Pickup truck shopping

snuffy wrote: ↑

Fri. Mar. 10, 2023 6:41 pm

I'm debating selling my 2009 Tacoma base manual 5 spd 4cyl with 24,000 miles on it looking like showroom as it's 100% garage kept. KBB suggests a value of $13K, just about what I paid new. The only car I made more money on was a 68 Shelby KR - still regretting that sale!

Wow! That Tacoma would be impossible to replace.

They dont make regular cab tacomas anymore or base models with manual transmissions. You have to get a loaded up model if you want a manual tacoma.

lincolnmania wrote: ↑

Mon. Mar. 13, 2023 12:59 am

They dont make regular cab tacomas anymore or base models with manual transmissions. You have to get a loaded up model if you want a manual tacoma.

Yeah, when I got my Ranger it had no power steering, had a basic bench seat, a manual trans, no radio, no AC, etc. Basic base model. Saved 20-30% off the truck v their XLS model at the time...now the current XL looks like the XLS of the time I bought mine. And I could get my hands into the engine area to work on the engine much easier than with all that non-needed garbage.

I would have kept the truck except for property tax needing to be paid on it every year.

davidmcbeth3 wrote: ↑

Mon. Mar. 13, 2023 1:15 pm

Yeah, when I got my Ranger it had no power steering, had a basic bench seat, a manual trans, no radio, no AC, etc. Basic base model. Saved 20-30% off the truck v their XLS model at the time...now the current XL looks like the XLS of the time I bought mine. And I could get my hands into the engine area to work on the engine much easier than with all that non-needed garbage.

I would have kept the truck except for property tax needing to be paid on it every year.

My 84 ranger was a S model, no power steering no a/c and it had a 2.0 engine with a 4 speed manual... was slow as heck.

No property tax on vehicles here, just insurance and registration. I pay around 500 dollars a year for insurance on my 2 older cars and 2 trucks. if it were more wouldnt keep em.

When I ordered the 95 dakota sport in 1994 it was a better value to get the sport trim than the base model work truck. if you ever see a base model dakota of the 91-96 generation they were easy to spot they had sealed beam headlights instead of the composite ones. I wanted to get the v8 dakota but the insurance was going to be double of the v6 truck and it cost a lot more. also the 94 and 95 model had the same ax15 transmission with the v6 or the v8 and they werent holding up well to the youthful drivers. one of the dealer techs had a 94 dakota 5.2 manual and he blew the trans under warranty twice. the salesman who was a friend of ours assured me that i would break the trans with the 5.2 engine lol.

Looked at a new Dodge Cummins yesterday. $77,000. Guess I'll be driving my 2005 another 10 years.

lincolnmania wrote: ↑

Mon. Mar. 13, 2023 5:17 pm

My 84 ranger was a S model, no power steering no a/c and it had a 2.0 engine with a 4 speed manual... was slow as heck.

No property tax on vehicles here, just insurance and registration. I pay around 500 dollars a year for insurance on my 2 older cars and 2 trucks. if it were more wouldnt keep em.

When I ordered the 95 dakota sport in 1994 it was a better value to get the sport trim than the base model work truck. if you ever see a base model dakota of the 91-96 generation they were easy to spot they had sealed beam headlights instead of the composite ones. I wanted to get the v8 dakota but the insurance was going to be double of the v6 truck and it cost a lot more. also the 94 and 95 model had the same ax15 transmission with the v6 or the v8 and they werent holding up well to the youthful drivers. one of the dealer techs had a 94 dakota 5.2 manual and he blew the trans under warranty twice. the salesman who was a friend of ours assured me that i would break the trans with the 5.2 engine lol.

Thank goodness you missed the '83 Ranger with stamped sheet metal control arms.

I bought a new '88 Ranger 2wd standard cab long bed. XLT, but no A/C. $8000. 2.3 Lima MPFI 4 banger and 5 speed. A whole 80 hp, peak was 1900 rpm! They twin pugged the Lima a couple of year later and that got them to 100hp.

After I got the twin I-beam front suspension tweaked with eccentrics, it was aligned. Ford didn't give a hoot if they went out that way. Also upgraded the shocks. Fairly fat 70 series tires. Then it was a good handling truck. Took it on many long fishing and camping trips to Upper Maine, NH, Quebec and the UP Michigan. Also, a couple trips to far western NC. Loaded up with hundreds of pounds of gear and always a 16 ft. canoe on the top of the camper shell and cab. 25-26 mpg like that at 65mph. I will say that it had the highest quality paint job of any vehicle I ever owned. Well maybe except the white lacquer on the Desoto Firedome I had in the early 70's. The only thing I could pass on long uphill highway grades, were some of the early Dodge/Plymouth mini vans with 4 cylinders or too many kids.

4 years later, as I was getting very close to 60k mi., all sorts of sensors, intake and ignition parts started going. I actually got Ford to fix them all, mostly under the fed. emissions warranty. Then I traded it in.

Those LA V6 Dakotas must have been pretty good. A friend bought a new 4wd V6 Dakota in '87 or '88. He immediately went off on something like a 25k mi. trip to Alaska, then down the west coast into Mexico and home. He had that truck for a very long time and he wasn't a guy that worried so much about maintenance. I believe that the tin worm eventually got it.

fig wrote: ↑

Mon. Mar. 13, 2023 11:35 pm

Looked at a new Dodge Cummins yesterday. $77,000. Guess I'll be driving my 2005 another 10 years.

I lucked out with a 4 yr old GMC for 13K right before prices went crazy. Got a huge discount because it was a regular cab. Probably the last truck ill ever buy with todays insane prices. I can buy a nice house where i live for $77K.

fig wrote: ↑

Mon. Mar. 13, 2023 11:35 pm

Looked at a new Dodge Cummins yesterday. $77,000. Guess I'll be driving my 2005 another 10 years.

You would probably be disappointed with the reliability of a modern diesel anyway. The days of running hundreds of thousands of miles with minimal repairs are over. Everyone I know with a modern diesel pickup seems to be driving a loaner half the time while the dealer tries to figure out the latest problem with the emissions system.

When truck shopping something to keep in mind is the amount of weight you intend to haul in the bed. A lot of people look at the towing ratings, and see that the diesel powered trucks have a much higher rating. That is true - but many do not notice that the payload rating of a diesel powered truck is less than the same truck with a gas engine. This is particularly important if you plan to use the truck for plowing snow. The plow puts a lot of weight on the front axle, and a sander on the back can max it out quickly.

Typically a 2wd truck with a regular cab and a gas engine will have the highest payload rating. 4 wheel drive, bigger cabs, and heavier engines are all at the expense of payload.

e.g. I looked at the manual for my Ram 2500 and noted that a 2wd gas truck has double the payload rating of a Megacab 4x4 with the Cummins.

I just got a trailer and hook it up to the car now v. a truck.

What can a truck do that a trailer cannot for the average person ?

Unless your in a business where a truck makes life much more convenient a trailer is a good option to consider.

An average person can’t backup a trailer, or properly hook one up, so there’s that.

Assuming you have a proper rig to tow, a trailer can do nearly everything a pickup normally gets used for.

I suck at backing trailers lol. My dad was a e7 in a transportation unit in the army reserve and he sucked at backing trailers too lol.

Couple trucks going to see
2018 f-150 xl regular cab short bed. 2wd v6 automatic, red with grey interior, looks like new. has the chrome appearance package and nice wheels. 115,000 miles, carfax shows oil changes every 5,000 miles in PA. and IL. going by that mostly highway mileage. most maintenance is in PA. they are asking 16,400. This truck can legally haul over a ton of coal going by the base weight and gvwr.

2009 ram 1500 laramie loaded to the max heated and cooled seats, 4 dr 4x4 5.7 hemi with 209,000 miles. no rust in the pictures. they are asking 9,400, truck is real clean in the pictures. not sure about the hemi variable displacement or the 16 spark plugs. no carfax on this one, i would have to order one for 39.95. autocheck shows no maintenance records.

2014 nissan frontier 2wd king cab. 4 cyl automatic 181,000 miles, white. carfax shows regular oil changes. it's a used fleet truck. i could pay cash for this one, they are asking 5900. payload is only 1100 pounds

snuffy wrote: ↑

Fri. Mar. 10, 2023 6:41 pm

I'm debating selling my 2009 Tacoma base manual 5 spd 4cyl with 24,000 miles on it looking like showroom as it's 100% garage kept. KBB suggests a value of $13K, just about what I paid new. The only car I made more money on was a 68 Shelby KR - still regretting that sale!

$11,500 for this 07 near me. 4.5x the mileage of yours.
https://www.mycarcorner.com/details/used-2007-toy ... a/92379708

Put a deposit on a 2011 Ford F150 stx 4x4 extended cab today.
It's got the 3.7 v6 and 6 speed automatic and I think 3.55 rear. 126,000 miles on it, a lot of highway, it's had maintenance in pennsylvania, arizona, and montana, the carfax also shows regular oil changes.
surface rust on the frame and undercarriage, did not see any rot. Paint has some fading on top and it's got some scratches.
it's a lot like my sons truck.
It was traded Saturday afternoon, they have to go over it before I can drive it.

I have an 05 GMC with a Duramax LLY. No trouble until this month when the fuel injector control module (ficm) failed. This part is no longer available from GM or any part suppliers. Options are scrap yard parts which are few and pricey, $2,000+ or remove and send to a rebuilder, 4 to 8 week turn. Just looked at a ficm on amazon for a 7.3 Ford powerstroke for $54.95. I've been a GM man all my life, but maybe it's time to leave. Never should have bailed them out.