This 1999 F250 was built to tow. A gooseneck hitch, exhaust brake, transmission locker, all manner of redundancies in cooling and filtration. It has turned nearly four hundred thousand miles, I'd have to imagine most of them spent pulling another eight thousand or so pounds all over the American West. After more than twenty years of service, it came into my possession this year. I was on the hunt for a Ford Transit Connect or something similar. A work truck with the absolute smallest footprint for easy parking on crowded Seattle streets. Then I got a call about an eccentric family friend looking to downsize a little bit. After a day's drive to meet with him and an extensive tour of all the work done over the two decades of ownership, we did the deal.
So far, I've done very little. Oil, filters, new tires. It starts every time and hauls me and my tools all over town, lumberyard to jobsite to dump. No smoke, no burnt oil, 17 mpg no matter the conditions. I've never owned a diesel before, though I spent some time working in a Caterpillar truck engine shop. As I continue on my new career path as a carpenter, I'll add maintaining a 7.3 Powerstroke to my growing list of fresh experiences.
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