Well, let’s see: After last week’s work fiasco (the boss-lady fired another one, and then yet another one left sick on Tuesday for the rest of the week with some sort of strep-throat crap, making an office that usually runs on 6 people and actually needs a seventh person, run on 3 1/2, with someone from another division spending his afternoons at our place to do the menial data entry work, and still no replacement for the person fired a few weeks back yet) and I was just about done and ready to crawl into a hole for the peace and quiet, when something strange happened.
Last weekend, while attempting the repairs on Grimm, I was bragging up Walker, Commuter Ranger to the guy whose garage/shop I was borrowing. I had left a couple of my tools at his place and he brought them to work with him on Thursday. I stopped by his repair stall to pick them up and he saw the aforementioned Walker and asked if he could give the truck a run-down, which I, of course, allowed.
After he was done, he offered me money for Walker. A fairly nice sized wad of money, actually.
Now, the guy knew how much I paid for the truck and about the maintenance repairs I’d done (tires, shocks, all fluids flushed, etc.) and how much I’d paid for them. He added all that together, tacked on a nice round number with a pair of zeros on the end and the total dollar amount was a bit much to pass up.
Walker is now in retirement. Quite literally.
The guy bought him for his dad, who lives on the north end of the Olympic Peninsula and repairs antique furniture as a hobby. He’s gonna buy a hi-top canopy with double doors on the back and present it to his dad as a birthday present of sorts.
Walker, Commuter Ranger served his 15 years with the Washington State DOT and then part-timed it with me for five months. He is now retired and living on the coast.
So this weekend was spent finding his replacement, with no joy in Phil-ville as of yet. I’ve plucked at the low-hanging fruit and found it bitter and in need of repairs. All the $1200 cars were really $700 cars whose owners could only find their way to the gas station but never the maintenance shop. I’m now moving into the $1500-2500 range (I’m trying to save some of the money for gun stuff).
Walker was a good truck, but as I discovered, was much too small of my 76 inch tall / 275lb self. In short, I was having back and neck problems on Saturdays after driving him all week. If I didn’t hunch a bit while driving him, I was looking through the blue tint at the top of the windshield. In need an extra-cab is the understatement of the month.
I’m currently sifting through a line of Dodge Dakotas w/manual transmissions
And similar Jeep Commanche trucks
Though I have yet to test out the head and leg room in the latter.
I’ve given up on all Corollas and Tercels as the fold and stuff routine I need to complete in order to enter the cabin is just too much of a PITA to do on a daily basis. In short, I’ve nearly given up on getting exceptional (or even decent) gas mileage and am now just trying to keep the miles off my newer F150’s odometer.
Hell, I’m gonna go look at a 2-owner 74 Valiant with a Slant Six later today
And if that’s a no-go I’ll go look at this V-8 Prospector with a 4-spd
I’m an American with a fat ass and cash who wants to be comfortable. Sue me.
But wish me luck first.
Btw, I know nothing of Dodges past 1985 or so. Anyone with experience with the 3.9L V-6 in the Dakotas or the 4.0L I-6 in the Jeeps is welcome and requested to leave their thoughts comments
Don’t make me buy this bad boy
I highly recommend Jeep’s 4.0L I6. It’s got balls and torque, and more with a K&N cold air intake, trottle body spacer, and aftermarket exhaust header/pipes added. My wife had a 89 Cherokee Larado that went for over 235K miles before the repair of auxliary systems stuff just got overwhelming. So in 2006 I got her a new 99 model with same setup and only 56K miles; well, it was like new to her!!! She loves her Cherokee.
Wow, How can you get a Jeep when you have a “Jeeps are for girls” sticker on the truck? But as always, I will still stick by the Jeep and Skip is right, the I6 is to die for. Plenty of grunt, bulletproof and very easy to work on due to the space in the underhood area arounf the engine. There is also a very good stroker kit to make it a 4.7L. Ask and I will send the link if you want.
Also, We are about carbon copies of each other being 76″/280# myself. The headroom in the Jeep is not the best in the world, but I can sit upright and not hit the overhead.
Thanks for the comments guys. I’ll take that link, Christopher, though I’m nearly sure I’ll never get to use it. It’ll be interesting to see the geomentry.
The “Magnum” 3.9 V6 is the LA-block 5.2/5.9-L (318/360cid, if you prefer) engine with 2 cylinders sliced off. Plenty reliable enough if well maintained, since the short block internals are essentially the same ones Chrysler’s been making for decades. The 5.2/5.9 Magnums are prone to detonation due to a piss-poor intake manifold design (I’m on my third R&R in 150k miles) but the 3.9L version doesn’t seem as susceptible. There are some aftermarket go-fast goodies if you are so inclined. You can probably find a Dak with the 5.2L but the engine bay gets a little cramped. Might as well move up to a full size 2nd-gen Ram at that point, you won’t be giving up much fuel economy but you will be gaining some room (just like that Ramcharger at the bottom).
I’ll also second Skip’s recommendation of the Jeep 4.0 I6, and you can hardly even go wrong with anything powered by the famous 225cid /6, either.
BTW, I think you can find SPFI or MPFI retrofit kits for that Prospector or Ramcharger if you go that route. Don’t have the links handy, but they’re probably worth it not to have to screw with cantankerous old Holley carbs (unless you’re into that, of course).
What, no Pacer or Gremlin on that list??? they have big doors…
K
I put almost 300,000 miles on my 4.0 I6 in my ’87 Cherokee before I pulled it for rebuild. Before my cam went flat, I got about 16-17 mi/gal, which I expect to improve a bit once I get the rebuilt engine reinstalled. I have been really happy with that engine for its heartiness and ability to put up with years of off-roading abuse.
Sure thing Phil. It is
http://www.hescosc.com/
Also alot of other cool things such as aluminum heads and other cool stuff. I would love stroke mine as well, but it is a money thing, and I need to get into reloading first. As a side note you and Dave have convinced me to read Heinlein. Where has he been my entire life. Started with “The Moon is a Harsh Mistress” then “Starship troopers” Just finnished “Stranger in a Strange Land”(the newly uncut one) and have to move on to a new one. Any suggestions?
Friday! Friday! Friday! You MUST read Friday!
Um, Dave, did you mention Friday?
Okay, okay, I will pick it up today after I drop the parents of at SFO. Let me tell you, there is no better place to read Stranger in a Strange Land than sitting on a nice dock on Lake Tahoe. I will have to find a diferent place for Friday.
My last duty station in the Navy (’89)had me as a backup shop electrician for the mechanics. We had three jeep pickups.
One was always in for dashboard electrical probs.
One was always in for either alternator or neutral switch problems, and the other on was something mechanical.