Quote:
Originally Posted by techieguy
I think keep my truck than trying to haul a trailer behind my Metro. Last load of firewood I picked up was over 6.5K lbs! If my Metro could haul 1K lbs gross that would be over six trips and and would save any fuel what so ever. Even with a full load of firewood I still manage 18-20 mpg in my 1 ton Dodge with a diesel...then there is my value of my time. Now if you are moving light but bulky items from time to time then maybe a trailer is viable.
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techieguy, I think you are missing some key points of this philosophy of light trailering.
You are totally correct that 6 runs versus one run takes a lot more time. Also, you are correct that the 6 Metro runs would use more fuel than the one haul in the truck.
However, for the other 364 days a year, the Metro uses much less fuel. Also, by not owning the truck you are not losing money for insurance, taxes, depreciation, interest (if it's not all paid off). And no truck means no time and money spent on truck maintenance. So that could make up for your lost time there.
So it's a tradeoff, a minor inconvenience on the one day of wood hauling but you get the big pay off on not owning the big truck for the entire year.
For a single load of super heavy stuff, it may make sense to pay a small fee for delivery. You would be saving a huge amount by selling the truck. Then use the Metro/trailer for light hauling. You may have other hauling requirements that you did not mention.
For me, as I posted much earlier in the thread, when I had my '98 Civic, I have towed power equipment, couches, washer/dryer, cellulose insulation bundles for my attic, motorcycle, etc. Nothing more than 1000 lbs. I don't need to haul wood, but I would gladly make multiple trips to avoiding having a money-pit gas-guzzler big truck year-around.
Rich