Which road to take from here.....

Ok so here's my situation. I got my car almost 3 years ago all stock and have put a lot of time and money into it. It's been a lot of fun and i've definitely learned a lot of stuff.

Currently I have my car and for the winter I have a beater 88 Ford ranger that runs good for being 20 years old and getting piss pounded all the time.

I thought I cracked the tranny housing the other day bottoming out because I have the car lowered which is suicide with the shitty roads where I live. I had my friends dad look the car over really good.

There is a grip of things wrong with the car that I would like to fix...
1. no a/c because some little valve inside the dash needs to be replaced which was estimated at like a 600 dollar job. I can do without the a/c and have heard that removing it all reduces weight and frees up power....

2. Living up north with snow and shit, the car is rusting underneath and bad under the hood on the strut tower.

3. The motor is at 120,000 miles and 17 pounds of boost now that I got DSMLink and bigger injectors and fuel pump.... and is burning a lot of oil. So the motor will need a rebuild. My friends dad said it's leaking oil out of all the lower seals?

Those are 3 of the biggest concerns I have with the car aside from littler issues. I am almost 21 back living at home and was planning on buying a house within the next year. I have really been considering buying an '05 F-150 FX4 and doing a suspension lift and 35's just because I want something NEWISH that is all around nice, clean, and reliable.

Another thing is that I really don't do anything with my car. I mean not a lot of people around here are into dsm's at all, there's no track I can go to to at least put the time and money to use, and I don't streetrace or speed because I can't get any more tickets. Where I live I can drive the car from April to maybe October at the latest.

**** So I'm really looking for all your guys' opinions on what I should do. I'm currently working and going to school making roughly $14,000 a year. What I would LOVE LOVE LOVE to do is buy a new, reliable, nice truck and sell my beater ranger. Along with doing that I would like to keep the car as a project and hobby and slowly but surely work on that and possibly rebuild it. I would like to do it myself to learn and have fun with.

eh I dunno what to do.... Given my financial limits and considering the fact that I would have an expensive truck to pay off and want to buy a house in the next year, what do you guys think would be the best thing for me to do??

I would appreciate any opinions right now i'm torn directly down the middle between selling the car or not. Just depending on whether or not I can afford a new truck and still be able to keep the car and afford a rebuild. And then on top of that, think about buying a house in the near future.

Thanks guys.

Sounds like you have the problem I had at the beginning of summer. Trucks are getting cheaper and cheaper every day with the cost of gas so you would probably be able to find a decent one for a good price. New cars are nice and all, but insurance will be outrageous along with your monthly payment I thought about getting something in the 2000's this summer... Then I had what I wanted quoted. $300 a month (no tickets or violations on my record) along with a ~$300 car payment. Im not sure how old you are, but I am a 19 year old college student. After I buy a Wii & HDTV, everything I get will be saved until I get the next "age discount", then I'll be looking at an SRT4 or Mustang or something... If I get crazy by then, an Evo or WRX might be in line too :P

As for selling your car, I would hold onto it if you have the garage space... You wont probably wont get what you think its worth, I thought about selling mine too, but 140k on the body just isnt going to get me any cash for it.

At 14k a year, I'd avoid any purchase that doesn't appreciate if you really are thying to get a house.

I make double that and I'm still broke :)
Do whats in your heart man simple pleasures are all we really have in life. If you like your car than keep it. If the A/c is worth it than fix it etc etc My AC doesn't work either your not alone.

Well what do you guys think about selling the ranger and then turning the boost down for the rest of the year and drive the car while looking for a nice newer truck...

And then I can rebuild the motor and have the car as a hobby/project.

What all should I start thinking about when rebuilding the motor? Does it have to be pulled? I need to do the timing belt and all the jazz and was thinking on cams... then port the head?.... oversized valves?.... pistons?.... rings?.... anything lower than that?

I've never rebuilt a car motor so any advice on what to do so that it's done right the first time I'd love to hear.....

P.S. Stevie i'm heading to canada tomorrow morning (Thunder Bay) to hit up the bars for a night then do some camping, fishing, and drinking.... aye.

P.S. Stevie i'm heading to canada tomorrow morning (Thunder Bay) to hit up the bars for a night then do some camping, fishing, and drinking.... aye.


Hell yea! Too bad thunder bay is actually really far from me. And tommorow I will be competing at the track. But man I have a feeling one day we will all party hard together whether it be up in the great white north or some place in north USA only time will tell.

Hell yea! Too bad thunder bay is actually really far from me. And tommorow I will be competing at the track. But man I have a feeling one day we will all party hard together whether it be up in the great white north or some place in north USA only time will tell.

Like... Chicago?

If you build it they will come:)

Or Minnesota? Oh wait, only cool people go there!

Ass and titties, ass and titties, ass and titties, ass and titties, ass and titties, ass and titties, ass and titties, ass and titties. Yes, I am fucking drunk. :)

That said, as for the motor: what are your plans?

Really? Buying a house on 14k a year at the age of 21-22? Good luck with that. Nobody is going to finance you.

As for the car, I would do what you need to get by and leave it at that. Exactly how much oil are you burning? Your best bet right now would be to save some money if you are serious about buying a house. I know if probably feels like you need a change, but taking on a bunch of debt is not going to help you in the long run. If anything dump the car and get what you can for it and drive your old beater truck until it dies.

Buying a new truck would be a waste unless you actually NEED a truck for work purposes.

My neighbor bought his house for 35k... Liveable but dated... 4 BR 2 Bath, location decides price, and the price will decide if you're going to get financing too.

My neighbor bought his house for 35k... Liveable but dated... 4 BR 2 Bath, location decides price, and the price will decide if you're going to get financing too.

And where is this at? I'd be buying those up like crazy if it was around here. Fix em and sell em.

Really? Buying a house on 14k a year at the age of 21-22? Good luck with that. Nobody is going to finance you.

As for the car, I would do what you need to get by and leave it at that. Exactly how much oil are you burning? Your best bet right now would be to save some money if you are serious about buying a house. I know if probably feels like you need a change, but taking on a bunch of debt is not going to help you in the long run. If anything dump the car and get what you can for it and drive your old beater truck until it dies.

Buying a new truck would be a waste unless you actually NEED a truck for work purposes.

Well getting financed is not a problem like you say. I have 1 maybe two friends that will live with me and pay rent. Around here a nice 3 bedroom house with basement and garage runs around 100k. After a 30 year mortgage, taxes, insurance, and utilities It will not be more than 800 per month.

That is not unrealistic. But I need a nice reliable truck for winter and for hauling my racing quad. As for the car.. I really don't know what purpose there is for me to keep on with it since I don't have any tracks or local enthusiasts. I don't know how much I can get for it if I do sell it due to the salvage title. Two of my friends sold their mostly stock 98 gsx's last year for 11k and 12k.

holy shit where are houses selling for 100k???? I live in CO and even a house in the HOOD will run you more than that lol. i would recommend keeping whichever is the most reliable and saving up for a house. you can always get back in to cars.