Preferences
This post inspired by this statement over at Eaton Rapids Joe:
“I would rather be driving a $5000 vehicle riding on $250 tires than driving a $150k vehicle on $100 tires. But that is just me.“
Not just him …
far better for rough country than a modern 4×4
First item “fixed”. Just like hiking/work boots, the foundation is important.
Actually, the 4 tires that replaced these came to just shy of $1200. And it was a $4000 vehicle (was …)
Procedure for passing through a gate:
Put truck in granny gear
Get out of truck and go open gate (often barbed wire with wooden stick spacer and two wire loops)
Wait for truck to pass by. Wait some more …
Close gate
Walk back to truck, get in, shift gears
Drive on
Beautiful ride.
Thanks. Couldn’t afford one in ’76. I waited a long time to get such a vehicle at a decent price. Either someone asking too much or other priorities. I can put $20k into it and come out with something better than I can buy now for $40k. Desperately needs a new seat though.
Nice truck. MACHO!!! You can actually still work on that vehicle, if you wanted to.
Not only can I work on it, I don’t have to be so much a contortionist to do so. Real tools, not metric rip-offs 🙂
Hard to find parts though. Lots of Chinesium out there. The goal on this one is dependability, not restoration – though most of the work that has been done would qualify as “restoration” (though I do wish I had upgraded the steering components. 1976 power steering could be improved. Got too far into it ($$$) with “original” parts to do the upgrade)
Sunshine yellow! Love it.
🙂
What’s the likelihood of a $150k vehicle on $100 tires?
Where does one get $100 tires?
Last time I bought tires (Goodyear Wranglers) 4 years ago they cost about $200 each installed, for 5 of them on my $3000 Blazer.
So, $3k ride on $1k tires.
Just a comment on another site that caught my attention – but then, I can (can, not will) buy used tires of that size for $100, some with decent (for some folks) tread. I generally carry two spares. On two occasions, I needed three.
Yeah I know, I too have purchased used tires, long ago, in my teens. But they went on a $300 ride. I can’t see someone with the where-with-all to have a $150k ride and NOT having the money for proper tires. I’d prefer the yellow truck over the $150k one most likely.
Oh–she’s a lovely ride! I have a 1985 Toyota 4wd five speeds forward. It’s pretty banged up so Dh won’t let me drive it into town because he’s afraid someone will shoot at it! I do love trucks–especially the ones I can handle well!
I haven’t had a car since sometime around 1984. I tell people I prefer to get into my vehicle, not wear it. I never worried too much about cosmetic banged up; don’t want to wander around the back trails in the woods and rocks with “pretty”; it won’t be pretty when it comes out. Besides, driving in places like San Jose, people don’t attempt to play tag with you.
I had my old truck from the day I bought it brand new in 1990 (a 1991 model) up until I sold it 3 years ago, a total of 32 years. I grew into it and I swear it grew into me. I used to tell people that I don’t get into it, I put it on – that’s how well it fit me.
Yes, it got raggedy over time (like me) but it was also dependable (like me) too.
But only for close by stuff. I couldn’t rely on it for any distance. I bought my new (2001) Blazer 6 years ago and my truck got used less and less, then it just sat. A dood stopped by one day and said he wanted to buy it and I took his money. Said he was rebuilding a 1952 Chevy 5 window truck and he wanted to use the frame and drivetrain from my S10 for it. Maybe my old truck lives on. I kinda wish I hadn’t sold it. V6, 5sp manual, nothing fancy.
Me and the truck the day I bought it, sitting along Charlotte Harbor in Bokeelia, Pine Island, FL, next to a project property I was designing.
When my oldest son turned 16 he bought a 1989 S10 almost like that except it’s 4 wheel drive and 2 tone silver and gray. Still driving it 10 years late.