Anyone else like this out there?

[jhammel85]

I need some inspiration...and some space to rant / ramble

Has anyone else out there gotten burned out on their truck?

Things have been hitting me hard lately and I've been thinking about selling the truck I swore I never would. Not only because of working on it a lot lately but also because I've got a little boy and drive 60 miles a day. I feel like my Ranger is right on the practicality line. I really cannot see myself ever selling it....I just cant. I get about 19-20 mpg so gas is OK and my little dude loves driving in the truck. No more kids any time soon so really these two things arent too big of a deal..

Lately, I've been working on my daily driven 87 Ranger almost every weekend. As of late, I had to put in a new steering box and this week I got into a few other things, wheel bearings, lip seals and axle front axle outer U-Joints.

Well, things don't always go according to plan, especially on an old truck. I never got my spindle off yesterday (after lots of heating, beating and prying) and gave up. Put in my new bearings and called it a day. I'll get back to working on the spindle when I put new rotors and pads in soon.

Here's my current "to do" list Some of which isn't immediate but I really want it done. None of this would be a big deal if it wasn't for this truck being a daily driver:

- Rotors and brakes. No biggie
- Radiator has started to leak. Considering a 4.0 rad.
- valve cover gaskets. Leaking enough to leak on the ground now.
- Remove and weld new metal in two completely rotten body mounts.
- finish up roll pan. Needs some finishing of the rougher spots of the body work.
- Replace steering shaft and column. Tons of slack and bearing noise
- Find time to take care of the front axle u joints (not using 4x4 much anyway)
- Install my new to me wiring harness or splice in what I need
- Fix rust issues under the cowl, causing a leak inside the firewall. Firewall itself is pretty good but does have a hole or two.
- rust issues on back fenders. Needs new metal
- Paint on my bed liner
- paint entire truck.

I know most of this is the stuff you get with any car over time. It just sucks spending your weekend on this, working quick to make it in by Monday.

Well..Thanks for reading my rant.

 

[adsm08]

I've been there. Muddle through right now, put back a few dollars every week and keep an eye on CL. Find and buy yourself a cheap beater, an emergency car. It doesn't have to be fancy, it just has to stop and go, preferably all by itself. That way you have time to fix your truck when it breaks and you wont be half as stressed out about the things it needs.

That is why I firmly believe in always having 1 more vehicle than I do drivers in the house. I wasn't as worried about it when we lived in the city and could walk almost everywhere. Now that we are out in the country, I am fanatical about it. And given that I'm a professional grease monkey, with two late 80's RBVs, if I can't at least pretend one is driveable at any given time I have a big problem.



Here's an example of what I'm talking about:

http://southjersey.craigslist.org/cto/2961462520.html


He says the "ignition needs replaced". I assume he means the main switch in the column, those had a habit of burning up. I even have a good one in my tool box.

 

[Andy D]

Yah, I know the feeling, I was feeling it myself a few weeks ago. I had a clutch job take over 3 months and spill over into a brake job and a frame repair. One thing led to another. My BIL comes over and doesnt like the condition of the drive shaft, says the center support bearing is bad. I replaced the rear U-joint. The rest is OK for now. I had to draw the line on how far I was gonna go. It is a beat up 18 yr old Ford. Everything is worn out except the parts I keep adding. I "knew" that going in. But I never dreamed it was gonna be this bad. I got discouraged myself. I sucked it up and did a little bit every day after work. Even if it was just cleaning the mess. up. But if I needed it for transportation , I'd be hurting. My DDs are a pair of '88 528es and I have a work van.

Adsmn is right about a spare beater. It takes the pressure off .

 

[Twister]

I feel you pain. My 85 B2 crapped out on me in September after driving it for 2.5 years with a busted a4ld. So i bought an 87 B2 to drive while i fix my 85, drove it for a month only to find out the heads were cracked. So i decided to replace the heads because it ran good. Replacing the heads took me 4 months, it runs now but has problems. My brother is int he same situation with his 92 xj. He is always replacing parts, but doesn't have the money to buy a new vehicle.

 

[AllanD]

I need some inspiration...and some space to rant / ramble

Has anyone else out there gotten burned out on their truck?

Things have been hitting me hard lately and I've been thinking about selling the truck I swore I never would. Not only because of working on it a lot lately but also because I've got a little boy and drive 60 miles a day. I feel like my Ranger is right on the practicality line. I really cannot see myself ever selling it....I just cant. I get about 19-20 mpg so gas is OK and my little dude loves driving in the truck. No more kids any time soon so really these two things arent too big of a deal..

Lately, I've been working on my daily driven 87 Ranger almost every weekend. As of late, I had to put in a new steering box and this week I got into a few other things, wheel bearings, lip seals and axle front axle outer U-Joints.

Well, things don't always go according to plan, especially on an old truck. I never got my spindle off yesterday (after lots of heating, beating and prying) and gave up. Put in my new bearings and called it a day. I'll get back to working on the spindle when I put new rotors and pads in soon.

Here's my current "to do" list Some of which isn't immediate but I really want it done. None of this would be a big deal if it wasn't for this truck being a daily driver:

- Rotors and brakes. No biggie
- Radiator has started to leak. Considering a 4.0 rad.
- valve cover gaskets. Leaking enough to leak on the ground now.
- Remove and weld new metal in two completely rotten body mounts.
- finish up roll pan. Needs some finishing of the rougher spots of the body work.
- Replace steering shaft and column. Tons of slack and bearing noise
- Find time to take care of the front axle u joints (not using 4x4 much anyway)
- Install my new to me wiring harness or splice in what I need
- Fix rust issues under the cowl, causing a leak inside the firewall. Firewall itself is pretty good but does have a hole or two.
- rust issues on back fenders. Needs new metal
- Paint on my bed liner
- paint entire truck.

I know most of this is the stuff you get with any car over time. It just sucks spending your weekend on this, working quick to make it in by Monday.

Well..Thanks for reading my rant.

What I think you REALLY need is for someone to show you a better junkyard
than what you might be familiar with...

Trust me right now you are thinking "replace the spindle and FIX my Dana 28"

Someone showing you a better (cheaper) junkyard will make you switch to "REPLACE that Dana28 with a Dana35, problem solved..."

REPAIRING your truck is by definition depressing.

MODIFYING or UPGRADING your truck is "uplifting" (excuse the potential pun)

So when do you want to scheduel a guided trip to one of my favorite junkyards?

a Daytrip or weekend with Al's Junkyard Safaris will change your whole attitude
(LOL)

AD

 

[dangerranger83]

I feel the same way sometimes but I told myself I can't and will never sell my ranger. Last month I took the trans out to fix the bolts that hold the bell housing in and while there discovered that my clutch that was 2 years old need replacing due to that and then last week had to pull the trans again due to them coming out again, this time they were jb welded in.

I too hate thinking about if my truck will get me where I want plus it being my only vehicle. Between gettingmy v8 swap done, work stressing me out, planning a wedding for next year, spending time with my fiancee and family along with other things that just seem to pop up, it does give that feeling of just giving up on things sometimes. But I have learned to just take one thing at a time or do a little on each thing and I will be fine.

Sent from my SGH-T499 using Tapatalk 2

 

[Mac]

Yep, been there. For now, just concentrate on making it a good running, reliable truck. Worry about making it "pretty" when the time and money come around. Another one who live in the country so I have the 4x4 for Winter, the 4x2 for Summer and the Stang for nice Summer week-ends.
Dave of the Nord

 

[CHKNFKR]

I've never owned a vehicle that i didn't want to drive off a cliff at one point or another. do your best to keep it as reliable as possible without turning it into a money pit. later on down the road when the anger and frustration are gone go ahead and get back to the improvements and modifications.

 

[adsm08]

So when do you want to scheduel a guided trip to one of my favorite junkyards?

a Daytrip or weekend with Al's Junkyard Safaris will change your whole attitude
(LOL)

AD

Well, I don't have any money for anything but needed repairs to the vehicles in my truck budget until sometime after Ford Nationals, but I'd def be interested in on of them Safaris.

 

[appletonbill]

Yep, been there. For now, just concentrate on making it a good running, reliable truck. Worry about making it "pretty" when the time and money come around. Another one who live in the country so I have the 4x4 for Winter, the 4x2 for Summer and the Stang for nice Summer week-ends.
Dave of the Nord

Yup, that's what I've been doing lately. So far, new brake lines and brakes all around, new shocks in front, new leaf spring hangers and shackles and bushings (old ones were rusted out). Engine's running good, trans leaks a little but works fine. I just check once in awhile to make sure it's between the marks.

 

[hoosier1104]

My gf says my truck is a piece of shit all the time. My response to that is that it is MY piece of shit. I accept maintenance as part of vehicle ownership.

 

[CHKNFKR]

My gf says my truck is a piece of shit all the time. My response to that is that it is MY piece of shit. I accept maintenance as part of vehicle ownership.

call it what you will, but it's mine! rep to you sir!

 

[adsm08]

My gf says my truck is a piece of shit all the time. My response to that is that it is MY piece of shit. I accept maintenance as part of vehicle ownership.

Yours is nicer than most of the ones on here. No offense to your GF, but I'm thinking this is like the Ron White joke with the woman on the navy base. The truck may not be the shittiest thing in the equation.


My favorite part of truck "repairs" is when a nice mod takes the place of a frustrating repair. For example, I hate the gearing in my Ranger. Rear axle is open 7.5", 3.45 with 9" drums. And it's pooched out a hair.

I have a nice, fairly fresh, 31-spline 8.8 LS with 3.73 and disc brakes. Hmm, rebuild crappy axle, or replace with awesome axle.


I never did have to put drums on that truck though.

 

[brinker88]

I definitely feel the same way. A couple months before the gear swap, everything I could imagine DID go wrong. Had 2 head bolts fail on me making me do another head gasket taking up 8 hours of my time. Then my radius arm crossmember broke, taking the bushings with it. There's more but Im sure you get the drift

Im sure MOST people on this site have gone through what you're going through. When you have a truck that's 15 years or older, you have to expect shit to go wrong, and usually all at once. It's part of owning a truck and I've certainly come to expect the unexpected.

 

[dangerranger83]

My favorite part of truck "repairs" is when a nice mod takes the place of a frustrating repair.

This is exactly what I was thinking when it comes to my truck.