'Has the time come?' A tow vehicle saga

[sam-3]

We bought a new ford f250 in 1997 8ft. bed 4x4. We live up north in salt/snowy conditions. When it was brand new we had it professionally rust proofed. Every year this is renewed. Every year it goes into the body shop for any rust or repainting. We have an extremely experienced talented body shop guy. Our truck look brand new with over 100.00 thousand miles on it. We always receive compliments on how good it looks. A similar new truck would cost at least $50.000 plus a fiberglass cap and running boards. You have been given some good suggestions to solve your dilemma.

[PRodacy]

Why not drive the dying beast to Arizona or New Mexico and trade it in? Lots of older rust-free vehicles, plus you get to take a vacation. Look at some of the auto dealers lik CarMax. You can see what their inventory in other states looks like. They'll ship the vehicles to you for a reasonable cost (few hundred dollars). At tho minimum you'll see what you can get in you price range. Downside is that you won't get much for your old truck out here. Couldn't resell (barely give one away) a rust bucket. Good luck.

[mohamer]

If you trade for a diesel truck remember, real diesels do not have glow plugs.

[BCooke]

I like the picking up a newer and using it for towing. Saving old faithful for the daily driving chores.

Mohamer... ?

[fbh31118]

My 'fake diesel' has been just fine for many years now and has served me well without a doubt but without having a garage or a barn to do a conversion its really not feasible for me, unfortunately. At this point in time it's just a matter of time before the car is paid for and I will have to go look for a new truck.

I am a little challenged over what I'm going to settle on brand wise because for me it's going to boil down to Cummins(with there poor auto trans) or Duramax(with there dead pedal and poor customer service) for the new future flog horse. Sorry Ford ( and Navistar International) but I'm just not sold on the 6.7L and refuse to own a 6.0 or a 6.4 due to poor mileage and/or head gasket concerns. {These statements are not to stir debate of the brand loyal just merely my own thoughts on the matter!!}