Did my buddy get a good deal on his truck?

[Brian R]

My buddy just bought a 1995 1 ton dually 2wd cummins truck. It has only 45K miles. It came with comprehensive service records to substantiate the miles. The truck has a spray on bedliner, an articulating 5th wheel hitch, new tires, an exhaust brake, very nice running boards, and a few other extras. Obviously it was well loved. Apparently nearly half of its miles came from towing a 15K lb. trailer. He paid $17K for it. I told him I thought he should get it before hand. I think he could have gotten a '95 for less but I don't think he could have gotten one from any year with less miles. He is concerned about the truck. A bit of a paranoid persnonality, perhaps. he had the truck checked out by two diesel shops that both gave it the thumbs up. Does anyone have any reassurance I can offer him about his choice?

 

[Extreme1]

That would be high for most but if your friend is as **** as he sounds, it's probably worth the extra $ for the condition of the truck.



FWIW, I paid less than that for mine almost 5 years ago with 117k on it.

 

[Steve Roseman]

Brian,

IMO your friend paid a fair price for the truck. When I was looking before buying mine, the prices varied quite a bit depending on mileage. I ended up buying my 2500 for $15K with more miles than his.

If it was well maintained, he should get a lot of happy miles for his $17K.

 

[Wirenut]

I'd say thats pretty expensive for a 2 wheel drive. Of course 2 wheel drives are unheard of around here. That is some low miles though. I've only seen one truck with that low of miles, it was a '97 club cab 2500 4X4. They wanted $25k for it.

 

[jsimpson]

To me, mileage isn't as important as how well it was maintained. I paid $7500 for my 5-speed single cab dually, but the bed is rotted out, I had to suspension work, I have to gingerly shift to 5th to keep from grinding, and it's due a clutch - although i can smoothly engage it now that I've learned the trick!

It has 150,000 miles and the engine is like new. On the other hand, my 89 has only 93,000 miles, the body is much better, the bed is perfect, and the only thing wrong with the engine is the rear seal, but I can't get $6500 for it!!!:{

 

[Brian R]

Thanks for the replies. I'll pass this on to my friend (unless you've already read it, Paul). He and I are similar in that we are tight with our money. He just has a bit more than me. We hate depreciation even though it is somewhat inevitable. It costs money to drive! It seems, though, that if you need or want something capable of moving a house that these Cummins/Dodge's are among the cheapest $/mile available. I hope.

 

[jsimpson]

Buying cheap is just the start. I've spent $600 on tires, $350 on air horns, $350 on suspension parts, $270 on Bilsteins, $300 on Lucerix mirrors, and a couple hundred on various other stuff. But for a total of less than $9000, it's a really nice (but somewhat ugly) truck now.

 

[RBrunson]

good deal....bad deal

Weather you got a good deal or was badly taken is in direct proportion to value that you place on money

 

[sonorakitch]

17K is quite a lot for a '95, but of course the miles are less than a comparitive 2000. I bought mine for 15K with 48,000 miles; it is a 94 4X4 and perfectly maintained. I don't feel I got the best deal in the state, but I was sure happy. That is whats important.



~Chris

 

[jtisdale]

Re: good deal....bad deal

Originally posted by RBrunson

Weather you got a good deal or was badly taken is in direct proportion to value that you place on money

hee hee- nice post!

 

[jsimpson]

I don't value money hardly at all when I've got enough to get by. But when I start to take in less than I spend, I start valueing it right well!