New vs. building old one

[KMK454]

No matter how you slice it, cars suck the bank account dry old or new. I would love a 2011 Chevy 2500HD Diesel CC Short bed 4x4 Z71 with the 20" factory five-spokes... but that's a $50k truck. Nix the 4x4, Z71, and go with the gas motor, and you can get it for about $34k with no other options (still has AC, stereo, etc). Still a lot of money.

$25k for a V6 1500 W/T is a ripoff.