Taking up about sixteen oversize spaces at my local Costco this afternoon was this interesting assemblage of vehicles. I’m not sure if we can truly say there will be something for everyone to choose from but let’s give it a shot. The actual rules are posted at the end. Leading this shot is the tow vehicle, a fine example of a current generation Ford F-350 SuperDuty that illustrates a fairly common usage of the type of vehicle that Mr. Shafer went on at length about last month in this post.
This particular example is a current generation Ford F350 DRW Lariat 4WD with the 6.7l PowerStroke TurboDiesel engine. Equipped as it is it likely stickered for around $70,000. Obviously this is also the driver’s rolling office, there was also at least a passenger (or second driver) and a dog inside. I saw the owner carrying a crate of drinks and some other supplies on his way back to the truck. This is very much a working vehicle purchased to earn money for its owner/driver.
In this case the company is based in Las Vegas, NV and, since this was in Colorado, obviously goes far afield in search of work. The truck is without a doubt a very fine place to spend a lot of time on the road and if you are similarly employed or are one of the many cattle ranchers in these here central states, this may be a great vehicle for you.
Here’s the view from the rear, with something this long it is probably difficult to see all the way to the end from the first picture alone. Ford is perhaps a little over-represented here but let’s take a closer look for those of you without the ranch to house the F-350.
Well, right up top with pride of place looks to be a ’32 Ford Pickup. An iconic American shape, this one looks far from stock but still looks to have lots of places where you could place your own personal style to it. I don’t think the early ’80’s Mustang wheels do it any favors but they are good placeholders while you source something more in keeping with your own likes. However those wheels also seem to be sporting Michelin TRX tires so you likely would want to get on replacing that whole setup fairly quickly. What’s parked underneath it? We’ll come back to that in a minute.
Yeah, here’s another vehicle with three-spoke wheels on this haul, this time an Infiniti QX4. Obviously based on the unibody Nissan Pathfinder, this was Infiniti’s first foray into the SUV market. Whilst not exactly common, they did OK in the marketplace and were a comfortable leather-lined way to commute to work or the mall and I believe came with a full time all wheel drive system.
This looks like one of the later 2002-2004 versions based on the wheel design but they most assuredly did not come with outline white letter tires from the factory. Although it has North Dakota plates it looks fairly pampered with just a hint of paint discoloration starting around the front fender flares.
Alright, so what have we here? I am virtually certain it is a Ford Model A chassis that looks to be in quite good condition, obviously restored and waiting for a body.
It looks ready to go and very possibly runs and drives. While not quite ready for the Friday Night Cruise, this might make a very fine starting point for the budding vintage enthusiast. Not quite 99% complete, what is there though looks mighty good. This could in fact be the most valuable item on the trailer.
Bringing up the rear, but only literally (or maybe not?), is another Ford Pickup, this time an F-250 SuperDuty 4×4 of circa 2000 vintage, again with a Ford PowerStroke Diesel engine. Equipped with the long bed, this appears to be a fairly basic spec truck that likely has at least a 2 as the lead digit on its 6-figure odometer and very possibly a 3 or even a 4. It has Colorado plates and as such likely doesn’t have too much rust (besides the front bumper).
So here’s the deal. You get to (have to) choose one to take for your own. No charge whatsoever to acquire it, but you have to keep it, feed it, and nurture it (with your own money), no selling it; and once you may be done with it, it just goes away with no residual gain to you.
Consider where you are able to house it and how you’d use it . And explain why and how. If you live in an apartment in Chicago you are not taking the tow vehicle, capisce? For myself, although it’s the boring (but sensible!) choice, I think I would take the Infiniti QX4 as I have a soon to be licensed teen driver in the household for whom it would make a fine carriage.
Definitely the rolling Model A chassis. I could show it as-is while restoring a body for it. Naked chassis’ seem to be one of the recent things to see at car shows.
What a tool this truck driver is. He had to park so that all sixteen spots were used. I suspect a low IQ.
The lot all around it is practically empty and it’s not blocking any entrance or exit. And given it’s at a retail chain it probably won’t be there long, so what’s the problem?
Seriously? How would you suggest he park, then?
Well, for starters, the tow vehicle is awfully nice, but entirely inappropriate for my uses. I’m not moving houses. It’s a beast, but it is a beaut. Pass.
As far as the two antique Ford pieces, I’ll pass. I do like antique cars from that era, and particularly the Brass Era, but old Fords do nothing for me. Pass.
The Infiniti has legs. I like it. I’m leaning that way, but I thoroughly dislike running boards on a SUV, and it’s old enough to likely have a quarter million miles on it, albeit well maintained miles. Pass.
That leaves the F-250. For starters, the “Power Stroke” callout on the door signifies a 6.0 motor, used from mid 2003-2008. The grill places it as either a 2003 or 2004. Now that we’ve settled that, the 6.0 is widely regarded as the worst of the Power Strokes; but if it’s still on the road, the issues are likely to have been rectified. I said the tow vehicle was a bit too much truck for my comfort, and honestly, so is the F-250, but not so much. Sometimes, you gotta take what you can get. Sure, it has high miles, as evidenced by the sand abrasion on the front bumper, but it’ll go a helll of a lot longer than the fancy pants Pathfinder of the same vintage. It’s versatile, and the F-250 will tow anything the average person can afford to put behind it, and while it’s not a Fleetwood, it is suitable as a daily driver. I’ll name it, “Brutus”. Hello my new (to me) truck!
Dunno, I think the F250has the 7.3, as there is something about the fender tag that looks too old for the 6.0. I personally like the 6.0, and have the ’06 with it, as a long box crew cab. Harder to find without a million K on them, and I don’t really know what folks with slide in campers of a reasonable length do for a truck to put it in without spending the $70K. As long as you don’t mind sorting out the issues, the 6.0 has gobs of power and gets decent mileage. We get 16.5 average over 50K and the TorqShift trans is amazing.
By ’03 the turn signals and marker lights went to clear with a small orange section. The full orange was the older version IIRC. Of course the truck could have had the front end replaced at some point, presumable they are all interechangeable making it a little hard to be exact. I couldn’t find an exact match for the wheel style either in my quick search…
On second thought, maybe I don’t know what I’m talking about regarding the “Power Stroke” callout on the doors. I dunno. Darren’s ‘06 callout has a different script configuration, but I could’ve swore those door callouts were for the 6.0 diesel. The front bumper is painted white, which I don’t think is factory, leading me to believe it and the grill/lights may have been wrecked and replaced at some point. There’s an obvious bumper/fender misalignment on the passenger side. The center caps are missing off both the front alloy wheels (evidence of “death wobble”?), and I noticed serious abrasion on the left rim. There’s a lot of miles on that truck. A lot. Bear in mind I’m looking at this on an iPhone SE; but I seem to see the silhouette of a leaf spring on the front end, rather than a coil. I think the 7.3L used leaf springs.
After reconsideration of these observations, and of the obvious mega miles on the F-250…I’ll still go with the truck. When you turn on the blinker to change lanes in that, the “Red Sea” will part…
Yeah I’m not aware of Ford painting the bumpers white and they didn’t put painted bumpers on trucks with the chrome grille and aero headlights. They also didn’t put a painted bumper on the front and a chrome one on the rear. So things have been changed, the question is what.
The center cabs are missing because those are aftermarket hubs. The truck may have had a unit bearing conversion at some point.
The wheels, grill, and engine badge are all consistent with a 1999 7.3. The issues the 6.0 and 6.4 had, followed by the complexity of the 6.7 has caused the 7.3 to skyrocket in value. All that being said, I’d still personally take the tow rig, unless the 7.3 is stock, with a manual transmission, and less than 200k miles.
The 32 or A chassis are the only things of interest on that load to me, I like real trucks just fine, but not overgrown pickups much.
Easy. The Model A chassis. I’ve been craving an A Speedster for decades, and this is the prefect starting point, not needing to get rid of a body.
https://www.curbsideclassic.com/curbside-classics-american/curbside-classic-1928-ford-model-a-speedster-four-banger-lust-object/
None of them! Too old and too big.
Sign me up for the ’32. I’m in the process of moving back to Vancouver Island where I plan to retire in a couple of years. Perfect hobby vehicle, and a nice little cruiser for Sunday afternoon drives along the old island highway. Bonus points for being an old truck, as Mrs. tiredoldmechanic has a soft spot for them. Right now she’s thinking second generation Corvair though.
I agree on changing the wheels, and I’m not a fan of patina or the rat rod look so a decent paint job and some chrome reverse wheels or maybe wire wheels would be on the menu.
Living in an apartment rules out the ’32. The Ford is too big, even if it is a diesel. I guess it’s gonna have to be the Infiniti, though it is getting on in years.
32 pickup, as is, TRXs and all. That thing is loaded with character like that!
I really like older Ford pickups … as in Model A to maybe 1940 … so the ‘32 appeals to my emotions. I really have no need for an F250, as I have a nice new 4wd Tacoma, but since I try to reserve the Taco for extended travels, an F250 with the 8’ bed would make a nice camper platform, something my 5’ bed Tacoma is not. The QX4? Aesthetically appealing to me, and I like AWD, but IIRC no low range, which is a trade off I wouldn’t want in this kind of vehicle, which doesn’t offer the road manners or economy of a crossover. So the ‘32 it would be. E
The ‘32 pickup, followed by the trailer as my second choice!
32 for me.
The ‘32 Ford, TRX Wheels and all, is my favorite of the bunch, but with no garage, and the paint beyond where even I could save and preserve it (nor would I want to really… the dull finish gives it character!), I’d be doing it a disservice by claiming it. Same for the Model A chassis… possibilities galore, but no means with which to entertain them. The tow rig is a monstrosity I do not need, even though I like the styling of the current Ford trucks. That leaves the SUV and the other pickup. Not a fan of SUV(s) – personally, I wished that they would just go away, but resistance is futile, and I’ll probably end up with one some day – make mine a Mazda CX-5… oops, did I say that out loud? ?
So that leaves the F-250. Still too much truck for my needs, but my wife would love to have an F-150 for going to the dump, and garden center, and…. Anyway, that would probably be the pick for me, but if Paul’s F-100 was on that trailer, THAT would be the ideal pickup for her, although I’m not a fan of yellow. Sorry Paul. ?
Ya know, if that ‘32 is a resto-mod, considering the wheels it’s sporting, maybe that would be the ideal pickup for her after all! She really misses her S-10, and that ‘32 is probably just about the right size.
I’ll be the odd man out and take the Infiniti. I’ve always secretly liked these and this one is the post-facelift version with the competent 240 horsepower V6, nicer wood trim, and upgraded leather.
May I please have the truck and the trailer? It’s a business I’ve considered getting myself into, but the rig alone is close to $100k.
20 years ago, the business barely existed. Transporting cars was for rich people who bought collector cars at auction, or rich snowbirds who couldn’t be bothered to drive their Mercedes south for the winter, or the occasional corporate relocation.
Nowadays, any mope with an eBay account can buy a car across the country and for about $1600 (on an open carrier like this) have it shipped home.
I see rigs like this passing through Las Vegas several times a week now.
I guess I could take the tow vehicle, get full coverage and park it in a bad area and forget to take the keys, but that would not be in the spirit of the article.
Since the Titan already is too big for my garage, I’ll sell it and keep the big power stroke, use the money for a nice 5th wheel trailer and take a year or two seeing the USA.
The Infiniti for me… The concurrent Pathfinder was alays a bit too utilitarian and spartan in appearance but these always seemed like the most butch alternative to a Lexus RX (not that I wouldn’t take one of those either)
The fender flares on the Pathfinder and QX4 hide rust.
It’s a toss-up between the QX4 and the F-250, but I’d have to go with the QX4, mostly because of rarity. Super Dutys are a dime a dozen in flyover country, especially with the 6.0. Presumably, it’s been bulletproofed by this point, but I’m more familiar with the gas V10 anyway.
I’d take the ’32 Truck. My work commute is only about 12 miles roundtrip and because I leave for work before the peak rush hour and leave work before peak evening rush hour, it wouldn’t be hard to use it regularly
Last week the original battery in my 2010 Infiniti G37 gave up the ghost just a few weeks short of its eighth anniversary in my garage. It is easily the best car I’ve ever owned. Hence, give me the QX4 as that gen was still reasonably sized and the vehicle probably still has a lot of life in it.
Evan makes a good point about the new F350 and trailer being basically a turnkey business.
I agree with Evan but it can’t be easy though. You basically live in the truck. In this case I’m guessing the white F250 was the last vehicle picked up due to the plates, the QX4 before that from up North and then the older Fords from wherever even though the ’32 has CA plates as they stay with the car. Although the CO plates should have been removed from the F250 if it’s a sale as here they stay with the person not the vehicle.
Still you’d need either a homebase or a passenger/co-driver with a constant hot connection to check for business online and be able to take calls at any time in order not to miss out and ideally never run empty.
Yeah I don’t know that I could handle the living in a truck that cross country hauling like that would require. On the other hand I do see a number of set ups similar to this that are used on a more local basis hauling cars to and from the dealer only auction yard and I could do that if I was home most nights of the week.
Jim, I’m flattered you remembered the article. I’ve been toying with a comparison of sedan sales to pickup sales, wondering if the meet point coincides with downsizing, economic good times, or what. That should be a learning experience.
But that F-350 suits me, thank you very much. I’m out and about and will be pulling a trailer with my F-150 tomorrow; this F-350 will allow for me to get a bigger trailer and fewer trips, thus saving fuel in the process.
It’s a win-win.
I don’t have enough money to restore or rebody either Model A. I like my current job and are not looking to switch careers. I’ve spent a bit of time in a QX4 and didn’t really like it. Assuming I could find enough work for the truck to pay for itself that would be my choice.
That’s a big if though.
I have a small apartment parking lot. That makes it the Infiniti based on size.
There are a couple guys who bring home ram 3500 duallys every once in a while and the nonsense they go thru to park I couldnt handle on a daily basis.
The QX4. I have neither want nor need for a pickup truck, don’t see myself becoming a trucker, and don’t care for vintage pickups.
If just for me, the F-250. If it’s my only vehicle, the Infiniti would win out. But I really want the tow truck.
While not sustainable or politically correct, I love big trucks on an intuitive level. It would literally be impossible to drive it anywhere near Copenhagen where I live, let alone park it. But I love it.
I’ll take good care of the Porsche featured in the previous post.
The bare Model A chassis. All day long. I once had a 29 coupe and have missed it ever since I sold it. Paul’s speedster idea isn’t a bad one, but I would probably try to find a stock body and go from there. It would be just like a new car with the ability to build and price it to my own specs.
Yeah, Model A chassis for me too. No doubt it recently lost its body to a hot rod project. That’s what happened to a nice stock A in our neighborhood, which kind of burns my butt. However, I can’t save all the stock A’s so might as well get used for something.
Honestly none of them are something I’d really want but the baby Ford pickup comes the closest. The real pickups aren’t in my preferred configuration which is Crew Cab, Gasoline, 8′ bed, SRW 4×4. Don’t need another midsize SUV and if I did it certainly wouldn’t be an old Nissan.
Huh?!? Why would i pick anything BUT the ’32?!?
The 32 Ford for sure. All the rest you can keep.
Infiniti QX4 all the way