First Truck

I wouldn't even think about buying an emmissions truck with that many miles for that much money, they're coming up on some real unpleasant expenses at that point from everything I've heard.

 

Right now is the worst time in history to buy a truck.

$60,000 for a truck that has half a million miles on it? And they're dumping it before all the crazy emission expenses and everything else?

Next year you'll be lucky if it's worth half that.

Good luck if you're going to buy a van trailer. You may find the year 2000 trailer for maybe twelve thousand. Or maybe a 2015 trailer for 30 or 35. Either choice is absolutely insane.

Which again next year will be worth less than half what you would pay now for it.

It's too late. The wave has crested.

Like the great philosopher in every Western says, "it's over Johnny!"

 

Now is the worst time to replace a truck, but it's a great time to add a truck, even at these higher prices. With rates what they are, the few extra dollars in purchase price should be paid back in 3 months or less, and the rest is pure gravy.

 

Nah, truck prices are high but so are freight rates. If your income is exposed to freight rates, then you'll want to add up how much extra you'll make per month beyond normal rates, and figure out how many of those months it takes to pay the extra price of the truck beyond normal truck price.

By my calculation, should take about 3 months.

 

That works on paper, so long as your emmissions system doesn't #### itself, or the engine doesn't blow up, or both. I don't know what you're hauling or where if your calculations is an extra 30k grand in 3 months is possible. If you're clearing anywhere close to that there would be no reason to pay 60k for a truck like that, just buy new.

 

How badly do you have to have something with emmissions? Would your life just not be the same if you couldn't run to Cali? My dad has an 84 359 we swapped an N14 Cummins that gets about 7 pulling a flatbed, a new truck doesn't get that much better fuel mileage.

 

You're underestimating normal market value of trucks in order to pad your argument. A three year old truck is easily worth ballpark 35% of its new selling price. And with half a million miles, that means it was rarely shut off, hence there would have been little need for an APU. Of course things can go wrong, but that's true all the time, not just now.