Jump to content

An old truck


Dottleshead

Recommended Posts

I am thinking about buying a used pickup truck as a second car.  As many of you may know, wifey and I are in the process of buying a new home in an area that neither one of us have a lot of contracts with and being able to haul crap around is going to be important.  But I'd also like to use it so I can leave it safely at a Park & Ride lot and not worry about anyone breaking into it -- cuz there's nothing in it worth stealing -- and it's too old and not sexy enough to take on it's own.  An older truck totally seems to fit the bill here.  The drawback, of course, is that trucks are notorious for getting poor gas mileage and an older model definitely is not going to help this cause and I worry some about repairs.  I probably can get a 'decent' one for about 3-4 thousand price range but the cost of ownership could be quite high.

What do you guys/gals think?  Is an old truck worth it?  Are they lemons mechanically?  Gas guzzlers?  Which make/model would you recommend (OMG I just started a religious war)?  My old man has a 2002 Ford Ranger that would work but he won't sell it to me.  It's just a basic standard cab 2WD which is all I really need cuz -- you know -- I'm just hauling crap around... and parking in in unsavory parking areas.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If all you're doing is hauling stuff around and parking it, gas mileage should not be an issue.  There are lots of old codgers that have pickups that are old with low mileage.  Just remember when buying used - you are buying miles not age.  You should be able to fine one in good shape with low miles - just wait for one of those old buggers to die or hit a gate.  Obituaries are a good place to find real estate and old vehicles.  You just have to know how to work the system...... 

  • Heart 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

with a truck you trade gas mileage for being able to hit cars that get good mileage and not even crack your headlight

Like I helicoptered that stupid deer last month and no damage to the truck at all.

  • Heart 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I would look at an older Nissan Frontier or Toyota Tacoma or Ford Ranger / Mazda B2000.  Small four cylinder, two wheel drive.   The original Toyota pick up was awesome, but those are getting really old. 

My Chevy with the standard engine gets around 18 in the city and mid 20s on the highway.

avg  50.jpgavg 400.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 minute ago, Kzoo said:

And it has split folding seats.  It doesn't get any better than that.

 

Yep.  Perfect.  Only problem is that's a v6.  4 would be better for girly men like me.  Cuz, you know, there's a direct relationship between the size of one's penis and the number of pistons in one's truck. Jsharr would be considered truly macho w/ his truck but the fact that he's a Cowboys fan negates all of that.

  • Heart 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 minute ago, dotman17 said:

Yep.  Perfect.  Only problem is that's a v6.  4 would be better for girly men like me.  Cuz, you know, there's a direct relationship between the size of one's penis and the number of pistons in one's truck. Jsharr would be considered truly macho w/ his truck but the fact that he's a Cowboys fan negates all of that.

I have the smallest one they offered.  

 

 

Same holds true for my truck.  Base V6 that will go to V4 as needed.

  • Heart 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

what you need to look for is an old 70s or 80s workhorse like a Chevy S10. Ford's that old all have bad rust, that's why they make them now with aluminum bodies...they never could figure out how to keep them from rusting out

but a shop truck that runs decent might cost more like 7k or 8K

 

Cash for Clickers really fucked us out of a lot of these sort of vehicles, though

  • Heart 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

10 minutes ago, Nate said:

Dotty's looking to spend 3 or 4 grand. I think he's talking used, bruised and abused

That's exactly what I'm looking for.  As jsharr mentioned... a 2WD + 4 cyclinder would be best probably.  My guess I'd be using it probably once a month or slightly more to haul crap around and the rest of the time to bum around locally and park at the transit lots.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

20 minutes ago, Road Runner said:

They don't make them anymore.  Not since about 2010.  Unless you were talking used.

They still sell the ranger in the Caribbean. I think they plan to bring them back here in 17 or 18

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Retiring Single

Here’s the list of the 10 most stolen cars from all model years taken during 2013, according to the NICB, with total units cited:

  1. Honda Accord, 53,995
  2. Honda Civic, 45,001
  3. Chevrolet Silverado, 27,809
  4. Ford F-150, 26,494
  5. Toyota Camry, 14,420
  6. Dodge/Ram Pickup, 11,347
  7. Dodge Caravan, 10,911
  8. Jeep Cherokee/Grand Cherokee, 9,272
  9. Toyota Corolla, 9,010
  10. Nissan Altima, 8,892

http://www.forbes.com/sites/jimgorzelany/2014/08/18/the-most-stolen-new-and-used-cars-in-america/#7ecc6460221b

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Neighbor bought a 67 Ford F100 for $100. He cleaned up the outside with a pressure wash. The shifting was a little funky. But his 16 y/o daughter was tooling around the hood hauling friends in the bed. 

He traded it for a Jeep or something. 

Woulda been perfect for hauling all the roof tear off you got to do

  • Heart 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Nate said:

there's your answer, Dottie....go steal ya a Chevy Silverado!

 

1 hour ago, Parr8hed said:

See?  That's why I was thinking a 2WD 4 cylinder Ranger because nobody gives a damn about them, nobody wants them, they haul whimpy household and lawn mower type of shit around, and you can leave them in Park & Rides hassle free because nobody is going to be breaking into them.  And if somebody steels it, the insurance money would make it a lot easier, honestly, than having to sell the damn thing myself.  :P

Link to comment
Share on other sites

21 minutes ago, Nate said:

yea, that's probably out of your price range, dottie

a 1960s F100 fully restored and done in resale red....that's a $20,000 truck all day long

The ex was driving her father 63 f-100 when we first met.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Further said:

If rust isn't an issue S10's run forever with minimal maintenance. My last one was a '98 with 4 cyl 5 speed standard, got high 20's milage. Had 140 some miles on it, ran perfect and was full of rust holes.  

Yes, I know a guy who bought one for Ed Zachary that same porpoise and he really likes it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

6 hours ago, petitepedal said:

My 86 S-10 was v6...but it came down with engine problems...my second S-10 was awesome...and I should have hung on to it a bit longer...I think it was a 95...the last truck was a 1999 GMC Sonoma (S-10) I got it in 2004 I think.......

I heard the other day Ford is gonna make the Ranger again....

Bronco was what I heard but that does't mean that it will be anything other than name like the original.  Could just be another gold plated SUV.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...