fordboy1999

Hi guys,

This is my first post to the f150 forum. :-)

I have several questions and am requesting any advice you more experienced people may have.

First off, my truck is a 1997 F-150 with the 4.6l, 162,000 miles, 4x4, lariat, extended cab short bed, etc. I've always averaged just under 15mpg, obviously that would depend on how I drive and if I'm towing or not.

I have a small lawn business and I am always getting into one project or another where a truck comes in handy. I have to two my 6x12 trailer with my big 60" diesel zero turn and all of the other equipment, which adds up to a solid 2500-3000lbs. And sometimes I have to haul dirt or rocks or grass or who knows what.

I'm kind of running into several issues at this point. I'm young, I am still High School age and living with my family. This fall I am taking college classes that are a 40 minute drive away, and I'll probably be making that commute at least 3-4 times per week, and there are plenty of other times I have to drive somewhere that I don't need a truck for. My family is also getting ready to move into a new neighborhood that has a lot more restrictions regarding the way you keep your property looking and what not. My truck is loud and rusty, and I have not been the cause of any damage to it but it does have a big scrape down the side (repairable) and a small dent vertically along the drivers door. So I think that I can get away with owning it in the neighborhood, but it isn't ideal.

It'd be very convenient to just have one vehicle I drive for work (as in truck type of work) and school leisure etc. I can PROBABLY talk my parents into letting me drive one of their vehicles most days to school and other events, but I'd like to have the same vehicle for both towing and just regular driving. I don't think a second vehicle is an option for me, I know a lot of people say a second vehicle for running around in can save money, but at this point just getting started I can't imagine I'd really save money that way. And safety is really important to me and my parents, we aren't fond of the idea of me driving an old Honda Civic around. I know this can come across wrongly, but I really am a pretty responsible driver. I am not saying I have never done anything stupid and am not likely to do anything stupid, I'm just saying that I'm a lot more careful than those you may picture when you think male teen driver. Not sure why I mentioned that...sorry.

So here's the deal. The truck currently has a pretty bad exhaust manifold leak. I've been told different things by different people, but what I have gathered is that it's a very difficult job to replace (and believe me, this would definitely be one of the more difficult versions of the job, it's pretty bad), and although I'm not likely to cause much damage to the vehicle driving it as is, it's probably not wise to drive it like that as a daily driver. So that would probably have to be fixed, and although I like to do everything myself, I think that job would be better to have somebody else do?? I would also have to seriously consider fixing up the rust and stuff on the truck, because I really don't want to create conflict with the neighbors for having a "junky" looking truck in the driveway. It is also technically against the rules to have a vehicle outside of the garage overnight...but everybody does it so I don't think that'll be a problem if it isn't a bad looking vehicle.

I really don't want to spend money I don't need to spend. However, I do have the money to buy another truck at some point if need be. I have around $6000 to spend on a vehicle (if I absolutely have to and it's a wise relatively long term investment), and I could also sell the truck for a minimum of $2000, although I'd like to think I could get $3000 or more. So I could technically budget for $8000-9000 on a vehicle, although I was hoping to hold off on that for another couple years, especially with college costs coming up and stuff. And if I were to buy another vehicle, I'd feel a lot better buying something in the $5000 range if I could get what I needed for that.

So basically, I want opinions here, food for thought, etc. Suggestions on what route to go with the manifold, what I should do about the rust in the cosmetic sense, and I want to know who thinks I should keep the truck as my all around daily driver (and hopefully borrow the parents cars here and there), and who thinks I should buy something else and if something else, what.

I could get away with not having the utility of a pickup truck, so long as it is a vehicle that can comfortably (and I mean without ANY danger of overloading it) tow 3000lbs on a somewhat regular basis (at least 2-3 days per week, probably more most weeks). Pickup trucks are really handy for many things, but I could also go the SUV route. I could definitely utilize as many seats as I can get, not a necessity as I normally have my parents minivan available but it definitely wouldn't hurt, I transport as many people as can fit in the vehicle I happen to be driving on a regular basis for one reason or another. It's not necessary to be able to transport that many people but it is practical, so an SUV really would be a plausible option.

I'm definitely a big truck type of guy, however, I am doing my best to let the best financial decision overrule my love for big trucks. :-) I can definitely see the potential for snow plowing down the road, in which case I would need (IMO) at least a 3/4 ton vehicle. However, there is almost nothing in that category with even relatively good mpg and I don't know that I need that big of a vehicle at this point so I'm open minded to whatever.

So...should I keep the 1997 F-150, if so what should I do about the manifold/rust, or should I sell it and if so what should I buy? I'd be open to anything really, it has to be able to comfortably tow a minimum of 3000lbs (I'd really like it to be rated for 5000-6000lbs or more), and I'd LIKE to average 18mpg or more, the higher the better, but let's be realistic here, I know there aren't many used vehicles in my price range that can both tow a good load and average 18mpg.

Sorry for the long post...any advice/opinions would be much appreciated!! Thanks!

j.low

You might consider holding on to it. You know what you've got and the mileage leaves you lots of good miles in the future.
A suggestion, have your Cats checked. They have a finite life and can cause a bunch of weird problems.
The voice of experience.

fordboy1999

Yes, that is kind of what I was thinking. I know, relatively speaking, what I have right now, and honestly, in the $5000 price range, I'm not necessarily going to get something that is much better than what I already have, I could get myself into all kinds of trouble! Which is why I was wanting to hang on to it, and upgrade to something else later if/when need be. I just don't know well enough what my more long term needs are yet, and the amount of gas I could potentially save isn't very much with another tow vehicle, especially in that price range.

I've actually wondered about the cats before, thanks for the suggestion. I will look into that, thanks.

Shepard

JCR 56

Sometimes the best used vehicle is the one you already own.