How to Buy a Used Pickup Truck
Should you buy a pickup truck or rent one? Which features do you need in a pickup truck? How do you find out the price range for a truck with the features you want? And what are the best places to buy a used pickup truck?
Step 1. Consider how you will use the truck. Do you really need to buy one?
Wouldn’t it be nice to have a pickup truck? You could buy whatever you want at Lowes or Home Depot and haul it home yourself. No more boards and pipes sticking out of your trunk. You can buy drywall, plywood, lawn tractors, anything at all and haul it home. Think of the projects you could take on…
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| Dr. Pincher's F-150 Pickup Truck, purchased in 2004 for $10,000. This is an example of an extended cab pickup truck. Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher |
Did you know that the big home improvement stores will rent you a truck for about $20 for 4 hours? They will also deliver loads for about the same price. You can also rent a larger truck at places like U-Haul and Penske for about $30 per day. So the question is, how often would you use a pickup truck if you owned one? If you’re thinking of hauling bulky items from home improvement stores once every few months, renting a truck occasionally would save you a lot of money.
Owning your own truck is much more convenient than renting one- it’s always available and you don’t have to take the time to return it after each use. Some situations where buying a truck might make a lot of sense:
- Frequent projects that require hauling large items
- Hauling of purchases home from garage sales and auctions
- Moving from one house to the next over an extended period of time
- Need to haul lots of junk to the landfill over a long period of time. Been there, done that!
- Hauling livestock
- Towing a travel trailer or camper
- Snow removal (if you outfit a 4x4 truck with a snow plow)
If you think you would use a truck more often than it would be convenient for you to rent or borrow one, decide what features you need in a truck.
Step 2. Make a list of must-have and nice-to-have features
How many people will ride in the truck? Just you, or will you ever want to take family and friends as well? Pickup trucks have 3 cab configurations:- Standard Cab- 2 doors, usually bench seat. Seats 3 adults. Front seat only.
- Extended Cab. Front seat and small back seat. 2 doors, the front seats fold forward to access the back seat, like in a 2-door car. May have small “suicide” doors that swing backward to help access the back seat. Seats 3 adults in front, probably up to 3 kids in back.
- Crew Cab- 4 full doors. Seats 5 or 6 adults.
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| This crew cab pickup truck has 4 full-sized doors. Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher |
Do you need 4 wheel drive?
If you live in a cold climate, you’ll probably want 4 wheel drive, or also know as 4x4. Trucks have poor traction when not loaded since there is little weight on the drive wheels in back. Four wheel drive will help keep you moving in slippery conditions like snow or mud.
Do you plan to tow?
If so, you’ll likely want a V8 engine. Investigate the trailer you plan to tow, so you’ll know the required towing capacity. You may be able to find a used truck that already has a trailer brake controller installed, which will save a couple hundred dollars.
What size truck bed do you need?
If you plan to haul 4x8 sheets of drywall or plywood, a full-sized bed would be more convenient so you can lay sheets of material flat. Smaller compact trucks, with smaller beds, get better gas mileage but have less room for large items. If you're getting a truck, make sure it will be able to haul what you need to haul...
How important is reliability to you?
If you are planning to mainly use the truck for local trips, reliability may not be that important to you. You may be willing to drive an older truck with higher mileage since it is not that inconvenient if it breaks down. If you are planning to tow a trailer on summer vacation, you wouldn't be happy if it broke down in the middle of nowhere.
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| Dr. Pincher purchased this 1983 Dodge Ram for $450 a number of years ago for local hauling This is an example of a standard cab pickup truck. Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher |
Step 3. Set a price range
Now that you know the features you want, start checking out prices. I use Kelly Blue Book to get an idea of private party and dealer prices for trucks that meet my criteria. As with cars, the prices go down rapidly with the age of the vehicle and the mileage. Other places to check out available makes, models and prices are autotrader.com and cars.com. Another good source of market prices: used Pickup Truck prices on eBay
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It is important to go through this step of identifying trucks that would work for you and what market prices are like before you go shopping, so you’ll know a good deal when you see it. If you plan to finance your truck purchase, this is the time to talk with your bank set up vehicle financing. If you plan to buy from a dealer, the dealer can also help arrange a line of credit at the time of purchase.
Step 4. The Purchase
Some places to shop for trucks:
Vehicle Auctions
I have tried truck shopping at vehicle auctions, but was the prices on trucks were bid up too high for me. The kind of people who go to auctions are the kind who buy pickup trucks. They need to haul the stuff they buy at auctions! Also, an auction is a high pressure way to buy, you need to make quick decisions about how high to bid.
Private Party
Buying from a private party is probably the way to get the lowest price. You can find private party vehicles for sale on craigslist.org, or in classified ads in your newspaper. Some drawbacks of buying from a private party seller:
- It is harder to set up a time to see vehicles
- You might be dealing with someone who has never sold a vehicle before
- You won't get a warranty
- A private party seller will not be able to offer financing
Car Dealer
This is likely the most expensive, but easiest and most convenient way to buy a vehicle. You may get a warranty on a used vehicle, for example 30 days against major defects. Shopping at car dealers gives you a chance to see a lot of trucks quickly.
Penny Pinching Tips:
Negotiating the Price
It is always worth a try to negotiate the price. Even with a private party ad that says “price firm”. It’s hard for anyone to say no to cash and someone who is ready to buy. Let’s say the asking price is $14,000. There are different strategies you can use to justify your lower-than-asking-price offer. You can simply say that your budget right now is $10,000 and see what happens. Usually what happens is that the seller will say, “Can you do a little better?” It’s good to think this sequence through so you can end up with the price you want. If the seller says “No thanks" to your offer, you can always say, “Well, you drive a hard bargain...” and make a higher offer. Just remember there are lots of other trucks for sale, you can find one in your price range if you keep looking.
Check out Used Pickup Truck deals on eBay to get an idea of reasonable prices.
Check out Used Pickup Truck deals on eBay
to get an idea of reasonable prices.
Buyer Beware
One issue with buying a used vehicle is that it could have major mechanical issues you don't notice before you buy it. Good advice is to take the used vehicle you are interested in buying to a mechanic and have it checked out. I agree that this is good advice, but I have never done this myself. I like to ask questions about how often maintenance was done and specifically ask the seller if there is anything wrong with the vehicle. Also, I try to go with a make and model with high reliability ratings from places like Consumer Reports.
This is very good information a really nice blog. keep it up!!!
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