"daender" (daender)
11/20/2016 at 14:32 • Filed to: None
3
17|
"daender" (daender)
11/20/2016 at 14:32 • Filed to: None | 3
| 17 |
Pops and I have been looking for a cheap, small pickup with an automatic and an extended cab to take over commuting duties to get us to work and back. My pops is starting to get too old for his manual ‘08 Mustang GT, especially with his bad back and left knee. I wish I could take it over but that means choosing it over my ‘02 Miata and I just can’t let mine go. Anyway, for the the longest of time our budget has been about 3k$ for a 90s Ranger, Frontier, Tacoma, Hilux, or Hardbody.
Surprise, ‘01 Ranger XLT with the 4.0L V6, step-side bed, and nearly fully-loaded except for fog lights. 75k miles for only $6,200. It was over twice our projected budget but in return we purchased a truck with far fewer thousands of miles. It’s a beautiful truck minus the Flordia Gators stickers and stripes, that’ll come off pretty soon.
And thank god we found this one in something that isn’t grey/white/silver/black, it feels awesome driving around in a bright blue metallic pickup. Interestingly, our last colorful vehicle was a used Highland Green Metallic ‘96 Ranger that pops owned from ‘99 to ‘06-ish. Who would’ve thought we’d be getting back into a Ranger like it after so many years?
Just sitting it brings back memories of my pre-9/11 childhood, feelings of far simpler times weaved into the grey cloth seats and illuminate by green back-lit lighting. It’s a simple truck that’s easy to work on, it runs on regular-octane gas, and it’s also easy to modify!
Speaking of mods, we’re going to leave it alone performance-wise as we need this to be a dependable commuter. Appearance-wise, we’re already looking for a set of factory tail lights to replace these cheap Euro-style units. There are talks about changing the front grill and turn signals out for the later Ranger Edge black honeycomb grill and the ‘06+ clear turn signal lens.
TheTurbochargedSquirrel
> daender
11/20/2016 at 14:38 |
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Why not take both the GT and the Miata?
Those aftermarket lights need to go. I’m sure you could find a pair of factory lights at a junkyard for not much money.
Captain of the Enterprise
> daender
11/20/2016 at 14:39 |
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Congrats!
Denver Is Stuck In The 90s
> daender
11/20/2016 at 14:40 |
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Highland green metallic? You mean this?
Tapas
> daender
11/20/2016 at 14:42 |
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Dude, that is a clean truck you got there :)
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daender
> Denver Is Stuck In The 90s
11/20/2016 at 14:46 |
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Close!
If I’m remembering correctly, pop’s was green on top and beige along the bottom 1/3rd of the truck. It was quite a looker back in the day.
Nothing
> daender
11/20/2016 at 14:47 |
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You’ve got a Ranger neighbor, too. Congrats on the new truck, it looks clean!
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Denver Is Stuck In The 90s
> daender
11/20/2016 at 14:48 |
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Hey! He had an Eddie Bauer Ranger. Those are none too common, those weren’t even common when they were new
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daender
> TheTurbochargedSquirrel
11/20/2016 at 14:48 |
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I don’t have the money to insure two cars, especially when one would be a V8 Mustang, I would prefer something with four doors and/or a wagon for hauling people and stuff, and my left knee isn’t all the great so I need a automatic backup vehicle when the time comes for me to give up manuals.
Trust me, it’s going to be a sad day for me when the ‘Stang leaves. I helped pops put some small but worthwhile upgrades into it and I’m going to miss it a lot.
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daender
> Nothing
11/20/2016 at 14:51 |
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Yeah, his is a manual but he’s already sold it as the buyer is coming Monday to pick it up. We thought about buying it but we had to get an automatic so that mom could drive it in the case of an emergency. His truck may or may not have given us inspiration to start including Rangers in our small truck searches.
Rock Bottom
> daender
11/20/2016 at 16:44 |
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Rangers are great trucks. Just beware that the SOHC 4.0 has a reputation for problems related to the rear timing chain (yes, it has one on the transmission-end of the engine, in addition to the one on the front). The front chain never seems to have issues because Murphy, but the one on the back of the motor is a real bear to fix! To be sure, they don’t all fail. Most go for hundreds of thousands of miles without any trouble.
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daender
> Rock Bottom
11/20/2016 at 16:45 |
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Noted, thanks!
shop-teacher
> daender
11/20/2016 at 19:54 |
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Nice purchase. I LOVE the color.
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daender
> shop-teacher
11/20/2016 at 20:04 |
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I was hoping for the family’s next vehicle to be in a not-boring color. Before this we were heavily looking for a royal blue or teal 90s Nissan Hardbody.
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shop-teacher
> daender
11/20/2016 at 20:11 |
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Either of those would’ve been sweet too. I’m so bored of my truck’s silver. My next vehicle will have some color.
boxrocket
> daender
11/20/2016 at 20:45 |
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Great pick!
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Rock Bottom
> daender
11/21/2016 at 09:46 |
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E90M3
> daender
12/11/2016 at 10:13 |
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I had no idea they put the SOHC v6 in it, I always thought that the ranger only got the OHV V6.