The Ranger had personality, the Honda not so much.

No Element will ever match the aesthetic of an old Ranger.

I was thinking the Honda Element sounds perfect as well! It has a tailgate and a hatch, AWD and lots of space. Durable with Honda reliability. I’d say this or the Nissan Frontier are both great options.

I’m agreeing with David as well because I think anything newer is going to really disappoint this guy.

$10k buys a nice low-mileage Honda Element, great for hauling gear, and the seats lay flat for over-nighting, or fold the seats up and lay right on the floor (with a pad, of course). There are also many camping accessories.

Do as I say, not as I do. 

I’m seconding Tracy’s recommendation. You can quite easily get one of the last few model years with less than 50K miles in the price range he’s looking for.

No.

Someone piss in your wheaties today? Matts been dumping money in this Lex hand over fist. Every car needs maintenance at some point. Such pointless hostility.

one word: maintenance

Still not reliable as a Chevy.*

Surprise, bitch.

Money-shift.

They take their lack of bottle-deposit law pretty seriously too, in the form of littering. I grew up on the Vermont side of the Connecticut, about 100 yards from the river, and did as much bicycling in NH as in VT. Guess where I got more flats due to broken glass along the roads?

Move across the river to New Hampshire. Last I knew, NH didn’t require auto insurance of any sort.

Shhhhh! My inner squid is already planning a road trip with the fastest motorcycle I own. lol

I dunno, why do you say “literally” when you actually mean the opposite?

It’s sad how many Americans can’t understand “SLOWER TRAFFIC KEEP RIGHT” and then get mad at people who were trying to pass in the left lane. 

I did three years with an auto when I was 20 and bought my first dream car but couldn’t find it in manual.

Well, Jimny Cricket!