It’s 3:54 A.M. as I start writing this article. My son is sleeping in my room with me, and my wife is in a separate room recovering from COVID. My job was to look after him tonight; what actually happened is: He woke up, started crying, and two hours later I woke up to my wife soothing him wondering how the heck I sleep so soundly. It’s a gift and a curse. I’ll probably have to make it up to her.
Anyway, I relieved my wife of baby-Delmar-duties, and after an hour of feeding, rocking, and a bit of my go-to Elton John song, Delmar is asleep, and I just can’t seem to follow suit. I’m thinking about cars.
I’ve been thinking about cars at least half my waking hours for the last… probably 25 years or so. It’s objectively strange, but there’s just something captivating about them (as all of you, dear readers, know). For me, it’s a combination of factors that give a vehicle soul. Obviously, there’s styling and our innate tendency to assign a “face” to cars, almost as if to anthropomorphize them. Whether I know it or not, when I look at a Jeep XJ, I see a squared-off, lovable little billygoat. When I look at my BMW i3 I see a high-tech little EV underdog. When I see my Jeep J10 in the parking lot I see a brawny, tough old workhorse. But it’s not just the styling, it’s the engineering and the story behind the cars.
I love the unibody designs of my XJ and ZJ; I think their Quadra-Link/Quadra-Coil suspensions are the most amazing high-volume off-road suspensions ever devised, especially at the time. Their 4.0-liter straight sixes and their Japanese Aisin five-speed manual transmissions are a true match made in off-road heaven. I love the i3’s carbon fiber body and wacky rear range extender and skinny tires and eucalyptus wood dash.
But the stories, to me, are what give a vehicle soul. I love Jeep XJs and ZJs and YJs not just because they’re interestingly-styled, reliable off-road beasts, but because of plucky ol’ American Motors’ engineers somehow developing state-of-the-art machines on a shoestring budget, because of that Toledo assembly plant with a rich history dating back to WWII, because of now-car-industry-less Kenosha, Wisconsin and its four-liter engine plant. I love the i3 because it’s truly bonkers; it’s one of few times in auto history where a car company essentially told its best engineers: “Here’s a shit-ton of money. Go build the most cutting edge car you can think of.” And what they built, though a clear Noble Failure, drips with soul.
It’s that soul that keeps me thinking about cars, and though some of the soul comes from styling and for me lots of it comes from engineering, I think the majority comes from the people behind the machine. It’s their sweat-equity and their story that fuels my connection to these contraptions. It’s for this reason that I like to keep my vehicles stock or close-to-stock. “Stock is sacred,” I often say, as it’s the vehicle that rolled off the factory floor that represents the culmination of all that sweat equity; it is the final chapter of that vehicle program’s fascinating tale. (I realize that not everyone sees cars this way, with many folks heavily modifying their vehicles; for the record, I respect that element of car culture, too).
Anyway, it’s now 4:14, the same number of horsepower that the E9X BMW M3’s 4.0-liter V8 produced. I’m not sure why that number is stuck in my head forever. My brother owns an E93; I often wonder how those are still even remotely affordable given how incredible they are. I’m obviously rambling in this first and possibly final installation of DT Late-Night Baby Blogs, but here’s the current thought that has me staying up through this fatigue (and it’s one that I’ve mentioned before, but am struggling with): Does it make sense for a parent to keep a two-door car?
See, I own a 1985 Jeep J10, and though it’s not going to pass California emissions, there are other Jeep trucks out there that will. And they’re all two-door regular cabs. Notice how I didn’t say “but they’re all regular cabs,” I said “and.” Because regular cab trucks are the best in my view; they just look so perfect. The problem is, I have no idea if a truck like that fits into my future anymore.
What if I throw this into the ring? Does this change the calculus for anyone? (350 5spd extended cab). https://t.co/IQXYSri1TT pic.twitter.com/bw4uBUTXYK
— David Tracy (@davidntracy) September 6, 2025
Does it make sense for me to have a truck that I can’t drive my kids around in? Yes, the J10 is badass, and owning all the old cars I own is irrational, but at the very least I can drive my kid around in my old Mustang/Jeep XJ/ZJ/YJ, etc. The J10 has no rear seat, so it’d be just me.
Maybe that still works, as I could commute to work in it every now and again, and when I head to pick up big items for our house, I could just go alone? But wouldn’t I rather not go alone? I know my Chevy K1500 is old and unsafe, but if I’m doing a quick trash run or Home Depot run, wouldn’t I want to take my kid? And is the value of taking my kid more important than the fact that, yes, the Chevy is a bit boring compared to the J10? I’d think so, but I’ve only been a parent for 5 months, so what do I know?
It’s now 428, the displacement of Ford’s iconic Cobra Jet “FE” engine from the 60s, and I’ve got trucks on my mind. Should my beloved J10 go? Does it make sense to keep it when it’s just going to be me behind the wheel most of the time? And if the J10 doesn’t make sense because of SMOG issues, should I buy a different Jeep truck? Or is the Chevy — one of few cool extended-cab vehicles with a stickshift, even though I find it a bit boring compared to the Jeeps — the better move? Then again, I don’t really need a truck, so shouldn’t I keep the one I want? But then again, if it’d be just me driving it, and I’ve seen sooo many people chop up their old Jeep Gladiators/Comanches and turn them into extended cab trucks for their families — clearly they did that for a reason.
Anyway, I’m not sure if any of that was coherent. I’m tired. I should wait for someone on my team to make a good topshot for this story, but I’m just going to slap a picture of one of my trucks up there and hit publish. It’s 440, and I’ve got a Big Block of time I need to set aside for sleep, as it’s been a long night.
The J10 has 3 seats. You have 3 people in your family. The math says everyone should fit right?
Ignoring California issues, either vehicle is fine.
Whilst the Jeep undoubtedly looks better, you’ve already stated that it won’t pass CA Smog.
Unfortunately, part of being an adult/parent is sometimes doing the thing you’d rather not. I’ve had varied amounts of success with this concept, but my point stands.
Let it go. Keep the Chevy if you must.
The Jeep doesn’t look better. It looks like someone lives in it. It’s the kind of truck that makes you walk to the other side of the street when you see it.
It’s funny; someone in my neighborhood was taking a photo of it parked on the side of the street. “Uh, if you want me to move it, I can!” I yelled.
“No, it’s just cool I’ve never seen a truck like this!” she replied.
I was referring to the more iconic styling, not its current condition, which incidentally is yet another reason to get rid of it.
“Indiana…Indiana…let it go”
“It belongs in a museum!”
I’m not sure how much safer a kid is in a car seat in the back seat of a 35 year old truck versus the car seat on the front bench of a 45 year old truck. FWIW, I have a friend who put a spare car seat in his MGB, although also lives out in the country.
If safety is that much of a concern though, consider this another point in favor of the JL you’re considering, paired with a utility trailer?
Until I was about 4 the family car was an MG TD, and my sister and I sat on tiny wood and straw Mexican child size chairs wedged between the seats and the gas tank.
As I recall, I was not allowed to sit in the passenger seat because the doors would open sometimes, and I was too small to reach the handle on the dashboard that passengers would
hold onto to not fall out of the car, since even when they were closed the doors only came up to your elbow.
Those MGBs are luxury tanks by comparison.
A young friend is about to have his first kid and was telling me recently that he’s keeping his mustang – got a still have a fun car. His partner has a sedan and they have a 1-ton extended cab.
That being said, I can definitely see him getting a four door something as soon as he realizes what a PITA it will be getting a car seat into the two door vehicles.
David, stop this nonsense.
Sell them all except the YJ, Mustang, and i3.
You point blank do not have time to wrench and be a good Dad and partner. As your kid gets older maybe they’ll be into cars and you can wrench with them but it makes ZERO sense to irrationally hold on to these vehicles because of what they “could” be when they literally will not get there in the next 5 years at best.
Trust me when I say that when your time comes you will not look back at your life and say, “Man, I’m really glad I kept that J10.”
I get it, your life is rapidly changing and you’re trying desperately to hold on to your prior identity. The truth is that those days are gone and there’s nothing you can do and nothing that you can hold onto that will bring them back. But it’s ok, new (and in my opinion better) joys will come out of being a parent. Steer into the skid and enjoy the ride instead of trying to fight it.
I hate to admit it, but this is probably the best way to go. You still have your sensible-but-weird daily driver, a really, really good example of a Jeep that now has some sentimental history to it for both of you, and a quintessential classic that’s easy to keep around. Just get rid of everything else.
And I say this as someone with 3 vehicles who is seriously considering going down to one for now. At some point, it just gets to be too much. Your cars are supposed to enrich your life, not control or define it.
Edited to add: if you really need truck capabilities, rent one, or buy/rent a little utility trailer. That’s what I’m thinking of doing.
This is exactly the road to take.
But the thing is wrenching is his job, or at least it was his job, and it looks like it will return to at least making up a larger portion of his job for the next 7 months.
Yes being a parent is rewarding when done right, but unfortunately he has to pay the bills and ill advised wrenching is the DT brand and Autopian would be better served with more DT wrenching as that will bring in more revenue than (Ed Comment – DT) does.
7 months of new project means 7 months of no old projects. It’s like a former coworker who paid $200 a month to store $2,000 worth of furniture and an old big screen TV for a year and a half.
Who says 7 months of new project means 7 months of no old projects. This Jeep will not come together overnight and a lot of those 7 months will be spent tracking down and/or waiting for parts to arrive.
I just looked up the past 7 months of this website with the tag “wrenching”.The findings:
Box crate Jeep
Plasti dip wheel restoration.(or whatever that abomination is)
Changing oil, several.
Wobbly steering column (this one counts)
Mis-diagnosing a blown engine.
Every DT article starts with “Things are different now” or “Not sure how to …”
I’ll believe it when I see more than 2 other posts with the tag “wrenching” in the next 7 months. Oil changes and tire replacement don’t count.
Well on the lines of “Things are different now” lines he has stated that he will have to delegate things like editing to be able to work on the E-Bay Jeep. I’m hopeful that will mean that we get more true wrenching articles and far less of the which car should I keep and (-Ed) interjections into articles and that it will continue once the Jeep is done.
Except he’s worked on exactly none of these projects since the formation of Autopian. The only articles we get are these ones where DT opines about either selling or keeping them. The grail ZJ overland project sits in whatever state it’s in. The J10 is running but nothings been done. We got a few K1500 articles early but now nada. The XJ is literally 2/3 of the way across the country from him. Do you really think something is going to change in that regard soon? I agree that I’d like more wrenching articles from DT on these but I don’t see that happening. Running the website has taken the bulk of his capacity, that’s ok! But he just added a huge project with the building a jeep from scratch and that’s going to take priority as it’s got sponsor $$ tied to it.
Well he did do some wrench articles on the Wrangler including firing the parts cannon at a fuel smell and some on the old military jeep. The thing however is that Wrenching is DT’s brand and spending time managing the website is squandering that brand equity.
I sincerely hope that the E-Bay Jeep will both be a big boost to traffic and show that letting others handle the day to day website activities isn’t the end of the world. Hopefully that can be kept going and DT doing serious wrenching articles will be a permanent fixture. I honestly think that would be better for both Autopian and David.
My suggestion would be to go with say a 25-75 plan. No more than 25% of the average work day spent on managing the website at a high level and the other 75% spent wrenching and writing about said wrenching. Or set a self imposed quota of X articles about real wrenching per week/month.
Yes, I did fix my CJ-3B, rebuilding the carb, replacing the entire fuel and brake system. And yes, I fixed a fuel issue on my YJ just prior to my wedding. Yes, it’s all easy stuff, especially given by experience with much tougher jobs.
The 25-75 strategy is roughly what I have planned out, but would certainly not have been better for the site in the past (as I mentioned in another comment, paternity leave proved that to be the case), but we’ve got Brian on and Griffin doing video/social. So, after we get our bearings as a team, may the wrenching begin!
I certainly understand that when getting the site up and its legs underneath it required you to focus on both the big picture and all the details.
I’m looking forward to more wrenching from you and seeing the E-bay Jeep come to life.
Just know how much I appreciate your desire for more DT wrenching content. Those and my deep-dives were my hallmarks before I became a business owner, and they did mega traffic.
I want to do more of that, because I love it and I know you all love it, but it simply hasn’t been possible. Even me taking paternity leave was a strain for us, but now, especially in light of our eBay partnership, we’ve made some strategic hires. Now I have no choice. Over the coming weeks I’m stepping away from the controls and towards my toolset. What happens from here on out is going to be interesting.
And by “interesting” I mean “awesome.”
Awesome! Have been looking forward to it for a while. My favorite Autopian “mini-series” was Project Cactus (obviously, something like that wouldn’t work at the moment) but loved all your other wrenching adventures! (and don’t worry, I still support hoardin…I mean “collecting” classic junky “rusty” cars in general, so…)
Twice I have had writers tell me that their jobs are to do stupid things and write about it so that others can learn from their mistakes. I know a few artists and musicians (musicians in particular) who are professional fuck ups, “because nobody wants to to hear a song about making good life choices and choosing your life partner wisely, what’s the fun in that?”
Of course I a lot more people like that that haven’t put that into words , but it’s obvious.
It’s not nonsense, it’s just a new parent/car collector trying to figure it out.
I’ve already reduced my fleet. I’ll probably have it down to 6 cars here in a bit — YJ, Mustang, i3, ZJ project, original XJ (currently in storage), and a pickup truck (whichever that ends up being). In time I’ll see what stays and what goes.
But wrenching on cars is what I do, so I don’t anticipate just having three. But we’ll see; life is hard to predict. 3 years ago I had 14 and was the singlest man on earth!
“But wrenching on cars is what I do, so I don’t anticipate just having three. But we’ll see; life is hard to predict. 3 years ago I had 14 and was the singlest man on earth!”
While your child and wife should be your top priorities, that doesn’t mean you should give up on being yourself, even if you put your family first most of the time. So yeah you need to keep wrenching and doing what you love even if it is no longer a 24/7 lifestyle.
Agreed. I’ll add that both wrenching and writing/editing can be work-from-home jobs, but only one of them has much potential to include David’s family in what he loves to do… and it’s not the one involving hours spent focusing on a keyboard and screen.
The nonsense I’m referring to is this whiplashing back and forth of the clarity of getting rid of everything and back to trying to justify keeping vehicles that you’ll literally watch rot in front of you.
I say this as someone who is roughly 15 months ahead of you in this thing called parenthood and previously wrenched on my car weekly. Your free time will only get less and involvement higher as your son learns to walk and is on the move.
That doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy your wrenching hobbies though! Three cars (2 of which are classics) will still give you PLENTY of wrenching opportunity. No to mention the Jeep you’re building and other Autopian projects.
Cars are meant to be enjoyed and drive. Let them live free with their next shepherds and perhaps some of them will come back to you.
That whiplashing is deliberation. Though eventually I need to scheiss or get off the pot, I’ll give you that.
You’re in analysis paralysis my friend. Scheiss and move on! Getting the peanut gallery’s thoughts isn’t going to help because for every post saying one thing another will contradict it.
If you must keep more than the 3 I noted the XJ is the only other one I could support since it’s your first car. But this isn’t my choice. I can just tell you that if you think Delmar is taking up all your wrenching time now, it only gets worse from here, at least for the immediate future.
There is an old saying in my world, you need someone with the gun to shoot the engineer so we can build the damn thing. In this case you need to shoot your inner engineer, or at least temporarily stifle him, let the other part of your brain make the decision and move forward.
Truth hurts
I inherited a Chevy S10 extended cab. I thought it was a boring vehicle at the time, but you know what? It is, but it doesn’t matter because it’s also a great little truck. Comfortable, no fuss, no nonsense, fast enough with the V6, does truck things well, and isn’t so precious that I can lend it out and dents and scrapes don’t make me feel horrible.
I have other cars that are fun to drive or better for more specialized things.
(I also don’t have kids though.)
I will say, fifteen years into this craziness that is parenthood, no; you don’t keep the J10. I own two cars, both sedans, because I don’t want to leave my kids at home. Most of this is necessity as I’m divorced and a single Dad half of the time but also, I actually like having my boys with me, and a car they couldn’t ride in would sit undriven.
Even the TJ I had for a bit was mostly useless, I thought ripping around with the top down would be fun for them, it was terrible over 25 miles an hour and they kind of hated it.
Sell the J10, I know it’s hard, I still miss my racecar that I brought my oldest son home from the hospital in, but there was no way it could handle two kids, and my back would have been wrecked after six months of getting a car seat into it. You’ve got plenty of dad stuff to obsess over for the rest of your life, the truck isn’t gonna get you there.
Once your kid is a teenager they can ride shotgun in the J10 on the way to the dump. ENHRN will not love it but Delmar will.
I bet they would love it even sooner, as soon as they are out of a full carseat.
How will they get back from the dump? (They’ll be leaving the j10 there, right?)
Only if David can’t get it to start again
David, hope you caught up on sleep! Always been a fan of regular cabs, had a ‘92 Ranger 3.0 5-speed in college. I’ve thought this over and done the math…would love to have a Coyote powered F150 reg cab, however…
As a Dad with two daughters in HS and 6th grade I would suggest to you that the answer is the Chevy or van. The Chevy has that extra cab. My answer was van, in the form of a 280hp Odyssey. It is incredible, drives like a giant Honda Fit and I can take them camping with all gear and three mountain bikes inside it. Vans are containers and once you get one you wonder why you suffered without for so long. I have a couple very fun cars to balance this out and my wife refuses to drive the van as her daily so it’s my frequent commuter and cruiser. Trucks are not that useful for daily life w/family unless you’re hauling stuff that’s massive, dirty or needs towing. Of course you can put a shell on but it’s hard to access everything…
If nobody who owned a regular-cab pickup truck ever had children, I find it amazing that we ever made it to this millennium. My dad had regular-cab trucks, and somehow I’m still here. In fact, all 1/2 ton pickup trucks had 2-doors as standard up until the early ’90s. You could get optional crew-cabs earlier, but those were mainly for work crews, not families.
Trust me David, you’re not the first guy with a regular-cab pickup to have a kid.
Here’s a forum about child seats in Jeeps. The 2nd commenter down has one in his J10.
As far as the Chevy, I’m sure the owner’s manual specifically tells you how to use a car seat in it.
Best of luck!
You’re not wrong but also a lot more people died in car crashes. I say this as someone who was riding in the front seat of a car before kindergarten. Just because we used to get by doing one thing doesn’t mean it was the safest best way. If we never evolved we’d still be living in caves and chucking rocks at herd animals.
My dad had a reg cab Dodge when I was born, my mom had a station wagon for the family car. I’m sure I rode in the Dodge, but I don’t remember it.
I’d probably feel safer putting a kid in the front or rear of the K1500 that in the back of the Mustang.
Classic survivorship bias. A lot of people aren’t still here thanks to unsafe older vehicles, but they also aren’t able to comment about it.
You live in LA now.
You’re not a landscaper, a pool boy or a cardboard recycler.
It makes no sense to have a truck at all.
He’s actively building a vehicle from scratch, a truck will be valuable for the next few months
He already has the big parts I believe – and the other pieces can just as easily fit in the back of the Wrangler or Lexus.
He doesn’t have any of the mechanical parts yet.
He is also remodeling his house too. Trucks are useful for home repair.
I’m not sure where this narrative is coming from that only gardeners and pool boys drive trucks in L.A. I guess maybe if you’re talking about the most urban parts of L.A., but pickups as daily drivers are everywhere around Southern California. You can’t throw a rock without hitting a Tacoma.
I didn’t have a truck for many years and got away with just a utility trailer and borrowing trucks, but a couple of years ago I bought a cheap 20 year old fullsize SUV to tow, haul, camp, and off road in, and it’s been very handy having it as a Swiss-Army knife, even if I only drive it once a month. Of course this only works because I have a place to park it.
Huntington Beach, Bakersfield and Lancaster are in Southern California – and you see a lot of trucks there. There’s a lot of trucks in Covina, Oxnard and Banning too.
Yet they are VERY different from LA – whether you’re in Santa Monica, Mar Vista, North Hollywood or Atwater Village – where it’s a rarity to see trucks that aren’t used for work.
And sure – if you have driveway space to keep a spare vehicle – by all means. Most folk in LA don’t have that luxury.
You’re right. I haven’t spent a ton of time in those areas of L.A. you mentioned so I’ll defer to those who have. I guess it’s the San Diegan in me that considers anything from Orange County to the Grapevine to be “L.A.”
Lol that is a bit of a stretch, though I can see how that would make sense. I’d say long beach (excluded) is the southern line of demarcation for greater LA, though some people would probably put it further south (it’s still in LA county) and others north, past Torrance. E.g. Ice Cube is from LA and Snoop Dogg isn’t, he’s from (north) long beach, which is so far north of DT long beach it’s barely the same city anymore and it’s right up next to Compton.
On the north end, I’d say Burbank is probably the limit. Pasadena is definitely not (greater) LA. Glendale is. IMO. I haven’t lived in all those places, but I’ve stayed there, and/or have friends there, and I think that’s how they identify.
A lot of San Diegans will tell you that L.A. starts as soon as you pass Camp Pendleton.
My opinion may also to exist to annoy my wife who grew up in Costa Mesa 🙂
The Grapevine is in Kern County.
Sheesh
You should have seen the grapevine before they built I5.
Gnarly and a half.
…which is why it was called the Grapevine.
That’s what I thought, but it’s from the Spanish “Cañada de las Uvas” (Canyon of the Grapes), named by Pedro Fages in 1772 due to the abundance of wild grapes
https://historic99.org/grapevine-vs-ridge-route/#:~:text=I%2D5%20between%20Santa%20Clarita,was%20done%20is%20still%20unclear
You all seem to be missing that this is tongue in cheek, but lots of San Diegans do hold this humorous opinion because the open space of Camp Pendleton is the only thing stopping LA/OC/SD from being one big metropolitan blob.
I’m well aware of the Ridge Route and know that the infamous Deadman’s Curve is still visible right off I-5.
Oh I get the that, I was just joining the fun.
You keep saying that but I don’t think it is true by a long shot. Sure not every driveway has at least one pickup in it like some parts of the country. More importantly we are not talking about having it for a daily driver, it is for doing truck things and nothing does truck things as well as a pickup. Sure you can get by with a SUV for some truck things and a trailer for other truck things but having a beater pickup makes doing truck things so much easier. Plus in an pinch it can be used for daily driver type things too.
My ’04 Odyssey is much better at doing truck things (lockable bed with no additional cab or whatever that fabric or fiberglass cover is called). It can also convert to an eight person people hauler (with all the cup holders and rain avoiding problems a truck would have).
Old mini (in name only) van is the premier vehicle to have in any fleet.
How does that van work when you go to pickup a ton of gravel, a fridge and a range at the same time, haul brush or rusty metal to the recycler? All things that my baby pickup has done this summer in the last two months. Also how is it at pulling out fence posts and stumps? Something my big pickup has done recently or will do shortly. How about hauling home an engine from the wrecking yard or a pallet of block, or shingles? Again things my pickups have done over the years.
Nothing like having dirty, stinky, greasy, sharp or rusty items rolling around inside the vehicle with you instead of outside and strapped in place thanks to the hold down points, either the factory or add-ons.
Works fine for most of those things. I’m not getting a ton of gravel in one trip (nor do i foresee the need of that much gravel). Worked fine for the 800 pounds of concrete I needed, and the dry wall for a project and pretty much anything I need around the house.
How many 1,000 plus mile road trips with 7 passengers did your pick ups do recently?
Exactly zero times since they are not my primary passenger vehicles. Plus I’ve never done a road trip with more than 6 people since I was a kid in the back seat and I really don’t see that changing.
Now over the years my SUVs and Minivans did see 7 people on several occasions, but only locally for things like field trips and birthday parties.
Meanwhile my pickups can carry 6 people w/o impacting cargo space and they have been pushed into that service more than once in their time with me.
Don’t get me wrong, vans are great, I currently have a full size, high top cargo van, fully E-tracked to safely secure any cargo and have always had at least 1 van of some type for -35 years. However pickups are simply better for carrying dirty, sharp, large or smelly items than a van.
Child car seat mounted in the bed, Subaru Brat style?
Honestly, I sold my single cab Tacoma for a crew cab (and now a Maverick) due to knowing that I’d have a family someday (I do now!). I 100% recommend this path. Also, that Chevy likely isn’t going to fit a backwards facing car seat (they recommend kids sit in those until they’re 40 or 50 lbs now!)
For you, you could also consolidate vehicles by having a truck that does what many of your cars can do now. Maybe look into a Gladiator? It would scratch the itch to own a JL and could easily replace your truck, AND your grand cherokees as an overlander.
Or, you could look for a Gen 1 Tundra crew cab. They’re reliable, fairly slept on, relatively compact, but they still have that wonderful 2UZ 4.7 engine. It could also tow any or most future projects.
SELL. THE. J-10. TO. HARDIBRO. He wants a cheap truck and doesn’t own one, New York has a 25-year rolling emissions exemption and the cross-country drive would give him both content and an excuse to visit family and friends in Texas on the way home.
It won’t be a cheap truck after the cross-country drive at 8mpg.
You can get to 12 mpg if you draft tractor trailers.
You can get infinite miles per hour if you put it on a car transport trailer service.
Its natural habitat when out of David’s reach.
Hardibro lives in NY, right? This truck already has rust holes in it and the heat doesn’t work.
It also reeks of oil and gasoline and the passenger side of the seat has collapsed. I doubt Hardibro’s daughter would he impressed given what she’s used to from press cars.
All that + it’s HUGE. Notwithstanding what David says, a full 8-ft bed isn’t necessary to haul sheet goods. I’ve had work done on my house seemingly every day for 20 years and none of the workers drove a long bed except the foreman, and his bed was packed with toolboxes. There was no room for anything, much less 4×8 boards. And in the rare instance where an 8-fter makes sense, just rent one from Home Depot. You’re already there with your sheetrock, and you’ll have to go back anyway because everybody always forgets something. It’s hardly worth the extra gas costs.
This thing belongs on a farm somewhere where it doesn’t snow. Maybe donate it to someone in the Central Valley of California (Fresno and surroundings).
My Dad had a regular cab pickup for years with 3 kids, anytime all 5 of us needed to go somewhere together, we took Mom’s car
Except a few times when she insisted it was fine to take the truck, which resulted in two kids sharing the passenger seat belt and Mom sitting on the floor in the passenger foot well, but we don’t need to talk about that
Also, do not need to talk about the sketchy way she and her brother used it to tow around some boulders for landscaping while Dad was at work
My partner and I do not have many Rules between us. One of them, the earliest and longest lasting, is “Arguments pause midnight, no important decisions allowed. Go to sleep.” It’s worth noting that when we were 20 it was the “3am rule” and over the last 25 years is been moved earlier. The point is—you’re cognitively and emotionally fried. Nothing positive is going to happen, so just put it aside and come back when you’re rested.
My parents loved their cars. When they met my mom has a 280z and a Yamaha motorcycle, my dad had a fiat 1500 cabriolet and a Chevrolet half ton. Some of these stuck around for a bit, but by the time my younger sibling was born they were all gone, replaced by a citation and a caravan. Would they have kept any of them if they had the means? I’m not sure. Maybe the grey market fiat. But there were too many other things to be done.
Granted the whole family doesn’t have the “collectors” bug. My uncle had a gullwing 300sl he traded for a corvette. No one wanted to deal with some of the leaks on my grandparents 64 impala which was otherwise immaculate and stock, so it got sold when they passed. The all-original 48 Chevy panel truck still is in the family though.
In general life moves quickly, and the only thing that you can really hold onto are the memories. Fortunately, those are a lot more valuable than the things.
Those are great rules, and another one is no regretting decisions that had to be made on imperfect information. Which tends to be a lot of the big decisions.
It’s fair to talk about ways to avoid past mistakes, like maybe being more conservative with money or having a week cool off period before big decisions. But couples can’t hold resentments over things that don’t turn out like people had hoped when there really was no way to predict.
It’s one thing for a single person to stew over past mistakes when they’re the only one deciding (and even that has its limits). But when another person is involved it quickly gets toxic.
If there’s a consensus that the fleet needs paring down, and it turns out in a couple of years a wrong choice was made, couples just have to move past it.
It’ll only be used by you, most likely, for the next 10 years or so – and you’ve got quite a few other driving options and/or projects.
I’d move on.
Keep it. It helps with understanding that there are certain things “for grown-ups only”.
“Does it make sense for a parent to keep a two-door car?”
I was the third of three children. My parents exclusively owned two doors until i was 14. It’s fine.
I think the issue is that David’s vehicles are two door trucks, each with a bench seat and no rear seat. Two door cars can still accommodate a baby seat in the back seat. When I was a kid, a baby seat was a novelty and toddlers sat anywhere with or without seat belts.
And good news, bad news: definitely no air bags!
Since you have other cars, the question of the utility of hauling a kid wouldn’t seem to matter much. Safety is going to be truly terrible in almost any old car, especially pickups. They are all incredibly unsafe compared to anything modern. The single or extended cab will not make much difference in that regard. The condition of the truck is likely a much bigger factor.
If you dispose of your Jeep with its limited seating options, you will lose an opportunity to let your children (assuming you have at least one more) know which one is your current favorite. Sibling rivalry improves the breed. And, since it’s not your sole car, you should keep the Jeep.
You own multiple cars. Yes a single cab pickup will be absolutely a fine in your fleet. If it was your only vehicle, then maybe shift it to an extended cab.
I have a DC and want a SC. I also have two children. Without a 3rd option I cannot own a single cab incase of emergency where I need to get both in the truck to the hospital or wherever. I plan to buy a slate truck, keep it single cabbed and make it my cruiser that only I am allowed in.
You have a shit ton of cars. That isn’t much of a concern for you. The truck can be truck only, no kids until they don’t need a booster. So keep whichever you like best.
What should concern you, but doesn’t get mentioned is the safety of these cars. The old jeeps are dumps that are death traps in a crash against a modern HD truck. People after covid have lost the plot and its dangerous out there. The question becomes, “will I leave my young wife and child a widow and fatherless over my love of shitty jeeps”. THAT is the question you need to ask yourself. Is it worth that risk? That’s a personal question you need to think hard about. Maybe I’m just a worry wart though.
You seem to have unlimited storage, so what I would do is, pack up those rusty shit boxes until you are about 60, and your kid is grown. Maybe, slowly over the next 20 years, actually make them nice and not shit boxes. Then when you break them out in the future you will be cruising in a beautiful car you’ve been in love with for 50 years.
I went to a car show recently. There was a ton of dads there with their kids, from car seat age to booster to just young still. Those seats? In the back of 68 Novas, 72 dusters, front seat of C10s and even a CJ5 and el camino.
Safety is important- im not saying it isnt. But its done all over with kids in older cars, even front seats in non-airbag years.
Get what you want and what makes you happy. I love a regular cab. And for years its what kids would ride in (my sister and I rode up front in my dads early-90s Tacoma before he had extended cabs when we were 6-7). Maybe not the daily, but for those dump runs, parts finds, and occasional DT and Delmar days? Sure why not.
I would not worry about getting rid of the regular cab truck for a few years. You have a kid in a car seat as long as the car seat can fit safely on the bench in the cab and you can keep an eye on the kid from the drivers seat. keep the regular cab.
Also people think the day your kid is potty trained is the best day as a parent. NOPE! It is the day you can tell your kid “go get in the car” and they can walk over, open the door, crawl in, buckle themselves in, and shut the door. THAT is a fantastic day as a parent.