Do you ever miss your beater?

I just took my '96 Jimmy out for a beer run. Haven't driven it since I bought my '15 Tacoma six months ago. Sorry old thing is powerful but sounds like it's leaving loose parts in it's wake under hard acceleration lol.

Can you relate? Toyota (bone stock perfection) versus crappy GM products or whatever you were driving before... Do you ever miss it?

 

The key is to have a Toyota beater. It's got that old school charm and yet, lots of reliability. Even if it makes clunking noises and the bed bounces around a little more than you think it should....

 

Everything before my Tacoma was a beater. Oh the joy of keeping a $150 car running.

 

I miss my 1999 Suzuki Swift. Too bad a new exhaust would have been worth more than the rest of the car...
That doomed it.

 

I had a 1983 F150 4x4 that I bought for $1000 and it looked every bit of it.

Inline 6, 4 speed manual with granny 1st, dual fuel tanks (it needed them), A/C was the only option.

Tough as nails and reliable as the Sun.

It could sit 6 months without being driven and would start within 3 revolutions of the engine.

I could park it anywhere and NOBODY would park next to it .

I drove it 8 years and only spent $20 for a solenoid that failed.

Where is it now?

My father-in-law wanted it and he's still using it.

He's had it for 10 years and he did replace the driver fender so now it's only 2 different colors instead of 3 .

Yeah, I miss having a vehicle that was that solid/reliable yet was also something that I didn't give a whit about how it looked.

 

Oh man, my neighbor had that in '83. God it was slow. Here, I'm sure it rusted away by 2000.

My Taco is my beater now. Much like that old Ford, it sits for months at a time. In fact, it is almost time for the spring oil change and the oil will still look new. That's one thing changed from the '80s. Oil used to wax so bad over winter.

 

My 03 Tacoma was a beater, had no paint on the top surfaces, lots of dents, etc. Had 240K miles on it, ran smooth, but was going to soon need probably 5 grand to baseline it back to full health. I loved it but was wondering if it was the right place to start dumping cash. I took my wife's Rav4 to the dealer one Friday evening for 15K service and there, on the floor, was my dream truck, and I left with it the next morning. I would have kept my 03 but they gave me $3500 for it, sight unseen?! I was amazed - that paid the state sales tax right there. I love my new truck but I definitely miss the simplicity and non-electrical nature of the old one, and I miss the TRD locker, not that I ever needed it in real life. Life is a series of trade offs.

 

Every day lol

 

There's always that refreshing feeling of not having to give a F about it, dings, parking location, washing, etc. Then you get something new and all the worrying begins again.

 

No I do not! Bought a brand new Toyota in 2011 and another brand new Toyota in 2012. Quickly sold me for the 93 Pickup. Made one last mistake of a brand new Honda in 2015, gave that to my baby brother for college and bought the 99 4Runner. Can afford whatever vehicle I want, and I want these old beaters over anything else haha

 

I know a few Boomers that still drive new trucks straight for the bushes to get it over with. I allow one dent. Hopefully small.

 

I was going to say the exact same thing. I have an old focus I bought to drive while I kept trying to get my late model Dodge truck to quit breaking down. I still have the focus because it stays running.