Naio wrote:
Mech said not to buy that one, so that makes it easy.
I could really use you folks' thoughts on the 7.3. It's kitted out for camping, slight lift, good tires, shocks, brakes, charging system for my house battery. The high top is ginormous and ugly.
I have never owned a vehicle I liked the looks of. I always buy what is in great shape mechanically, and suits my needs. I don't choose based on looks, and my rigs have ranged, in my taste, from tolerable to clean but ugly. I keep thinking maybe I wanna hold out for something I LIKE looking at. But I am also impatient to move. So the ugly high top is a factor.
You are being overly picky for USED vehicles.
Buying anything with 80K-160K miles is a gamble, you are not ever going to find a used one that will suit you..
You can gum this subject to death but the result will be the same.. You will beat yourself silly, worry about everything and in the end skip it..
If you WANT CHEAP then EXPECT TO HAVE TO FIX SOME THINGS.
You will never find a used vehicle without a few faults or problems, that is the name of the game when buying used.
Most modern day engines and transmissions will have no problem getting 100K, 200K and even 300K without any major INTERNAL problems.
If I was selling a used vehicle and encountered a buyer with your demands of mechanics taking it on highway drives and exotic evasive testing to point of tearing a engine and transmission down to bare parts I would tell that buyer to take a hike, lose my number and never ever contact me again..
Do yourself a favor, up your budget, buy a newer vehicle or better yet buy a BRAND NEW one.. This way you will only have yourself to blame if you fail to maintain it..
