Beater truck or something newer?

[Casper250]

My car is on it's last leg. It's at the point where I either start dumping some $$ into it or get something else. I went looking last weekend at some dealers and just wasn't to impressed with what was out there and in my price range. First off, i'm not a truck guy. The only truck out there that got me going was an SVT lightning but the ones i looked at were either beat on, or never driven and they wanted alot of money. So now I'm figuring that I should just get a beater truck for the time being and when I decide what I want, get it then.

So what kind of trucks would you guys suggest for a beater truck? I need something that's some what reliable, i don't want to break down on the way back from a race and I also don't want to trade my car problems with some one else's truck problems.

 

[COLEMANAPP]

I've been happy with my beater truck. Its a 94 Chevy full size 4WD. When I bought it, it had 128,000 miles on it. That was about 5 years ago. It now has 196,000 miles. I think I'll always have an old truck as a 2nd vehicle. Can't imagine being without. They seem to hold their resale way better than a car. And that's my vote for the old chebby.
Bob

 

[KDX1]

Toyota makes great reliable trucks that are easy on gas and have a great resale value too!

 

[XRpredator]

if I was getting a truck, it'd be either a Western Star or a Kenworth . . .

 

[va_yzrider]

I will never again purchase a vehicle based on resale value (but that is just me). If I were lookin' for a "beater" truck, it would certainly be a early to mid 90's F150 with the straight 6 engine. One of the toughest engines ever built. You can get them for well under $5000 in great condition and the engine will run forever.

Also, I'll never be without a truck again, but I have a boat, a bike, and several other needs for a truck. The only downside is that your friends will always want help moving. Come up with a good list of excuses now.

 

[zio]

if I was getting a truck, it'd be either a Western Star or a Kenworth . . .

I'd have a cabover Pete as my daily driver. Just like BJ and the Bear. I know, he drove a Kenworth, but I'm a Peterbuilt man.

 

[rydesred]

if I was getting a truck, it'd be either a Western Star or a Kenworth . . .

id have to go with a freightliner. too me they are like the chevys of the truck world. nothing too fancy, gets the job done, dependable, easy to work on, and parts are cheap :cool:



but as far as a beater i would get 85-95 toyota p/u. dont know if 4x4 is something u want also but i beat the living poop outta mine. i just put a new crate motor in at like 220k. but the rest of the truck is still in good shape and it just keeps on taking a beating.

my .02$

 

[zio]

but as far as a beater i would get 85-95 toyota p/u. dont know if 4x4 is something u want also but i beat the living poop outta mine. i just put a new crate motor in at like 220k. but the rest of the truck is still in good shape and it just keeps on taking a beating.

my .02$

Back on topic already? Okay- definitely you want a Toyota. Super easy to work on (even I can do my own repairs!). The mechanical bits hardly ever wear out or break. I've worn out keys, a starter motor, rotors (waited too long before new brake pads), and two seatbelts (go figure) but never anything bigger than that. And I'm at about 133k miles on my 95. My 89 was the same. Sold it at about the same mileage and only had to replace a leaking radiator.

 

[bikepilot]

The Toyota is the most reliable beater out there for sure, I woud recomed anything 1989 and up. 1989 was when they changed to the newer body style, the previous style had bad rusting problems. If you get an early V6 model check to see that the head gaskets have been taken care of through a recal or campaign. Its not a big deal because by now the trucks are old enough that if they had the bad gaskets they would have failed by now. I have had a 1989 Toyota 4x4 since I got my drivers license (I'm 22 now) and it has been great. Stone reliable, enough power to get the job done, great ground clearance, handles great even towes great given its size. I had no problems pulling a 20ft encolsed Highpoint Trailer heavily loaded last time I moved (ok, so I couldn't maintain 75mph on steep hills, but what do you expect with 7000lbs behind it?) :)

good luck

 

[va_yzrider]

I think with Toyota, either you get a really good one, or you get a really bad one. Unfortunately, I got a pretty bad one and have since parted ways with it. I did like certain aspects of the vehicle, but I had tons of little problems that drove me nuts. If you do go with Toyota, I think you would be best served by a "bare bones" 4 cylinder manual transmission model.

 

[zio]

I think you would be best served by a "bare bones" 4 cylinder manual transmission model.

I do sort of agree with that... the less there is the less that can go wrong. But isn't that true with any vehicle?

My 89 was a 4 cyl bare bones manual. And other than power steering, I liked it well enough that I could have driven it forever. Nothing ever broke on it, except the radiator started leaking at about 120k miles. Not a Toyota problem, I figure.

I'm not sure that the things that have gone wrong with my current one are anything big, or just things that can happen with any car that is 10 yrs old & over 100k miles. The 22R motor is legendary. I've never owned the V6. My choice both times was the 4 cyl. With the manual it could actually feel sort of peppy. But almost any lightweight 4 cyl manual can feel that way if you rev it, unless you're going uphill. My automatic is a turd from a standstill. But I'm in a little pickup. Who cares? I know that I spend a lot more time in the slow lane doing the speed limit. Not a single ticket in either truck.

Mechanic buddy said he's pulled apart those 22R engines with 200k miles on 'em & they still looked new. Also said he's pulled apart those engines where the owner thrashed the car & never did much maintenance, & they still looked good. His opinion is it's hard to blow one up. Same goes for the old Volvo 4 cyl (hence so many 240's still on the road), and Nissan 3.0 V6.

But my absolute favorite thing about my Toyota? The low tailgate means all I have to do is back up to a curb & I can load my bike by myself with no ramp. If the lawn is sloped to the curb, I can roll the sucker right in.

 

[pyrofreak]

The Ford 2.9 litre V6s run forever they come in the older Rangers. Also Toyotas are great trucks. I have an '87, only thing is the dang body panels suck. So if you get a Toyota get the newer style body. But Ford Rangers are good tough trucks. The 4 bangers have a few issues but you cant go wrong with the 2.9s.

 

[va_yzrider]

I had the 3.0L V6 (3VZE). I had to spend $1200 on a total brake rebuild, I replaced the radiator, rear main seal, head gasket (and several others), altenator, water pump, window regulators, $600 in stupid electrical problems, and numerous other things that I can't remember at the time.

Mine was an automatic that was the biggest turd ever in the power department. It always felt like the tranny was going to blow at any minute. I never could run the A/C when it was hot or it would start to overheat. When I sold it, I swear the brake problem was back and the engine did not feel reliable to me. It only had 70k miles on it when I sold it!

And the rust, oh the rust. The entire undercarriage was rusting pretty bad. Rust was beginning to pop through the paint in several areas. The paint job did not hold up worth squat.

Yes, I got a lemon, but at least I got rid of it before it turned into lemon juice.

The only good thing about my truck was that it was great in the snow (I had 31x10.50's on it).

However, my father has a T100 with the same engine and tranny and his is great. Maybe I got a "Monday" truck?

 

[rickyd]

Cant beat a Nissan or Toyota, One of my friends has an older Nissan w/over 300,000 miles on it, he replaces his fluids and does basic maintenance on it.. Only part that broke on him was his ignition switch.. Both are reliable trucks too get your bike around..
Rick

 

[nephron]

If you want to:

1) get something that costs an 8th of what your bike costs
2) is bulletproof reliable, provided it has been maintained
3) has absolutely no electronics
4) is cheap to repair
5) is easy to repair (simple)
6) and most importantly, is extremely cool...

Get a 73 360 Ford longbed 2 wheel drive pickup. Find one from a guy that has maintained it like a personal treasure.

A minimalistic approach to repairing one of these things is simply, eg, cross honing the bores and put on new rings. Vat the heads and lap the valves....point is, these things run and run well, with that kind of crappy effort. You wouldn't want to do more anyway, since you could easily find one in the $500-$800 range.

if I was getting a truck, it'd be either a Western Star or a Kenworth . .

When I was a freshman in high school, I took our IH cabover (350 Cummins) without the trailer, and packed with 10 kids downtown, and got busted for drag racing a friend's late 70's T-Bird. ;) They're fast without the weight, as long as you can go through the 15 speed smoothly.

 

[sprocket74]

How about an early 80's Ford van with a 300 straight six. I had one but my wife made me sell it (something about it being hideous.) Man I loved that van, it was perfect for long trips, everything was always locked up, it got decent gas mileage, I didn't care about dents and dings and it never broke down. My only wish was that it was extended. But was it ever hideous.