In article , JohnH wrote:
On 17 Jul 2003 15:43:00 GMT, 123 (Butch Ammon) wrote:

Hello there...

Well, the fateful day is fast approaching. You all know I have that old beatup
'87 Ford Ranger 4x4 (hey it's old, dinged, scratched - but it has
character!)...

My old Ranger has 139,000 miles, automatic tranny is messing up, it's got a
hole in the muffler, the A/C unit hasn't worked in 6-7 years, and just now it
developed a hairline stress fracture in the right side front brake rotor. I
refuse to pay $300+ bucks to get new brake rotors - because it's a 4x4 and the
labor is a killer.

Anyway, I desperately need a new pickup truck, and one with power to tow my
boat with. I absolutely refuse to get a new truck. I mean, I won't even look
at a 2003 Chevy, Ford, Dodge at around $35,000 only to drive it off the dealer
lot and have it worth $28,000 or thereabouts.

My wife and I have a 99 GMC Jimmy 4x4 which is really nice, but doesn't have a
trailer hitch for the boat. We also bought our daughters a 98 Chevy Cavalier
for them to share and run around town, go to work, and drive it to school in
September, etc... We just have to get something for ME!

I test drove a base model 2000 Chevy Silverado 1500 pickup the other day, 5
speed standard, very nice and has a class III hitch on the back. $11,950 is
the price. I like it a lot, except that it is a 5 speed manual transmission.

What is a very, very, reliable, pickup truck that has cajones to pull a 2100
boat? Thanks for all the help, suggestions, opinions, etc...

Butch Ammon
I have a 1500 with a 5 speed and love it! It is a 2wd but with the clutch I can
go where 4wd automatics fear to tread. First gear is a 'granny' gear and would
probably pull the Titanic up a boat ramp. The only problem I've had is rear
wheel traction on a ramp when I first got the boat. Turns out the boat wasn't
matched to the trailer properly. After getting the tongue weight where it should
be, I've had no problems.

Good luck!

John
On the 'Poco Loco' out of Deale, MD

with a 4wd, I am sure I can pull a boat out of more (and worse) ramps
than your 2wd... Saw too many 2wd trucks spin their wheels
desperately, people sitting in the truck beds for traction, etc etc
etc.

Getting a 2wd for boat towing is a mistake.

i

"$11,950 is" Alot of money to replace a truck that only needs a
little work. I say "it's cheaper to keep her". first find a new shop if
you can't do the job yourself. (auto trannies are the only thing I can't
rebuild myself). take 1/4 of that money you want to give away and fix
the old one. (My opinion)

Good evening and thanks for all the replies....

To Igor, Gregg, and others: The brake rotors and stuff on the old Ranger is a
major B*TCH... Trust me... I pulled them once and vowed to never ever do it
again. It's got the electronic 4x4 with all those cam assemblies and needle
thrust bearings and other components. You have disassemble all that stuff to
get the brake rotors off. Besides all that, the tranny chatters when trying to
accelerate fast on the highway. If I get stuck in bumper-bumper traffic, the
front brakes get hot and cause the front bearings to start stinking. Trust
me... I checked "Kelly Blue Book" on the internet and honestly entered the
info about my Ranger. An '87 Ranger 4x4 with 139,000 in fair condition
displayed a resale value of "NONE"!!!!!!!!!! I wanted to die when I saw that!

......SO ANYWAY......

It's a done deal. I kissed my old beloved '87 Ford Ranger 4x4 Supercab goodbye
this evening after dinner.

......Drum roll please.....

I decided to get the 2000 Chevy Silverado 1500 shortbed with the 4.8L Vortec V8
engine. They gave me $500 for the Ranger and I plunked down another $500 to
the Silverado. Then I purchased an extended 24 month, 24000 mile warranty.

This truck is sweet!!! That 1st gear is one low torque SOB too. I could get
outside and walk alongside the Silverado! ha ha ha ha.... Man, there is a
major difference between the Ford 2.9L V6 and the Chevy 4.8L V8!!!!!! Now I
finally have a truck with an engine that is bigger than my boat - not the other
way around! ha ha ha...

Butch Ammon

On 18 Jul 2003 02:00:17 GMT, 123 (Butch Ammon) wrote:

Good evening and thanks for all the replies....

To Igor, Gregg, and others: The brake rotors and stuff on the old Ranger is a
major B*TCH... Trust me... I pulled them once and vowed to never ever do it
again. It's got the electronic 4x4 with all those cam assemblies and needle
thrust bearings and other components. You have disassemble all that stuff to
get the brake rotors off. Besides all that, the tranny chatters when trying to
accelerate fast on the highway. If I get stuck in bumper-bumper traffic, the
front brakes get hot and cause the front bearings to start stinking. Trust
me... I checked "Kelly Blue Book" on the internet and honestly entered the
info about my Ranger. An '87 Ranger 4x4 with 139,000 in fair condition
displayed a resale value of "NONE"!!!!!!!!!! I wanted to die when I saw that!

.....SO ANYWAY......

It's a done deal. I kissed my old beloved '87 Ford Ranger 4x4 Supercab goodbye
this evening after dinner.

.....Drum roll please.....

I decided to get the 2000 Chevy Silverado 1500 shortbed with the 4.8L Vortec V8
engine. They gave me $500 for the Ranger and I plunked down another $500 to
the Silverado. Then I purchased an extended 24 month, 24000 mile warranty.

This truck is sweet!!! That 1st gear is one low torque SOB too. I could get
outside and walk alongside the Silverado! ha ha ha ha.... Man, there is a
major difference between the Ford 2.9L V6 and the Chevy 4.8L V8!!!!!! Now I
finally have a truck with an engine that is bigger than my boat - not the other
way around! ha ha ha...

Butch Ammon

Congratulations! The 4.8 is a good engine.
You should have no problems towing your boat.
noah

Courtesy of Lee Yeaton,
See the boats of rec.boats
www.TheBayGuide.com/rec.boats

On 18 Jul 2003 02:00:17 GMT, 123 (Butch Ammon) wrote:

Good evening and thanks for all the replies....

To Igor, Gregg, and others: The brake rotors and stuff on the old Ranger is a
major B*TCH... Trust me... I pulled them once and vowed to never ever do it
again. It's got the electronic 4x4 with all those cam assemblies and needle
thrust bearings and other components. You have disassemble all that stuff to
get the brake rotors off. Besides all that, the tranny chatters when trying to
accelerate fast on the highway. If I get stuck in bumper-bumper traffic, the
front brakes get hot and cause the front bearings to start stinking. Trust
me... I checked "Kelly Blue Book" on the internet and honestly entered the
info about my Ranger. An '87 Ranger 4x4 with 139,000 in fair condition
displayed a resale value of "NONE"!!!!!!!!!! I wanted to die when I saw that!

.....SO ANYWAY......

It's a done deal. I kissed my old beloved '87 Ford Ranger 4x4 Supercab goodbye
this evening after dinner.

.....Drum roll please.....

I decided to get the 2000 Chevy Silverado 1500 shortbed with the 4.8L Vortec V8
engine. They gave me $500 for the Ranger and I plunked down another $500 to
the Silverado. Then I purchased an extended 24 month, 24000 mile warranty.

This truck is sweet!!! That 1st gear is one low torque SOB too. I could get
outside and walk alongside the Silverado! ha ha ha ha.... Man, there is a
major difference between the Ford 2.9L V6 and the Chevy 4.8L V8!!!!!! Now I
finally have a truck with an engine that is bigger than my boat - not the other
way around! ha ha ha...

Butch Ammon
Way to go Butch. I knew a Virginia boy would see the light!

John
On the 'Poco Loco' out of Deale, MD

Butch,

Congrats on the new vehicle. You do know that you'll now have to
find a bigger boat to tow, now that you have all that extra power. :^)

-Jim


Butch Ammon wrote:

removed

.....Drum roll please.....

I decided to get the 2000 Chevy Silverado 1500 shortbed with the 4.8L Vortec V8
engine. They gave me $500 for the Ranger and I plunked down another $500 to
the Silverado. Then I purchased an extended 24 month, 24000 mile warranty.

This truck is sweet!!! That 1st gear is one low torque SOB too. I could get
outside and walk alongside the Silverado! ha ha ha ha.... Man, there is a
major difference between the Ford 2.9L V6 and the Chevy 4.8L V8!!!!!! Now I
finally have a truck with an engine that is bigger than my boat - not the other
way around! ha ha ha...

Butch Ammon

Thanks guys....

I think the owners manual said the Chevy Silverado 1500 can handle 6700 lbs max
towing capacity. My God.... What do they think I'm going to do - tow
somebody's house? Ha ha ha....

One of these days I'll look at a bigger boat. But not too big. I'm still a
freshwater lake boater at heart. A big boat to me is a 21' Crownline or
something with a small cuddy cabin.

Butch Ammon

On 17 Jul 2003 15:43:00 GMT, 123 (Butch Ammon) wrote:

Hello there...

Well, the fateful day is fast approaching. You all know I have that old beatup
'87 Ford Ranger 4x4 (hey it's old, dinged, scratched - but it has
character!)...

My old Ranger has 139,000 miles, automatic tranny is messing up, it's got a
hole in the muffler, the A/C unit hasn't worked in 6-7 years, and just now it
developed a hairline stress fracture in the right side front brake rotor. I
refuse to pay $300+ bucks to get new brake rotors - because it's a 4x4 and the
labor is a killer.

Anyway, I desperately need a new pickup truck, and one with power to tow my
boat with. I absolutely refuse to get a new truck. I mean, I won't even look
at a 2003 Chevy, Ford, Dodge at around $35,000 only to drive it off the dealer
lot and have it worth $28,000 or thereabouts.

My wife and I have a 99 GMC Jimmy 4x4 which is really nice, but doesn't have a
trailer hitch for the boat. We also bought our daughters a 98 Chevy Cavalier
for them to share and run around town, go to work, and drive it to school in
September, etc... We just have to get something for ME!

Why not just put a hitch on the Jimmy and replace the Ranger with a car?
The Jimmy is probably just as capable a tow vehicle as the Ranger was.
Or do you really need a pickup for something other than towing your
boat?

Steve

Mucho Congrats amigo on the new tow'er!! Glad you are mucho happy!!!!!!!
Best wishes and hope for many years of good Service :-)

Capt Jack R..

ps keep the 165 alive :-)


Thanks, Capt Jack! Now I feel "balanced" I guess I could say. Now I have a
powerful truck that is a Chevy. The old boat (Lady J) with the 165hp
Mercruiser, technically is a Chevy small block 250cu. So, I have a "Chevy
pulling a Chevy" kind of thing. Ha ha ha.... I think someone told me that the
old Chevy 250cu mathmatically equates to a modern day 4.1L inline 6. So the
engine in the boat is way bigger than the small 2.9L in the old Ranger.

When I woke up this morning, and grabbed some coffee, I looked out my window
and saw the new(er) Chevy Silverado sitting out front. It made me kind of miss
my old '87 Ford Ranger. I mean, I drove the **** out of that Ranger for
decades. But, it's time has come and would cost way more than it's worth to
fix it up.

Well, I gotta get offline here and head into work..... Happy boating!

Butch Ammon

I bought a 2003 Dodge 1500 Quad Cab (4 full doors) for $22K. Great
truck! LOVE it and I am towing around 4000lbs with the small V8 and no
problems. The new 4 wheel disc brakes are much better then on the
previous style and it has the safest crash test rating (along with the
Toyota full size) of any p/u. With 0% financing and a 7 year powertrain
warranty it was a no brainer.

Best of luck with whatever you buy!

Bill



Butch Ammon wrote:
Hello there...

Well, the fateful day is fast approaching. You all know I have that old beatup
'87 Ford Ranger 4x4 (hey it's old, dinged, scratched - but it has
character!)...

My old Ranger has 139,000 miles, automatic tranny is messing up, it's got a
hole in the muffler, the A/C unit hasn't worked in 6-7 years, and just now it
developed a hairline stress fracture in the right side front brake rotor. I
refuse to pay $300+ bucks to get new brake rotors - because it's a 4x4 and the
labor is a killer.

Anyway, I desperately need a new pickup truck, and one with power to tow my
boat with. I absolutely refuse to get a new truck. I mean, I won't even look
at a 2003 Chevy, Ford, Dodge at around $35,000 only to drive it off the dealer
lot and have it worth $28,000 or thereabouts.

My wife and I have a 99 GMC Jimmy 4x4 which is really nice, but doesn't have a
trailer hitch for the boat. We also bought our daughters a 98 Chevy Cavalier
for them to share and run around town, go to work, and drive it to school in
September, etc... We just have to get something for ME!

I test drove a base model 2000 Chevy Silverado 1500 pickup the other day, 5
speed standard, very nice and has a class III hitch on the back. $11,950 is
the price. I like it a lot, except that it is a 5 speed manual transmission.

What is a very, very, reliable, pickup truck that has cajones to pull a 2100
boat? Thanks for all the help, suggestions, opinions, etc...

Butch Ammon