The Replacement Truck

As many of you who read this blog know, I was involved in a rear-end collision that totalled my beloved Ford F250 pickup a few weeks back. Almost immediately the search started for a replacement truck with the following conditions:

1) No loans – I don’t do car loans – The interest you pay on a car loan presses your cost of ownership through the roof. Cash for cars is the way to go.

2) It had to be decent looking – after all, my customer would be seeing this vehicle when I go on-site to fix their computers.

3) It had to be a Ford. I know how to work on them, they are easy to fix, and if I bought a Chevy Blaze would have killed me.

The replacement truck is a 1991 Ford F150 Lariat. Too old you say? Seriously the vehicle is pushing 15 years old already. But this was a very special Ford that was deserving at a another chance for service…

For starters, the body of the truck was in PERFECT condition. There is no rust (on either side of the body components), the interior is in factory condition, it only has 91,000 original miles on the vehicle, it is equipped with power everything, it is a 4×4, and it has a tow package.

Now don’t misunderstand, a 15 year old vehicle will need some mechanical work, and so far I have had my share. Thankfully, Blaze was kind enough to give me a hand, and together we were able to complete most of the work in a day. Here is what we have done so far:

1) Plugs and wires
2) Cap and Rotor
3) Exhaust O2 Sensor
4) EGR Valve
5) EVP Sensor
6) Stereo, Speakers, and Sub
7) XM Radio Installed (and Blaze did a better job at this than Best Buy did originally!)
8) Toolbox mounted
9) Front Brake Pads Installed
10) New Air Filter
11) Oil Change with Lucas Stabilizer

There is still some work to be done – I am still getting an O2 Sensor code on the engine (probably a leaky vacuum hose), the alternator will need to be replaced soon, and I need to draw down the oil pan bolts to deal with some seepage. Other than that, the vehicle is in GREAT condition and ready to service Schrock customers. Even is you take all of the repair costs in to account, it is FAR cheaper to use this truck than to buy a newer one with a loan. The total cost of this vehicle was less than it would have cost for one year’s worth of loan payments, assuming a $350/month vehicle loan.

Needless to say, I am happy and all of the Lariat features are a nice upgrade for a guy who was driving the XL model for three years!