Thing is, if you need that car to get to work it has to be reliable. So buyers can put a bit down and pick a monthly payment that is predictable and can be budgeted for, or they can buy a cheap used car for that same down payment and get breakdowns, tows, missed work and unpredictable repair bills that can be more…

Honestly, going cheap on a rusty, high mileage tub, then going cheap again with used tires from a tiny, shady, under-equipped joint that’s a guy with some jack stands... it’s not surprising that you got subpar service and a broken truck. But at least it didn’t cost you a fortune to fix that.

And yet, this is the first I’ve heard of it and I read several national newspaper sites every day.

*Shrug*

Sweet, good luck!

What point? People are buying what they value - if you want to do a project and you don’t want to put things inside a car (mountain bikes, lawnmower, a washer or dryer, gas cans, mulch, trash, fertilizer, recycling, lumber, pavers, containers of used motor oil etc) you get a pickup.

And the stuff that needs to stay…

That’s a common misconception - the Ranger is shorter, narrower and lower than a same configured 1999 F150. (only a little narrower and lower, for sure, but considerably shorter, over a foot).

2020 Ranger extended cab short box 2wd - 211" length / 78" wide / 71" H
1999 F150 extended cab short box 2wd - 226" length /…

Times have changed, look at the ever shrinking, now-tiny US 3% take rate for single cab trucks, and the shrinking take rates for extended cab trucks (14% for 2020). Among *every* size category and every manufacturer that offers/offered them. And then back out fleet sales of Home Depot/U-haul type single cab work…

This is good advice. And it’s been true for years now.
For example - I was shopping for a new truck in 2005. The 3/4 ton dodge diesel I was looking at stickered for $40k. A 3 year old version of the same truck with 90K on it or more and no warranty was selling for $25k.

I paid $32k for my truck, *and* got the 3 year,…

That’s not necessarily true for many larger trailers. The little ones, sure. Trailer tires with no published speed ratings should be run at 65 mph max, but there are tons of OEM and replacement trailer tires that carry these speed ratings, even if you have to do some digging to find them:

Speed ratings for trailer…

I mean, that’s great but your ownership experience of one car isn’t necessarily representative of all or even most of them. My 2005 Ram diesel - owned since new - has no body rust whatsoever, is still on the original transmission, has a completely intact and uncracked dashboard and has no broken interior plastics. All…

Absolutely. I was considering a newer Frontier V-6 - rated to tow 6,300 lbs and saw the frontal area restriction of 60 sq. ft. which is cutting it pretty close for my camper trailer. Ended up not buying it for several other reasons, but that was a factor.

For comparison, the stock solid rear axle on my 2005 3/4 ton diesel truck (an 11.5" AAM 8 lug) is about 500 - 550 lbs fully assembled, with brakes. I didn’t see any mention of how much this electric axle weighs but it would be interesting to compare the two. The complete diesel engine, radiator, accessories, 4 speed…

Former Oakland resident here. The poor neighborhoods in Oakland are frequently the dumping grounds for all the communities around it, unfortunately. Cars, RVs, boats, trailers, furniture, mattresses, household trash, etc.

Abandoned vehicles need to be towed and stored while owners are notified, then hauled and crushed…

EU tow ratings can’t be directly compared to US tow ratings though. They use half the tongue weight and strict, lower towing speed limits (often 100KPH/60 MPH) to compensate for that and avoid the lethal tail wag you’d get with so little tongue weight at typical higher US towing speeds of 65-75 MPH. This is why a…

No doubt, and there was a higher rate of accidents, injuries and deaths back in the day because of that.

I don’t think any wagon is gonna pull a nearly 8,000 lb (loaded weight) trailer of that size safely. But I get your point otherwise.

My 1995 LT-1 Roadmaster wagon was technically rated at a whopping 7,000 lb trailer tow rating from the factory, but I wouldn’t want to try my luck with a large, high profile camper…

There might be a decent bump before or at the bridge edge. I towed a 7,000lb trailer back from Texas with a 3/4 ton diesel long bed crewcab and hit a lot of bumps like that in those places. They unsettled the truck noticeably at highway speed of 65-70 mph. If these people were going faster than that, with an even…

Yeah, most people went with changing the front sprocket since that was cheaper, involved less labor and didn’t require buying a new chain, but you had to pay attention to not eating into the swingarm over time on some models.

Thankfully, my era managing Ducati service departments was after TPG and before…

I wonder how far back that requirement dates to? It was in the 2002 North Carolina requirements. It sounds like something from the early 1960s, when seat belts were finally beginning to be installed by US auto manufacturers...