So yesterday I pulled my 48 foot 21k pound trailer to Vegas from So Cal. As I am headed up the Baker Grade at 60 mph I blow by some guy going 30 mph in a Nissan truck pulling a larger size tent trailer.

About an hour and a half later he pulls into the same RV park. I am already set up and drinking a beer when he stops at my site to discuss what "In the hell do you have under the hood."

He quickly left when his very attractive and 20 years younger wife asked if she could come in my trailer and take a look around. :D

I guess he traded in the Nissan today cause when I got back this afternoon a new Duramax was sitting in front of his trailer.

That was fast...

So, you're sayin' that he traded the hot wife for a DMax???

I'm curious to know if his wife is still in your trailer?
After all yours is a bigger trailer.

I'm curious to know if his wife is still in your trailer?
After all yours is a bigger trailer.
):h

I sent her home after she had a chance to view the furnishings. :)

Seriously- I watched them drive out this morning and he was looking pretty happy behind the wheel of a real truck.

I presume they are happy with their new truck. (For now, that is ... )

Just like anything else, the "want" and the "need" are not always in sync.

If he only tows a trailer 3x a year for less than 250 miles round trip, there is no reason that he needed a Dmax, or any other diesel. That Nissan (whatever model it was) likely would have served him well for many years.

OTOH, if he tows stuff frequenty, including a camping trailer on the weekend, and heavy work stuff during the week, the diesel makes sense. (But, I suspect if that were the case, he would have already known that. His "impulse" purchase leads me to believe that he tows infrequently.)

I suspect he probably let his ego dictate his purchase. Nothing wrong with that, except that many people who blindly go down this road, end up suffering the consequences of the dilusion when the start to realize the cost of diesel fuel, the hassle of parking a larger rig, the higher cost of maintenance, and generally rougher ride, to go along with that large payment book and the (likely) beating he took on trade in ...

I love my Dmax and I am happy that I got it. But I certainly didn't "need" it. I really don't tow that often. I would have been perfectly happy with a Triton V-10 Super Duty XL, but I simply could not find one. I don't "need" the diesel to pull my 5k pound trailer; any large gas engine would have sufficed a few times a year. And while the towing costs would have been higher with a gasser, it would still have taken YEARS of purchased fuel to break even on the up-scale cost of my Dmax/Alli combo. I bought my Dmax because I "wanted" it, but didn't "need" it. I have a small car I drive to work each day, so the inconvenience of a large truck is of no concern; it's not my daily driver.

Keep your eyes open for the guy next year. He'll possibly be back in a 1/2 ton gasser ...

So yesterday I pulled my 48 foot 21k pound trailer to Vegas from So Cal. As I am headed up the Baker Grade at 60 mph I blow by some guy going 30 mph in a Nissan truck pulling a larger size tent trailer.


A Titan? My 2008 Titan would pull like a mule. Even with 5000 lbs on the back I could easily push it up to 85 and pass people.
Gas mileage was abysmal but in comparison of other 1/2 tons, IMO the Titan is a huge contender.
Naturally though it is not a diesel 3/4 ton....

Returned from Vegas Saturday morning and fought a major head wind. I burned through 15 gallons of fuel between Baker and Barstow- that's about 4-5 miles a gallon.

I was in 4th gear just to maintain 55 mph. Sure glad I had the dually in the wind.