Look, I'm Not Saying it's a Good Idea...

"That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms" (thatbastardkurtis5)
11/25/2015 at 20:30 • Filed to: None

...only that I’m not yet sure if it’s a bad one.

I’ve basically committed to selling my pickup truck, it’s just gotten so damn rusty. So I’ve been looking for things to replace it.

The way I generally do that is looking at everything under $3k on Craigslist (side note: if you’re not using the Craigslist Pro app, you’re using CL wrong...I can look through like 13 areas at once). Unfortunately, that means I find things like this:

That’s a 95 F-350 wrecker. Specifically, it has a wheel lift, this style:

What that has is an under-body wheel lift, and the boom is just for the winches. I don’t need the winches, and it looks like that whole assembly can be removed. Which begs the question:

Can I get a wrecker, remove the boom, add tie downs where the boom was, and use it like a pickup truck? I mean that’s still a big flat area in the middle, I could even build a box between the controls if I wanted to...extend it out and I might be able to make 4x8 while still having a wheel lift. Then I could get a dolly and use that to tow my car to the track without needing a trailer.

Of course, this one isn’t the best example. It doesn’t run (just needs wires hooked up under the hood, whatever that means), it’s a small block (351 with a 5 speed, which is kinda neat), and who knows if there’s paperwork. But it is cheap (asking $1000), so even if it turned out to be a mistake, it would at least be a cheap one.

What do you think, Oppo? Is my “Wrecker Pickup” as bad an idea as my wife would probably think it is?

DISCUSSION (4)

Chariotoflove > That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms
11/25/2015 at 20:39

I think it's nuts. And I mean that in the nicest possible way.

I Will Always Be The Honey Badger > That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms
11/25/2015 at 20:43

Pre-obd2 EFI + “needs a few wires under the hood” = very suspicious

That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms > I Will Always Be The Honey Badger
11/25/2015 at 20:51

Yeah, though given a choice I’d take a non-running engine and good hydraulics instead of vice versa.

My guess is that it’s got no wiring harness in it. That way “needs wires hooked up under the hood” is both true and grossly misleading.

wafflesnfalafel > That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms
11/26/2015 at 08:49

tow trucks are abused - high clock hours on the motor, etc even if lower miles...