Cheap vehicle questions.

shotgunner11

shotgunner11

Joined
Dec 17, 2005
Messages
7,809
Been a few years since I had a personal vehicle. Had a work issued truck so to save some cash I got rid of my Tacoma awhile ago. Well, my work issued truck is no more and I've been bumming trucks off of family to get back and forth to work for a few months now.

Time has come and some cash has opened itself up for me to get another truck.

I have about $5000 to get something reliable for my 30 mile round trip back and forth to work all week.

I would like a decent full sized pickup but reliability is more important than personal likes and dislikes. Just has to be semi-offroad capable. 4x4 isn't a must, just decent clearance.

I was told recently that the latest model of the Jeep Cherokee, not the grand but the regular Cherokee that was discontinued in '01, is a great truck with the 4.0 engine. I found a ton of them locally for really good prices.

Anybody have any info to help me or another vehicle to recommend?
 
This might tick a lot of people off but I wouldn't buy a Jeep. Just my opinion. Personally I would stick with Ford or Chevy for a full size truck. Toyotas are good but pricey. I don't care for any of the Fords since the mid 1990's so that would leave me looking for a Chevy as much as I hate to say it. They all have their pros and cons so a good rule to follow is buy something common so parts are readily available.
 
check the state surplus websites - there are even a couple on e-prey.
also should be able to find a 98-03 F150 ext cab in your price range, especially if 4x4 is not a must.
if it doesn't have to be a full size, the quad cab dakotas (like mine) aren't bad. I got 18+ mpg on my trip down there recently.
 
hoopster said:
This might tick a lot of people off but I wouldn't buy a Jeep. Just my opinion. Personally I would stick with Ford or Chevy for a full size truck. Toyotas are good but pricey. I don't care for any of the Fords since the mid 1990's so that would leave me looking for a Chevy as much as I hate to say it. They all have their pros and cons so a good rule to follow is buy something common so parts are readily available.
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Problem I'm finding with pickup trucks is that here in south Texas, there is an amazingly HUGE...HUGE immigrant population that buy up all the less expensive trucks for landscaping, painting, construction work. The don't last long.

I've always been a Chevy guy but the S-10 and Colorado trucks leave more than a little to be desired qualitywise and there are very few full sized available. As in, 20 or 30 on autotrader.com compared to hundreds of Fords in my price range. Even driving on the road, Fords outnumber GMC three to one easily. Kinda weird. But thats why I started looking at alternative choices in the first place.

Fubarski said:
Have you got a friend with a dealer's license?
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Nope. I've only lived here a few short years and I don't know very many people. :(
 
hoopster said:
This might tick a lot of people off but I wouldn't buy a Jeep. Just my opinion.
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Any particular reason you don't care for Jeep Hoop? I avoid most Dodge related products but I've had a few Jeeps and have had pretty good luck with them. (all Wranglers though).
 
plenty of older Chevy/GMC regular cab trucks up here for dirt cheap if you're willing to spend a weekend making the drive up and back. email me exactly what you want and I can have my BiL do all the CL searches in the area when he gets bored at work this weekend. (server room help desk - 12 hour shifts on the weekend when there are no users to bug him)
 
Agree about jeeps. My daughter and her hubby bought a late model Cherokee and it's been nothing but a pain in the rear. Both little and big things breaking constantly and none of them cheap to fix.

The latest model vehicle I own right now is a 96 Merc Marquis. Paid $3,000 for it four years ago. It runs like a top and other than two oil changes and one set of wiper blades, I've put zero dollars in it for maintenance. Oh, I did mount one of those $29 1.8 watt 12 volt solar panels on the dash to keep its battery topped up. Found out if it happened to sit for two or more weeks without being started, the engine computer could draw the battery down.

Lots of good used vehicles on the market right now with the tough economic times. A lot of folks 'weeding' down their second and third vehicles, some even their first.
 
I don't know much about the Jeeps but was in a similiar position several years ago. I found a Toyota by telling everyone I talked to that I was looking for a truck. Within a couple of weeks a friend came in to work and said to call this guy who was getting ready to trade in a Toyota with low miles. 200,000 miles later it is till going strong and beyond normal maintenance the alternator is the only thing I've had to replace.
 
The mid 80's-mid 90's Cherokees I have had experience with were solid vehicles. Like riding in a cardboard box but easy to work on and very reliable. As long as you don't mind oil leaks ;)

I just got rid of my truck(LOVE my Fords) and If I had been straight buying- a early 90's Cherokee was my goal. As is I got a 2004 Trailblazer in trade- not a bad little vehicle. Ride nice but I'd say not very tough off road.
2Door
 
I know in Texas everything is crazy spread out, but I would definitely watch the Craigslist listing in other cities and be ready to jump with a deposit, even if it could mean a $200-$300 one way plane ticket. I did the same thing looking for a jeep and ended up getting one up in Chicago, but it was only a $79 one way plane ticket...
 
shotgunner11 said:
Any particular reason you don't care for Jeep Hoop? I avoid most Dodge related products but I've had a few Jeeps and have had pretty good luck with them. (all Wranglers though).
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I've just heard too many horror stories. My boss's wife had a Grand Cherokee for years (Eddie Bauer edition) and it always needed some expensive repair but the final straw was a warped head repair that would cost more than they were willing to pay so it got traded in.
In my experience, people that love Jeeps seem to say they're great but then mention it "only" needed a new exhaust manifold or leaks oil, etc. I'm sure there are some good ones and bad ones just like every other company but I just wouldn't pick one over a Toyota.
I do love the wranglers but it would be a toy for me, not a primary vehicle.
It's really just a Jeep thing though, I wouldn't understand. :)
 
If you can find someone to help you out who has a dealers license, dealer auto auctions or even public auto actions maybe worth your time.
 
shotgunner11 said:
Any particular reason you don't care for Jeep Hoop? I avoid most Dodge related products but I've had a few Jeeps and have had pretty good luck with them. (all Wranglers though).
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ill second staying away from jeeps. i have had wrangler and it was good to me for the most part (aside from computer going out and it leaked like an 80yr old with a UTI)

the grand cherokee i owned (2001) was a POS i got rid of it with 75k miles. the tranny was jerking, electrical issues etc etc... stay away from all chrystler products
 
shotgunner11 said:
I was told recently that the latest model of the Jeep Cherokee, not the grand but the regular Cherokee that was discontinued in '01, is a great truck with the 4.0 engine. I found a ton of them locally for really good prices.

Anybody have any info to help me or another vehicle to recommend?
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those are better than the grands for sure.. i do know folks with the regular "sport" cherokees and they have far less issues than the grand.. if you can get one in great shape for less than 5k it maybe worth your while. the 4.0's are solid. thast the ONLY thing i liked about jeeps back then. use a quality 5w30- 5w40 and that motor will last longer than you will. however you have chrystlers POS trannys and eletrical issues to deal with..

the only issues i know of with the regular cherokees is the exhaust manifold. when it goes just buy an aftermarket one and have someone put it in for you and problem solved. find a cherokee with as less electrical junk as you can and it will be easier on your wallet

KEEP THE TRANNY FLUID CLEAN!! cant stress that enough for autos
 
I've had very good luck with Chevys (full size only) and Tacomas, but have to agree with the Jeep downers. I had wanted a Cherokee for quite awhile, but every one I looked at sucked. Noises, big and small, weird body motions and funny steering.

I finally decided to start doing my homework on the 'net and what a litany of troubles. Every road test talks about poor brakes, ride, turning radius and handling. I have a friend who has one and "loves" it- he must- he's sure put a lot of money into repairs! They even made Consumer Reports (or somebody's) 10 worst list.
 
OK, drove a Cherokee today and it's out. Felt sloppy and weak and I just didn't fit in it very well. All of which I would overlook aside from all the negative feedback here.

Was looking at a Nissan Xterra today. It was pretty decent, needed paint badly but I don't really care about that all that much but it also felt cramped when I was in it.

I guess I'm back to looking for a full sized pickup.

Thanks for all the advice guys, it's appreciated.
 
shotgunner11 said:
OK, drove a Cherokee today and it's out. Felt sloppy and weak and I just didn't fit in it very well. All of which I would overlook aside from all the negative feedback here.

Was looking at a Nissan Xterra today. It was pretty decent, needed paint badly but I don't really care about that all that much but it also felt cramped when I was in it.

I guess I'm back to looking for a full sized pickup.

Thanks for all the advice guys, it's appreciated.
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A buddy of mine had an Xterra and I liked it for what it was but just never could get comfortable driving it. Something about the seat/door/steering wheel positioning that I never could fit my left leg between.
The full size trucks will always be worth something as long as they run. They can do more work and will probably be roomier than the mid size SUV's. I will say that I'll never go back to a regular cab again. Extended cab is where it's at. Long beds are nice also if you do a lot of work requiring it but then your getting into Limo length. :D
 
ive had tons of cherokees. last one was a 99 that i put 160k on. awesome trucks, extremely capable 4x4s if you dont run street tires, 20mpg hwy and run forever. a/c goes out on all of them though
 
I've always had really good luck with Nissans. I had a little single cab truck when I was in high school, and loved it. Then I got a Pathfinder and loved it. Most recently I got one of the 2010 Rogue's... and guess what? I really like it. YMMV.
 
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