• Welcome Visitor! Please take a few seconds and Register for our forum. Even if you don't want to post, you can still 'Like' and react to posts.

Im not a big truck type of guy


a ranger does almost everything i need a truck to do, minus tow the travel trailer.

and people here buy big ol 3/4 and 1 ton trucks just to drive around town in. big ol 4x4 crew cab diesels with brush guards and heavy bumper, big tires and shiny rims yet the truck never leaves the asphalt. then in a couple of years they trade for another truck that costs as much as a house but gets used in a way a prius would meet their requirements. or they sell them with 200k miles and expect the same prices as a truck with 50k on it.
Around here you get the kids with the beat up 12v cummins with 400k trying to get 15k for them cause "its just broken in bro"
 
a ranger does almost everything i need a truck to do, minus tow the travel trailer.

and people here buy big ol 3/4 and 1 ton trucks just to drive around town in. big ol 4x4 crew cab diesels with brush guards and heavy bumper, big tires and shiny rims yet the truck never leaves the asphalt. then in a couple of years they trade for another truck that costs as much as a house but gets used in a way a prius would meet their requirements. or they sell them with 200k miles and expect the same prices as a truck with 50k on it.
Do
a ranger does almost everything i need a truck to do, minus tow the travel trailer.

and people here buy big ol 3/4 and 1 ton trucks just to drive around town in. big ol 4x4 crew cab diesels with brush guards and heavy bumper, big tires and shiny rims yet the truck never leaves the asphalt. then in a couple of years they trade for another truck that costs as much as a house but gets used in a way a prius would meet their requirements. or they sell them with 200k miles and expect the same prices as a truck with 50k on it.
What is everything that you would like to be able to or want to do with your ranger
How much does your travel trailer weigh
 
Around here you get the kids with the beat up 12v cummins with 400k trying to get 15k for them cause "its just broken in bro"
how is a 12v cummins diesel engine designed and how did dodge get that name cummins for their diesel engines ?
They are way wrong because 400,000 is way past just broken in, at 400,000 miles on any diesel engine either it be ford or dodge that is considered as high mileage
 
how is a 12v cummins diesel engine designed and how did dodge get that name cummins for their diesel engines ?
They are way wrong because 400,000 is way past just broken in, at 400,000 miles on any diesel engine either it be ford or dodge that is considered as high mileage

Cummins is an engine manufacturer. Dodge/Chrysler/Fiat didn’t name the engine. Cummins makes the engine and Dodge buys them.
 
how is a 12v cummins diesel engine designed and how did dodge get that name cummins for their diesel engines ?
They are way wrong because 400,000 is way past just broken in, at 400,000 miles on any diesel engine either it be ford or dodge that is considered as high mileage
Cummins is a manufacturer of diesel engines. Dodge contracts with cummins to buy engines produced by cummins for their trucks. Cummins builds diesels for everything from generators to semi trucks.

Ford used to contract with International/Navistar for their diesels up untill 2008ish or so.

GM contracts with isuzu for the duramax
 
A full size wouldn’t fit in my garage or even in my driveway.
 
Do

What is everything that you would like to be able to or want to do with your ranger
How much does your travel trailer weigh
It does everything I need a truck for. It would probably tow the travel trailer but I would not be comfortable using the ranger to pull. The travel trailer is almost 3100 pounds, buts bulky and huge
 
people here buy big ol 3/4 and 1 ton trucks just to drive around town in. big ol 4x4 crew cab diesels with brush guards and heavy bumper, big tires and shiny rims yet the truck never leaves the asphalt.
Isn't that part of the state constitution that residents must own such trucks?
 
Maybe it's people born in Texas?
 
The opener was a statement, not a question, and I'm not sure what kind of response you were looking for. I'll respond in similar fashion to everyone else.

The Ranger will do about 90% of what I need to do, but not 100%.

I started with a first gen 2wd Ranger as my first vehcile in 2000 and (aside from lack of A/C) it was my favorite driver to date. I'd still drive it if it hadn't been totaled in 2009. It did nearly everything I needed in a vehicle except for having an AC, was a little less reliable than I wanted, and lacked AC. I miss it so much that I picked up an 85 last year to eventually build into a similar truck.

The 99 was slightly more capable. It had AC. It got a little better gas mileage. It had 4wd, not that I ever really used it. It was a little more reliable... most of the time. and did I mention that it had AC. The 84 was still more fun to drive, but with the temps in the high 80s and matching humidity for much of the year, the 99 with it's AC is what I usually grabbed the keys for.

Even with the Rangers doing 90% of what I needed there were still occasions where I wish that I had a full sized truck. Mostly when towing a load. With the Ranger if I needed to pull anything larger than a utility trailer I was asking for help from dad with his full size truck. Generally I'd be towing something vehicular and I didn't feel comfortable with that load behind the Ranger.

In 2017 (or 18?), with my 99 Ranger having a blown headgasket again, I decided it was time to get a full size truck. I've kept a car for a daily driver since 2009, so the advantages of a small truck were no longer that important. It was time for a more capable truck. I wanted either a 9th gen (your 93's body style) or an 11th gen (2004-2008) F-150. If 9th gen I didn;t particularly care if it was 2wd or 4wd, but it needed to be a 351 and if the former it was probably going to end up as a Lightning clone. If the 11th gen, I prefered a stock later 5.4L 4x4.

Well, I ended up making the questionable choice and went with door number 3. A 5th generation 1968 F-100. After truck hunting for a while I saw the prices were too high for the choices available. Anything I could purchase at a reasonable price was going to need work and came with potential problem from a previous owner. Well dad had the 68 since I was a baby and I always wanted to fix it up. I decided that rather that dumping 13-17k into an unknown, I'd start putting the money into doing what I wanted. I made a good start to it. Got it running, driving and usable for a few thousand. A large chink of which was a Holley Sniper EFI. Before getting it ironed out and tgunes life threw us a curve ball.

I never had a dersire for an F-250 or larger. Dad had a mini stroke at the beginning of 2021. The F-250 is what he used to pull their camper, and it's a manual transmission. Mom can't drive a manual and dad had past leg injurioes that made it more difficult to drive anyway. We (me, mom, and sister) encouraged him to get another truck with an auto, that way if something happened when they were in the middle of nowhere, atleast mom would be able to drive to get help.I knew that the dealerhip wouldn't offer much on trade, I also knew that my F-100 project was going to take longer than expected, so I offered to buy the F-250 for 10k if the stealership didn't beat it. It was kind of low for the time, but I knew I would be able to borrow it from my retirement acount no problem (pay myself the interest that way). A week or two later they pull up in a brand new F-150 and mom gives me the F-250, and wouldn't accept any payment.

That's the long story of how I ended up an F-250 owner even though I'm not a big truck guy. I went from having a truck that would do 90% of what I needed, to a truck that would do 100% of what I needed if I ever finish building it, to a truck that will do 175% of what I'll ever need. That said my camper plans have evolved along with the truck and now I kind of want a toy hauler that will carry a small car (think Caterham 7 or rail buggy), so a bigger truck may be in order.

If the camper and car doesn't happen, I'll eventually finish the F-100 build and sell the F-250. I'm not in a rush though, I will take my time and do the old truck justice. I'll probably never be without atleast two trucks again, the question is which trucks. The '99 Ranger and F-100 will probably have a spot in the stable for the rest of my life or as long as they last. The questions will be the F-250 and the '85 Ranger.
 

Sponsored Ad


Sponsored Ad

TRS Events

Member & Vendor Upgrades

For a small yearly donation, you can support this forum and receive a 'Supporting Member' banner, or become a 'Supporting Vendor' and promote your products here. Click the banner to find out how.

Recently Featured

Want to see your truck here? Share your photos and details in the forum.

Ranger Adventure Video

TRS Merchandise

Follow TRS On Instagram

TRS Sponsors


Sponsored Ad


Sponsored Ad


Amazon Deals

Sponsored Ad

Back
Top