Yet another car dilemma
 

OK, some of you may remember that I'm saving up for a car. What I want is a SUV 4wd with under 150,000 miles on it. The two features I really want are AC and cruise control. I'd like one in good enough condition so I won't have to throw money for repair bills into it for at least a few months, anyhow. I'd prefer a Toyota, but that's not cast in stone.

So, all you cellar car experts, how much should I expect to pay for such a vehicle? Realistically.

Are you sure you want a 4WD SUV with gas approaching $5 per gallon?

Yep, I plan on lots of time spent on back country roads in the mountains. In addition, I'm wanting to move to Durango, CO which gets lots of snow in the winter. Durango has a public transit system which I'll use to get around town and save $ on gas.

Flint has a pickup he's looking to part with

I bet he does. Will he send the parts up here to Colorado? Will they be clearly marked with easy directions on how to put them all back together? :rolleyes:

The reason I ask is because when I moved to Colorado I decided I needed a 4-wheel drive truck, for the same reasons you mentioned.

I've hardly driven it for the last eight years because it bugs me to spend $40 (now probably $60) on gas every 300 miles. I drive it less than 2,000 miles a year because of that.

We also have a small Subaru, which gets about 50% better mileage and has no trouble getting around in the winter.

Subaru!

Mountain bike!

Donkey!

Shanks Mare!

HLJ, how much for the truck?

I think about selling it every year, but then we get a big snow and I need it to get me to work or someplace important. I haven't looked it up on KBB, but here are the details:
1998 Ford Ranger XLT, extended cab, 4x4, 5 speed manual, ~60,000 miles, manual windows and mirrors.

The thing that's nice about the minimal electronic components is that the truck can sit for three or four months and then when I need it, it still starts right away. It's only not started two times, most recently when it was -26°F and I hadn't driven it in several months. It warmed up that afternoon to above zero and the truck started without needing to jump it.

That's awesome. On the Denver Craigslist they are offered for from $4495 (with almost 200k miles) to $8500 (67k miles). If gas spikes I'd wager those prices would drop...

Thanks UT. Mine looks just like this: http://denver.craigslist.org/cto/2265419233.html
but without the bug-shield. It's got a 4-liter v6. Are you in the market?

Only in my dreams for now. I'm the cash-poorest I've ever been, while I start this new business idea and wait for it to accelerate to the point where it pays all the bills. But my dream is to have what you have, actually: one vehicle for economy, and one for getting done whatever you need to get done. The Cellar Car has been awesome to me, and a continuing thanks to everybody on that, I want to keep it until it dies, but it is not the ideal for moving heavy bass speakers around.

And when Jim leased me that Frontier, well, that was an awesome thing to have. It just felt great. I won't lie to save the earth. Everyone should drive them. Those big bubble tires, that massive, gas-burning engine, ruining the entire environment just to get from 0-60 faster than a truck should be allowed, it just felt awesome. As long as I could set aside the ruining the entire environment part. And most days I could, because damn, I'm driving around a truck, you know? I mean goddamn.

I'm serious too. Don't take this as sarcasm. I've toned that down. I loved having a truck and I don't believe my additional fuel usage was harmful enough to overcome my feeling awesome.