My first vehicle was a 1997 F-150 so I am already bias towards the 97-03 body style. I would always recommend that truck to a new driver. It's higher off the road, it's fairly small, and they are super easy to work on. They are for the most part very reliable so that's my personal first choice. The only issue you'll have is if you don't like those wheels, forget about trying to find a used set. Ford only used that lug pattern (5x135) for 97-03 F-150 and Expedition. Also I would highly recommend trying to find the 5.4L. The power is a lot better, the 4.6L is still good (that's what my truck was), but the 4.2L V6 is too small in my opinion.

I can tell you price wise that thing is too expensive. It doesn't say mileage but $3k for crank windows? Really?

That Taurus would be way more comfortable, however it will probably get about the same fuel economy as the truck. The Taurus's are pigs when it comes to fuel. The only thing that worries me about that one is the car has obviously been abused, that seat looks trashed. I get that you're in Texas and the sun kills leather seats but how hard is it to spend 5 minutes every year at least to rub some conditioner on the seats? Also the blacked out wheels tells me it was probably a young persons car.

Both vehicles look fairly abused, I'm not sure how hard the Taurus is to work on but I know the F-150 is pretty easy.

Please get the truck. The car looks like it'll need replacement tires soon, probably won't make it to 800 miles.

For you, a bicycle is your best bet.

Truck. 100% easier to fix and maintain imo.Also cheaper for parts

Personally I wouldn't buy a car from that site, also wouldn't buy anything without a CarFax and some sort of maintenance list.

Also be sure to bring any car you're going to buy to a mechanic beforehand.

Will save you lots of money on repairs and hidden costs.

Go find yourself a reliable 4-cylinder Honda Accord or Toyota Corolla.


FORD = Fix Or Repair Daily

Woobie wrote Personally I wouldn't buy a car from that site, also wouldn't buy anything without a CarFax and some sort of maintenance list.

Also be sure to bring any car you're going to buy to a mechanic beforehand.

Will save you lots of money on repairs and hidden costs.

Go find yourself a reliable 4-cylinder Honda Accord or Toyota Corolla.


FORD = Fix Or Repair Daily

First on race day
Former owner (of a) recycled Dodge
Ferocious off road demon

Nothing is wrong with buying off that site or any site in general. A vehicle is a vehicle and it doesn't matter what platform it's sold on. A car on Kijiji isn't somehow less reliable than one sold on Craigslist. It will still have its set of issues.

As for the carfax, I wouldn't waste my money on that. So many accidents are fixed private party and not reported, really if you look at the body lines of a vehicle it'll tell you if it's been wrecked. What I do recommend is getting the "my carfax" app and looking up the vehicles on there. It's a free app and it won't tell you wreck history or anything bad about the car, but it will tell you maintenance history IF they went to a dealer or a place that reports the services. Also with Ford you can get an OASIS report on any vehicle after 1996 I believe it is which will tell you any time it's been to the dealer and what for.

002 sounds like he's got his stuff down. Not knowing the Taurus was shit on gas, I was gonna tell you that may be a decent idea. Since it's probably gonna get the same mileage, I'd go with the truck.
If you're want a pickup, you're really gonna regret not getting one.
I really like the paint on it already, and you'll be able to find a lot of cool, after market parts of 4x4 sites. Maybe some blacked out rear lights would look cool.
I don't know if you've ever driven a truck, but they are a lot of fun. Looking in the rear view mirror and seeing the bed of the truck turning with you is a feeling I won't forget(seems weird but in my dads 350 it looks awesome).
Not to mention, it's gonna be more safe and like 002 said, you're high off the ground which is a real advantage.

Edit: first car sounds like you're still in highschool, if you're not, ignore this. But your friends are gonna care about your choice, not like it matters, but the truck is gonna look a lot "cooler" and it'll be easier for friends to throw backpacks or sports gear in the back and hop in for a ride, where the Taurus would be packed. Just a random after thought that shouldn't be a deciding factor, just something that I thought of.

You can do a lot to those trucks...

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Sometimes I miss the ol' girl.