some other points are that i would prefer it to be an automatic since i dont know how to drive a manual yet and i believe alot of compact pickups are standards(or so my dad tells me) and i was thinking a toyota because i've heard alot of good things about them and i want it to be reliable. Also what kind of difference in insurance price could i expect between different yearsand brands?

For a vehicle of any age the insurance won't be too tough on you. Since you are young, the price will depend more on your age and your driving record.

Learning to drive a stick is a piece of cake. My daughter thought the same as you. Then she feel in love with a little convertible that was a stick and bought it without ever having driven a stick. I took her out and gave her one lesson for about 45 min. and she has never looked back. Stick shifts almost never break and they get better milage than automatics. Just a side note my 12 year old daughter has a 650 joyner spider which is a stick and she learned to drive it just as quick. Now about 6 month since shes had it and she power shifts around corners with the buggy going sideways. Dont hesitate to buy a stick youll pick it up quickly. Van

go on craigslist.com click on your state and then your city there is a button you can click by owner or dealer. there are lots and lots of good used cars and trucks on there. you can even plug in your max price you want to pay so you dont have to sift through all the expensive ones.

right in my town there is a pretty clean little toyota PU...looks like an 89-91... Guy wants 4K with a plow and AC! lol... I bet we can get him down to 3!!! Truck has nice paint. 1 bumper is rusted a tiny bit, but the rest of the truck looks great!!!!


Other than that, dodge transmissions suck, FORD always has nice trucks that have random issues like EVAP, emissions and electronics, and Chevy are just maintenance cars... If you maintain them, they usually do pretty well. The older the chevy, the more likely you will be replacing intake gaskets...

That is just from working on them. Toyotas are great, but the older ones are usually pretty beat, and stick shift. I would have bought a stick shift, but the one I wanted only came in auto, so I got that one! lol. It was a little more than 3K though...

Good luck!

John

Ive been looking on craigslist and one i was looking at was a 1994 chevy s10. Its in great condition, 4wd, plow setup, but the problem is it most likely needs a new engine. he says the engine has a "rap" which my uncle thinks is a bearing in the engine so either take apart the engine and fix or buy a remanufactured engine for about $1200. The truck as it is is $1200 and my neighbor is a mechanic so ive been thinking a bout buying it and replacing the engine.

also it has a ZR2 off road package which supposedly makes it worth several thousand dollars more.

ZR2? sounds neat... Most common in the 4.3 (if that is what it has), especially the vortec, is the lifters. They drop often for some reason. I had to replace 3 or 4 a couple years back on 3 different trucks...


John

ok so i guess i never posted this but i got a truck back in july. I ended up with a 1996 ford ranger. Its only 2wd but i got it for $800 so im not gonna complain. plus it has a cap and ladder rack and a 10 disc cd changer

The funny thing is when I began reading the thread I didn't realize it was old and I was going to recommend a Ranger, and that's what you got haha. So how are you liking it?

I am planning on getting a newer Ranger one when I get my own vehicle. Right now I am driving my brother's 2001 F-150.