loves it, but says the gas mileage sucks big time. He Rhino lined the bed and put a topper on it. A real nice looking rig. And there is a lot of room in the front, but I think the Silverado is more spacious. At least it seems that way to me. The other thing he said is, Toyota's last for ever but when they need to be fixed, you better have a good warranty or a fat wallet. His beater truck is a 1984 Toyota 4x4 truck. It has over 200,000 miles on it, on its second engine, and the box rusted in half and broke so he built a flat bed on it. He runs that as a woods truck.
I looked at Fords, Toyotas, and Chevrolets. Ford are out because the company does not stand behind their vehicles even when the problem is a design flaw. Believe me, my woods truck is an old Ford F150 4x4 that has to go back to the shop tomorrow again. Also they are gas hogs. I will never buy another Ford truck EVER!! The toyota I test drove was a nice truck without a doubt. But the gas mileage and the very stiff ride was a turn off. The Silverado has lots of room, a great ride, and good gas mileage for a truck that big. So I would put my vote to the Silverado.
