|
My Photographs You like photos? I love taking them. Click here, if you wanna see some of my work
Is a photo missing on an older entry? Click here to find it at Photogra!  The Other Links Favorites and Rings are now here!
The life you save might be mine!
|
Monday, Nov. 13, 2006 - 8:20 p.m.
Before and after- my trucks, anyway. The Hillbilly truck is going to my nephew this Thursday. He's paying me for it, but I am only asking him to pay me about 1/2 of what the Kelly Blue Book estimated it's trade-in value to be. So no, I'm not taking much from him for it. I had a couple of coworkers who wanted to buy it, too, and I could have sold it to one of them for quite a bit more. But I think he needs it more than they do. Hopefully, it will be as dependable for him as it has for me the last few years. A better look at the new truck;
The color is called Salsa Red Pearl. I found that out after I bought the truck. How appropriate a name is that for a truck for me? It's a 2005 Toyota Tundra, their full-sized pickup. It only has 18,000 miles on it, and with the exception of a tiny door dent on the passenger side, the finish is almost flawless. This truck is set up just the way I wanted my next truck to be- automatic transmission instead of a stick, air conditioner (how many summer days did I kick myself for not buying the last truck with a/c over the past 14 years?), and a split sliding rear window. It has the V-6 engine instead of a gas-guzzling V-8. No power windows/locks to go bad- I can turn a handle if I want the window down. A standard cab, no 4-door club cab (which is all they had in either a Tundra or smaller Tacoma on their lot Saturday. And they had something like 18 new trucks in stock). Vinyl floor instead of carpet (which just gets messed up and worn in a truck that is used as a truck, not a family car). Oh yeah- and it being 2 years old meant that about 30% of what a new one would cost had been depreciated out. Considering how few miles I average on my trucks (around 5,000 a year), it will be with me for a long time (knock on wood- no collisions please!) The local Toyota dealer had only 4 of the standard cab tundras all last year. Each was spoken for before delivery, which means if I really wanted a new one I would have had to put my name on a waiting list. Instead, I drove away with just what I wanted Saturday. The three Tundras they had in stock were all club cabs. They were sticker priced at between $36,000 and $38,000 each. That's not a truck- that the mortgage on a small house. My Tundra cost substantially less than any of those trucks, btw- there is no way I would buy a vehicle that would cost me over $800 a month in payments. And can you imagine how much the insurance would be on something that expensive. Yes, I am a bargain shopper. Call me a cheapskate if you like. But at my usual 5,000 miles a year, one of those new club cabs would cost $1.92 a mile to drive it in payments alone! No way..... So, as of Thursday, I will be Hillbilly equipment-free. Both the old boat and the rust bucket of a truck served me well for a combined 36 years. Well- the truck gave me some pains over the years, especially right after it went out of warranty. But not having to care if it was washed or polished for the last 7 years made up for those rough early years....
 powered by SignMyGuestbook.com
Have You Read These?
A hot day for a wedding...9:26 p.m. - Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2009 So bad - but so funny, too.10:33 p.m. - Saturday, Jun. 13, 2009 Evil Black Walnut Tree from Hell!- times up!6:41 a.m. - Thursday, Apr. 23, 2009 My next door neighbor was on the Today Show?8:57 p.m. - Tuesday, Mar. 31, 2009 This qualifies as a "oh crap!" moment:9:55 p.m. - Monday, Mar. 30, 2009 Back to top
|
