looking for a new tow vehicle, advice needed

i currently have a 2005 nissan frontier which i love and it's a very capable truck for being as little as it is, it tows my 23' mobius XLV with ease. i personally don't wanna sell it since it's paid off but my wife wants something bigger and more comfortable and she says if i get her a big SUV then i can get whatever car i want i also have a 2004 scion XB which has been her car and she's sick of it. and i would love to sell the scion and get a sports car but that's not happening, so my only way to get a fun car is to sell my boat, which i don't wanna do or trade the truck for something else.

so right now i own my truck and it's worth about $23k and i really don't want to spend anymore than that as much as i would love to go buy a new armada i just can't. i basically have all my money into my house. that $3000 mortgage sucks so im looking for something that is worth about what my truck is.

here are the requirements
-must be comfortable and easy to get in and out of
-must be good for kids
-decent gas mileage, atleast 15mpg
-must tow atleast 7000lbs
-leather, nice interior
-4x4
-less than $25k
-2002 or newer

so far im looking at 2002-2004 tahoes, yukons, sequoias, and how are the newer expeditions?

Crew Cab Diesel!

sean,
my buddy just got a sweet denali on 22's in that year and price range. maybe 60k miles. that would definitely be a pimp ride for a playa like you....
remember to eat plenty of celery!!

(Message edited by tyler97217 on January 30, 2007)

Toyota Sequioa!!!! Everything you listed and more

i would love a sequoia, i just can't find one

open your search up to northern cali and seattle... might be worth it if you can find a better deal...

Maybe a Nissan Titan Crew Cab. You already like your Nissan...

I had a '00 Tahoe (first of the new body style) for 6 years and 100k. Probably the greatest vehicle I ever owned. I sold mine for $10k. I'd imagine you could easily get a '03 with low miles for somewhere in your price range.

yeah but again im looking for more into an SUV and im looking to spend $25k or less im not gonna find a titan for that

Except for the gas mileage I was in the same situation as you. I got a 2003 3/4 Ton Suburban with 65K miles for $16,500. It's an LT with AutoRide. It also had a 100,000 mile $100 deductible warranty. I'd go private party and you can find a lot of great 03 GM brand SUVs. 03 is the year they switched the interior so I'd check 03 and newer. You should be able to get a Yukon XL Denali in the range you're talking about. I found you a sweet non XL one:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=270083252725

You should be able to get a 2003 Eddie Bauer 4WD Expedition for $17K.

(Message edited by evil0ne on January 30, 2007)

that is exactly what i want! to bad it's in texas

I don't know where you're buying your trucks but you should be able to get into a Titan for that money too. I found you an LE (top of the line) 4x4 on eBay.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=130073677504

That means if you forgo leather or get lucky enough to find an SE with leather you should save another grand or two.

(Message edited by evil0ne on January 30, 2007)

Ship it. Road Trip. Either way, that should give you an idea what it really should go for even in Portland. If you check craigslist long enough you should also find some deals.

If your frontier did the job and you liked it. Why not look at a pathfinder. You can definetly get one for under 25k.

Email me if you want some more info on pricing, but I found you a sweet setup in your area.

2004 Nissan Armada. I'm sure you can negotiate a little off the price if you can deal with the MPG.

that's pretty nice, but im hoping to find something at a dealer, cause i don't wanna have to deal with selling an buying, i wanna just trade

My advice is to try and sell yours privately first. If you get a lot of hits you'll make about $1,500 to $2,000 more then trading it in. The same can be said about buying used from Private Party, so you can end up saving about $4,000 instead of going to a dealer. That $4K can be a huge difference into what vehicles you can look at. And for used, I'd trust talking to the original owner and there maintenance records more then a dealer's "inspection."

Good Luck!

i don't know if you'll find it for the $, but i'll second or 3rd the denali. i bought an 06 denali xl last year and it's been absolutely awesome. so incredibly comfortable. we make quite a few 4+ hour road trips to eastern washington every year and last year was heaven. $25K could be tough to find without a bunch of miles though.

I had a fully loaded 2001 Tahoe with the 5.3L V8 and put 150,000 miles on it (75% of those miles were pulling my boat). I traded it in last year for $17,500 and it was probably the best vehicle (and I have had a lot of them) I have ever owned. My only complaint was the lack of power, I would certainly recommend the 5.8L over the 5.3L.

02 PSD 4x4 Ford F-250.

Tahoe/Suburban/Yukon are out of the question if you really mean that 15mpg figure- none of them get near that.

i get 14 with my 6.0 denali in town

little over 13 towing

excursion diesel

well i got my new ride friday night i had pretty much decided to put a hold on car shopping for a while and i happend to see an 03 white denali at the ford dealer across from my work

long story short its mine it's beautiful! 03 white denali 57K on it, looks brand new! worked the dealer pretty good on it and got a great deal! i love it! i will try to get some pics up tomorrow!

Congrats on the new ride. I just picked up an 02 XL (with 52K on it) about 2 weeks ago. I love it. Be sure to post some pics.