Getting by without owning a truck – a BlythBros. guide
For many DIYers, the pickup truck provides essential utility. Find an RX-7 with a blown wankel on Craigslist? You can either tow it home behind a truck, or if you’re in a salt state, simply punch your shoes through the floorboards and Flintstone it home. Building a workbench for indiscriminate hammering of car parts in your garage? Throw the lumber into the truck bed and haul it home.
But, for those who don’t frequently depend on that level of utility for their livelihood or hobby, is buying a dedicated work truck the best solution? I’ll explain my hobby situation, and why I think I managed better without buying, say, a $5,000 work truck.
In the past year, I’ve been able to complete the following without buying a truck or borrowing one from a friend:
- Drive 300 miles to buy a 12V Alfa V6 for my Milano
- Tow my Alfa Milano 300 miles when I moved
- Drive 75 miles to pick up a 12V Alfa V6 to rebuild for a friend
- Tow a 68 El Camino SS 250 miles home after it died in Chicago
- Drive 500 miles to bring home the entire drivetrain and subframe from an Alfa 164Q
- Purchase lumber for two sets of 8’x8′ shelves, and a 16 wheel tire rack
- Drive a refrigerator home
- Pull my thrashed Alfa Milano off of the Tail of the Dragon