Living out “in the woods” as we do, there is nothing so important as a good, reliable pick-up truck.
And, among pick-up trucks, the ONLY ones that have ever made sense to me are full-size, half or three quarter ton trucks. Something you can lay a sheet of plywood in and have it supported its whole 96-inch length.
The reason is simple: Seems like we are always going into town (Lowes or McCoys) and picking up something that won’t fit in Elaine’s car. Whether it’s treated “peeler poles” for landscaping, a hundred T-posts, or several sheets of plywood, finished MDF, or sheetrock, there is nothing so useful as a pickup bed that is at least 4 feet 1-inches wide – even with the bed liner in.
People who don’t do much construction wonder about that extra inch. You’d think with sheet rock being precisely 4-feet wide, that would be all you need. Wrong.
What you’ve missing by living on the (house-broke/girlie-girl) end of construction is that a lot of construction sheet goods are designed for a quarter to half of an inch of overlap. A good example is exterior siding panels. The exposure “to the weather” is 8 feet. Which means about 3/8th’s to 1/2” of overlap.
And that means a wider bed than 4’ – with the liner in.
All of which gets me to Thursday afternoon’s mental exercise during the half hour of work-out time on the treadmill..
“Should I get myself a new Pick-up Truck for Christmas?”
Since I am planning to sell the airplane this coming spring, thus ending one part of the Big Adventure in Life, I am already thinking and scheming about what my next “big thing” will be.
Ignore the ham radio collection. Ignore the recording studio. Ignore that with just another 55-gallon drum of diesel I will be turning 28.82 acres into something that will do a State Park proud.
The lawn is another story. One seed, weed and feed is it. I discovered long ago that once you have a putting-green caliber front yard, every dog in tarnation is drawn to crap guess where?
But a new pick-up truck…now that MIGHT be the thing.
So I went over to Edmunds.com and decided to price out a new Dodge Ram 1500 with V-6, automatic, cruise, air, and a so-so radio.
My first discovery is that Dodge Trucks now seem to be listed as Ram Trucks…for marketing reasons that escape me but likely have something to do with idiotic market segmentation theory. I can see how they would not want to confuse the room temperature IQ market who might otherwise mistake a Charger for a Truck. Like it matters?
I put in 2015 for a model year search because I figured the 2015 would be cheaper than a 2016…and I’m just window-shopping at this point. Since I wasn’t sure what the hell an HFE model was, I opted for the Tradesman which was about $5,000 cheaper.
Still, it was a further eye-opener when I discovered that the Tradesman model only came in two colors. Well, hell…here we go again, descending into American Marketing Madness. I WANT rubber floor mats, I want a basic truck. But I happen to like silver as a color. That was going to cost me.
Apparently, dear friend, this year’s marketing lunacy involves a $5-thousand dollar upcharge to drive anything other than black or white Ram. FMTT. It’s only paint!
Things improved after I threw a few things at the computer. I discovered there’s an Express model which comes in (oh boy, can you believe this?) three colors. White, black AND Silver.
And that’s for ONLY $38,050 versus the $34,950 for the white or black choice.
There was even one of the beauties which (for $38,050) could give me a blue pearl steak paint job. I’ll pass, but this was beginning to look worthwhile.
Then I dug down into the features. Gastric juices began to well-up in the back of my throat…my mouth went dry…my vision was pulsing. Surely this couldn’t be right? 17/25 MPG!
Holy Mary and jumping Jehoshaphat! That’s what my “old technology” from 2001 has on it…and that’s after 15-freaking years of fleet economy improvement bullshit. Who are they trying to kid, here?
Then I scrolled down a bit: I noticed the truck I was eyeing came with a satellite radio installed. This is another all-time scam in the auto industry: Get you looked on the high quality of audiophile sound in your car that’s commercial free. Then, after enough (stupid, ignorant) consumers sign up for it…they start putting the commercials back in.
Pretty soon, AM radio has been reinvented except you will PAY to hear commercials. We won’t go there. At least till the next uptick in fluoride injection levels…
OK…not everyone has the mental acuity to “tune-out” when commercials come on (a few of us have the brains to get married so as to perfect our tune-out skills) but who in the name of (insert your religious figure here) would be so STUPID as to PAY several hundred dollars for the honor of having another monthly ding come out of your wallet?
Try as I did, though, I’ll be damned if I could see where it had a cruise control. 8-speed automatic? Oh peachy. My 2001 is a three speed, but with electric overdrive I’ll delude myself into believing that I already have 6-speeds. Close enough.
My engine does NOT have 24 valves. BUT what it does have is a metal timing chain, so unless something blows up internally, I won’t have to walk through THAT 100,000 mile rip off. Has it occurred to anyone but me that it is possible to build a 500,000 mile engine? Get yourself a Kenworth of Freightliner and they’re just getting broken-in at 750,000 miles. Challenge the dipsh*t at the valet stand not to grind gears when he parks it, lol.
The very nice service manager at the local Dodge emporium tells me with my metal timing chain and an easy 88,000 miles on my truck (regular oil changes, aircraft lubricant additive [AvBlend or CamGuard, both of which rock]) I should make it to 250,000 miles OK.
Do I particularly care that the new truck has P275/60R20 Outline White Lettering All Season Tires on it as a $175 option or that it comes with an engine block heater?
No. First, no one can read a tire going faster than 10 miles an hour, or so. And anyone who is reading tires really ought to be locked up for crimes against humanity.
And the engine heating crap? If I’m dumb enough to leave my truck outside in sub-zero weather, instead of spending $38,050 on a truck, I should use that money to move to a warmer climate. I’m thinking Florida, know what I mean, Bubba?
I was also fuzzy on what the hell a “RamBox Cargo Management System” was. Except that it was a $1,295 option it sounds suspiciously like a bed-liner with some tie-down point cutouts. Again, with my old truck, I don’t need to worry about “cargo management.” I put things in, tie them down, and if they jump out on the hardly-used road going home, well, I will stop and put whatever it is back in. Some times it breaks, but most times not.
I know that may seem like a made-up statement. But a few years back, Elaine and I picked-up a black plastic 500 gallon water tank at Tractor Supply for a project. Just as soon as I rocketed up to 55 miles per hour on the farm-to-market road, the tank leaped out of the back of the truck; making a run for it. It rolled a good 1,000 feet before failing to jump a fence. (We we doing down a small hill which helped the tank’s cause a bit.)
All we did was roll it back to the pick-up, lift it back in and drive off. The rest of the way home, Elaine was my “Cargo Management System” screaming “Slow down…it’s going to blow off again!” every half mile, or so. I’ll grant you she costs more than $1,295, but she isn’t attached to the truck, either. Ram doesn’t make a Cargo Management System that fixes a good breakfast, so I come out ahead on that one.
Presently, the number of dollar signs began to bother me, so I got out a “Mr. UreWrench” clipboard and went outside.
I sized-up my old truck which is currently being used maybe 4,000 miles per year.
It’s in good roadable shape. But RAM trucks of this early vintage have two problems. One is the sun tends to damage and crack the dash. A bead of epoxy stops the tear and you put a dash mat on.
The other is the air conditioning is out. Not a simple compressor fix…condenser – and that means the dash comes out – so that’s an $800 bill if I don’t do the work. Being aware enough to have a solar-powered office, I figured that letting the pros do the work on the A/C would be the right thing to do. Don’t want Al Gore picketing the place.
After studying this truck situation, as good reformed, semi-retired overweight corporate suck-up would here’s what I came up with…
Besides the spreadsheet, I also built a perfect 39-slide PowerPoint, but I’d have to charge you extra for that.
The only other biggies with the truck is that the Ram Trucks have sunlight-sensitive dashboards (who knew?) and it also has a decent hood dent that I dutifully sand once a year and put silver primer on and it works fine.
Early Ram trucks wander more than a solider on a weekend pass (or tomcat during a full moon).
I should add a steering dampener that can be had that reduces “wandering” of the truck while driving. It wander to jump out of it’s own lane so much its sometimes like it’s afraid of itself. Solving this isn’t terribly straight-forward.
There seem to be two issues which plague the earlier Ram trucks. One is a problem with the steering column itself (outlined in this YT video). The other is that the steering box needs additional support and you can buy a kit to fix that over here. A spring and a new bushing. Since it is less than half the price of the steering box reinforcing, I’m trying that ($60) first.
I didn’t put these figures into the work order above because what I have works, but in order to get the old truck back to “current, new and tight” feeling, this will add another $300, or so, to the total cost comparison.
All this said there, are a number of compelling reasons to get the old truck dialed in and back to new, but the biggest one that comes to mind is $42,000.
Why in God’s name would someone (like me) spend our entire annual Social Security for a year on something as perishable as a truck? Granted, the heirs might like it…but this is about me, dammit.
The old truck – since I bought it from my late neighbor back in 2005 or 2006 when it had 62,500 on it has only made it to 88,000 in just about 10-years.
I would have to be a complete idiot to spend $46,000 to let it sit out in the carport and depreciate at the rate just so I can drive what has been (on average) 2,700 miles per year. – or about 100 round-trips to town per year.
I am NOT a complete idiot. (I only voted for Obama once.)
So there you have it.
It you are a strict environmentalist, I am again walking the talk more than most with my re-uses, re-purposes, repaired, and recycled truck approach.
However, if you are a fan of mass consumption economics, I am your worst nightmare – not the solution – because people like me keeping their heads out of their butts don’t buy shit we don’t need. And we’re willing to pay extra for something that will last more than 15-years.
So if my “New Christmas Truck” seems like it’s going to collapse the house of cards built on rotten trade and soaring prices, I guess that’s gonna be how we roll, eh?
Besides, I already have done the EMP protection diodes on the old truck. How knows where they would have to go on the new one?
Write when you break-even,
George george@ure.net
Ure, I want to tell you about my NEARLY 500,000 mile truck: I bought a 1991 Chevy light 3/4 ton 4×4 in, you guessed it, 1991! 21 miles on it, extended cab, 350 with a 700R4 trans, and no speed limiter. I, being a gerndarme,(deputy) outran my buds by pulling away at 128mph! Have no idea how fast it would actually go! Anyway, I drove the truck for 453,000 miles: Intake man gasket, two water pumps and two starter rebuilds, front pads x2 and regular servicing sums up the maintenance, oh and a set of shocks. I NEVER had a front end alignment, and although the steering parts were getting loose, the tires wore straight! I sold the truck to a community service district, they used it for a utility rig: Trash, wood, etc. A year after I sold it, a friend told me it was still going. Didn’t ever burn oil, but it did slow as soon as it saw a hill…….It was sold 4 years ago, I’m sure it has well over a 1/2 a million on it….Go Chevy!
I told myself that I wasn’t going to talk about this as my blood pressure rises thinking about it, but . . . in 2000 in the fall I was working as a cust. service rep. for GM. So we get this man who sounded like my father-in-law (older, dignified) who had just bought his sixth, new, GM product and the engine ‘blew up’ as someone had forgotten to take the plugs that they put in the thing for shipping, out. So he is actually okay with the replacement of the vehicle as long as we get a better temp. car as his wife has ‘joint problems’ – I’m very glad to do what he wants as it was GM’s fault, and I set it up.
Some short time later (I remember it as 2wks or a month), I get a call from the cust. saying that nothing against me, but they were going to ‘sue’ GM. I asked what happened – Not only did they not want to replace the car – it had a blown engine, but gave him the cheapest temp. car possible.
So I call the dealership and speak with the man (being polite here) who was in charge, who told me that QUOTE, the cust. “was an old guy, and it wouldn’t matter” – this after I mentioned that the cust. had purchased five previous new vehicles – he then said again quoting, “It won’t hurt your job.”
I was furious at this point but being ‘professional’ I didn’t let him know (wouldn’t have done any good) . . . the very next call however . . .
Man called to complain that the brakes had failed on his new jeep and his wife and son had driven into a large boulder on his property and smashed in the front/ also the ‘air bag’ didn’t work – I asked if anyone was hurt – I was trained as an emergency services operator and I couldn’t ignore the problem.
He didn’t call the police as it was on his property – wife had been wearing seat restraints, but had bruises in those area – the son worried me – wasn’t restrained and bashed into wind shield with a red mark/bruise and headache. Despite this man said ‘no one hurt’, but I said, please have him ‘checked out’ (possible head injury/concussion or worse) as I had been trained as dispatcher and had worked in emergency services – but I doubt he did.
What wasn’t in doubt was that the next moment I was called by my supervisor, and as a result, fired as I was never to mention going to ‘be checked out by a doctor’ . . . After that I made it a point to ask up front with any possible employer that if someone is saying that they are injured that I WILL recommend that they get help . . .
The ‘automobile business’ whether new or used has ‘bad morals’!
A new used van would be nice, think of all the possibilities
Ever consider a trailer? Next to zero compared to a full size truck in operation and purchasing costs, and you can park it without further cost when not in use. It’s what I use after retiring from the home building trade not wanting to handle the expenses of a truck not being used all too often, unless of course you are searching for something new to admire out in the coral ;)
Easier to load/unload than truck, too.
Damn you Len, it’s simply unamerican to consider a trailer and avoid the taxes, insurance and licensing fees that keep those government workers employed.
George can also hook a trailer up to his tractor when he goes out to check his fences. As a kid, I checked hundreds of miles of fences with our John Deere 420 and a trailer. Just stand up and tap each post with a shovel as you drive by. Missing staples were obvious. Started this at age 12, today they would put a parent in prison for that.
http://www.johndeere40.com/model_420_pix.htm
You need a truck or van to haul the trailer, and anyone with acreage really needs at least one trailer, along with one or more trucks. Only a small trailer is useful behind a Lexus, and Elaine may not approve. Renting never makes sense on these – it’s much better to have an old vehicle with minimal insurance. A van is helpful in rainy areas and for security, and I have both the truck and van. Make sure the van can carry a sheet of plywood after closing the doors. My van has become my daily driver – no telling what may be needed on the spur of the moment. As a bonus, the van and truck can each haul the other one using a tow dolly.
All my vehicles are from the last millennium, and they are all run well, are legal, and get used.
George, keep the “old” truck. If you need to change the evaporator(NOT condenser), and you do that yourself, you can save a lot of bucks, and then let a shop charge the system. I’d do the whole thing myself, just because it’s cheaper in the end, and I can get the part dirt cheap at Pull-N-Pay. I suppose I’m even worse for the economy than you are.
BTW, I endorse the Cummins 12V engine, and have one. It’s the best engine ever but not worth it for your usage. And PLEASE, tie down your tank when hauling, or cargo net the thing! Dropped loads are really frowned upon by law enforcement.
I was going to ask about your EMP protection but thought you parked it in a farad cage. For all I know your whole house is in a farad cage.
“… but who in the name of (insert your religious figure here) would be so STUPID as to PAY several hundred dollars for the honor of having another monthly ding come out of your wallet?”
The same folks that will keep this slow motion Bolshevic Revolution alive.
What ever you’re taking must have kicked in on account of the many puns that made me laugh!!
All respects to YOU.
“Use to be the insurance Company’s charged more for insurance on silver or grey vehicles. Reason being the color is harder to see in bad weather.
If you’ve named your old truck there may be an emotional bond that cant be shaken, kinda like turning away a relative at the door in a bad storm. Then the regret sets in and that new truck doesn’t look so good. Every once in a while I think about trading “Goldilocks” out for a newer model. She’s a Hyundai Santa Fe, good car! Any repairs few and far between and the hood is heavy as an old Oldsmobile. My first choice is always something solid to drive,if ever a wreck, coming out of it alive. That and a “cattle guard” on front gets respect in traffic.
dodge did build a truck with a 500,000 mile engine- the cummins diesel 12v that came in the ram 2500 and 3500s in the early to late 90’s. The rest of the truck won’t last that long of course, since it’s lowpar quality, but the engine will keep going and going.
George- there is no understanding this charge for a different color. Take for example the floodlight listed by Amazon on the ” Markets in disaster” page, the listed black one is a full $30 less than the white model! WTF!
If you look at prices, depreciation and value – then consider that any improvement you make to this will be returned to you. There is no computer to deal with, or sensors, airbags, etc. It will survive EMP if you have a spare condenser for the distributor. Mileage is as good or better than todays truck. There are few plastic parts to degrade. Engine parts are easily available, dirt cheap and ANY mechanic can fix it due to simplicity.
http://www.autotraderclassics.com/classic-car/1959-Chevrolet-Apache-2443667.xhtml?conversationId=1005831
If you do nothing to it but drive and resell – no depreciation. These restored babies sell for $25K+. Interior restoration of $2k, engine resto of $2k and paint of $2k nets you a fine ride for $13-14K. No car note required. And you can put a flat bed on it for another $2k and carry anything you wish.
Using today’s lubricants, tires, shocks, etc you can easily roll out 250K on the odo. And everybody will love your truck, if that is important to you.
New is crazy in the era of engineered obsolescence and hypercomplexity. Time to put your truck money where your mouth is my friend – do a spreadsheet on restoring/upgrading a $7000 vintage versus a $40k new.
I had to pause and take my blood pressure meds when you said that you only voted for Obama once. I can only say to you what I said to my daughter…you will be sorry that you did that.
The matter of the truck I think you have nailed with the spreadsheet. Buy the new one and drive it a month and take it back to the dealer and ask him what he will give you for it. The trailer idea is also a good choice. JC Whitney sells the dash mats for around $40 and they are custom fit for the truck.
I live by “Fool me once…”
Is that chart right? Old Truck should be 3,500 and the New Truck should be the awful price, but I’m seeing it backwards?
Yep – that was an accident but it helped me meet today’s error quota, lol
Jeep grand cherp-a-kee V8 full time all wheel drive, easy driver, 17.9 GPM over ten tank fulls.
Replaced with a Ford Explorer Limited V8, easy driver, 19.1 GPM again over 10 tank fulls.
Older ( can’t remember the year ) V-W rabbit diesel 4 speed manual 52.6 MPG no matter how you drove it and any time of year. We have all 4 seasons in N.E.Pa. Don’t know what highway miles means, as very, very close to 100% of my driving is done a highway.
I remember those v-w rabbit diesels, didn’t you have to push it up hills(haha)
I use Load’N go at Home Depot. Flat bed pickup for $19 (first Hour). I can’t figure out why anybody needs a heavy, thirsty, and over priced (cash cows of the auto industry) vehicle to haul some construction material twice a year… I chalk it up to the dumbing down of “Merica. I use the same logic for our vacations – I rent the nicest car I can’t afford and glady let Hertz pay for the depreciation of the vehicle.
If you think getting a silver paint job is tough, try getting a manual transmission in a full size truck. Impossible. I now have my last Pickup, a 2004 Ford F250 Diesel with a manual 6 speed. (I don’t like it when a truck tells me it is going to shift in a hairy 4×4 situation.) I’ll keep this one on the road till I’m too old to drive (I’m 66). Talk about marketing madness, I would have bought a new one if I could have purchased what I want!
Since you have a machine shop the answer is easy as I have a farm also. My farm truck is a 1969 GMC that I took the bed off of and made it into a small stake bed that can be used for about anything 8X12 with Off road rear tires and street legal, No need to extend the frame as it is not a overhang problem unless you put the heavy loads to the rear of the bed. been using it for many years with no problems it stays outside when not in use, also have a Ford ranger for normal use. Bought 2d hand from private party no need to pay outrageous prices for the new smell and also hate to pay more taxes than I have to. Yep I am a Miser.
My ’98 Chevrolet Silverado is somewhere North of 200,000 and going well. The model did have a poorly designed/manufactured head gasket and I have replaced it twice. Other challenges are that parts now come out of China and may fail before the warranty runs out. Even through the part is replaced there is the labor.
Just had to sell my ’96 dodge dakota SLT because it had an egine/transmission hickup that no one could diagnose and I wasn’t going to pay $400 for environmental controls (A/C worked sometimes)that they don’t make any more. It ran like a spotted *** ape and hated to get rid of it, but I don’t miss the hand crank windows!
Never understood the appeal of pickup trucks, unless maybe you are a full time farmer. Anything in the bed can blow out, get wet or be easily stolen. Of course you could, as many do, purchase a canopy at extra cost, which is less secure, hard to access and will eventually leak. Plywood sheets fit just fine in my Dodge Caravan, it has a huge rear hatch door I can stand under in the rain and the 2 sliders make access a breeze. If I pop the seats back in I have a 7-8 place people hauler. With the trailer hitch I can haul the stuff I don’t want inside, like blocks, dirt or hay bales. And in an emergency you can sleep in it, “down by the river”.
But can you haul a trailer with a tractor on top? We use our 250 for farm work, hauling, and moving up and down the interstate anyone and anything including dogs. GREAT trip taker hauls motorcycles, too.
Dittos for the versatility of the van. 4×8 sheets fit fine, hauls a lot of friends, etc. And the mileage is much better. I don’t have a bedded vehicle now but a tarp I keep in the back of the sedan keeps a lot of dirty sins from messing up the trunk space.
Elaine may cost more than 1295, but look at all the benefits you get out of her.
I hnave never complained… I am still deliriously happy!
George, pick’emup trucks rock, life without them, especially rural life, sucks. Pick’emup trucks with Industrial/Commercial engine/running gear with a utility body totally rocks.
(Note: Some people will always buy lemons, some people will fix a good rig to death, and some people just have a permanent mechanical/auto cloud/bad luck thing that follows them around.)
I’ve known numerous F250’s and one F150, most of which went well over 500,000 with nothing more than basic maintenance and repairs. In 1986, I bought a ’76 F250 with a utility body at auction from a closed down sawmill for $100. I put $2500 into it to snuff it up from its worn millwright run around rig condition. The engine in it had been rebuilt from odds and ends of parts around the mechanics shop back who knows when.
It had a rough life, carrying tools to do my job around the lumber mill complex, and camping with my camper, including a cross country trip to see family close to the Mississippi from where we live in Oregon.
The cubbies carried groceries when I shopped, supplies when we camped and always tools, and emergency supplies.
My new husband, satellite repair guy started using it for his work. He fell in love with the cubbies for carrying satellite install and repair gear.
When we finally decided to upgrade, we paid $8000 for another ’02 F250 industrial strength utility body with pipe rack and 110,000 on the engine. Just this year, at 180,000, we put $1500 into a tuneup of electronics and a new battery (it still had the original one). There are no oil leaks yet. We put sacks of feed and/or groceries/whatever in the double locking cubbies when shopping. Our duffle bag type luggage fit nicely in the cubbies when traveling. The truck easily hauls a ton of hay, alfalfa or straw or a 250 pound cattle lick tubs, garbage, etc.
Lots of men have walked up and asked to buy all 3 of the utility trucks we’ve owned. We sold the other 2 when they were well over a half-million miles from previous lives and our usage.
This, in no way, is meant to undermine the value of a Cummins engine, in fact, we have a Cummins engine in the ex FedEx (Freightliner) stepvan that we converted into a toy hauler camper. With some more modifications, it too will soon have a couple of cubbies for storage under the rig.
The thing about pick’emup trucks (or stepvans) when you’re a tall, older, wounded vet and a worn out older woman — it’s easier to step down out of something than to pull yourself up out of a low-slung automobile. Just sayin’…
Thanks.
If the one time vote for Obama was for the 2nd term, we should open the “complete idiot” question for debate.
lol…it was his first run not the rerun, disaster pt 2
My daily drive 04 Ram 4X4 Hemi is at 150K, no sign of slowing down yet. Still have Dad’s 1977 Ford F100 4X4 300 in line six 4 speed at El Rancho de Chaos. There is a seat spring that pokes me in the but if I hit a rut the right way but the old girl starts every time and doesn’t whine a bit when she is loaded down. She could use some paint and one of her flat bed mounts needs to be welded so that is on the winter to do list. Think I will try that AVblend lube additive you mentioned though. I was in the local farm supply last week and asked for STP. The kid looked at me and said “What is STP?”
Keep the old trucks, the new ones don’t hack it.
George,
Something to look into. Its not the fault of Detroit (or wherever vehicles now derive from ) that higher mileages aren’t possible, its that FedGov and StateGov’s need that per/gallon gas tax going on and higher mileages mean less revenue. Much higher mileage vehicles are sold new over in Canada (eh) and other places on this planet, but not allowed to be imported here.
I have a 1989 chev silverado from a fellow employee that was going to go to the junkyard about 4 years ago because “if one more thing went wrong with it……” Needed a windshield. Same thing-just use it to haul stuff-maybe 4000 miles/year. I keep fixing stuff as it breaks and to keep it safe. I did the “fix it if it’s not too much” to my shop and they said we’ll fix it if it costs less than one payment on a new truck. Made sense to me. My chart looks about the same as yours
About pick-ups. The last project me and my grandson worked on 4 months before he died was restoring a 5×10 high wall trailer. I thought I needed another pick up (mine got traded for my wife’s van) until then. Truth is the trailer is way more useful and will have it until either it or me dies. Much cheaper than a pick-up and for me, a whole lot more meaningful.
Hi George, sounds like your truck wandering from one lane to the other is a result of worn front end bushings, tie rod arm and/or other worn parts. All should be looked at carefully. Had a really clean 1967 Chrysler that had that problem. It’d steer OK on normal flat city streets, but would change lanes in a heart beat on the highways with 18 wheeler road ruts. I also have a 1960 F-250 Ford PU. Had the whole front end rebuilt for the same reason. Good luck.
My ’92 F-250 Diesel, hauled home 5100 lbs. of patio block. I bought it last summer & with a few little “fixes” I have a daily driver for $3000.
For that amount for a new used truck you could buy a nice used class A rv and travel with your gluten free food. Also can use it to go to hardware store or cart home new queen size mattress. :).