 sj |
||
|
||
Help: Beater Truck
|
|
|
Subject: Beater Truck From: GUEST,LynnT Date: 11 Apr 02 - 02:27 PM With the range of expertise available on this website, I figured there's no better place to go for help. I appreciate your insights and advice. As folks in the DC area know, besides being a longtime lurker here and an average shantysinger, I'm also an avid (and far more expert) gardener, with a specialty in historic gardening (wanna know what they grew in 13th-century England or 10th-century Spain? Just ask! You'll be sorry!). I've decided that the time has come to give my poor Corolla station wagon a rest and buy a used pickup truck -- something big enough to carry a front-end-loader's worth of manure or mulch, or enough stone to edge a good-size bed, but definitely not new -- I only have $3 to $5K to spend. I've checked Consumer Reports and done some other homework, and now I've just started looking at specific models. I'd originally been drawn to Ford Rangers (I'm only 5 feet tall, and they seem just my size) but I've just tried out a 1989 Chevy S10, and while it still seems big, it may do the job.
The questions?
Lynn T |
|
Subject: RE: Help: Beater Truck From: Midchuck Date: 11 Apr 02 - 02:54 PM If you were smart enough to have a Corolla wagon, why switch brands when you want a pickup? Every Toyota ever built rusted out before it had any serious mechanical breakdowns. So just find a Toyota pickup without too much rust yet. Hopefully one that's had the hot-oil undercoating that is so terrible for the goddam environment, but actually works to prevent rust. IMO. Peter. |
|
Subject: RE: Help: Beater Truck From: Dicho (Frank Staplin) Date: 11 Apr 02 - 03:21 PM My daughter, for 4 years, has had a Mazda pickup she loves. Has extended cab and a reasonable box. Smaller than the usual GMC and Chev 1/2 and 3/4 tons that I have used and am familiar with, but it seems to get the job done. She has a home in the Rocky Mt. foothills, and finds it is good at getting through snow. |
|
Subject: RE: Help: Beater Truck From: GUEST,Chip A. Date: 11 Apr 02 - 03:22 PM What Midchuck said. Or a Datsun/Nissan. If you are GOOD with a standard shift, then go with that. If you tend to be hard on clutches, go with an automatic but go easy. They ain't cheap to fix! An older truck with a "tow package" may already have pulled its' guts out for the guy who ordered it that way in the first place. I shy away from vehicles with a trailer hitch unless I know what kind of work it had to do. If the body is beat to pieces, the mechanicals probably are too. Try to find one that shows some signs of care in cleanliness and other externals. Chances are it's had some regular mechanical care too. Keep us posted on this adventure! Chip |
|
Subject: RE: Help: Beater Truck From: GUEST,LynnT Date: 11 Apr 02 - 03:51 PM Ordinarily I'd agree with you about Toyotas, MidChuck, but Consumer Reports really hates Toyota pickups -- for design, not durability -- and the one I drove seemed topheavy; it tilted oddly going around curves whether loaded or not, much the way an Explorer does. Could have been the suspension on that particular one, but I've noticed that the Tacomas do seem tall for their wheelbase. Many thanks for the rest of your comments; looking forward to more input! Lynn |
|
Subject: RE: Help: Beater Truck From: Bobert Date: 11 Apr 02 - 04:08 PM LynnT: Beater's and the D.C. area don't mix because of the dreaded "Emissions" laws that the beater must pass in order to pass in order to be registered and most beater trucks won't pass. Now, if you didn't really mean beater, in the strictest sense, but a truck in general, then the Toyota trucks are the best. The beds, however, are only 6 1/2 feet long. If that's not a problem, then try to find one with a 22R 4 cyl. engine. You might also want to get a cap for it since most plants don't like being all blown around but the caps are easy to find and sometimes free. The Ranger trucks are cheaper but don't go as far as the Toyotas but if you don't plan on racking up a lot of miles, then one with around 100,000 miles with a V-6 engine will rpobably do you just fine. This also goes for the Chev S-10 and GMC s-15's. Avoid all small Dodge trucks, Mazda and Nissan trucks. The Volkswagen Rabbit trucks are good, however. In addition to knowing trucks, I am also an avid gardener and live in your area (Harpers Ferry) so if you have any specific questions about trucks, or would like my mechanic to do a prepurchase inspection on one you have found, PM me.... Bobert |
|
Subject: RE: Help: Beater Truck From: Irish sergeant Date: 11 Apr 02 - 04:10 PM Hi Lynn; I don't own a pick up but as vehicles go my Dodge Spirit is 10 years old has 94,000 miles on it and is still going strong. Ford ranger seems to be fairly reliable according to my friends who have owned them. Unless you're pulling stumps or have other reasons for a towing package I personally would stay away from them just for the wear factor on the truck. I spent 4 years stationed at Patuxent River Maryland, which is 70 or so miles south east of D.C. and i never had Air conditioning in either of the two vehicles I had there. I found the "Armstrong 260" A/C worked the best (Use the arm to roll down the two windows and drive sixty miles an hour) (Yeah, I know it is a bad joke.) I bel;ieve that a Ford ranger will carry a payloeader bucket full of manure but don't quote me on that. As to Automatic or standard. I prefer automatic but it is a highly personal choice. If you are at ease with standard, go with it. Meanwhile, have a lovely weekend and kindest regards, Neil |
|
Subject: RE: Help: Beater Truck From: Jenny the T Date: 11 Apr 02 - 04:29 PM Lynn, I owned a Ranger for about six years. It was a fine little truck, and I wish I still had it. I don't know if they're 'made to self-destruct at a certain age,' but my advice is to be wary of the four-cylinder models from the late 80's. Mine very inconveniently swallowed its camshaft at right around 100,000 miles, due to a known defect with that engine--deteriorating valve guide bushings. As the guides broke up, the pieces found their way into the oil reservoir. From there, they progressively interfered with the oil pump, till the whole thing froze. If you're looking at one with that engine, try to find out if the valve guides have been replaced. My mechanic told me it was a known problem and had been the subject of a recall. Apparently the previous owner didn't hear of it, or didn't respond. After an overhaul, it ran great, and as far as I know, still is. What's involved in the 'towing package?' These light trucks have a bumper hitch as standard equipment, seemingly; at least all the Rangers and S-10's I've seen do. The bumper hitch is fine for towing a small, light trailer, but these little trucks aren't large enough to drag around anything that's very heavy. Mine had air as well as the hitch; there was no tradeoff there. If I lived in your climate, I'd definitely go with the air. Also, if you go with an extended cab, you'll be getting a short bed. If you need a long bed, you have to go with a short cab. From this, I gather that there's no big difference between the chassis types. And so, finally: what were they growing in 13th century England, then? JtT |
|
Subject: RE: Help: Beater Truck From: Gypsy Date: 11 Apr 02 - 05:30 PM The handsome mando player in my life was a mechanic for 15 years. The toyota, with the 22R is what you want. For bigger loads, go for a 6 cylinder, like the Tacoma. We've had ours (4 cylinder) for many years. For bigger loads with a 4, get a trailer. Far easier to load and off load as well. I pay attention to what consumers report says most of the time, but Toyotas are the way to go, hands down. Oh yeah, you can pull a better load with a standard tranny than an auto, as a rule. |
|
Subject: RE: Help: Beater Truck From: Amos Date: 11 Apr 02 - 09:29 PM Toyota trucks run forever; and the ones I've drivennever seemed difficult at all to control. My Corrolla SW has 120K on it and it isn't breaking a sweat yet. Just another 2 cents' worth -- or p'raps a bit less.:>) A |
|
Subject: RE: Help: Beater Truck From: GUEST,jonesey Date: 11 Apr 02 - 10:00 PM Hello LynnT, I've a '90 Mazda B2600i. It's been reliable and steadfast. It's a 3sp. auto w/overdrive. Had an '86 B2000LX 5sp-manual. Both trucks have been real blessings. However, I'm a window cleaner and rarely haul any sort of payload. Would recommend for the money you get at least a V or straight six if you're going to haul soil, stone, etc. The 4 cyl.s labor too hard under load(my Dad was a mechanic and I listened over the years). If possible, get an 8 cyl., but it will most likely have to be older than you may want to go. I paid 3500 for my current truck w/68,000 mile and it now has 109,000 and going strong. |
|
Subject: RE: Help: Beater Truck From: JohnInKansas Date: 12 Apr 02 - 12:43 AM Virtually all of the vehicles mentioned here are in the "mini-truck" category. Most of these are "rated" for "quarter ton" payload, or about 500 pounds. The "rated load" includes fuel and passengers, along with what you put in the back end. Experience shows that you can go "way beyond what it says on the post," but a front loader will typically drop 800 to 1200 pounds of topsoil (or fertilizer) on you, if you don't show some restraint. You can get 3/4 ton rated vehicles in the same "body styles," but they don't look much different on the outside. (In some model/year combinations, you might find a 1 ton.) You need to check the load rating plate that's usually mounted to the door frame - frequently on the back post at the drivers door. This will tell you what load the vehicle is intended to carry, and also what tire size and inflation it should use. Factory equipment for trailering sometimes includes a beef-up of some suspension components, and often a different tire size or ply rating. The information on the doorpost should show what the vehicle is good for including any factory mods. Trailering packages sometimes also include a higher ratio rear-end unit, but it can be very difficult to tell what's installed there unless you know, or can look up, specific part numbers. I have friends who insist that Ford is no longer an acronym for "Found On Road Dead" or even "Fix Or Repair Daily." I once had a friend who bragged that his Ford would run with more things wrong with it than anything else on the road. The stock answer to that was "It always has more things wrong with it than anything else on the road." I think they've improved a lot lately. Smart shoppers - especially for cheap transport, will NOT look for a brand name. The specific individual vehicle and it's current condition is all that matters. (Well, there is "What kind of deal will you cut me?") John |
|
Subject: RE: Help: Beater Truck From: Rolfyboy6 Date: 12 Apr 02 - 01:07 AM What Bobert said. I own and operate one 20 years old. Best truck since my 1965 Ford F-100. |
|
Subject: RE: Help: Beater Truck From: GUEST,Billy Date: 12 Apr 02 - 02:18 AM I've only had one toyota - a Corolla - it is the only vehicle I have ever seen to have the engine valves split open on two different cylinders. I had a 1985 Chevvy S10 Blazer that the transmission (auto) blew out at 70k miles, then the motor at 105k. I have a 1996 Chevvy Tahoe where the transmission failed and was replaced at 48k miles. My 1991 Ford Explorer is still running on the original motor and transmission (auto) at 151k miles and has never rolled over. It uses a quart of oil in 3,000 miles. I now have a 2001 Chevvy Tahoe, I have no idea how long it will go without serious problems. |
|
Subject: RE: Help: Beater Truck From: Jock Morris Date: 12 Apr 02 - 06:44 AM Now if only you were in the UK then it would have to be an old Land Rover; unfortunately there aren't that many of them over in the US. My 16 year old Landy is still going strong with 154,000 miles on the clock. Scott |
|
Subject: RE: Help: Beater Truck From: GUEST,LynnT Date: 12 Apr 02 - 03:43 PM Great input, folks! By "beater" I mean a used truck costing less than the $4K max I have to spend -- it's OK if the appearance is a bit lacking so long as it has the cargo capacity and the engine to do what I need. Good point about the weight of the payload, JohnInKansas -- I've only been willing to consider 6-cyl trucks/the larger of whatever engine that model offered for just that reason. Thanks for the additional suggestion; now I'll start looking at 3/4 tonners. I don't intend (now) to haul a trailer, but as you say the organics I DO intend to carry will weigh a considerable amount themselves -- I just didn't know how much! I've discarded several possibilities because they had short beds -- I'm buying this critter as a cargo hauler; anything short can still ride in the wagon. Chevy has a specifically-designed "towing package" for their trucks that includes heavy-duty suspension, extra ventilation for the engine, a bigger v-6 engine to start with, steel bumpers, and a few other items I can't recall. One particular truck a coworker has for sale is a 1989 Chevy S10 6-cyl automatic with this tow package but no AC. She's an engineer, so it's been meticulously maintained. It's got about 120K miles on it. She wants $5K, which struck me as way high for a 13-year-old vehicle, until I ran the specs through the calculator on cars.com -- which says she's only about $500 too high (go figure!). Other trucks for sale in the area have been about the same price for six-year-old five-speed V-6s with AC -- but they don't have the towing enhancement. It's still more than I wanted to spend, but I may bite the bullet. What do you think? Did they make 'em that much better back then? Hey Bobert, come visit me in Lanham and we can swap plants -- what do you like to grow? Want some mertonensis foxgloves, chelone (turtlehead), or reblooming irises? Or cuttings of 17th-century roses? Do you know about gardenweb.com and the MidAtlantic Plant Swap set for May 18th at Centennial Park in Columbia? And have you dipped into their Plant Swap forum? I've traded lowly vinca (I was gonna grub it out and compost it before I thought of offering it up for trade) for cool stuff like hardy fuschia and variegated red-twig dogwood. Who knew? What did they grow in the 13th century, Jenny? Well, all sorts of things they brought back from the Middle East in the aftermath of the Crusades, including pheasant-eye daffodils. This was the second major expansion of gardening resources; the first was in the 800's under Charlemagne, who published in his Capitularii de Villi (Rules for City Management) a list of 250 beneficial plants all city rulers ought to ensure were grown on their lands, ranging from roses (used medicinally) to madonna lilies (which are both edible and useful as a wound poultice). In the 1200's Europeans started not only growing a number of Oriental plants such as lychnis (not called Crusader's Cross for no reason), but adopted Arabic styles of garden such as square walled gardens with raised beds, arbors around the edges, four streams dividing the garden into quadrants, and a central fountain/pool. Look at Bocaccio's Decameron for a lovely period description, the Kubbeh (Arabic for 4-sided, as in the Ka'abah in Mecca). They also learned new techniques such as more advanced grafting; now you start to see rose arbors in French manuscripts with more than one color of bloom on the bush -- that's the result of doing hundreds of grafts each Spring, another form of conspicuous consumption for the rich. They didn't have tulips yet, though; those were first sent back to Holland from Turkey in the 1500s. Cool stuff, no? OK, so I'll start looking at Toyotas too; as you say, my 1981 wagon has 180K on it and has only needed new axles, a new clutch and new struts -- told you I haul way too much weight in the poor thing... Lynn |
|
Subject: RE: Help: Beater Truck From: Dicho (Frank Staplin) Date: 12 Apr 02 - 04:45 PM There was something in the paper a while back about Mexico lfting its tax or ban on older pickup trucks. The writer speculated that the demand would drive up the prices. Don't really know the truth of the matter. Could be true for the SW states but not farther from the border. Always a good idea to pay a mechanic to check it over before you firm the deal. $75 or so spent here could save you a bundle later. I was buying an old car as a second vehicle. Five minutes on the rack and the mechanic showed me about a thousand dollars worth of trouble. |
|
Subject: RE: Help: Beater Truck From: Bobert Date: 12 Apr 02 - 06:38 PM LynnT GUEST: PM me with your email address and we'll talk plants and trucks, but don't pay a lot of money for an 89 S-10. It sounds like a $1500 truck to me, regardless of equipment. If you haven't done PM's just click back to where all the threads are listed and go to the top and you'll figure it out. |
|
Subject: RE: Help: Beater Truck From: Gypsy Date: 12 Apr 02 - 07:13 PM And, remember to run the VIN thru CARFAX, for 15$ or so they will tell you the complete mechanical history....particularly if it is salvage from a flood, major wreck, etc. Oh yeah, remember to factor in the cost of FUEl on a 6 or 8 cylinder. Petrol will only go up, and you will have to consider if your customers will pay the increased cost that you will need to pass on. We had a V6 chevvy, it ATE the fuel. |
|
Subject: RE: Help: Beater Truck From: Bobert Date: 14 Apr 02 - 12:24 PM LynnT: Yeah, I'm interested in almost anything that will live in Zone6-B that is somewhat unusual. All I have an abundance of the trade right now is Tooth Wart, May Apples and Jack in the Pulpits. Also have 1992 Ford Ranger with V-6, standard Trans and air for $2500. My email address is pvine764@earthlink.net. Bobert
|
|
Subject: RE: Help: Beater Truck From: Willie-O Date: 14 Apr 02 - 07:59 PM There's some near-misinformation been put here. Ford Rangers and Mazda B-series trucks have been exactly the same vehicle starting in the 1993 model year, so from that point on anyone who gives different opinions about therelative virtues or vices of these "two" vehicles is not making sense. Judging from what I've seen of late 80's S10's (rust, mechanical failure, and more rust), I'd look elsewhere. I am extremely happy with my 94 Mazda B-4000. A great, very solid and quite economical vehicle considering it has the largest V6 available for the model line (4 litre--Mazda trucks are named for displacement, thus the B-2200 and B-2600 are fourbangers and the B3000 and B4000 are sixes.) I would seriously question the accuracy of any suggestion that Toyotas are likely to last longer; these merged-series Mazda/Fords have double wall construction, and the only thing I've had to fix in 100,000km (it's now at 210k km and I drive it 200 km a day) is to get a new muffler. (Oh yeah, Be at the upper end of your price range but should be in there. (I paid $9000 Cdn, =$6000 US three years ago, and its an extra-cab). Definitely worth looking at the 93's and later Ranger or Mazda for a long term vehicle you won't regret. And any talk of a 500 pound payload is just not on. Its a half-ton. More a mid-size than a mini-truck. If you're really planning on loading it down, spend a couple hundred to get extra leaf springs installed on the back. You don't need the towing package. Unless you're going to tow a lot and have the automatic. Anyway, it's a used truck. You buy the best deal that comes along, you don't get to specify options. Objectively ;)=
|
|
Subject: RE: Help: Beater Truck From: 53 Date: 14 Apr 02 - 11:07 PM My son has a 1992 GMC pickup that he just loves. He can take that old heap almost anywhere. |
| Share Thread: |