Hello, as the title says, half ton gasser or 3/4 ton diesel, light duty or heavy duty? Heres my question. I have started a small lawn care business and I am stuck about which kind of truck to get for my towing and hauling needs for the business, which will suite me the best and fit my needs. Note it will also be my daily driver.

I tow small loads, 2500-3500 lbs will be an average tow for me. I tow with an enclosed trailer that weighs about 1200 lbs and a couple of lawn mowers combined that weigh nearly 2000 lbs with maybe some other equipment depending on the job, but around 2500-3500 lbs as I said. That is relatively light, but also note that I'll be towing that pretty much every day.

So my question is, do I get a half ton or a 3/4 ton with a diesel engine. You may ask, why not a 3/4 ton with a gas engine. Because if I were to have a 3/4 ton heavy duty truck it would only make sense to have a diesel engine if it's going to be heavy duty, but anyway, please put your input and opinion on what kind of truck you would think suites me best. And in case you were wondering the half ton gasser would be a Ram Hemi or a Toyota Tundra (Personall liking.) and for a 3/4 ton it would be a used Ram 2500 Cummins, mostly for the engine reliability.

Thanks - TruckEnthusiast505

 

This is just my opinion If I were you I would go 1/2 ton.
Simply because it will be your every day driver.

For towing reliability and fuel economy I would go Duramax
But because your only pulling 3500 lbs it would be a waste of horsepower and torque. = a waste of addition $$$ investment to purchase a diesel truck.

Towing your enclosed trailer with a 5.7 hemi will definitely get the job done. but your fuel economy with suffer.

It depends on how frequently and how far you will be towing that 3000 lbs will determine whether the diesel would be more economical or the gasser.

 

Thanks Glenn, you're right, I don't think I really need a diesel truck that can haul 13,000 pounds. It would be nice but it wouldn't be worth it in the long run because of the extra cost of maintenance, fuel, etc. Besides, most of the driving I do is mixed city and highway and I don't live far away at all from my clients, so the gasser would be more suitable since its not going to be worked that hard, but still the fuel economy I can deal with hopefully. But thanks again, I think I've made a decision based on what you said.

 

Keep us updated on your vehicle hunt and let us know how it turns out for you. Good luck in your new enterprise. I'm self employed too.