As some of you might be aware, I've been struggling to upgrade my perfectly wonderful 99 Ford F350 Super Duty Diesel Dually RWD pick up.
It's a great rig... 96,000 original miles. The main reason we have a diesel dually is the truck is used as the back up rig for the Lewis River Mobile Food Bank that we've been volunteering for now going on what... 6 years?
I also have a lifted Bronco, that we kept around mostly to use for inclement weather. (This picture was from before we got Big Red.)
Vid taken 20 minutes before and during the recent eclipse.
Large tired, lifted Broncos aren't really all that great for towing... and that's why we ultimately picked up the diesel.
The problem is this: after several years of owning both and rarely driving either, it finally occurred to me that we could save the insurance money we pay for one every month if we'd sell both and just get a bigger, 4WD, F350 Dually automatic with a 7.3 ltr diesel engine.
In a nutshell, it went like this:
Lessons in Truck buying.
We have a very nice 99 Ford F350 dually diesel (7.3l). The problem is that it's not 4 wheel drive.
We also have a lifted 89 Bronco that IS 4WD. We need a 4 wheel drive truck out here in the hinterland; sometimes, the snow gets relatively deep... too deep for a car.
We pay insurance for both.
One day, the light in my head goes on: Why not sell both and get a diesel from around that same time frame (99 to mid 2003) so we have the best of both worlds combined in a single vehicle? That way, our insurance bill drops, say, $800 a year. (We don't drive it much: trash to the dump, car trailer to the drag strip, food bank trailer from View to Yacolt and return once every 3 or 4 months or so... but that trailer is heavy.)
We put 6 new tires on our rig in 2014 and have driven it like 2100 miles since.
OK. Hunt around for a few days and I begin to notice: People are REALLY impressed with their diesel pick ups. In that year range, on occasion, I've seen them going for $7000 over high dealer book.
The private party book on our diesel is $15,500. We paid $11,300 for it in 2009. It now has 96,000 original miles on it.
Based on what I've seen around here, I could, apparently with a completely straight face, list if for $18,000.
I'm looking for a 4 door, 4 WD (in the best of all worlds, a dually.) diesel 7.3... none of that 6.0 stuff. But we don't want to owe any money on it, since this is, essentially, a swap, primarily to go from rear wheel drive to 4X4. I think we need a 4 door because when we do the food bank thing, there's a lot of stuff that can't be carried outside in the elements... hygiene items, flours, cake mixes... that sort of thing.
I'm looking at a rig in a dealership right now that fits the bill. Miles aren't bad, rubber is great, interior very nice (It's a Lariat... 4 door, leather, etc, etc...) They want $17,000. The high book for a PERFECT rig like this is $15,500. The book trade in range for this is $10,000 or so.
Even though the mileage is low, (126K) it ain't perfect (One of the wheels doesn't match the other 5, dented front bumper, dent in the door, and I need to have a trailer controller and 7 pin plug receptacle installed on it (Or I can do it myself but it's got to be done)
They have to do a little work on it (Why would you advertise a rig that needs, they said, a wheel bearing (I don't think it needs a wheel bearing... I didn't hear or feel anything) and there was a strange rattle in the engine compartment... tracked down to an after market heat shield on an after-market exhaust brake) and then I feel like doing that arm-wrestling thing to get them to take my price. (Much closer to book))
But what's up with this? Are newer trucks so bad that older ones are that much better?
Are the prices of newer ones so insanely high that it pressures the older year's prices?
We're talking about a 17 year old diesel truck here. But if you look on CL, the price for this rig is actually much more reasonable than most.
Just venting.
Well, I faithfully checked out Craigslist on a regular basis, and I discovered these guys had what I needed.
The problem? They're 370 miles from here and I don't know them from Adam.
The solution?
They're about 20 miles away from my stroke-ridden brother in Post Falls. So, I figure I could wrap a trip to see him up with a trip to see them. So, that's what I did.
To make a long story short, the Truck was what I wanted:
Automatic, 4 wheel drive, Lariat interior, 7.3l diesel, nice rubber, its own zip code. Paint needs work, a few dings and scratches (just like me, come to think of it) and a few other cosmetics (hub caps come to mind) and the trailer brake/light socket has to be replaced. An oil/fuel filter change wouldn't hurt, either.
Next day, after the paperwork:
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| Using a tow dolly to drag home the car I used to go over there. |
The Truck is not perfect. It's got 60,000 more miles than Big Red. It's got its quirks, but so do I.
But it's much better in many ways and it's a 4X4... so it will get the job done.
Now, I'm going to sell both the Bronco AND Big Red. That way, I can break even on Big Bertha, and continue to help out by pulling the food bank trailer as needed.
These guys were a hoot to work with. That is not to say everything went perfectly, but we got it done. I'd buy another rig from them, and they cut the price a pretty fair amount so we both made out on the deal.
Ultimately, I recommend them... Contact me if you have any questions.
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