I purchased my truck brand new in October 2003 from Drew Ford in La Mesa, CA. The sticker price was $25,660. At the time, I was driving a slightly older basic 2WD Ranger with a smaller engine. It was a nice truck, but I wanted (and need) a 4WD for both work and play.

Exterior: Four door extended cab, aluminum wheels with 245/75R/16 A/T tires, step bars, class III tow package, tinted windows, sliding rear window, fog lights, front tow hooks, chrome exhaust tip, 126 inch wheel base.

Interior: AC, AM/FM MP3/6 CD changer, 60/40 cloth sport bucket seats, cruise control, tilt steering wheel, power windows and door locks, driver and passenger airbags, rear jump seats, vinyl floor thru-out.

Engine/Tranny: 4.0 liter SOHC 6 cylinder engine, 5-speed automatic tranny with over-drive, 4.10 ratio limited slip axle, 5320 GVWR.

Mods: Cranked torsion bars to add 1 inch lift in front to level out the truck, added drop-in bed liner and rubber mat, OEM-style plastic bed rail caps, removed step bars as they were always dragging on things, installed Icom IC-2720 duel-band HAM radio, installed model 650XV Viper alarm.

May 2006: After less than 40,000 miles (and 8 plugs), the stock tires were almost worn out, so I replaced them with a set of BF Goodrich AT TA tires. I went with 265/70 16's, instead of the stock 245/75 16's. This adds about two inches to the height of the truck, which will be a big help out in the desert and off-road.