RoMad
Platinum Member
I have a 2006 4 cylinder Toyota Tacoma that I bought brand new in 2005. I bought it mainly to drive back and forth to work and haul my kayaks and bicycles on.
I really like my little truck but things have changed since I bought it.
I increased my property size from 5 to 10 acres
I bought my tractor
I built a 450 lb box blade for my tractor
I bought a trailer to haul my tractor on
We have started raising steers (5 at a time)
I built a hopper trailer to buy feed a ton at a time
I bought an old horse trailer to haul my steers to the butcher, a 110 mile round trip. (they only make it one way)
We bought a small camper
We are thinking about buying a bigger travel trailer for when I retire in four more years.
I actually have pulled all of the above with my truck but usually use my wifes Honda Pilot which does an admirable job even though the tractor with boxblade on the trailer is a bit over the recommended towing limit.
I have been thinking about a bigger truck but I really like the mileage I get with my Tacoma and I didn't want to spend a lot of money. I looked at new trucks but they don't do that great on mileage and they are more than I want to spend.
I drive my truck about 15,000 miles a year and appreciate the 25+ mpg I get tank after tank
Today my wife talked me into going to yard sale with her, even though I told her I would rather stay home and get over my cold. She said we would only go to a few.
Well, at one of the sales I noticed a truck sitting on the other side of the yard with a for sale sign on it. It was a 2000 3/4 ton ford with extended cab and four wheel drive. I asked the guy how much the truck was and he said $3500. I walked over and looked at it closer and it was pretty rusty. The bed was in bad shape and both rear corners of the cab had a little rust on them. I climbed under it and the frame had a lot of rust on it, but it was built up scale and I could flake it off and there is plenty of good steel.
I asked for a test drive to check out the engine and running gear. It drove nice, the four wheel drive worked good and the 7.3 diesel sounded great.
After a little negotiating I ended up getting it for $3200.
Now, I think i will have the best of both worlds. I can drive my little truck back and forth to work and when I need to pull or haul something I am ready.
I think I will look for a new bed for it and have the frame and undercarriage lightly sand blasted and coated.
Here is a picture of it. It has 126,000 miles on it. The guy was the original owner.
I really like my little truck but things have changed since I bought it.
I increased my property size from 5 to 10 acres
I bought my tractor
I built a 450 lb box blade for my tractor
I bought a trailer to haul my tractor on
We have started raising steers (5 at a time)
I built a hopper trailer to buy feed a ton at a time
I bought an old horse trailer to haul my steers to the butcher, a 110 mile round trip. (they only make it one way)
We bought a small camper
We are thinking about buying a bigger travel trailer for when I retire in four more years.
I actually have pulled all of the above with my truck but usually use my wifes Honda Pilot which does an admirable job even though the tractor with boxblade on the trailer is a bit over the recommended towing limit.
I have been thinking about a bigger truck but I really like the mileage I get with my Tacoma and I didn't want to spend a lot of money. I looked at new trucks but they don't do that great on mileage and they are more than I want to spend.
I drive my truck about 15,000 miles a year and appreciate the 25+ mpg I get tank after tank
Today my wife talked me into going to yard sale with her, even though I told her I would rather stay home and get over my cold. She said we would only go to a few.
Well, at one of the sales I noticed a truck sitting on the other side of the yard with a for sale sign on it. It was a 2000 3/4 ton ford with extended cab and four wheel drive. I asked the guy how much the truck was and he said $3500. I walked over and looked at it closer and it was pretty rusty. The bed was in bad shape and both rear corners of the cab had a little rust on them. I climbed under it and the frame had a lot of rust on it, but it was built up scale and I could flake it off and there is plenty of good steel.
I asked for a test drive to check out the engine and running gear. It drove nice, the four wheel drive worked good and the 7.3 diesel sounded great.
After a little negotiating I ended up getting it for $3200.
Now, I think i will have the best of both worlds. I can drive my little truck back and forth to work and when I need to pull or haul something I am ready.
I think I will look for a new bed for it and have the frame and undercarriage lightly sand blasted and coated.
Here is a picture of it. It has 126,000 miles on it. The guy was the original owner.