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my 1991 lifted F250 5.0 EFI 4x4 which is my daily driver is killing me for fuel and with gas only going up getting 10-12MPG avg is just not worth it I do need a decnt truck to pull a boat through the mountains and the ranger is pushing the limit of what is safe.
but on the other hand a nice black 2008 FX4 level II with a 5 speed manual tranny has come up for sale with low mileage and in great condition with some factory warranty left on it. I am thinking of ditching the 20 year old F250 as a trade in and if worse come to worse I guess I could use my dads 2005 Ram 2500 HD for towing and when I need more to carry larger items and the GTO is a summer car. so I still get to have a V-8 fun car but also have a truck that is decent off-road and gets some type of fuel economy
this is pretty much the exact same colour and cab configuration combo that I am looking at:
Do you really want a pickup as your daily driver? Just askin'. You could pick up an old Prelude, for example, decently fun car, excellent MPG, reliable, easy to service, tires are not very expensive. Or any sort of 2-door hatchback really, although the Japanese ones tend to be the most reliable.The more gas goes up, the smarter I feel for having got my $1000 Scirocco. 35+ MPG all day long. I logged 39 MPG on my last fill-up but I suspect I didn't get the tank as full as last time, just a measurement error in my favor...but anyway much better than the 10-12 you are getting with your truck.I don't know what kind of trade-in value you would actually get for your existing truck - if you just quit using it as a daily and bought a car for a daily IMHO you would probably come out better.At the same time the little 5-speed Ranger does not have any flies on it. But I think you could get a better "tool for the job" daily driver for less money.
I second the idea of something other than a P/U as a DD if you're really concerned about mileage. If you have the means, I would keep the F-250 and get something cheap and reliable as a DD.
I have to agree with the others. You have the GTO for a toy. The F250 for towing and camping. I would personally be looking at an economy car for the daily driving, that is where you will really save the money on gas. Heck, you could pick up a used Cobalt XFE for under $10k easy these days and still have a factory warranty. It's no frills, but it's cheap and will save you a ton on gas.
I'd pass on the Ranger. The Ranger is currently built on a 20 year old design and is powered by a engine designed in 1968. I have a Ranger and it has been reliable, but the 4.0L V6 will get you 16 MPG, maybe 17 MPG on the highway going downhill with a good tail wind. Pulling a trailer further reduces fuel economy to 9 or 10 MPG. The Ranger had a nice run, but it's powerplant and drivetrain are obsolete dinosaurs.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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My Ranger is a 2007, with the 4.0, automatic and 4WD. I just went on a trip last weekend and got 20.5, loaded with freshly waterered potted trees. I have gottten 23 on a long trip to CA but generally I get 14-15
around the area. I have not seen a big difference when towing 1,500 lbs,
but have not tried it on a long trip or up mountain passes, just local freeways and lost only 2-3 mpg.
I don't commute in it though, I picked up a beater 1997 Escort 5 speed that gets 32.
I got the same from co-workers that I should go get a late model little economy car. but yeah a cobalt XFE with a 5-speed sounds decent with 40mpg freeway and 30+MPG city it would be perfect and I would still have the old F250 for towing.
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