Fancy verses plain Jane stuff

I was reading another post and saw where DaveII commented about a guy he knew that had ordered a plain Jane pickup. Dave could not see why the guy ordered a manual transmission, manual windows, and non tinted windows. Dave stated that he could have bought a loaded up one for about the same money, plus no wait.

Well I must be one of the strange guys too. The last new Pickup I bought was a 1990 Dodge W300 Cummins diesel. I ordered manual window and a stick transmission. Here where my reasons:

1) I pull goose neck trailer a lot and I have much better control of a heavy load with a manual transmission. If I need to backup a few inches I don't have to rev the pickup to he!! to get it to move a heavy load.

2) I can and have repaired my manual transmission. My brother bought the same truck with a automatic transmission and he replaced three before trading the truck off ten years ago.

3) I usual keep things in good repair and shape. So I have many things in daily use that are much older than what most people use. This truck is an example. It is twenty years old with 385,000 miles on it but is still a good pickup. My oldest son just got back from Las Vegas with it. He pulled a forty foot camper with no issues.

4) I CAN move my arm and roll down a window. I have had to spend hundreds of dollars to keep older power windows working. One of the first things to quit working on an older vehicle is the power accessories.


I would like to hear your opinions on this. I think that many on here like the rugged simple stuff too. That is a reason that many of us are using old tractors and equipment. I am willing to bet that Dave II does too or he would not be using a forty year old IH tractor to do his farming with.

There is a time and place for everything.... The guy I was talking about with the pickup is a little different anyway so it wasn't real surprising

I have that 40 year old tractor and drive a 15 year old car cause I was able to pay them out of pocket without eating mac&cheese & week old bread.....

I agree with you. I bought a 1981 Ford F-100 completely stripped down. No power anything. Standard transmission, 300 inch six. Power steering, power windows, power brakes, power failure as the saying goes. I am still driving this truck on a daily basis with almost 500,000 miles on it. I have replaced the motor and a couple of clutches. None of my friends ask to borrow it due to no power steering, a good thing. Ellis

my wife don't ask to drive my car :roll:

Was 1981 the last year you could get a pick up with no power steering? I remember my dad and I going to the dealership on Christmas eve in 1982 and order a new 1983 f150 with a 302 and stick and about all it had in it for bells was power steering and power brakes because they came standard. Good old truck and lasted till the mid 90s with a boat load of "working" miles on her.

A new sprayer that I ordered and paid for last year just came in to the dealer. They had(and probably still have) a new one on the lot, loaded with features. Why would anyone want every whiz-bang electrical option on a sprayer with 28" tires, when to me the 38" tires are the important option?
I bought a new planter from the same dealer a couple years ago. I got a good deal because it was ordered for and sold to a big customer, who backed out!. Fortunately we were able to find homes for all the options I didn't want, and took off.

I've got an '01 Chevy. 6 speed manual, standard cab, manual windows, standard AM/FM radio, and carpet delete. The only options are air conditioning and cruise control, and I added an AM/FM, cassett, multi-disc CD player. The dealer had to go out on the 'net and find it. Everything he had on the lot was fully loaded, extended cab, with auto trans. Did his best to put me in one of those, but he didn't succeed.

I've always had a truck with stick shift, cranky windows, no air (or air that don't work). I always find my truck right where I leave it. Stick shift is a lot easier to control in load handing and on slick roads. I'm really not liking all the electronic stuff in the newer cars and trucks, but I getting better at fixing them.

All of my pickups have been as plain as they come. I don't feel the need to drive something fancy to raise my image. If people want to go by the addage "you are what you drive" to judge me they can go right ahead and feel that way. I can say back to them "mine's paid for, is your's?"

But I broke the mold a month ago and bought an almost new Colorado to replace the rusted out old S-10. Wanted plain Jane work trim crank windows standard cab 2WD with an automatic that will serve me for the next 20 years, by then I'll be 80. I've never had a farm pickup with an automatic in the past 40 years and I'm tired of shifting gears. If I want to have my hand on a shift knob I still have the two fuel hungry Dodges that sit in the shed most of the time.

A new plain Colorado with four cylinder straight stick two wheel drive ragular cab was in the $16,800 to $17,000 range at two of the dealers. A third dealer was a little higher. An automatic raises the stakes by $1000. One dealer had a new one on the show room with a $35,000 price tag and my guess is it won't be there long.

Ended up with a 2009 crew cab Colorado 2WD with 12000 miles that is a tick above the basement model. Has five cylinders, automatic tranny, electric windows but manual seat and no fancy climate control or thermometer and compass in the mirror. I feel like I'm driving a Caddy compared to the rundown junk I've driven in the past. I bought it for a cheap price because the dealer couldn't get it sold. Nobody wants a 2WD pickup in these parts and I don't think anybody anymore wants to reach under the seat to pull a latch and use his legs to make adjustments. Jim

I in my aging years, prefer power windows. I do however prefer manual tranny and manual shift transfer case. No more new pickups for me because Ford doesn't make a 150, or 250 with manual transmission, or transfer case. I've got a 2005 F-250 that will have to last me the rest of my days. Automatics are for "shiftless people".

Hey, watch who you are talking to LOL. Jim

Where are you going to find one?

Around here a vehicle is ruined by salt at 15 years and off the road before 20 years.
I never though much of both the people who brag about how much they have. And even more annoying are the people who tell me how good they are for doing without.

I had a guy spend MORE on a standby generator and transfer panel to energize only four circuits. Than what a whole service transfer switch would have cost.
He's happy making do with flashlights and extension cords. Instead of being able to flip on any light in the place while on the gen set.
All he would yap off about was "it's all we need, It's all we need, It's all we need".

Plain Jane. A truck should suit your needs & mine are simple just like me. I want 6 cylinders cause that's all I need. Manual tranny, handles for the windows, radio, lighter, & since I've got old - AC.

My last new truck (2005, and I believe it will be my LAST NEW truck) is about plain jane.. as far as I know, the air, auto trans, and leather seat were the only options.

I have the rubber floor mat, not carpet, and the leather seat was much easier to clean than cloth, so that was what influenced my choice, however, I'll never have another leather seat either..

Power windows/locks I can do without.. Heck, I can do right without locks, as I don't think I've used the locks more than 5-6 times..

I do wish the truck had cruise though.. shortly after I purchased it, I took a position with work where I drove ALOT.. I put a majority of it's now 150k miles on in the first 3 years.

Oh, I did have a cd player stereo installed also about a year after purchase.. but again, had I not drove so much, I could have done without that too.. Sometimes, we do things to make the drive a little more comfortable, and there was a time that a 300+ mile drive to a job was just what I had to do.

Brad

JD i think you have it pretty well thought out al

I've seen new F 150's with a manual transfer case on the floor and even though they're automatics, they have a manual mode where they can be shifted like a standard except no clutch.

I like power windows just because I have gotten spoiled to them. However, I definitely prefer a manual transmission over a automtic and manual is what I always want in a truck. I also prefer a 8 foot bed. However, for the last couple of years, manuals are not an option on the new pickups, so I don't guess I will ever get a brannew one.

Harold H

I would like to have just a plain truck. Radio,heater,manual transmission,AC maybe. I don't need a fifty thousand dollar toy.Just to run around the fields. See them every day at the feed store and ask my self. Why would anyone need one.

I have one sitting in the shop with 60k on it. Ford 150, reg cab, stepside, 2wd, 5 spd V-6, manual windows, naugahyde bench seat. Grey floor mat. Chrome wheels and side nerf bars. Torreador red. COme to SD and drive it home

In 2007 I bought a new plain Jane GMC Serria work truck. V-6, auto, 8 ft bed, crank windows, no carpet, AM/FM, tilt, A/C, cruse, limited slip differential. Paid $13,400 cash out the door including sales tax. I get 18+ mpg in town, 20+ on the highway. I have 46,000 miles on it and LOVE IT. Hope I never wreck it. 2007 was the last year for the classic body style.
George

I've got some older pickups and also drive some newer ones on occasion. The older ones work just fine for me, but there is ONE thing on the new ones that I SURE wish was on the old ones and havent seen mentioned here- intermittant wipers! Yep, I can reach down and cycle the wipers by hand every so often during light rain/mist conditions....but that means making a choice between setting down either my cell phone or beer...OK OK- JUST KIDDING about the phone and beer...but I really do like those delay wipers!

All in all, it still seems strange to me to hear 1990 and newer things talked about as "older vehicles"...like the guy who said his 2006 GMC was the last of the "Classic Body Style"...here I was thinking that was 1972???

I"ll be one to admit it, i got spoiled on all the fancy gizmo"s after my first 87 p/u with p/w p/l c/c ect, every thing now has just about everything,, we get a little spoiled with the fancy stuff...yes, it could cost a fortune to fix if you don"t have a extended/&or warranty to fix it....on the other hand, i also still have a old 82 p/u with p/s p/b a/c,[ plain Jane basically], a couple of old cars with p/s p/b, only...are we spoiled,,,naw,lol

I completely agree with what your saying. I like my current power windows and power locks but I dont ever want to have to replace them. Automatic transmissions are meant for cars. Trucks should all have manuals, that said, they are getting much better with the autos in the newer vehicles. If I were to buy a truck today, it would be an older diesel vehicle with a manual and no extra's. The worst thing about newer vehicles are the electronics. All the engine sensors and the computer will take a fit if it ain't working properly. It's just more stuff to go wrong and need fixing.

I will pick and choose modern vs old basic. I never should a bought the Ford 8240 SLE, with all the electronics. It is probably good for the first 10 years/ 4,000 hours then traded off. They cost way too much to fix. I got some modern stuff on my pick up like auto trans and elec windows and AC but thats about it. On my dump truck I couldn't see automatic. You loose in HP, fuel economy, and control. but maybe auto is better with a hired driver. with a standard you can set cruise and its not always shifting down and winding way up like an auto does. You just have to watch the tach and keep it from lugging. Many larger trucks will have manual drivers window but electric passenger side so that you can put that one down when you need to. It can be a safety issue. In general the more bells and whistles the more problems, unless you are the sort of person that feels duty bound to support the economy by replacing everything every two-three years.

manuals are for shifty people?????

Funny. In Europe all the cars have manuals and the big over-the-road trucks have automatics. I can shift gears just fine, but I prefer an automatic in my towing truck. I really don't want to spend my day shifting gears on every small hill when pulling a trailer. I have also seen a lot of ruined clutches from people who thought they could pull trailers with manual transmissions.