When you lend your car/truck to a family or friend ....

If I trust someone to drive my car I just toss them the keys, I stopped stressing about certain things as I got older. I keep my stuff nice and yes I’d probably be upset if something happened but I’d get over it. Not to mention I’ve made mistakes and people have given me lots of grace when they didn’t have to. It’s just a car at the end of the day.

What I will say is I stopped loaning books out. It’s unbelievable how most people bash them up, it’s crazy how often I have to hound them to get it back too. I’ll literally let someone drive my Taco or my 66 GT before I loan another book out. Just my two cents.

 

This makes sense, I have some books that are expensive if I had to reacquire them..same with my CDs. If my wife listened to the same music as me, no way I would even let her use them.

Loaned a buddy of mine one of my old Playstation games and he somehow lost it or something. He did buy me another copy but it was scratched to hell..mine was mint. Jerk..

 

Loaning things, whatever it is will be inviting some sort of grief. It's like getting an inheritance. If you didn't earn it, you probably don't appreciate it. My kids tell me to downsize. I told them to piss off, I like all this stuff I accumulated. They will have to work for it.

 

I loaned my Isuzu Axiom once to a good friend of mine. I knew her well enough to trust her to be careful with the car. That was 20+ years ago. Never once then.
Tools and books I no longer lend. One borrowed and never returned a T-post pounder, and at the same borrowed one of my books on farming. Took 18 months and multiple asks to get my book back. Had to buy the new pounder last week to put new fence around my nectarines.
Now nothing is loaned or asked for. If I need something, I buy it or rent it.

 

For those of us that no one else has driven our trucks, let me preface that while under warranty to address a handful of TSBs, a dealer Tech did drive my truck into a service bay.

My daughter sometimes needs to borrow a vehicle but she prefers to use my wife’s Corolla.

My wife is 5’ 0” and says she can not see over my Sport hood scoop and will not drive my Tacoma (which is great with me).

When family or friends need to haul something, I drive and help them with the load.

I am not absolutely opposed to someone driving my Tacoma. I do get a good feeling that I am the only one to drive my truck in 9.5 years.

 

Nope.

 

My only response is:
-NO.
-I can make myself available to help with whatever goal you're trying to accomplish, but I'm driving. My insurance covers me alone; its not getting loaned out to anyone, no matter how much I love them. And its not even about them having to pay it back if something happened; anyone I'd loan it to, I know they'd be good for it; but I love them enough to not put them in that situation by NOT loaning it out.

 

And thats my exact point. Anyone I'd consider worthy enough to loan a vehicle to, I value them enough to not even put them in a situation where this could potentially ever be an outcome. I also value them enough, that I'll happily make myself available to help accomplish the goal they're trying to achieve by borrowing the truck. Ask me the same question 30 years ago and my answer would have been a lot different. Times have changed, thats for sure.

Its a package deal, if you need to borrow the truck (or car), you're borrowing me as well. If I'm just not available, and it can be no other way, you can borrow someone else in the family.

 

No, I don't have a beater. Not sure how insurance works.

 

I think your rules are reasonable...No chance I would let someone borrow a car though other than my '08 Camry. My Tacoma is a manual so it eliminates nearly everyone anyways.

 

I dont wash but I usually fill up fuel to the top

 

People I know already know how I am so thankfully they dont even bother to ask.
I only let my 2 sons drive my cars.

 

There’s a lady at my bank I would loan my truck to. Damn, she could make a man write bad checks.

 

Thankfully, I've never had anyone ask to borrow my truck.

 

Well said re appreciating it. I bought my own stuff even growing up..many of my friends didn't and it showed in that their bikes were beat to hell in no time and mine was still in tiptop shape for many moons. And yes re downsizing, my wife wonders about my bike collection. I just remind her nobody is forcing her to walk into the garage and see them all. My nephew thought he was getting my truck but I quickly disabused him of that notion haha..told him he can buy his own and I'll teach him how it works.

Even my beater is still my transportation, so agreed.

 

Beater is sometimes the best option. Brand new has not "settled in". When you try to "improve" your "settled in" beater you sometimes destroy it.

 

Friends/family yes. Car wash workers, those are the real enemy. Not only have they locked me out of the car by leaving key on the seat and closing the door but they all apparently "known how to drive stick" and end up reversing instead of pulling it forward. You would think the backup camera activating would be a clue...