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djk
Well-Known Member
Hey all, it's been a really long time since I've been on or posted here, and I'm sorry for that. Not that anyone would miss me or anything, but the amazing users who provide much needed help and guidance for all things ranger deserve at least a visit here and there! So here it goes....sorry if it seems like a big rant, but things need to be explained. It was two years ago around this time me and my brother were at home sitting outside next to my truck. Our house is not on but off of a lake. the house sits on what was at one point a ridge. at the time My truck being parked on a decently steep driveway, probably somewhere between 20 and 30 degree incline. As most of you know, if you own a ranger that's manual but doesn't have a working parking brake, you are in a bit of a predicament when you pull up the driveway. As most of you don't know me personally, I will say that I am a bit spacy at times...So I use a big wooden block kept in my truck at all times to throw behind the front driver side tire. Had never failed me...until my brother mentioned something about my front PASSENGER tire being kind of low?!?! "Ohhh i'll fix that" I said as I ran into the garage to grab the air hose. I begin to pump air into the passenger tire, everything going fine for a whole two seconds when I suddenly notice the tire I was pumping up began moving. Pumping the air into the passenger tire must have created a shift in weight of the vehicle to cause the driver side tire to roll over the wooden block. I quickly try opening the doors to find both windows shut and both doors locked. Next thing I know I'm trying to stop a vehicle from rolling into my neighbors cars and house by holding on to the front brush guard. after it eventually dragged me to the ground I was left watching hopelessly praying not to hit my neighbors brand new Toyota Tacoma(shouldn't of been
just kidding) or go crashing into their house. Again this is a steep driveway so this all happened in a matter of 6 to 10 seconds, my brother told me I looked like a time traveler because of how fast I got up and tried to get in the truck while it was rolling down a hill. Well my ranger "happened" to be rolling by a bush that kind of knocked its course off just a little bit to send it off of my driveway and slightly into my neighbors yard now headed towards another neighbors house that had only one tree in the front yard next to the walkway up to the porch of the house. there it went.. across the street, which in my eyes gave me nightmares just thinking about the possible children and parents that could have been taking a nice afternoon walk, about to plow through someone's living room. AND THEN, as if god reached down with a helping hand, the truck came to a complete stop. the tree I had mentioned had a limb branched out towards the porch, just low enough for not the roof but the roll bar in the bed to clip. My story is already too long so I won't go into much details about what happened after that, just that there luckily was no property damage or police involved. I went and grabbed my keys that were inside and ran to limp it out from underneath the tree branch. it took just a little more gas than usual, obviously, to take off but i got it out. As i drove up my driveway i noticed a popping coming from the driveshaft and the truck kind of hopping. I parked it in the garage this time, after asking my parents to move their vehicles. right away i noticed my driver side rear leaf spring was badly bent, probably from the force of the truck just coming to a complete stop. I then parked it on the side of the house, which was flat grass at the time. It remained there for a year and half until last year October i moved it to the third spot in the garage that me and my girlfriend had to somehow clear out. i told my parents in the summer i would take the bed off and fix it up. Well a couple weeks ago me and a few helping hands took the bed off and had a look around. at first nothing besides the leaf spring seemed damaged. I then looked down at the driveshaft to see it at somewhat of a different angle that i had seen it before. From the moment it hit the tree to right now i had feared that my frame had been tweaked. i then looked under the cab on the driver side near the rear of the cab where the vibration mount, or bushing or rubber sits with the frame. the driver side rear rubber was angled and kind of fat, as opposed to all the other rubber mounts sitting flush and the rubber being squashed by the weight of the cab. The cab itself also remains in pretty good shape. So correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm almost positive my frame is bent. END of story. sorry about that crazy long paper, but i wanted to share with all of you how stupid one person(me) can really be when it comes to parking on a hill. So the point to this whole thing is.....I want to know what you guys would do... if you were 21, have a full time job that pays just enough to pay all the bills, probably 50 dollars left over every week. I love the truck but I've been driving another beater(98 neon) and the trannys about to go and i just feel like i need to buy something that can be really dependable and a good daily driver. So i feel like my options are 1. junk both the car and the truck and save a little for a down payment on a car/truck. 2.Junk the car, part out the ranger to people who need it(like anyone on this forum) and wait a little longer for a new car because of parting it out. Or 3. keep the ranger, take it to a frame specialist and have it straightened out as much as possible and make it a mud truck. and somewhere along the lines get another car.... I really love option 3 but I'm in desperate need of a good vehicle for work, so I'm in a predicament. I would really like to know from all of you who have parted out a truck or car, if it's worth the time, and is there any chance of getting the same amount of money that I'd get at a scrap yard? I'm going to post pictures most likely tomorrow of the cab mounts and the truck just to get people's opinion. Thank you very much to whoever chose to read this ridiculously long start to a thread!!
just kidding) or go crashing into their house. Again this is a steep driveway so this all happened in a matter of 6 to 10 seconds, my brother told me I looked like a time traveler because of how fast I got up and tried to get in the truck while it was rolling down a hill. Well my ranger "happened" to be rolling by a bush that kind of knocked its course off just a little bit to send it off of my driveway and slightly into my neighbors yard now headed towards another neighbors house that had only one tree in the front yard next to the walkway up to the porch of the house. there it went.. across the street, which in my eyes gave me nightmares just thinking about the possible children and parents that could have been taking a nice afternoon walk, about to plow through someone's living room. AND THEN, as if god reached down with a helping hand, the truck came to a complete stop. the tree I had mentioned had a limb branched out towards the porch, just low enough for not the roof but the roll bar in the bed to clip. My story is already too long so I won't go into much details about what happened after that, just that there luckily was no property damage or police involved. I went and grabbed my keys that were inside and ran to limp it out from underneath the tree branch. it took just a little more gas than usual, obviously, to take off but i got it out. As i drove up my driveway i noticed a popping coming from the driveshaft and the truck kind of hopping. I parked it in the garage this time, after asking my parents to move their vehicles. right away i noticed my driver side rear leaf spring was badly bent, probably from the force of the truck just coming to a complete stop. I then parked it on the side of the house, which was flat grass at the time. It remained there for a year and half until last year October i moved it to the third spot in the garage that me and my girlfriend had to somehow clear out. i told my parents in the summer i would take the bed off and fix it up. Well a couple weeks ago me and a few helping hands took the bed off and had a look around. at first nothing besides the leaf spring seemed damaged. I then looked down at the driveshaft to see it at somewhat of a different angle that i had seen it before. From the moment it hit the tree to right now i had feared that my frame had been tweaked. i then looked under the cab on the driver side near the rear of the cab where the vibration mount, or bushing or rubber sits with the frame. the driver side rear rubber was angled and kind of fat, as opposed to all the other rubber mounts sitting flush and the rubber being squashed by the weight of the cab. The cab itself also remains in pretty good shape. So correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm almost positive my frame is bent. END of story. sorry about that crazy long paper, but i wanted to share with all of you how stupid one person(me) can really be when it comes to parking on a hill. So the point to this whole thing is.....I want to know what you guys would do... if you were 21, have a full time job that pays just enough to pay all the bills, probably 50 dollars left over every week. I love the truck but I've been driving another beater(98 neon) and the trannys about to go and i just feel like i need to buy something that can be really dependable and a good daily driver. So i feel like my options are 1. junk both the car and the truck and save a little for a down payment on a car/truck. 2.Junk the car, part out the ranger to people who need it(like anyone on this forum) and wait a little longer for a new car because of parting it out. Or 3. keep the ranger, take it to a frame specialist and have it straightened out as much as possible and make it a mud truck. and somewhere along the lines get another car.... I really love option 3 but I'm in desperate need of a good vehicle for work, so I'm in a predicament. I would really like to know from all of you who have parted out a truck or car, if it's worth the time, and is there any chance of getting the same amount of money that I'd get at a scrap yard? I'm going to post pictures most likely tomorrow of the cab mounts and the truck just to get people's opinion. Thank you very much to whoever chose to read this ridiculously long start to a thread!!
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