All that and more.
Posted on 06/12/2011 8:22:40 AM PDT by nhwingut
Didn't actually need a one ton, but need more than a 1/2 ton. But now that I got the tried and true 5.7 tuned and tinkered with, I get 12-14 city and almost 18 freeway if I try hard. Close enough. My little 93 s-10 with a 4.3 v-6 barely beats those numbers. I never have to ask "Can I pull that?"
Besides...the extra I spend in fuel to drive a truck is more than made up in vehicle resale value years down the road.
That motor will go at least 250 or 300,000. The tranny will get a minor rebuild at 200 grand...rather than waiting for it to fail first...with me pulling and putting the tranny back the minor rebuild costs me $250. Average rebuild after failiure costs me anywhere from $600-800. That's my price. I can get a factory rebuild tranny with a year warranty for $1800.
I can get the motor new in a crate with a year warranty for $1600. I can install it myself in a weekend. I will have it bought by next spring. The first time the original motor shows any sign of upcoming death, it will be snatched out and replaced. While the new crate motor pulls it's duty, I will rebuild the original.
In ten or twenty years time, with a fresh motor, tranny, and paint job that truck will still bring more than I paid for it. It will still be functioning pretty close to the same level as it did new. Guy across the street has a bone stock 71 chevy 1500 LWB. He has the dealer sticker...$1500 new. He could easily get $4000 for the truck. Although, I do not intend to ever sell it, I plan to pass it to my grandson or another boy in the family.
I like Ford trucks. If I ever buy new again...it will be a ford. Love my best friend's 2007 F-250 Powerstroke. Very plush inside, nice detail and finish, love the motor. Very responsive, and pulling a 16' double axle enclosed trailer everyday gets much better mileage than his previous gas powered F-250.
Bad thing is two minor problems required a dealer visit. One was caused by a bad connection in the fuel injection wiring at a molex(White Plastic molded plug)connector junction. I encounter those failures all the time in my trade repairing commercial floor cleaning equipment. Over time, the female side of the connector springs open some. A meter lead quickly bends them back where they'll keep tension. Most of the time, especially if the machine is owned by an independent, I tell them to have a nice day.
Bad thing for my friend was...his bad molex plug was located under the valve covers. To fix this problem Ford damn well knew would occur, the book labor was 8 hours...$500 labor to change a $100 "Fuel Injection wiring harness assy."(That prolly cost ford $5.00 to make).
His other minor problem also had to do with the circuit controlling the fuel injectors, I forget exactly, but it cost $500 part and labor.
His oil change runs $85.00. His starter is $300 or so. There is nothing cheap or easy on that truck to repair, and when the motor fails, he will not be able to easily replace it with the exact same motor.
If I had the capitol, I would get rich providing what detroit refuses to, a plain jane work truck that the working man can afford. Used to, trucks were cheaper than cars. Now, every other self employed contractor out there thinks they need the "cadillac" high dollar, fancy trucks to show their status. Now there's was more attention paid to this market than just plain work trucks and it drives the prices up across the board.
I'm not hatin...by no means. I'm just saying...Give America a hard built, hard working truck with a bullet proof powertrain with a history and a parts network. Make the exterior and interior spartan but tough. Make the outside of the truck look like it could take a shot or two. Make the floorboard car wash wand friendly. Gimme two window handles, manual locks, and a simple Off-Lo-Hi Windshield wiper switch. Only luxuries would be a cockstrong Heat/AC system, extra power outlets, and prewiring-hole cutout for modern electronics/stereo. Oh, and I almost forgot, bring back the little triangle vent windows, pull handle fresh air openings in the floor, and a sliding rear window(I actually would give in to the luxury of an electrically operated back window here)because the type of man that would buy this kind of truck loves the fresh air those things provided back before air conditioning was standard.
Build a truck to those specs. Only offer two options...gas or diesel...manual or automatic. No 4 wheel drive. No different bed sizes....all LWB. All would be 4 door 4 seater trucks. All would come in white on black.
No dealerships or salesmen. No fancy advertising or marketing. You bring your own financing or money. If it fails under the warranty period, take to any commercial truck mechanic, warranty pays the labor. No need for brand specific trained techs. No need for expensive yearly all data updates.
I see no reason why these trucks couldn't be built in a right to work state and sold for around a $15,000 price point tops. I see no reason why the concept would do anything but succeed. I'm basing the whole concept just like companies that produce quality, commercial grade tools. They don't advertise. They don't chase after you...they let the quality of their product do the selling. And a work truck is a tool. I count on it just as much as I do my other tools to do it's job every day.
Like Klein tools, the trucks would sell themselves.
And to finish, if I am in a position to hire a contractor, and have two equally qualified to choose from, if one of those is driving a fancy $50,000 cadillac work truck, and the other is driving a spartan but decent well kept work truck, I'm picking the guy who showed the most business sense. Not hatin...just saying.
>>only Nissan and Toyota are down, and I bet that’s supply related.
Even Japanese cars/pickups that are made in America with substantial U.S. content are having trouble due to supply chain problems due to the earthquake/tsunami caused problems like electricity shortages, just to make it explicit. As an educated guess, I expect key components like Engine Control Units and In-Car Electronics get sourced from Japan, even if most of the big stuff gets made here.
>>only Nissan and Toyota are down, and I bet that’s supply related.
Even Japanese cars/pickups that are made in America with substantial U.S. content are having trouble due to supply chain problems due to the earthquake/tsunami caused problems like electricity shortages, just to make it explicit. As an educated guess, I expect key components like Engine Control Units and In-Car Electronics get sourced from Japan, even if most of the big stuff gets made here.
Another way of expressing the numbers: The GM annual sales of Volts is exceeded by Ford with its F-Series trucks IN LESS THAN EIGHT HOURS.
The Mini-Van wheelchair accessible will work for the chair but not our roads or driveway. To accomplish making a mini van usable they must lower the floorboard to where it clears the road by about 5-6 inches or less. A Dodge Sprint cargo van is still beyond my budget even the used ones. I even started looking at used transport buses {20 passanger type} as well.
It took me nearly a month to find a suitable used van. Dear Leaders Cash for Clunkers program and EPA gas mileage requirements likely made the search even harder. One vehicle or one style does not fit all.
I'd like to buy a brand new 1978 era Chevy K-5 Blazer brand new if I could. The next best thing to a tank. Built solid, reliable, and dependable. THanks to EPA and other government agencies they are no more. They were among the best trucks ever built.
I've had two from the 78 era and loved them. K-5's were very solid trucks.
Tell me about it. I favor diversity.
Ask Zer0 just how many golf clubs he needs and then have him sacrifice to keep just one.
Not exactly a pick-up, but I got an 11 year old Ford Sport Track. 70K miles. It gets 1 highway and 0 city. I’m gonna try to keep it for another 10 years.
I remember those beasts. Our Republic is fading fast.
You’re right, the Scout was a very good vehicle. Even so it never garnered the enthusiam and popularity of the Early Bronco. Perhaps because it was so underpowered?????? Still a solid vehicle and relatively inexpensive to operate.... with classic boxy good looks....
Please! He IS the President, even if unlawfully, and he deserves the proper form of adress.
Jennifer Lopez is J-Lo, and Alex Rodriguez is A-Rod.
Accordingly, it would seem that Barrack H. Obama should be referred to as B-Ho, pronounced bee-hoe.
President Eisenhower was Ike, and Lyndon Johnson was LBJ, and so now we have B-ho to follow in their footsteps.
All that and more.
Where I work a pick-up truck symbolized a blue collar worker who is no longer in a union and no longer in love with what the Dems represent.
You can, but you may not be able to run it in New Jersey.
hahahaha
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