[tucsonjwt]

Liability insurance varies based on the coverage limit - state minimum to millions of dollars of liability protection. Location makes a big difference also, and not having any traffic tickets, etc. has the biggest impact on premium cost. I have always had just liability coverage on my old trucks to match the liability coverage limit on my new vehicles. Old geezers like me pay much less on insurance, but we paid through the nose for decades earlier.

I agree that most old engines and transmissions will function (usually leaking) for a lot of years and miles without much work, unless driven long and hard. All of the other parts to get a truck "looking nice" will drive up the cost in a hurry. I cheaped out on an interior on my 83 and it was still about $800. I could have avoided that cost, or done it even cheaper, and it would still "function" without it - but I would not say that a crappy interior is still the "functional equivalent" of a new stripper interior.

So, if you put $6,000 into a stripper costing $19,000 out the door, you would have $13,000 to finance. Finance it on a 60 month loan, and you would have a payment of $136.73 per month, with a balloon payment due at the end of 60 months of $6262 - which will be equal to (or probably less than) the price you could sell the the truck for (unless you really trashed it.) That works out to about $1600 per year to drive a new truck (minus your gas savings compared to an old truck, plus any additional license cost, plus any collision/comprehensive insurance you will have to have on a new truck (about $250 additional per year in my case).

For me, driving an old truck vs. driving a new truck is a wash - except I can't trash a new truck and retain any value, and I can use the old truck any way I want and it won't affect its already low value.