Its been years since Becky or I have purchased a vehicle. The last car we bought was my moms ten year old Toyota when she decided to up grade to something newer, but that doesnt count. When mom owns a car, not only does she take excellent care of it, it takes her about a decade to accumulate a few thousand miles. Even though it might be ten years old, its essentially new. The time has come to replace my beloved, rotten framed Toyota. Im not happy about this, Id just as soon keep driving it. But, the writings on the wall and we need a serviceable truck to maintain our life style here at the ranch. I have friends who find great pleasure in researching used vehicles. One in particular spent the better part of six weeks driving all over Indiana to find the just right deal. He found what he was looking for and saved a few hundred dollars after investing a few hundred hours. But, like I say he really enjoys the process. Im not that guy. I want a reasonable deal, and I dont want to invest a huge portion of my life finding it. Vadim has been on the look out for me. I know I might have saved some money if I did all the leg work myself, but Im content to skip the process and evaluate anything Vadim presents based on our ability to pay and our specific needs. It seems if youre not buying your moms car, theres nothing particularly easy about this process. Vadim called with his latest find, a ten year old 4 x 4 Ranger with 48,000 miles on in. Around here this is what we call new. I read a bunch of Internet stuff on this truck and though it was worth a look. For the first half of my driving life I owned Fords. Fix Or Repair Daily was how we understood them, and it was helpful that I did most of the mechanical work myself. I had a series of 250s that I morphed parts from, recreating one truck after another. Then Fords entered a dark period in the late seventies and early eighties, and in my view they werent worth a damn. It was then I was introduced to Toyotas. For the first time in my life, all I had to do was change the oil and put gas in the thing and it would go 200,000 miles. Better yet, it was still worth something when Id go to sell it. They also made a stripped down, roll up window, compact, 4 x 4 that I simply loved. That was then and this is now. It seems auto manufacturers have abandoned the simple work truck in favor of fancy pants, oversized Cadillacs, that no one in their right mind would haul manure in. Throw in Toyotas metallurgy problems, and for better or worse, Im back where I started. Becky meet me at the dealership during her lunch break, and I was already hard at negotiating with Vadim. She gave her seal of approval, and we closed the deal after only two and a half hours of tire kicking. It feels like Im rolling the dice, but doesnt it always seem that way? Ole Henry and I have had our ups and downs over the years, but this truck comes as close to a real work truck as anything Ive seen in recent times, so here we are. It doesnt seem like its my truck yet, its just too nice. But Ill fix that soon enough. Loading my tools and chains into the cab will help, and few loads of firewood will buff the newness right off of it. And before you know it, the paint will be scratched, and therell be the familiar reek of horse manure wafting off as I drive past. Im not sure how the truck feels about this, but were partners now, and thats just the way it is.
Posted on: Sat, 06 Dec 2014 15:06:33 +0000