Light Truck Options

Looking to pick up something stupidly cheap to use as a commuting vehicle back and forth to school while also being able to carry car parts around, and take stuff to the dump, looking at something with a 4 cylinder and a 5 speed and interested in what other people have owned or worked on. My budget it stupidly cheap, around 1500 total because I just plan to drive this through the ground.

Currently looking at an 88 Mighty Max. 204k on it, just had the top end rebuilt with a new radiator and hoses. It does sound like it has lifter tick like our cars do, not sure if that's normal for the engine or not.

Also looking at a 95 S10 shortbed. Don't know anything about the motors. Has around 185k on it.

Looked at an 80-soemthing Nissan Hardbody with a V6. I know mileage with these isn't great but they run forever.

Just kind of looking for general recommendations on these vehicles as well as things to look out for and what to expect from particular models and such.

When I bought my S-10, had 80K on it and paid 1500. Honestly it wasn't worth having. Couldn't tow anything and was just generally more sucky than a comparable car.

F-150 with 4.6 can be had for next to nothing, hauls well, and gets decent gas mileage with the right rear end...

My 99 ranger is pretty sweet. 4 cyl, 5 speed, extended cab, ac.
However they are desireable in that format and much more than 1500. A regular cab will be tons cheaper and plentiful on the market.

From the phone.

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Originally Posted by anyonebutme

When I bought my S-10, had 80K on it and paid 1500. Honestly it wasn't worth having. Couldn't tow anything and was just generally more sucky than a comparable car.

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Not looking to tow anything, whatever parts I may end up carrying would just be stuff in the bed. This is basically a commuter vehicle that can also be used to make dump runs a couple times a week as we don't have trash pick up here.

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Originally Posted by R/T93

My 99 ranger is pretty sweet. 4 cyl, 5 speed, extended cab, ac.
However they are desireable in that format and much more than 1500. A regular cab will be tons cheaper and plentiful on the market.

From the phone.

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How expensive (and frequent) is maintenance and parts?

Don't be scared of the mileage:

Ford : F-150 XL Standard Cab Pickup 2-Door in Ford | eBay Motors

Ford : F-150 XLT Standard Cab Pickup 2-Door in Ford | eBay Motors

Ford : F-150 XL in Ford | eBay Motors < this one isn't terrible, but the 4.2L V6 is not a very peppy motor.

I loved my 97 4 banger s10. 35 mpg and could haul soemthing like an engine/tranny no problem.

Also drove it over 6 hours with ZERO oil pressure across a mountain range (after a shop botched a fuel injector replacement) and it didnt leave me stranded! I assume its like the SOHC 3s of trucks.

Any it was WAY comfy. Had seats like a 90s caddilac.

So far, driven a late 80s/early 90s Mighty Max with the 4g64 and manual trans. Had what sounded like very bad lifter tick, whole truck sounded like it was about to rattle apart at just 20mph.
95 S10. had a bad misfire at low rpms and when trying to accelerate. Took that off the list, just don't have time (or literally any money) to work on it. The fact that it would barely hit 30mph with the issue made it a no go.
93ish Ranger. Loud as fuck with a straight through muffler on it, loud rattle coming from under the floor boards most likely exhaust heat shields. Shifter was very tight, no slop. Would need brakes bled for sure, oil change, and there's no filter element on the intake.

Suffice to say, none have particularly filled me with confidence that they won't fall apart at any minute. Going to look at a GMC Jimmy and Jeep Comanche tomorrow, I think a Mazda B2300 as well. Hopefully something works out. I know absolutely nothing about the Comanches beyond a quick read of wikipedia and some google-fu that tells me they only get around 20mpg.

Boost4VR4, not afraid of mileage, however I've had multiple 4.6s over the years, and while the mileage isn't that bad, I commute 160 miles each trip. So I need as many mpg (and as cheap of parts) as I can squeeze out of a truck and the 4.6 will only net me low 20s. If my commute weren't near as long, I would probably just get a full size truck.

If you're driving 160 miles a day, you shouldnt be truck shopping...Or is the 160 mile thing not a normal trip?

I vote 4 banger Mazda B series or Ranger. Same truck, parts are cheap and run forever. Just dont buy one that is junk or you'll end up spending what a decent one woulda cost anyway.

Jason

The 160 mile trip is 2 days a week to school, and vehicle has to make dump runs (~10-12 miles round trip I think) at least once a week. A 4 cylinder 5 speed truck is the goal since it'll net close to 30mpg (or better), which is fairly comparable to most compact cars, while still letting me take stuff to the dump or pick up car parts (or move next to the city next semester) without having to try to fit that stuff into a backseat or trunk.

Just drop $35k on a ecodiesel 30mpg and 240hp 420tq 😝

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Originally Posted by jerrid

Just drop $35k on a ecodiesel 30mpg and 240hp 420tq ��

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I was about to suggest this, but than I saw..

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Originally Posted by sergechronos

Looking to pick up something stupidly cheap

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Misleading title... ;) I thought you needed a light duty pickup truck.

That was also months ago :p

Picked up a 93 Ranger 4 cyl, used it for a while then snagged an 01 Nissan Frontier V6. Probably going to ride that out till I'm done with school and can afford a small diesel truck. Hopefully by then Nissan and Toyota have light diesel trucks and there's some competition.

Also, 35k on an ecodiesel isn't a very cost effective solution. A used 2500/f250 with a diesel can be had for half of that price, and a gas powered for even less than that and still capable of pulling a car.

A used diesel truck also costs a lot of money to keep on the road. The older reliable engined ones arent getting any younger and the chassis/electrical age related issues are making themselves well known now and the newer ones, financial suicide imo to own one w/o a warranty.

And the pre-dpf diesels other than the 6.0 are all overpriced imo. A dealer here sold a 03 7.3 stroke crew/long bed in very good condition for 16k with almost 300k miles on it...LOL

Jason

Yeah, prices here are insane lately. A couple years ago they were much better, seems like now everyone has diesel fever.

I wish that manufacturers could make an affordable light duty diesel..I don't need leather interior and all that shit, all I want is a diesel, a manual transmission and about an 8000lb towing capacity that doesn't cost 30k+. Gassers just seem to have either really large motors that suck gas both when you are and aren't towing, or undersized motors that sound like they're struggling to keep up.

The truck you want isnt built here :/ Toyota Tacoma with a diesel paired to a 6spd manual would be an outstanding little truck to have here in the states.

The new pentastar V6 with the 8spd auto in the new 1/2 ton Rams is quite good and returns pretty good fuel mileage also(around 20) I've seen 4wd ones discounted to around 20k out the door.

Jason

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Originally Posted by JasonY

The truck you want isnt built here :/ Toyota Tacoma with a diesel paired to a 6spd manual would be an outstanding little truck to have here in the states.

The new pentastar V6 with the 8spd auto in the new 1/2 ton Rams is quite good and returns pretty good fuel mileage also(around 20) I've seen 4wd ones discounted to around 20k out the door.

Jason

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Agreed on the Tacoma, or the possibility of the Frontier Diesel that Nissan teased. Either one would be mint IMO.

The V6 Ram is pretty good for fuel economy, but isn't towing capacity limited to like 6000 pounds? Would likely be a pretty good budget all around truck for someone who could only have one vehicle. I do wish that they had manual transmission though, these autos kill me.

Clearly what we need is the diesel Mitsubishi Pajero :D

I think the Ram is around 7500. In the hills it would probably struggle a bit, but do better than the 6cyl trucks from the other brands due to its pretty slick 8spd trans.

Jason

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Originally Posted by JasonY

I think the Ram is around 7500. In the hills it would probably struggle a bit, but do better than the 6cyl trucks from the other brands due to its pretty slick 8spd trans.

Jason

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Ram is 10,450 actually. My fullsize suv is limited to 7500. With a 3L v6 diesel, 7speed auto, hills of montana didn't make much difference with 5000lb trailer and headwinds.

I was referencing the towing capacity of the pentastar V6 truck.

Jason

TN is almost entirely hills but likely wouldn't be too bad. That said the Frontier suits me fine for now and I have an uncle close by with a diesel truck to tow the car as needed. Just doesn't make sense to buy a new vehicle at least until I'm done with school.

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Originally Posted by JasonY

I was referencing the towing capacity of the pentastar V6 truck.

Jason

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Oops. I didn't realize that we are not talking about diesel V6. Actually another source shows 9200lb towing for ecodiesel v6.

pentastar is a petrol engine.