Ah, life in the Big Apple has not been kind to our Rodeo. Vandals and careless garage attendants have had a field day tearing up our attractive truck's sheetmetal this month. In the past thirty days, our truck has been keyed on the front right fender, dinged on the right rear fender flare, and bashed in the rear bumper in such a manner that there appears to be a hole in the Rodeo's bumper cover. The garage has 'fessed up to some of the damage and has offered to pay for it, but we are still going to have to cover some of the costs ourselves.

Despite the Rodeo's scarred appearance, we are still getting compliments on it nearly two years after the truck's introduction. We've noticed that previous-generation Rodeo drivers are the most likely to stop and stare; though, the truck continues to get admiring glance and comments from all sorts of people.

The shrieking moonroof deflector has reared its head again. On a particularly windy day, it began squealing like a stuck pig while one of our drivers was piloting the truck down the Jersey turnpike. When the driver slowed, she noticed that the sound abated. This is the first time the problem has struck since Greg Anderson, senior features editor, drove the Rodeo to New York last year, but we plan on having it looked at on the Rodeo's next trip to the shop.

We intend on getting the Rodeo repaired quickly, but did not have estimates available at the time of this update because the dealership that has fixed our Rodeo in the past no longer does body work. Hmmm, that instills us with a great deal of confidence about the work that they've done for us in the past. It's nice to know that automotive writers have the same headaches as regular folks, isn't it?

Total Odometer Reading: 29,863
Best Fuel Economy: 13.8
Worst Fuel Economy: 20.5
Maintenance Cost: $0
Body Repair Cost: $0
Problems: Moonroof howls when it's windy.