Is it worth it to fix old truck

[imported_slimecoat3]

The ball joints on my truck are completely shot. Its gonna cost about $700 to fix them. The truck has about 130,000 miles and it still runs great. I don’t know weather I should buy a newer used truck used truck or fix my old one. A Toyota Tacoma runs about 10k (used) and would probably be a better than my 98 ford ranger. With the price of gas being the way it is this is an important decision. What do you think?

Thanks

 

[JRJ]

Re: Is it worth it to fix old truck

Really it depends on how much you like or dislike the Ford and what $700 vs a $10,000 expense does to your balance sheet

 

[ZmOz]

Re: Is it worth it to fix old truck

What's the monthly payment for another truck? You can make a LOT of repairs every month for $100/200/300+.

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: Is it worth it to fix old truck

I downsized to a tacoma and I'm not looking back. The mileage alone is good and pretty solid truck. Unless you plan on making the money back with your old truck this may be the first of a string of things to go.

 

[KRS]

Re: Is it worth it to fix old truck

you can buy the parts, find a guy who really knows how to weld, buy him some soda, clean his shop, and mow his yard while he chops off the bad ones and welds new ones on.... I say keep it and run it til it dies..... I agree with ZmOz, you can make a lotta repairs for $300 per month.

 

[Link]

Re: Is it worth it to fix old truck

What is the difference in gas mileage between the two?
If its total cost difference, that needs to be weighed in.
I would use $4.00 a gallon to figure the difference.

I have several friends who have Tacoma's and really like them.
Then 200-300 a month payments does pay for a lot of repairs!

 

[woodduck17]

Re: Is it worth it to fix old truck

My 95 F-150 4X4 Extended Cab has 236,000 miles and still runs great. Don't be afraid of high miles on a truck. If it has been maintained well, repair costs are less than replacement.

 

[rwise]

Re: Is it worth it to fix old truck

the real question is how much do you drive it? if you drive it every day then the gas savings alone may pay for it! If all you do with it is pull the boat to the lake then it would not be worth the payments and higher insurance to replace it. Repairs are just one small thing to consider. I just parked my old friend (truck) for a car that gets 28 miles to the gallon. I drove the truck everywhere I went it was my only vehicle, the fuel savings alone pays the monthly as well as the insurance!

 

[BoatBuoy]

Re: Is it worth it to fix old truck

Do you know the ball joints are shot, or is that what someone told you. A favorite trick of shady alignment shops is to jack up the vehicle and life the front tire with a pry bar. This dis-joints the ball-joint, but it demonstrates to the unwary customer a defect, which it's not.

 

[Rancherlee]

Re: Is it worth it to fix old truck

lets say gas is 5$ a gallon and you drive your truck 15,000 miles a year and the Tacoma get 5mpg better mileage (it WON'T unless your going from a 4x4 4.0L X-cab ranger to a 2x4 regular cab tacoma). Lets use 17mpg for the ranger and 22mpg for the tacoma. Ranger will eat 4166$ a year in gas, the tacoma 3409$ for a savings of 757$ a year, it would take ALONG time for the fuel saving to pay for the Toyota. I personally would drive the ranger into the ground (should get you WELL past 200k if you take care of it) then purchase a newer truck of your choice.

 

[DJ]

Re: Is it worth it to fix old truck

Take this into account.

1. Any "used" truck is just that-USED. Plus, you do not know the history. It may be a real pile.

2. The Ranger is easily capable of allot more than 130K. A freind has a '91' Ranger with 280K. The powertrain has never been touched except for maintenance and an alternator.

3. You're not going to find much for $10K. $15K, for starters, for anything with less than 50K. At $10K your going to end up with another 90,000 mile truck that may be worse than what you have.

As the others have stated, you need to compare apples to apples. A 4X4 to a 2X4, or visa versa is not a fair comparison.

 

[tommays]

Re: Is it worth it to fix old truck

I have only given up on my cars and trucks WHEN the rust gets out of control


Tommays

 

[JasonJ]

Re: Is it worth it to fix old truck

Just fix the Ranger. Find a buddy, pay the $20 per ball joint, give him a case o' beer, and relish in a payment free lifestyle. You will not see enough of a fuel savings to cover the payment. My truck is a 95 F150 with 155,000 miles on it. the only major thing I have done to it is upper balljoints. $40 and a day of sweat equity last year and that was that. My truck gets hideous mileage but is still cheaper to operate than one that gets 3 more miles per gallon and gives me a $400 a month payment. The math just does not come out, but the suckers still run out and buy new rigs thinking they are saving money...

 

[Dave Abrahamson]

Re: Is it worth it to fix old truck

I got another vote for keeping the Ford. My 95 F-150 (they seem to be real popular here) has 177,000 and you still have to listen to hear if it's running. The guys are right, you have plenty of life left in the Ranger.

 

[jimr]

Re: Is it worth it to fix old truck

Man I would love to be able to charge you $700 for 4 ball joints and an alignment. where do you live that it costs that much? if the truck runs good fix it.

 

[ferrariman]

Re: Is it worth it to fix old truck

FORD equals Fix Or Repair Daily. Buying a toyota tacoma is the best decison you could make. I have a 1995 toyota t100 with the 3.4 l v6. My dad passed it on to me with 300,000ks and the only thing that has been replaced it the belts and alternator brushes. Get good milage and has bags of tourqe. It can also tow 6200 pounds. The tacoma should be close as they are simaler trucks. nce you go toyota you never go back. Just make sure you change the oil and they wil never quit.

F-man

 

[DJ]

Re: Is it worth it to fix old truck

1 KM = 0.6 miles.

300K is about 180,000 miles.

I'd get a second opinion on the ball joints.

What makes you think they are bad? Let's go from there.

 

[LubeDude]

Re: Is it worth it to fix old truck

don’t know weather I should buy a newer used truck used truck or fix my old one.
Thanks

When people start to ask this question, normally they want another truck and want someone to tell them to go ahead with it. Is your mind set allready?

I have a 93 Ranger 4X4 with 185,000 and it`s as good as ever, The front end is fine and it gets 18-22 MPG with the 4 liter. Sure Toyota`s are fine trucks but I like my Ranger better than the 87 Toyota I had before. Better ride, and more power. I liked the looks of the Toyota better though.

 

[SeaKaye12]

Re: Is it worth it to fix old truck

I used to own a Tacoma (2003).

It was fine in most respects...but it had the smaller of their two four-cylinder engines (2.4L I think)...and was quite under-powered. I would suggest that if you buy a Tacoma...get either the larger four-cylinder (2.7L I think); or a V6.

Chuck

 

[one more cast]

Re: Is it worth it to fix old truck

$700 is too much for ball joints. Try a tire shop or one of the muffler and shock places. They do free estimates.