By Kim Williamson

The salesman gestured at a red S-10 pick-up truck on the corner of the lot. "How about that nice little S-10 extended cab?" he said.

"No sir," she answered, "I want a REAL truck."

"A real truck, you say?" he asked lifting his brows. "Are you planning to tow something, ma'am?"

"That is exactly what I plan to do," the woman said. "I need something that will pull a horse trailer."

More and more women are becoming independent and hitting the road with RVs, horse trailers and other tow able vehicles. Whether you are going to tow two horses in a small trailer or five horses in a thirty-foot gooseneck, I will try to simplify the basics so you will know what you are looking for when you start shopping.

F-150, F250, Silverado 3500, diesel or gas? If you find yourself asking, "What does all this mean?" Then "sit down, shut up and hang on," 'cause I am about to help you sort through the rhetoric and find the truck that is right for you!

First thing, ladies, you will need to decide how long you will keep the truck, what you will be towing, now and in the near future, how far will you tow this vehicle and what is the terrain like (hilly, mountainous, or completely flat)?

Terminology

You can tell a lot about a truck by looking at the series of numbers and letters on the side of the truck, usually on both doors. Terminology is really simple once you see how each make of truck uses similar wording to mean the same thing. Here is an example:

For example, a Chevy might say, Silverado 1500 or Sierra 1500. Chevrolet is the make and the Silverado or Sierra is the model and they are labeled this way because of the extra features unique to each truck (power windows, power seats, cloth interior vs. vinyl, V-6 vs. V-8) but the 1500 will always mean that the truck is a ½-ton. A Dodge might say, "Ram 3500 V10." This means that the truck is a Dodge Ram 1 ton with a V-10 engine.

The difference between the models above is the amount of weight that the truck is designed to haul. When designing these trucks, the manufacturer takes a lot into consideration. A ½ ton truck is a light duty pick-up; the manufacturer will put a lighter engine, transmission and springs into this truck. It is designed for the gardener and weekend recreationalist with comfort in mind. The 1-ton truck is a truck designed for heavy work with a big engine and transmission to match, as well as, axles, springs, shocks, transmission and oil coolers, and dual wheels for stability of heavy loads. The ¾ ton is for those somewhere in between.

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