Well, we took the leap. Got a great deal on a 2002 Powerstroke F250 with a ZF trans. Damn, I love to shift things myself! I've only owned 2 auto-trans vehicles in my life, so you can see where I'm coming from. "New" truck runs like a top, drives like a dream. Very well-maintained, one-owner truck with 200K on the clock, no major issues. The worst thing I can find wrong is that it needs a LOT of soap & water! I don't think the guy ever rolled up the windows or cleaned up the interior. Had about an inch of desert dust everywhere before I spent about 5 hours today with the shopvac and gallons of windex/oxyclean/purple power/ammonia water, etc. Still not done, but we made a good dent in it! Exterior is filthy at this point, but only because I had to run it from Phoenix 250 miles or so in the rain.
Just a side note...I couldn't believe the fuel economy. Filled up in Wickenburg, drove to Bullhead, AZ (185.6 miles) and topped off. Took 9.526 gallons. I'll do the math for ya...that's 19.48 MPG!!! I'm not only impressed, I'm ecstatic! Is this even possible? I wasn't hammering it, only ran 65-70 the whole way, but DAMN!!!
The old '91 IDI is still sitting here, no takers so far. If time permits I may dig into it a bit farther...it's a viable means of transportation, and a good ol' beater for workhorse duty. Lots of good ideas around here.
Cheers...
D