People can (and will) scoff at this but I like it.

At least the Aerostar could be had in a long body form capable of hauling 4x8 sheets. 

That price...

So this is a thing I need to go to if only to snag an awesome cheap car.

Auction prices running high makes anything under 5K at a dealer a pipe dream or a local buy. If they want to make any kind of margin they basically start at 5K and move up from there.

Does that... Nerf bar / roll bar thing just come and go freely? Or is it being stashed somewhere secret then deployed for... reasons?

If its rwd based then hopefully 4wd would be an option in addition to full time awd. 

I really enjoy the current pope.  Being not a religious type, I can still respect what he stands for and how he works.

This is proper Jalopnik right here.

You’ve obviously not spent much time driving in the snow...

So THAT’s what emotion feels like.

Shame there's no PC release. 

Had two hated both. My mother likes them but I'd rather have a full cap or an open bed. I do like the hard roll up covers though, but I tend to keep large tools in the bed of my trucks and need the space a high rise cap affords. 

I’ve never hated a cover more than those evil roll up tonneau covers with Velcro sides. Being cheap is literally the only benefit. They are a pain to roll, unroll, clean snow off, use in general. Things stick to the Velcro sides, the sun tends to destroy them in short order too.

Asking over $13k and can’t be bothered to wipe down the interior? Hard pass. Also Worcester MA so you know there’s going to be six stories and excuses and none of it will be right.

I always assumed it was to protect the edgea of doors from scrapes and scuffs. Having said that they do have clear or body colored options for that so...

I love this. It’s proof that even on a light budget you can join in on the fun (and even have something far more interesting sometimes).  I also have to admit having a solid crush on the old Escort and to a lesser extent many of the early 80's designs. 

There is no price low enough to tempt me into this. I have already been fooled into owning a 99 once. Never again. CP at any price. 

Makes me think of “At the Earth’s Core” as riffed by MST3K.

I’d just like to say I threw together two mid-level XLT trucks (Ranger vs F-150) with similar options (as close as one can get... Towing, FX4, 302A + misc) and on paper the difference is about $9k less for the Ranger.