Need Some Thoughts.

[Scootin 81 C20]

Hey guys, I got an email today about my truck ad on CL. The guy asked me if I would be interested in a trade plus cash. He has a 1993 GMC K1500 Suburban Geneva Edition. It has a 350/700R4/NP203 with roughly 115,000 on them. It's in fairly good shape, but has rust starting in the usual places. He made the offer of trading that and about $800 for my truck. What I'd like is your guys thoughts on it. Should I hold out for the price I'm asking or should I take the trade plus cash? What's your thoughts on the whole thing?

Here's his CL ad for his Suburban.
http://lasalle.craigslist.org/cto/1641594324.html

Thanks
Benjamin.

[68Timber]

Benjamin, he's got problems he's not talking about - it's a bad trade. For starters, the NP203 has no place in that truck and I'm not convinced it's been rebuilt. Why take the trouble to rebuild a full-time Xfer case to swap into a newer body style? Then he says vacuum leak, but it's not a problem, it runs great. (wtf?)

He lists other problems but caps it off with this - "If you have anything to trade I'm basically looking for another SUV or truck. I will entertain other offers as well."

So reading between the lines, he has a cobbled together Sub with issues and he's admitting he's open to consider any other truck in trade.

You've got a cool truck - I don't think you want this headache.

[Scootin 81 C20]

Thanks John. I'm not very good at reading between the lines yet and needed the input from someone that is. I think I'll just hold out for my price. I'm trying to get the money for my buddies Camaro that I made a photoshop thread for him for. It's a 1995 Camaro 3.4L V6 5 spd. 180,000 mi. New Battery, alternator, tires, brakes, clutch, pressure plate, plugs, and wires. Has Hurst shifter, Hooker exhaust, and Accel wires. He's asking $2,000 for it, but he's not in a huge hurry to sell it.

[68Timber]

No problem, sir. I can make an excellent case for keeping your truck over the Camaro and anything else in the 2K range. Should I try?

[Scootin 81 C20]

Go for it. I'm looking for gas mileage though and 10-12 ain't cutting it.

[68Timber]

I was afraid you'd say mpg's. If you're really in a spot where you can't afford to feed the beast anymore, shoot for any small car from Honda, Toyota, or Nissan that's five to ten years old with a manual transmission. The price will be right, and even if the odometer reads 150K+ it'll be good to go another 150K with basic maintenance. Look for one that's stock and adult owned where everything works.

I hate to see you sell your truck, but a good manual tranny Civic or Sentra will give great mpg's and be kind to you on repair bills if you take your time and buy one that's never been flogged.

[Scootin 81 C20]

I'd love more than anything to get something like that and keep my truck, but all the cars like that around here are either scrapped by now or are being driven til the point of scrapping. I'm in the worst spot when it comes to buying a car with good mileage. I want a manual, something between 5-15 years old, and something that is relatively wallet friendly (hard to do when you don't have job). Everyone that has been interested in my truck I have told the same story to them, "I'll sell it to you with the stipulation that if you were to sell it a year or two down the road, I have first chance on getting it back."

I don't really have a place to store the truck if I did get something else so it seems to be a lose-lose game for me. One side I'm broke because of gas, on the other side my heart is broke because I'd have to sell the truck. It's a hard decision to make at 18.

[68Timber]

The alternate choice is a Cavalier or Focus. You'll get nearly the same mpg's out of either but they will hit you up more here and there on repairs but mostly minor stuff.

How bad do you need to get rid of the truck? Not to beat up you, but the first truck you mentioned as a possible trade was a Suburban. I'd suck it up and run what you have over any POS Burb any day.

[Benelli]

To be honest, I think I'd park the truck and look for all kinds of odd jobs.

I just made a 100 bucks helping a rancher with some fencing today, I mean, I think if you look in the right places you can get plenty of cash. Over all, I vote keep the truck, ride around with your buddies when you're broke, and hunt down that job.

I think that Burb is POS, I don't see why they put older technology into it.

[Scootin 81 C20]

You're not beating me up. Anything like a Cavalier, Festiva, or anything of that nature have had their @$$ ran off around here. The reason is because high schoolers buy them and most (except for me and a handful of other high schoolers) don't care about how the cars are treated. It'd be nice if I could find a Yugo.

Benelli, I know what you're saying. I've hit up the local job market and the only one that is looking for people is AutoZone. I applied and had my first interview a week later, waiting for the interview with the DM. All of the odd jobs around here are taken by people like my dad (60 yrs. old and only knows how to work). Right now I have a handful of things other than my truck for sale trying to earn some cash, but nobody's biting on them. Like my Mac Tools 110V MIG Welder for $200. We bought it from the original owner for $350 and he had the receipt showing that he paid over $500 for it new on sale.

[Scootin 81 C20]

John, I just found something that is cheap, good on gas, and is a BABY SQUARE BODY!!!!! It's this 1991 S10 for $800. If I got that, I could either keep it, or trade it for the Camaro and keep my truck.

http://peoria.craigslist.org/cto/1642672749.html

[68Timber]

I don't mean to keep throwing curves, but how long will this 3/4 ton be your daily driver? How far (how long) will $800 in gas take you if you didn't buy this truck?

Just to make you think about it, not that you're wrong...

[Scootin 81 C20]

Orange Crush will probably be my daily driver, unless I find something else, for 2 or 3 more years. As far as $800 in gas goes, in the first year I have owned "O.C." I've used about $1,000 in gas. That's not including the gas I was paid with last harvest.

[68Timber]

I don't know how many miles you drove this last year to spend 1K in gas, but you do. So how much would you have saved in gas money if you'd had "gas sipper X"? Just in gas alone, forget purchase price of this car for now.

Well, you can see where I'm going. If you want to keep the truck, pick up a cheap motorcycle or scooter for $500 to $800 - you'll be getting 40 mpg at worst and can ride it to save gas any time you need to - and still have the truck.

[Scootin 81 C20]

Ok. If I got "gas sipper X" and it gets close to double the mileage of O.C., then I should be able to save roughly half of what I would normally spend in a year, right? And if so, I could put it toward parts for the truck.

Now, as far as a scooter or motorcycle go, mom has already put the kaibosh on that idea. She won't let me get a motorcycle or a scooter. "They're too dangerous."

[thirdstreettito]

Trade your guzzler for an early 80's VW diesel. 50+mpg