Dear Honda

[Alan Mclennan]

Do you think he was trying to tell you to slow down....

[The Big M]

plus these cheapos let me spend more money on the cool old cars instead of a monthly car payment.

Agreed, the freedom from payments that comes with driving a beater is definitely nice. It's also somewhat liberating to not have to worry about the inevitable dings, scratches, and dents that are part of the life of a daily driver. And on top of that I feel a certain level of personal satisfaction in driving a car that I maintained myself, something that I busted a few knuckles on and learned some new skills along the way.

That being said, the barrier to progress on my slick has always been time, or lack thereof. At this point, I see value in having something that I don't need to work on myself. I find tinkering enjoyable. Pushing like a mad fool to get a car put back together so I can get to work on Monday? Not so much.

So in my situation if having a warranty car means I'm not occupying shop space with my daily and have more time to devote to my other list of projects, then it's mission accomplished.

[Nathan390]

2002 ford ranger. buy em all day for about 2k. get 27mpg all day long. roll up windows, manual seats.. the only "extras" are a/c and a cd player. doesn't even have cruise control. haul your home depot finds home as well.


/quote]


27 MPG with which motor??? The V6's were bad on fuel....but the Rangers were really popular escort pickups for the mobile home guys for quite a while...


Bring back the 1979 Civic........now there's a good Honda. While you're at it, how bout a late eighties early nineties Toyota Pickup, with the overseas turbo diesel??

Seems the automakers only know how to make things more complex and fatter/longer/wider.....

My 2007 ranger 2.3l 5 speed 2wd standard cab, standard bed. Only options on it were power steering and power brakes.

I averaged 31 mpg in it. I bought it for $6000 out the door.. I drove it for a year put 12,000 miles on it and traded it in along with a 2010 mustang on a new f150 stx, because new was cheaper than buying used.

My trade in value of the two cars was $21k the sale price of the truck plus a Costco membership discount was $25k.

I paid $4k for my first brand new truck..

That brand new truck with all its technology gets 23mph highway if I keep the speed below 65. I usually average 19.5 for the combo driving I do.

Which I think is pretty good for a v8 4*4 truck that weighs 5600 lbs.

[DJ Bill]

That is darn good for a Ranger....no AC?

There is definitely something to be said for simple, non gadgeted up machines....Honda and all the 70's small cars knew that but unfortunately ever one fell to the bigger is better mantra and more stuff got added to every package...

Anyone ever drive a Datsun 1200 sedan? Now there is basic transportation. A few years earlier and Kaiser Willys had the Aero sedans with a 134 4 cylinder......and no discussion about simple cars would be compete without mentioning the 4 cylinder Fords of the 20's and 30's.....

Did someone say King Midget? Single cylinder, tiny transport for two..

In today's safety nanny world buying a vehicle that isn't full of ABS,TPS,Air bag, etc, etc stuff is impossible. Yet motorcycles are made and sold every day without this junk....I resent the government telling me I can't check my own tire pressure without a set of $200 sensors and a computer, just because I have more than three wheels on my car.

[Nathan390]

No ac. Just a plain am\fm radio too. No cd, tape, or satellite.
Rubber floor mat instead of carpet..
It did have a cloth 40/20/40 bench seat.. that was about the only other option it had.

Great truck, just wasn't practical for my needs.

[Greg D]

Doc,
if Used will do find yourself a 91-93 Ford Escort with the 1.9 and a 5 speed.
I capped at 93 because in 94 they got airbags.
They are exactly what you described 40 MPG, no over loaded BS, and stupidly reliable, parts are cheap.
Nice one is about $1500 and they do come in a 2 door.
Just be sure to replace the timing belt about every 60K Do NOT get the cheapy belt - buy a Gates.

[ezernut9mm]

dj bill, i have the 2.3 duratec with the 5 speed. my last tank was 29.1. a new record for me. i average 320 mpt and i put between 11.4 and 12.4 gal on each fill up. my lowest has been in the low 24s. i love this little truck.

[66fordtrucknut]

I bought a '93 Geo Metro brand new, 6500 bucks, no radio, no ac, 5 spd, 1.0 ltr, 3 cylinder. It got 57 mpg hwy, 54 city. I put 268,000 miles on it before I put her to rest, didn't owe me a dime. It never had a major repair. If they could do it then, why not now. Talk about basic transportation, thats what it was. I commute 100 miles rountrip a day it served it's purpose. In contrast, I bought a mazda b2500, bascally a ranger clone with a better warranty, 21 mpg tops, with a 4 cyl. I bought '12 F-150 5.0 and get 21 hwy/18.5 city. For a new truck I do like it, had to ordér it, stripped out, wind up windows, rubber mat, hvy payload and towing, 5.0.
Charlie