Cummins Ram, or Mustang GT? which & Why?

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so today while at work i'm pondering acquiring a secondary vehicle a couple years down the road...
there are 2 in the family that interest me, and just looking for outside input.(this is all sooo much of a pipe dream @ the moment)
Option One -
early 2000's(last year before common rail injection) Dodge Ram 2500 club cab, Cummins turbo diesel, manual(forget if it's a 5, or 6 speed) 4x4.
My uncle bought it new, and it's his main farm work truck out in so. ID(High Desert - vehicle rusting is MUCH milder than here in buckeyeland). and By farm work, i mainly mean hauling loads of straw/hay for his horses & Mules (6 critters @ most, he retired, and they're his hobby), and trailering the mules to Washington state to go elk hunting.
has roughly 100k on it, has a fuel/water separator, and is on his 3rd vp44 injection pump(roughly every 30k mi)
figure this would make a decent second car, in the case i would need to haul stuffs, plus i could put a blade on the front and live out my snow plow fantasies

Option Two -

1998 Ford Mustang GT 5 Speed, Hard Top, Leather, etc.
My brother bought it new( hasn't been outside the Dallas-Ft.Worth area since it was delivered from the factory).
For some reason or another, (mainly the Manual in DFW Rush hour)within 16k mi. he just parked it in his garage. takes it out once or twice a year. can't be convinced to sell it so far. (has tried a couple times but wants unrealistic amount for it.)
still has under 17k miles, still looks pretty much new.
only reasons to make this a second car, are, 1) get it out of my brother's driveway, 2) it should be a fun car to drive.


so if we assume the prices of the vehicles, and cost of transport back to ohio would be equal (which of course they wouldn't but we are pretending), which of these cars would YOU choose for your secondary vehicle & why?

(this is the kind of time i have on my hands to think of this crud while i'm running a checkout...)
 
Well considering (from your signature) you already have a fairly small car, I'd personally go for the truck. It can be very useful at times; if you're ever buying furniture/ appliances, renovating a house, hauling junk to the dump, decide to get a trailer of sorts etc.

Plus I don't consider your first reason for a mustang to really be a concern to you.
(( 1) get it out of my brother's driveway ))


But of course, in the end it's your decision, and yours alone
 
Just my opinion, but I'd never have a truck as a daily driver. But I always have a truck, just an old paid off truck. I drive it when it snows, or when I need to haul things. A daily driver should a good fun car!
 
Originally Posted By: Joseph_S37
Well considering (from your signature) you already have a fairly small car, I'd personally go for the truck. It can be very useful at times; if you're ever buying furniture/ appliances, renovating a house, hauling junk to the dump, decide to get a trailer of sorts etc.

Plus I don't consider your first reason for a mustang to really be a concern to you.
(( 1) get it out of my brother's driveway ))
But of course, in the end it's your decision, and yours alone


Yeah, I do drive a small car, and plan on replacing it with another small car. (Dodge Dart)

and as for being a valid reason to get the mustang, @ this point, i think that's the only way he'll part with the car.

he has that mustang, and '06 Mustang GT (auto, his DD), and an '07 dakota quad cab w/ the HO V8. and considering buying either a challenger or charger to add to his collection.

this is in a residential neighborhood, 2 car garage( really one car, since the jet ski he hasn't used in 5 years takes up 1/2), maybe 4 car (2x2) driveway.. and neighborhood assoc. rules against putting up a barn/garage in his back yard.. won't consider trading either 'stang in, cuz "they don't give you anything for a trade in" (mostly true)

and if you can't try and help your own brother,(or at least take a whack @ his hoarding now & again) what's that say about you?
 
Originally Posted By: crw
Just my opinion, but I'd never have a truck as a daily driver. But I always have a truck, just an old paid off truck. I drive it when it snows, or when I need to haul things. A daily driver should a good fun car!

me either that's why i was sure to state, this would be my secondary vehicle. (hauling stuff, moving, deep snow,other car in shop, etc)
 
Mustang GT + bolt ons =
smile.gif
 
Buy them both, get a car trailer to haul your Mustang to the track! And tell your uncle to add 100:1 2-stroke oil to his fuel, that'll stop him from eating VP44s.
 
Originally Posted By: bullwinkle
Buy them both, get a car trailer to haul your Mustang to the track! And tell your uncle to add 100:1 2-stroke oil to his fuel, that'll stop him from eating VP44s.
Yes! Get 'em both, you only live once!
 
A truck as a spare vehicle is always a useful addition to your fleet. Diesels are really neat as well and the manual and 4X4 are big advantages in my book.
So, I'd take the truck.
I'd also plan on driving it back, since a road trip of that length is fun.
 
Originally Posted By: bullwinkle
tell your uncle to add 100:1 2-stroke oil to his fuel, that'll stop him from eating VP44s.

he is...now... after some one local to him, and I, both told him that.
actually i told him an ounce/gallon. (which my dad swears is 50:1, even though there are 128fl.oz to the us gallon...)
Originally Posted By: fdcg27

I'd also plan on driving it back, since a road trip of that length is fun.

that would be what i meant by transportation costs, one way plane ticket, fuel,Hotels & Food back.

quick real world fyi on the lengths of the drives.
DFW->NWOH:
Approx 1200 mi, 18 hrs straight through, or 2 days with hotel stop.
SO.ID->NWOH:
never driven it yet, so not sure of the miles, but it is about 3 days drive time. (can do nearly the whole trip on US30. both end points are within a few miles of it)
 
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I'd think about what your needs will be in a couple years. Would you get more use out of a utilitarian work vehicle or a toy?

Personally, I would get more use out of the Ram than I ever would the Mustang, so that would be an easy choice for me. You can have a lot of fun with the Mustang though, and with all of the performance upgrades available for them you can build it up as much as you want.
 
Originally Posted By: bullwinkle
Buy them both, get a car trailer to haul your Mustang to the track! And tell your uncle to add 100:1 2-stroke oil to his fuel, that'll stop him from eating VP44s.


Or just fix the bad lift pump.
confused.gif
 
yeah, cuz what i'd get from the neon would come NOWHERE near what i would need to do that...
KBB on the truck alone is still over $10G's (if i've configured it correctly)
and uncle's not ready to part with the truck yet. he has decided this will be his last diesel though, gas trucks have caught up in the fuel economy, and the diesel parts are bloody expensive.
 
Originally Posted By: Jarlaxle
Originally Posted By: bullwinkle
Buy them both, get a car trailer to haul your Mustang to the track! And tell your uncle to add 100:1 2-stroke oil to his fuel, that'll stop him from eating VP44s.


Or just fix the bad lift pump.
confused.gif



from my understanding, the lift pump HAS been replaced(uprated bully dog unit installed same time as water separator IIRC) and is working fine, the problem is the injection pumps(VP44) burn out (undersized/non existent heat sink,& newer fuels not lubing the unit as well, again IIRC) , leaving the lift pump to try and do double duty.
 
Get the truck hands down....good in snow good MPG and that motor will last forever plus you can use it to haul stuff around never know when it will come in handy to have
 
extra wrinkle:
if i were to buy the ram from uncle in ID, i'd likely be bringing back @ least one older car as well, to try and fix up.
currently sitting in his front yard, with some mechanical issue or another (parked in "LOOOONG term storage")
late 90's Bonneville with blown headgasket, been sitting for...2-3 years now....
early 80's Rabbit
unknown vintage Beetle
early 80's(pre-85 downsize) Olds coupe
80's Chevy truck
60's pickup (forget what kind)
late 70's-early 80's ford pickup w/ well constructed steel flatbed (needs Tranny)( he paid $1000 for this truck 15-20 yrs ago, mainly for the flatbed itself, and it finally broke down last summer)
pretty much all but the Bonneville are diesel (back in the day, they only bought diesel cars/trucks, and ran 'em all on the farm grade Fuel )

i'd be most tempted to try and get either of the vw's going, but as they'e both been sitting for 15+years, lord knows how many generations of what all critters have lived & Died in them.
(among other fun wildlife, Black Widow Spiders are indigenous to this area)
 
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