This is just for fun but also has been in the back of my mind for a couple years now. Is it better to work your truck and drive it like you stole it or baby it?
I drive mine like it was a show car and so easy that the wife is always saying" Its a 4x4, you don't have to slow down for the little bumps on the road". I never haul anything more than a 4 wheeler, and don't tow. I have had nothing but trouble with the truck. Well I guess maybe you could always have more but the little things like wheel bearings, should they go out in less than 50000 miles? Rotors, calipers, track bar, inner tie rod end, exhaust, tail pipe, lift pump, brake cables, shocks, etc....
I know that alot of this is wear items but this is a heavy duty truck. Shouldn't this truck stand up longer. I have had many vehicles and never replaced bearings or alot of this stuff.
I am just getting a bit crazy, I think I should own a little light duty like a Ranger or something. I know guy who have them and work them and have very little trouble.
I often say that the people that actually use their trucks for work must have a garage full of parts because they ( the parts ) must be flying in all directions.
Just a thought and venting a bit..

 

My truck is 11 years old and i dont know how the previous owner drove it but i dont believe in babying a truck. I dont have any problems. People who are conservative and dont want to hurt it are usually the people who have the most problems. Drive it like you stole it and treat it like a truck and it will act like a truck and never fail you. just my .02 cents

 

yeah no joke, if your at a decent power level (no more than 100-150 above stock) then beat the crap out of it.

when i was at 530 hp i was breaking everything, but i was ***** to the walls all the time. now that i have went almost to stock i still use it like a truck but she hasnt been in the shop since...

 

The only babying mine gets is fluid change intervals, other than that is driven like it's been stolen and worked hard....never had a lick of trouble in 170k miles.

 

I don't drive it like a rental car, but you gotta get out on the highway or somethin' and open them up from time to time.

If I'm doing short trips often, my truck begins to start real rough, until I take it somewhere and let my pyrometer sit at 1300 or 1400 degree's a few times for a couple of seconds...or take a road trip...it seems to like that a lot.

 

I drive mine pretty easy most of the time but jump on it every so often. Mine does love road trips too.

 

I say drive it/use it for what it was made for. Its a truck, take it out in the mud, take it camping, hunting, fourwheelin!!! I dont "beat the crap" out of my trucks, but I love being able to shrug off "Arizona Racing Stripes" and rock chips. Seems like the more you baby it, the more stuff happens to it. Its not like these trucks we own will ever appreciate in value, its not a house. (I guess thats a bad analogy right now haha). But you know what I mean.

 

I drive mine like i stole it. and it likes it!

 

I'm in the "beat the crap out of it" club.

 

if it not fast beat it

 

i drive mine hard everyday theres not a day that goes by where the diesel doesnt hit the floor lol i drive it hard all the time on corners brakeing what ever always hard mind u its bone stock

 

I think i would be part of the beat the crap out of it club. Within the first week i had mine i destroyed the bed with an 350 short block that came loose while i was driving and rolled all over the place. now i have dents in the fenders the back bumper and scratches every where. I also on my 3rd set of tires with only 48k

 

I don't believe in beating the crap out of mine but use them for what they're designed for, work.
I can't understand people who use a 3/4 or 1 ton pickup for a daily driver that just hauls their butt back and forth to work.
If that's the case you should be driving a compact.

 

Beat on it.

My GF always chuckles whenever I turn too tight in a parking lot and the rear tire hops up over a curb. Sometimes when parking, I have to cut wide to get the truck lined up in the spot--which makes the front tire ride the curb for a few feet.

The GF does NOT like it when I get on it on the street. The truck scares her. Funny too, with even just the Smarty, my truck was faster than her '99 Miata. She said she is jealous of it also because it gets better mileage than her V6 Toyota Tacoma. Funny part is my truck won't even hold a candle to some monsters I read about here.

 

I baby it when driving (fuel is still expensive) on the highway and such, but when working it, I work it hard, heavy loads, heavy trailer, etc. I just don't think that you have to drive it like you stole it..