[Rockhounds] Vehicles

[Tom Bowers]

Well OK, regarding "Why does a Jeep Wrangler get you places that an F-150 may not?"
 - The first thing would be a shorter wheel base, so less likely to high center.  But, I may also have left out a few other details.  I didn't mention that this Wrangler is also modified for off-road.  It has an extra 4" lift kit, heavy-duty off-road shocks, oversized mud grip off-road tires, etc.  It's really built for running off-road.

Kreigh Tomaszewski <Kreigh at tomaszewski.net> wrote:  I'm currently driving my second Astro van, and looking for its
replacement. I've spent several afternoons recently visiting the
dealerships and I'm just not happy with the alternatives the automakers
are presenting. I'm not happy with a solution that hauls people or
cargo, but not both.

The Astro provided the high clearance that is an absolute requirement;
it was built on a truck frame. It offered the mixed use of cargo or
passengers. With the third seat out I could haul plenty of gear and
rocks to meet my needs. With the third seat in I can take the whole
family, and my kids friends, to some event. Take out two rows of seats
and I can haul a huge amount of cargo without complaints from the truck
frame. It had reasonable towing capacity. I would prefer better mileage,
but it was at least reasonable.

Saturday I went back to one of the local Chevy dealerships and convinced
one of the sales folks (and his manager) that nothing they offered was
going to meet my needs. They were sure that they could find me lots of
newer Astro's until they went online and started searching. The closest
one found was in the next state, and it had more miles than the one I
drove to the dealership. They are still looking (I talked to them today)
-- so much for their excuse of the holiday weekend.

People seem to be hanging on to their Astro vans. I think that GM made a
huge error in discontinuing it. I want your genie to find me an almost
new Astro van (extended) with all wheel drive that gets around 25 mpg,
has low mileage, and costs less than I paid for my house thirty years
ago (and most new SUVs or trucks now cost more).

I'm not looking for 'cool' and gadgets. I care about reliability and
functionality.

Kreigh



Paul Gilmore wrote:
> 
> Folks:
> 
> This is a very timely thread. I am planning my next vehicle (aren't we always?) to handle the poor roads of back country mineral collecting on long trips. Having bottomed out and lost an oil filter once, I am looking for good ground clearance. Having shredded the drive tire of a pick-up truck rental, I am very concerned about tough tires. I would like to be able to sleep in my vehicle if necessary, so the truck-tent concept is an interesting one. Finally, reliability is paramount since I am not
> 
> Questions:
> 
> If I use a pickup truck cargo bed to camp in, won't I be short of storage space for specimen tonnage?
> 
> Why does a Jeep Wrangler get you places that an F-150 may not?
> 
> Is there an SUV that is built on a truck chassis that doesn't cost as much as two trucks?
> 
> Can you have reliability, decent gas mileage, ground clearance, storage space and room to stretch out and sleep (if necessary)?
> 
> Most people sound happy with what they've got. What vehicle would you own if a genie were granting wishes?
> 
> (Free colonoscopies for helpful suggestions.)
> 
> Paul Gilmore (MD)
>

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