Last week I was in an accident. Everyone is ok, thankfully, but they totaled my Jeep. This is a good thing, because I don't have to pay $400/month. But then again I'm out reliable transportation.

I own an older Jeep That I hadn't figured out what to do with, so I need to get it back on the road. I finally got myself a battery charger and I've been trickle charging it during the colder days to keep the battery happy. I currently got a rejection sticker on it from the fall, so I can't drive it around. It got rejected because the battery was dead as Ceasar for a long time. The computer needs to get data so it can tell the inspecting computer everything is happy.

I'm not worried about the emissions, I just got to get it to the garage to get another rejection sticker. Or hey, I might pass because I've been running the motor while working on the garden to get time for the computer to be happy.

I do have a lot of work that needs to be done. The drivers seat is trashed, and needs to be replaced. I've been calling junkyards without any luck. The interior is beat to hell after 100k+ miles, but that's no biggie. The back wiper is toast, freaking thing never worked right anyways. I need to upgrade the headlights' bulbs, and get the plastic cleaned up. It's dark grey from all the years of salt and crap.

Then there is the tranny. A garage I used to do business with decided it would be good to pull off one of the re-breather hoses for the transmission during an inspection. I lost a lot of fluid on a long trip I took, and ran it almost dry before I figured out what the fuckers did. Since then it hasn't been reliable for me. It works, but I just don't trust it. I'll take ot to a local tranny shop I've done business with before and see what they think.

So I have some options. Option one would be to fix up my '96 Grand Cherokee Laredo. It's got 140k of hard miles. It has the straight-6 engine so parts are plentiful and easily aquired.

Another option would be to buy a Wrangler, International Scout, etc that's in rough shape and do it up.

And finally with the economy in the tank, I might be able to get a new pickup cheap. Ny buddy bought a lincoln luxury SUV that lists for $48k for $26k...

I guess I need to decide what I need in a vehicle. I need it to be a daily driver that is good in the snow, can get to my fishing holes, can tow a small boat, and can act as a BOV. Well it all starts with getting the tranny looked at.

Now I got plenty to do with that $400 a month, believe me! Prep, Prep, PREP!!!!

Anyone who knows what to buy or stay away from, let me know!