Ain't a Chevy Guy but....

[wiredgeorge]

Saw a commercial today during the Redskins game for the new Chevy makes a trailer INVISIBLE behind you! Wow. I like the Chevy multi-function tailgate but that would get me to buy a Chevy truck but the new camera system almost seals the deal. Now all they need is the auto-backup geegaw like Ford has and MAYBE. I have owned a long series of Ford beaters but may have to consider Chevy if they keep putting things into their trucks that make so much sense.

https://www.roadandtrack.com/new-car...sible-trailer/

[hankpage]

I think they are only putting that tail gate on 1500s. Probably think that anyone who uses it as a truck would break it while still under warranty.

[sourdough]

Originally Posted by hankpage

I think they are only putting that tail gate on 1500s. Probably think that anyone who uses it as a truck would break it while still under warranty.

I have a friend who is a general contractor and he bought one of the 1500s with the fancy tailgate. Brought it over to show me and it IS cool. But, as Hank noted I doubt it would stand up to much hard use....my friend hoped it would but said he would find out.

[Allesfam]

I ordered a 2019 Ford superduty last year. I looked at all the competition before I did. At the time Ford was the only one to offer an integrated tire pressure monitoring system for your trailer with a rear trailer camera. Now it doesn’t blank out the actual trailer like Chevy is doing but that feature along with some other safety features convinced me to buy the Ford. I’m glad to see the others are now catching up. Competition is a good thing, especially when it comes to safety features.
As for the multi position tailgate, that is currently only available on the GMC 1500. It is not a Silverado option yet.

[Gegrad]

Originally Posted by sourdough

I have a friend who is a general contractor and he bought one of the 1500s with the fancy tailgate. Brought it over to show me and it IS cool. But, as Hank noted I doubt it would stand up to much hard use....my friend hoped it would but said he would find out.

I bet they do hold up.. The big 3 tend to build things like that (tailgates, suspensions, beds, hitches, etc) pretty strong. They bean count on the interior parts (switches, plastic parts) and exterior cosmetic parts (mirrors, door handles, grills where the chrome flakes off).

[vampress_me]

So, I know I’m cynical, but the first thought through my head when I saw the tailgate fold-down step was “I wonder how long that will last in a MN winter without rusting through”. Too many little nooks and crannies for salty slush to get in and sit and start to rust.

On the invisible trailer - sounds great, except that it’s only for bumper pull trailers up to 32’ in length. Doesn’t work with fifth wheels at all. Sounds like it’s about as good as Ford’s BLISS (I think that’s the name of the blind spot system) in the SD. Doesn’t work when a fifth wheel or gooseneck is hooked up. And I believe Ford knows it’s joke since in order to get the upgraded headlights you have to order the BLISS package...

[wiredgeorge]

Originally Posted by Gegrad

I bet they do hold up.. The big 3 tend to build things like that (tailgates, suspensions, beds, hitches, etc) pretty strong. They bean count on the interior parts (switches, plastic parts) and exterior cosmetic parts (mirrors, door handles, grills where the chrome flakes off).

Sir, I have to disagree on Ford tailgates. The tailgate on my F250 BENT every time I rolled a 600 lb motorcycle over it to where the bars that allowed the handle to actuate the locks on the sides to open would be bent inside. I don't know how many times I had to take the tailgate apart and bend them back. The tailgate was not "Ford Tough". You are correct about the plastic stuff as it was all junk. The chrome on my grill sort of crinkled up and fell off in places as chrome plating plastic seems an art that Ford never mastered. Of course, the dash cracked as well. All the tabs or retainers that held the dash and doors more or less gave up the ghost and I had to figure out how to keep these components in place by using hardware store fasteners.

[roadglide]

The 2020 are paired up with incomand keystone app. I don't know how it works but what is posted on a thread do you like your incomand? I think I don't like the incomand and will stay with the old rocker switches. The way i understand the see through there are so many cameras and angles that can project to one point that would be a set on the screen of the raido.

[travelin texans]

Originally Posted by wiredgeorge

Sir, I have to disagree on Ford tailgates. The tailgate on my F250 BENT every time I rolled a 600 lb motorcycle over it to where the bars that allowed the handle to actuate the locks on the sides to open would be bent inside. I don't know how many times I had to take the tailgate apart and bend them back. The tailgate was not "Ford Tough". You are correct about the plastic stuff as it was all junk. The chrome on my grill sort of crinkled up and fell off in places as chrome plating plastic seems an art that Ford never mastered. Of course, the dash cracked as well. All the tabs or retainers that held the dash and doors more or less gave up the ghost and I had to figure out how to keep these components in place by using hardware store fasteners.

And yet you keep buying Ford's!

[JRTJH]

Originally Posted by travelin texans

And yet you keep buying Ford's!

Yup, here's a typical "northern Michigan Chevy"... and before you go saying anything about Fords, it happens to all trucks, Ford, GM, RAM, Toyota, Nissan, Isuzu, Datsun (I know, I know) and I even saw a Mitsubishi with rust a couple years ago......

Now, on with the "Ford bashing"....

[wiredgeorge]

I recall awhile back Ford started making their body skins out of aluminum. Chevy actually had a commercial showing a heavy tool box being dropped in a Ford truck bed and the same in the steel Chevy truck bed. Of course, the heavy tool box made a mess of the Ford. Maybe an aluminum body would help with the rust issues up there in the frozen north.

[Northofu1]

It's called rust proofing. 2x a year. Once in all nooks and crannies in spring, and then an under body spray in fall. I have used rust check on all my vehicles for the past 15 yrs. Only problem I have had was with a Jetta, trunk lid by license plate, the mark 5's were known for that.
I am in Ontario surrounded by 400 series highways, due to liability and sheer traffic volume I can pretty much say with confidence we see more salt/ brine/ sand than anywhere else in Canada.
No car manufacture is safe from that without rustproofing.
P.S. That rubberized crap is worse than not rustproofing at all.

[JRTJH]

Not that it really matters very much, but the new GM trucks and cars are "supplementing problematic rust areas with aluminum panels" to increase longevity of body panels. I haven't seen the "had to swallow a bitter pill" yet, but after all the GM hype about how unreliable aluminum is, to start using it a couple of years later..... Hmmmmm

As for rust, I spray the underside and all the nooks and crannies every fall with a product called "Fluid Film". It's much like the old cosmoline we used in the Air Force to protect airplanes and flight line equipment from rust and corrosion. It's an "oil based, non-dripping spray" that's easy to apply, just pressure wash the underside of the vehicle, let it dry overnight and spray all visible areas, use the "red straw" to spray into nooks and crannies and you're done. We just sold our 2008 Escape (the primary vehicle for winter travel) after 12 years of driving on salt covered Michigan roads and there was no rust anywhere. The guy that bought it asked if we'd just brought it up from "down south" because it was so rust free. The answer: Nope, I just spray it once a year and keep it clean.

[wiredgeorge]

Might be just as simple to live "down south" and not deal with rust buckets in the driveway. I am sure I wouldn't get under a vehicle and spray stuff as I am kind of lazy. I have owned my truck for a number of months and it hasn't been washed and I actually only washed my 96 F250 beater once in years of owning and that is to sell it. I do wash and carefully care for my motorcycles and trike. They are different hehehehehe

[Northofu1]

Originally Posted by JRTJH

Not that it really matters very much, but the new GM trucks and cars are "supplementing problematic rust areas with aluminum panels" to increase longevity of body panels. I haven't seen the "had to swallow a bitter pill" yet, but after all the GM hype about how unreliable aluminum is, to start using it a couple of years later..... Hmmmmm

As for rust, I spray the underside and all the nooks and crannies every fall with a product called "Fluid Film". It's much like the old cosmoline we used in the Air Force to protect airplanes and flight line equipment from rust and corrosion. It's an "oil based, non-dripping spray" that's easy to apply, just pressure wash the underside of the vehicle, let it dry overnight and spray all visible areas, use the "red straw" to spray into nooks and crannies and you're done. We just sold our 2008 Escape (the primary vehicle for winter travel) after 12 years of driving on salt covered Michigan roads and there was no rust anywhere. The guy that bought it asked if we'd just brought it up from "down south" because it was so rust free. The answer: Nope, I just spray it once a year and keep it clean.

Fluid film is awesome, it just doesn't come with a warranty.

[JRTJH]

Originally Posted by Northofu1

Fluid film is awesome, it just doesn't come with a warranty.

To read many of the posts on this forum, that puts it in the same ballpark as most of what Keystone produces. Allegedly they don't come with a warranty either.....

[Roscommon48]

Let me tell you a story about our tailgate (2015 F350). Stolen when we were in Miamai.
Simple cost and replacement, right? Wrong!
It cost nearly $9000. Yep, just under $9K.
The tailgate had the handle, camera and tri color paint.
My wife figures the NEW tailgates (GM and Ram), when stolen, will cost you/insurance at least $15K.

[meaz93*]

Ohh...I remember Chevy making fun of Fords tailgate... "Man Step Setup" (Howie Long Commercial?-lol)
I've got a 14` F150 and all I can say is> after rolling all kinds of weight over the integrated folding bar (1st Gen)... it works awesome! Funny how Chevy/GMC have finally jumped on board. Their setup has a lot of moving parts?, but hey...welcome to the party-lol

[GMcKenzie]

Originally Posted by wiredgeorge

Saw a commercial today during the Redskins game for the new Chevy makes a trailer INVISIBLE behind you! Wow. I like the Chevy multi-function tailgate but that would get me to buy a Chevy truck but the new camera system almost seals the deal. Now all they need is the auto-backup geegaw like Ford has and MAYBE. I have owned a long series of Ford beaters but may have to consider Chevy if they keep putting things into their trucks that make so much sense.

https://www.roadandtrack.com/new-car...sible-trailer/

I'm a Chevy guy and have been keeping pretty up to date on the 2020 HD's. I'm interested, except for a couple of things.

First off, they will have the funky tailgate. Everything I've seen in both the 1500 and HD's, is you better not use the tailgate if you have a hitch in. You'll dent it with the hitch ball. I don't think I would pay the money for it. But regardless of what tailgate I get, I will make sure it is locked on. $9K sounds a bit much, but I can see the thing being in the $5K range.

The camera's look real nice. Just need to get a higher trim level (SLT or Denali) to get them and I usually don't. The cameras would be enough to push me into the higher trim level. Just wondering if they can double as a dash cam (so have recording abilities).

I don't want diesel, so my big disappointing is that the gas only gets a 6 sp. The motor looks like a nice one (410 hp and 460 ft lbs), but the Ford gas is coming with a 10sp. I want to see a comparison between them.

I do like some of the bells and whistles. The bed steps (forgetting the tailgate) at the front of the bed look useful.

The Chevy version looks like crap to me. I really like the GMC version of these trucks better. Night and day in my mind to looks.

[Andymil]

I call mine the “old man’s step”. If they make the beds any higher, they’ll need to build an escalator into the tailgate.

I installed the hardwired camera and tpms kit from Ford on the 5th wheel. It works fine but only in reverse. You have to select the “Aux” view every time you go from Drive to Reverse. Pita when you’re trying to position a trailer.

In the commercials, the Chevy camera seems to be viewable while going down the road (Ford’s is not.) I know you shouldn’t need it going down the road but it would be nice to be able to check it once in a while.

I set up the 5th wheel as a conventional trailer in the truck and the blind spot system works.