I'm looking for some guidance on a new or possibly used vehicle purchase towards the end of this year/beginning of next year.

My wife and I are expecting our second kid in march. We're currently in a 08 Accord (150k mi) and a 06 Sierra (200k mi). The wife stays at home with the kid so she doesn't drive much. She currently gets around town in the Accord and I make a 60mi round trip commute in the truck.

We go on a monthly road trip from Houston to Rockport and have to be able to tow a 5000lb boat short distances.

What would you do if you were in my shoes? We're open to trading either vehicle in. We've been leaning towards getting rid of the truck and moving to a large SUV like the 18 Expy or 18 Tahoe/Suburban and then I would commute in the Accord and hopefully save $100/mo in gas.

The wildcard here is that I have the option to trade a family member straight up the 2006 1/2 ton Sierra for a 2011 3/4 ton Sierra with 130k mi.

What's the best play here?

Thanks in advance.

You would love sliding doors.

J/K

As virtually all of us minivan folks have said, if you need to tow, the SUV option is clearly the smart choice. Trade the pickup in on an Exp or Tahoe. I will say that I had the previous body style of the Tahoe and the room behind the third row is awful. Not sure about the Expy.

I'm with Tree Hugger, do that.

Anyone care to debate the reliability of the 18 Ecoboost Expy vs the long in the tooth 5.3 in the Tahoe/Burb?

Also, the 18 Expy is the first year of the redesign which worries me. Probably won't be any incentives available either.

Nissan Pathfinder has a towing capacity of 6,000 lbs. Houston to Rockport is flat, so I see no reason why this couldn't safely tow your boat on those occasions.

And it's cheaper, more fuel efficient, and likely larger/more spacious inside than one of the RWD SUV options.

Yeah prices are absurd. Hoping to find a deal on a 2018 late in the year. We'll see how it goes.

I've tried to convince the wife to make her daily driver a well equipped f150 but she's not having it. Seems to me there's a lot more value in pickup pricing than large SUV but that's isn't saying much.

If it was me I'd dump the truck for a used 4Runner, GX 460, or Sequoia, depending on how big you need to go.

Get the 3/4 ton, buy a camper cap or bed cover for the bed.

Teach your wife to drive the 3/4 ton and commute in the accord. Or still get the 3/4 ton and trade In the accord for a new accord to commute in. My friend's family did most of their family road trips (3 sons) in a 3/4 ton Silverado with a bed cover.

Flaith said:

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Nissan Pathfinder has a towing capacity of 6,000 lbs. Houston to Rockport is flat, so I see no reason why this couldn't safely tow your boat on those occasions.

And it's cheaper, more fuel efficient, and likely larger/more spacious inside than one of the RWD SUV options.

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Great idea!

Odyssey with the Bisimoto turbo kit installed.

Functional and can rage on most other cars from a roll.

Sequoia

Ridgeline.

MDX or 4Runner

Two ends of the spectrum. I was going to say highlander, but I don't think it will tow very well. The V6 in the MDX can handle it.

aggie_wes said:

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Two ends of the spectrum. I was going to say highlander, but I don't think it will tow very well. The V6 in the MDX can handle it.

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True, combine them and you get a GX. I'd go that route if the budget allows

aarontx said:

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Anyone care to debate the reliability of the 18 Ecoboost Expy vs the long in the tooth 5.3 in the Tahoe/Burb?

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Wait how is the 5.3 long in the tooth? Because it has the same displacement as the last generation 5.3?

ILikeTacos said:

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aarontx said:

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Anyone care to debate the reliability of the 18 Ecoboost Expy vs the long in the tooth 5.3 in the Tahoe/Burb?

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Wait how is the 5.3 long in the tooth? Because it has the same displacement as the last generation 5.3?

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Was about to post the same. Pretty sure the current generation was a new clean-sheet design that first appeared in the 2013 pickups and 2015 SUVs.

Should've said the tried and true NA v8 vs the Ecoboost.

Not a fan of Toyota products.

If I had the time to mess with it I would buy an Excursion or a Suburban and have it completely updated. Drop in a rebuilt powertrain, redo the interior, etc. How ridiculous would doing something like this be? I feel like for $20-$25k you could build a hell of a battle wagon.

What is the likelihood of a 3rd kid being in your future? This would partly dictate my decision.

5k lbs short distances is no problem for the Highlander or Pathfinder (or explorer, Durango, Grand Cherokee)

A third kid definitely isn't in the plans at the moment, but life is what happens when you're busy making plans.

I'm kind of suprised at the number of recs for small SUVs.

Going today after work to trade in both vehicles for a Ridgeline and an Odyssey.

We are kinda in similar situations. I stay at home with two kids and have a Yukon xl while mr diesel commutes a ton. We have a truck and a daily commuter Taurus for him. His daily commute is 150 miles though. If she is only taking your kids around you don't need a 7-8 seater I wouldn't spend the money on full size. I haul around 5-6 kids and two labs on the reg and still need to be able to pull a boat or ranger otherwise I would jump on a minivan. Get her a small suv and trade days around on the truck and suv if you can. JMHO. New prices on big cars and trucks isn't awesome.

Go with the GX460. Surprisingly capable for towing, 4WD, 3rd row seats when you need them. Looks good, and not as expensive as you'd think. Fuel economy isn't great, maybe 15-16, but everything else is good.