This is the 'Possum Truck. Try and imagine this thing getting any uglier! I actually stood it on the front bumper in a rocky stream bed at the bottom of a canyon, with no ill effect. Although, come to think of it, some people would characterize the entire truck as an ill effect!
One thing I like about this truck. When I drive my little Cherokee, some (not all) people driving Priuses (Priuii?) and the like enjoy cutting me off and giving me the one-finger wave, striking a blow against evil SUVs (nevermind that it gets 22 mpg and lasts for decades, thereby not ending up in a landfill nor requiring a replacement to be manufactured); but when I drive THIS one, everybody just stays out of the way!
I would like to get a 4-cylinder Cummins diesel engine for it. Jeeps with those engines get 30 mpg, if geared correctly. Or maybe one of the smaller Detroit Diesels, the old 2-strokes. I read an account recently of a commercial hauler running a 4-53 (4 cylinder, 212 c.i.) in a 16,000 lb gross weight truck and trailer combo that gets 23-24 mpg fully loaded, 27 mpg empty. Those numbers are average over his regular haul of 500 miles, with some hills thrown in, so they are pretty realistic numbers. His empty weight is 8700 lbs, which is close to what my truck would be fully loaded and headed for a camping trip in Baja.
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