Best 3 trucks you've ever owned.

   / Best 3 trucks you've ever owned. #121  
The 2.8 v6 carbed motor was complete garbage in rangers and bronco 2s in my experience also. Heck everything in that generation of ford compact trucks was built and designed horribly in my experience and opinion.

I agree we owned two, I know there are folks that prefer Fords and have good luck with them, our SIL is one (I think he fooling himself since I know what all he has had to R&R on those Fords he owned). For us however literally EVERY Ford vehicle we have ever owned (5 total) has been a PoS and a black hole for money. That is why the only Fords allowed on the place have big rear wheels and 3 point hitch on the back (the tractors have been great machines).

Seriously we have never owned a Ford car or truck that did not cause me to makeup new four letter words and worry about the bank account. The last one we bought was because SWMBO fell for it when she saw it, just had to have it, it was gone 6 months later with her blessing.
 
   / Best 3 trucks you've ever owned.
  • Thread Starter
#122  
My Dad went through two transfer cases on his mid 90s f150 one time up by Cochrane Ontario, on a fishing trip, had to drive it to Sault St Marie to get fixed, had to hold the lever it in 2H the whole time or it would slip out, granted it was used for plowing, motor was actually really decent though. I think it was the straight 6.
 
   / Best 3 trucks you've ever owned. #123  
My Dad went through two transfer cases on his mid 90s f150 one time up by Cochrane Ontario, on a fishing trip, had to drive it to Sault St Marie to get fixed, had to hold the lever it in 2H the whole time or it would slip out, granted it was used for plowing, motor was actually really decent though. I think it was the straight 6.
You're lucky you made it back home. Dealers in Sault Ontario are usually the cause of most of your problems, LOL
 
   / Best 3 trucks you've ever owned.
  • Thread Starter
#124  
You're lucky you made it back home. Dealers in Sault Ontario are usually the cause of most of your problems, LOL
Can't imagine that towing bill if we got stuck up there lol.
 
   / Best 3 trucks you've ever owned. #125  
I agree we owned two, I know there are folks that prefer Fords and have good luck with them, our SIL is one (I think he fooling himself since I know what all he has had to R&R on those Fords he owned). For us however literally EVERY Ford vehicle we have ever owned (5 total) has been a PoS and a black hole for money. That is why the only Fords allowed on the place have big rear wheels and 3 point hitch on the back (the tractors have been great machines).

Seriously we have never owned a Ford car or truck that did not cause me to makeup new four letter words and worry about the bank account. The last one we bought was because SWMBO fell for it when she saw it, just had to have it, it was gone 6 months later with her blessing.
Wow, John, what bad luck! My 6 F150’s have been stellar.
 
   / Best 3 trucks you've ever owned. #126  
I agree we owned two, I know there are folks that prefer Fords and have good luck with them, our SIL is one (I think he fooling himself since I know what all he has had to R&R on those Fords he owned). For us however literally EVERY Ford vehicle we have ever owned (5 total) has been a PoS and a black hole for money. That is why the only Fords allowed on the place have big rear wheels and 3 point hitch on the back (the tractors have been great machines).

Seriously we have never owned a Ford car or truck that did not cause me to makeup new four letter words and worry about the bank account. The last one we bought was because SWMBO fell for it when she saw it, just had to have it, it was gone 6 months later with her blessing.
Ford's must like me. I've only ever had problems with new VW's and Ram Cummins 3500's that the front ends fall out of every 50,000 miles.
I even had the dreaded 5.4 Triton and I lost one coil pack. That was it.

The only Ford's that ever tried to put me broke are my two 07 6.0L Powerstrokes. But I'm sure that was my fault because I put big power tunes in them and was pulling trailers with them, and that's when the problems started.
Then add the dealers in the Sault that rebuilt the engines and that's where more problems started.
 
   / Best 3 trucks you've ever owned. #127  
Can't imagine that towing bill if we got stuck up there lol.
Had lots of issues with both Ford dealers. Lots of damages just getting oil changes.

But Northside Volkswagen tops them all. Put the hoist through the floor of my new Jetta. Right to the carpet doing an oil change. I only discovered it because all kinds of warning lights came on for passenger side seat belt and air bags, then I discovered hole and a tore wire harness.
Then they tried to blame it on my wife! Said "your wife must have ran something over."

Neither them or VW Canada came good for it, so no more VW's for this guy. I had to bring it to a body shop out of my pocket.
 
   / Best 3 trucks you've ever owned. #128  
I like ford's. My wife's 2006 f150 with the 5.4l has over 300k on it and still runs strong. Besides basic stuff, no major component has been replaced. Although I know time is ticking.
IMG_20210605_110034.jpg
 
   / Best 3 trucks you've ever owned. #129  
Is your Ford a “Quigley”? They are (or at least were) located pretty close to me in PA
Your photos look like Chevy or Ford color brochure covers.
Are you a professional photographer?
It is a Quigley! It has been a great machine for my back country explorations.

No, not a professional photographer. But I do have excellent training courtesy of the US Navy. Don't know the status currently but back in the 60s when I was serving the Navy photographer school was acknowledged as one of the best in the world. I learned to use all types of cameras, including those that take 4"x5" film plates, and I learned how to use a darkroom. I was the photographer for our Company. So during my Navy years I guess you could say I was a "professional". Since I got out of the Navy I've worked in mining. But I still love photography!

"Tet" celebration (Vietnamese New Year) in Vietnam 50+ years ago:
Tet Celebrationr.jpg
 
   / Best 3 trucks you've ever owned. #130  
Wow! Sounds like you got a lemon!

G30 is a 1 ton van. I bought a G20 (3/4 ton) 4x4 conversion new in 1976 and drove it, mostly on back roads, for over 32 years. Minimal problems.
View attachment 788013


Got my use out of that van! I then got a 2007 E350 4x4 conversion which I'm still driving:
View attachment 788011
I didn't consider my 93 G20 a truck, but heck, it is a 3/4 ton truck with a van body. It was a van conversion. Had the V6, though. Still, it was a great dependable ride. Only got rid of it because the body rotted out. The kids loved it. 4 big captains chairs and a couch in the back. Many vacations with the kids and in-laws in that thing. I'd get another one if I had to do it all over again.
 
   / Best 3 trucks you've ever owned. #131  
It is a Quigley! It has been a great machine for my back country explorations.

No, not a professional photographer. But I do have excellent training courtesy of the US Navy. Don't know the status currently but back in the 60s when I was serving the Navy photographer school was acknowledged as one of the best in the world. I learned to use all types of cameras, including those that take 4"x5" film plates, and I learned how to use a darkroom. I was the photographer for our Company. So during my Navy years I guess you could say I was a "professional". Since I got out of the Navy I've worked in mining. But I still love photography!

"Tet" celebration (Vietnamese New Year) in Vietnam 50+ years ago:
View attachment 788082
Nice! My father was trained as a photographer in the Army in WWII. Plates. Film. Darkrooms, etc... like you mentioned.

He had some great photos in New Guinea in particular.
 
   / Best 3 trucks you've ever owned. #132  
'92 Toyota 4x4 pu 4cyl 22re. single owner, currently 305K original engine, never opened, compression 185-200psi, oil consumption 3k/qt.
forget the current domestic pickups that require a 2nd mortgage to purchase, cost an arm & leg to replace sensors, & occupy most of the lane on a narrow hwy. & w/way less payload space to boot...
 
   / Best 3 trucks you've ever owned. #133  
Nice! My father was trained as a photographer in the Army in WWII. Plates. Film. Darkrooms, etc... like you mentioned.

He had some great photos in New Guinea in particular.
There was one major problem with being a military photographer...the military gets to keep most of the photos you take. Those photos are military property. Depending on the location and situation, the photos you take might be developed/printed by someone else and you never got to see what you shot. I doubt I got to keep 10% of the photos I shot. I'm sure it was the same with your dad. Best thing about being a military photographer is that the Navy supplied all my film for free.
 
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   / Best 3 trucks you've ever owned. #134  
interesting military photographer comment. back then it was film based, wonder how difficult it's for the military to keep track of original photo work now that it's basically all digital capture
 
   / Best 3 trucks you've ever owned. #135  
The best 3 trucks I've owned? That's hard, but let's see about narrowing it down.

2003 Chevrolet 1500HD

2014-01-09 07.20.15.jpg

Quite literally the worst vehicle purchase I ever made, yet it's on the list. I purchased the truck sight-unseen because the price was low and I had an affinity for the 1500HD. Come to be that it was an absolute rust bucket with an interior that had been chewed up their dog. I replaced belts, alternator, starter, ac condenser, 3 dead speakers, and a bunch of other things. The truck left me stranded on the side of the road, twice. By the time I traded it in on the wife's next vehicle I had dumped thousands of dollars into it. Yet I loved this truck. I'd owned two prior GM trucks of the same generation, and would own one more after this; those trucks never let me down, but this 1500HD takes the spot from them because it showed me what I wanted. I loved the crew-cab, the 6.0 liter V8 was a dream, and the 4L80E transmission was comfortable. It was a light 3/4 ton, or heavy-half, and niche vehicles have always attracted me. So for all it's faults, here it sits.

2018 RAM 1500

121969022_10164397148640361_5202567586581152609_o_10164397148610361.jpg

This truck was great, for the short time I had it. I was back in a crew-cab, the HEMI put out almost 400 horsepower, and the 3.92 rear end never left me wanting on the highway. I loved this truck so much, but it wasn't meant to be long term, and quite the major fubar on my end took her out of commission last August.

2019 Ford F-350

20221019_121035.jpg

The current truck; I've not had much time with it, but it's an absolute tank. I'm a half-ton user with a one-ton truck, and I'll never be able to put this thing through the ringer. I overbought for a reason, and that reason is that I occasionally make poor choices.
 
   / Best 3 trucks you've ever owned. #136  
interesting military photographer comment. back then it was film based, wonder how difficult it's for the military to keep track of original photo work now that it's basically all digital capture

So many soldiers have a camera on them these days; I've got a collection of photos from Afghanistan in numbers that would boggle the mind of a combat photographer 60 years ago.
 
   / Best 3 trucks you've ever owned. #137  
I didn't consider my 93 G20 a truck, but heck, it is a 3/4 ton truck with a van body. It was a van conversion. Had the V6, though. Still, it was a great dependable ride. Only got rid of it because the body rotted out. The kids loved it. 4 big captains chairs and a couch in the back. Many vacations with the kids and in-laws in that thing. I'd get another one if I had to do it all over again.

My very first van...1972 Econoline, bought new with the proceeds of my separation pay from the Navy. Only 2wd so I was constantly getting stuck in the back country which is why I ended up going to 4wd vans. In this photo I'm loading up jugs with drinking water at a spring in the Nevada mountains. No potable water in the town I was living in at the time!
Ford Van 1972 13Jun73.jpg
 
   / Best 3 trucks you've ever owned.
  • Thread Starter
#138  
Geez one thing I just realized my earlier vehicle photos Ive owned were taken with old skool cameras brought to a photoshop for developing. I feel old time for a nap. I'll see what I have in my archives if I still have them later.
 
   / Best 3 trucks you've ever owned. #139  
Well I've only owned 5 trucks... Living in S GA...
89 Ford ranger ext cab..(hs truck) 5sp standard btw loved that truck .
90 z71 4x4 Silverado
94 z71 4x4 Silverado
2009 Lt 4x4 Silverado
2013 Lt 4x4 Silverado....
Humm... Seems to be a rhythm here..
Not planning on buying anything new no time soon.. live in S GA . Trucks last forever here with proper maintenance..

Currently still driving the 09 and 13... Absolutely no plans of trading or buying new . We got what we got ....

Edit: for all of you that live in salt states and have no option of hanging on or buying new .. well wish you the best of luck ....
Maybe I'll head to Georgia for my next truck!

With my luck I'd end up with one which went swimming during a hurricane.
 
   / Best 3 trucks you've ever owned. #140  
'92 Toyota 4x4 pu 4cyl 22re. single owner, currently 305K original engine, never opened, compression 185-200psi, oil consumption 3k/qt.
forget the current domestic pickups that require a 2nd mortgage to purchase, cost an arm & leg to replace sensors, & occupy most of the lane on a narrow hwy. & w/way less payload space to boot...
It's never needed a head gasket? You really do live right.
 

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