Best Work Trucks for Your Small Business

There comes a time when delivering your products in a commuter car doesn’t cut it anymore. Here’s what you need to look for in a work truck for your small business once you become successful.

The Right Vehicle for Your Industry

The right vehicle for your small business depends on a few things. But you need to start choosing one by matching your needs with the business you’re in. Cutting lawns, shoveling snow or doing home renovations? Start looking at pickups. You’ll more than likely need a truck for bigger jobs like construction and landscaping too.

Pickup Trucks

Here’s a few things you’ll need to consider:

Cost

You’ll have to spend more on a pickup. It doesn’t matter whether you need to throw some shovels and lawnmowers in the bed or haul a trailer, the payments jump. Edmunds sales data compares the average monthly payment for a larger truck ($713) to a midsize car ($484) in 2019.

Towing Capacity

Decide on what you will be towing and how much it weighs.  In the past, trucks were rated by this system. Remember the three-quarter tons and half tons? Now pick ups are divided into three basic categories: light duty, medium duty and heavy duty. Here’s a towing guide from Ford to get you started.

Here’s a general rule of thumb. Towing capacity goes from 2000 lbs up to 20,000 lbs. Try to get 10% more capacity than you need to prevent engine burnout.

Cab Size and Bed Size

This where where things can get a little tricky. Need to move a small crew from job to job? You might want more cab than bed size. You need to decide which one is more important because the larger the cab size the smaller the bed.

Most pickup truck manufacturers have up to four different cab sizes to choose from. The Super Crew option has four full-size doors. Maybe a bit of overkill if you’ve only got one helper for your window installation business. Extended cabs have less room in the back but a longer bed that can fit those windows and doors.

Best Work Trucks – Pickups

Here’s a few standouts to keep an eye on this year.

2019 Ram 1500

One of the big improvements for this year is optional air suspension that keeps the truck level while hauling heavy loads. Pricing starts at $34,885 (5.7L V8).

2019 Ford F 150

The high strength aluminum in the bed and body panels gives this truck best in class tow ratings. Prices start at $29,750.

Vans

These are a good choice for small businesses that need to make a lot of deliveries. Vans are a good middle ground between a truck and a car. And they can be more maneuverable than a truck for those city deliveries.

Check these options off to get the right one for your SMB.

Engine Size

There’s lots to choose from in this space and the options start with a variety of engine sizes. Like a lot of the same choices you’d get with a pickup such as a 4.0-liter V6 or 5.6-liter V8. There’s even a 169-hp 4-cylinder on the market.

If you’re a florist or baker, you might want a more powerful engine to get perishable goods to where they’re going on time. The four-cylinder engine is better for your carbon footprint and reputation.

The V6 and V8 engines make more sense for contractors who need to haul trailers to the jobsite.

Payload Capacity

There are a few factors that go into what’s called the payload capacity. Whether you choose a low roof or a high roof model matters as does the wheelbase. The space that’s available inside is generally measured in cubic feet.

Here’s a general idea of what you should be looking for. The Ford transit is considered a benchmark for cargo vans with 487.3 cubic feet of space. You’ll need to carefully consider all these factors if you’ve got a small business painting homes. Transporting materials like scaffolding and paint cans take up a lot of room.

Best Work Trucks – Vans

Here’s a few of the industry leaders if you’re shopping for cargo vans.

Ford Transit

An industry leader for good reason. It can haul up to 4640 lbs and comes in three lengths and roof heights. Starting price is between $34,000 to $38,000.

Mercedes-Benz Sprinter

A turbo-diesel 3.0L V6 engine sets this one apart. You can also get the four-cylinder 2.0L version. The base price is between $35,000 and $50,000. More expensive than the competition, but this one doesn’t sacrifice or skimp on luxury.

Commercial Trucks

Then there’s the vehicles you’ll need a special license for. These include dump trucks, cement mixers and tractor-trailers. Flatbeds and even tankers are in this category.

You’ll need a commercial drivers’ license for these.

Image: Depositphotos.com

This article, "Best Work Trucks for Your Small Business" was first published on Small Business Trends