Convince Me...

[NHDude4]

Not really any comparison between a Sierra and a Raptor. The Raptor is just as much the family vehicle inside and has more interior space. You just get to have a sweet truck at the same time. I'm also a fan of buying new, so I can't blame you on that point.

 

[LoganW]

Thanks for the replies! Definitely some good perspectives. I hadn't considered the depreciation aspect yet. I posed the same question on the GM forum as well and they are a bunch of fun-haters. For us, this comes down to needs & wants. We need something with a bigger back seat and also need a pickup. We also want a nicer vehicle that has a warranty and is unlikely to need significant out of pocket repairs. We're financially prepared for both a baby and new truck - only debt we will still have is a mortgage. I just want to make sure I'm happy with the money we do spend.

 

[New recaros]

The resale value is enough to swing the decision. But, go to the GM blog, the new GM trucks are horrible. Check out the blog jingle jangle, many are getting buy backs because GM has a design flaw they can’t fix. It sounds like a holiday bell ringer as the axle bang into the diff. I had a 19 for six months and was totally tired of it being in the shop. The first 3months I owned it, it was shopped 7 full days and nights. It cost me dearly to trade it off, but totally worth it.

 

[Preston Garvey]

Just do it. Nothing on the market compares to this truck. What you sacrifice in fuel economy you get back with a perpetual smile every time you put the pedal down or find that patch of off-road. Plus the truck is down right beautiful.

 

[K223]

I will just jump in and say, this truck can carry a lot. The crew cab is very spacious, and you can install one of the dozens of bed covers out there. There are lockable and waterproof types. Similar to what was displayed, you can get many things for the bed to hold your cargo tight. The expansion rods and a bin(s) basically can give you a large trunk, that can hold stuff in place without it flying all over.

An SUV of the right type always works too. I’m not an SUV type, but the wife is. However she has no problem driving my truck anytime.

Your small one will grow to eventually love the truck and there’s no doubt about that! Go check one out.

 

[smurfslayer]

When I pick up family at the airport I take my SUV, as the Raptor doesn’t have enough room for 3 people and their luggage.

Does your family travel like desert nomads? I pick my wife up from the airport and I’m lucky if I can fit her luggage in the cab of the truck. I don’t think that woman can carry less than 5 bags for an overnight. Even when we biked in Europe - fly, rent the motorcycle, pack the 3 cases we have, she still managed to buy enough stuff that we had to ship stuff home.

You’ve got a big ol’ bed for luggage, use tie downs, bungee cords and some hefty cinch sacks in case it rains.

SUV... my wife could fill an Expedition with tourist shop pickups....

I think the tonneau was between $500 and $600. Realtruck had it listed for $599 and said call for possible discounts.

another +1 / vote for @realtruck. I got my cover from them as well. They have good install videos which show the lock mechanisms. Some of the covers are apparently easier than others to break into. Also, they were super helpful getting me into a bed cover in time for my move.

For us, this comes down to needs & wants. We need something with a bigger back seat and also need a pickup. We also want a nicer vehicle that has a warranty and is unlikely to need significant out of pocket repairs.

Seriously, you could fit a sasquatch family in the Raptor back seat, with leg room to spare, with carry ons under the seat. The Rap is a functional Ford Truck, meaning they have beaten the living daylights out of it before it ever got released to the press. Yeah, they will miss some stuff, but I would be willing to bet a large sum of money that there was some Ford QA guy saying “ok, now, fill the truck bed to with as much hardwood as you can. Take it out to Death Valley, in the summer, and let us know what happens.” Because Ford knows that customer couldn’t care less what the payload rating is, the practical customer payload is what fits in the bed without falling out.

You can pick up a CPO ’19, heck, maybe even a left over 19 that will fit the bill. If it’s within 36k you can still buy the Ford ESP for extra insurance.

Plus, just like Cowboy Coward told Ned Beatty in Deliverance:

Don’t say anything...

Just do it.

 

[GordoJay]

Does your family travel like desert nomads? I pick my wife up from the airport and I’m lucky if I can fit her luggage in the cab of the truck.

You're not normal. Neither am I or my wife. The first time I took mine to Europe, I told her to put everything she needed into a medium-sized backpack. I let her negotiate an extra carry on for stuff she "needed". We ended up leaving it at a train station in Switzerland for three weeks. When we got home, she announced that she really liked traveling light. Win.

 

[smurfslayer]

You're not normal. Neither am I or my wife. The first time I took mine to Europe, I told her to put everything she needed into a medium-sized backpack. I let her negotiate an extra carry on for stuff she "needed". We ended up leaving it at a train station in Switzerland for three weeks. When we got home, she announced that she really liked traveling light. Win.

Dude? SHE is not normal.

My wife’s response: Rolling bags. and MORE of them. If I didn’t have the Raptor, we couldn’t go on an in country vacation, we wouldn’t have room. Hell, I won’t be surprised if she ships boxes to our next B&B.

 

[Smokyray]

Having lived in and traveled a lot in West Tejas, Ford Trucks (especially F250's) are king.
Raptors are several notches up the food chain...
My wife (Espoza Loco) refuses to drive her own car now and wants me to chauffeur her everywhere in "The Beast!"
More room, comfort, quiet, speed power and great ride on the long bumpy dirt road near our long gravel driveway and lots of room for gear, groceries, or??

Drive you somewhere today baby???
Sure....
Throw me in that briar patch!
Giddy up!

 

[Medic 6]

Go for the Raptor. Just keeping my response simple.