This is a different journey.  The journey to find a decent pick up truck.  It’s become rather fun actually.  A great study in human nature (guy human nature, sorry ladies).  I have looked around with online ads and found out that the ads usually don’t even resemble the actual vehicle.  I have found that Craigslist is a wasteland of barely running vehicles described as “clean” and well maintained.  I looked at one “clean” truck this weekend that had cig butts thrown all around the cab.  I wouldn’t even sit in this one for a test drive it was so filthy inside.

I finally placed a wanted ad on Craigslist that read like this:

“Is there anyone out there who actually has a truck for sale? I keep trying to find a small truck on craigslist and it is always the same story. It either is total junk or they are suddenly are unavailable when I try to make a time to see it.

I’m sick of the scams and idiots. If you have a small pickup you want to sell here is what I am looking for: It must be clean, little or no rust. Not wrecked, reasonable working condition. I don’t mind if minor things are wrong with it, but nothing major. Don’t care if I have to put tires on it. Let me know what doesn’t work 100%. No junk. No cons. No scams. Clean titled! Nothing rusty. No mystery garbage, tell me exactly what you have.”

Now this really spurred on the whackos.  Since this ad I have been offered: one with no title (oh he can give me a bill of sale that is just as good!), one with no brakes or muffler, one with rusted out wheel wells (It only has a spot or two of rust, I promise), one with oil flowing out of the valve covers (the guy was telling me what a clean engine it is at the exact moment I saw this mess), one with doors that won’t open from the outside (we rigged up a rope that you pull on), one that kept dying when I drove it (its OK when it warms up, I promise), And one from a cheap used car lot (hey that noise it makes is normal).

I see a story in this somewhere.