Buying Used

[thornmz71]

i was looking at used trucks and when i got my 07 it had 55000 km but i have the option to swap it out in July so now i am wondering if your were buying used at what kms or miles would make you not buy a truck

[KMGZ400]

well the condition of the truck is very important too, you can tell they type of owner by the condition of the truck. i dont really have a problem with a high mileage vehicle, but i personally would rather buy a lower trim package truck to have less miles rather a high trim package with high miles. high miles for me being over about 90,000 miles.

[00Silverado4x4]

Since one of my jobs is prevenitive maintenance for the equipment I work on for the military I look at everything when buying used. However my one strict pet peeve is the engine. If it looks like a pile I walk away regardless of everything else. I'm also a little leery of high mileage young vehicles, I've owned previous rental cars & that can be shoot or miss on maintenance records. Obviously there is no guarentee in any case so that's why I require the dealer to allow me to truly "test drive" a vehicle. I put it through it's paces under all roads types that I will be driving on & get a feel for the vehicle's reaction (brakes, accel, vibrations, squeeks, etc). Again if it don't sound/act right, I walk away. I haven't bought used since '02 but I still do all the same "checks" when buying new as well.

[K1500Tech]

I personally like certified used cars because they usually have a good warranty so if something takes a dump I won't have a thin pocket book.

[BlackZ71Silverado]

I only ever got one used truck, a 2000 Silverado. What I looked for was under 60,000 miles and a decent warranty. Ended up getting one with 36,000miles and a really good warranty, worked out great. It helps to have a report like CarFax with records of service. I would stay away from anything that did not have regular service and records of it.

[jro909]

i've had a handful of high mileage vehicles, it depends how it was treated and maintained...my next rodeo i'll buy new just for the warranty and peace of mind knowing my truck wasen't a taxi cab..appearance is a big factor for me also, remeber too that if your buying private sale, to make sure the truck wasen't beat every weekend by some punk kid....

[Diesail]

If you are looking at a Duramax make sure you verify warranty status. Take it to a dealer and get it in writing that it is still under warranty. If the previous owner put a programmer on it, the warranty is void, period.

[Babyhauler]

My last 5 vehicles were purchased with over 100k miles. All bought from current owner and driver, except one from a dealer. Take a good look at the tires and rotors and you will get a quick idea of how someone has maintained and operated their vehicle. Interior condition is also a good indicator of treatment. I have been lucky and only had a few major repairs over the past 15 years. I figure a major repair is coming so I try to hide a few grand back so an emergency is only an inconvenience. I usually sell at about 150k. The dealer purchased Taurus had a tranny go out within 6-8 months. It was 7 years old. Had to expect it.

[Garrett Street]

I've only bought used because I can only afford that at this time. But, if I could buy new, I would. I would buy new just for the peace of mind you get with the warranty. Then, once the warranty runs out, you'll at least know that your truck has been maintained and driven like an adult. I've been lucky with my truck so far, I replaced the transmission but that was expected with 190K and a 4L60E. If you're looking at an 07+ truck I wouldn't have any problem buying a truck with 70-90K miles assuming it's been properly maintained.

[jro909]

also if the truck has had anything hillybilly work done on the exhaust(stacks in the bed, gutted cats and so on) walk away.....also look at the wheel wells and under the truck, if the paint or undercoating is ravaged or packed with debris just walk away...i think the trucks that are abused are more common then the trucks treated well

[KMGZ400]

also if the truck has had anything hillybilly work done on the exhaust(stacks in the bed, gutted cats and so on) walk away.....also look at the wheel wells and under the truck, if the paint or undercoating is ravaged or packed with debris just walk away...i think the trucks that are abused are more common then the trucks treated well

 

 

haha yeah, any truck with stacks most likely was abused, you can usually tell if the vehicle has been offroaded with, lots of little nicks where mudflaps should be, small clearcoat scratches.

 

luckily for me, in the small town im in everyone knows the past owners of most of the used trucks around me so we know whether it was beat to shit or not. abused trucks are definatley more common

[cghbuilder86]

I'd rather buy used most of the time. Even though I "could" afford to buy new. Not so easily, it would be a pretty big payment I would have for a while and that something I don't want. New trucks are just to expensive. If you look long enough you can find good condition fairly low miles for half the original price. The warranty is not that important to me. If a vehicle has something expensive go out while it is still in it's warranty period, well thats pretty much inexcusable to me anyway. I'd probably buy a different brand.

[mike94silverado]

Bought: (all 4x4)

 

94 Silverado 1500 EXt. Cab in 2003 with 120k miles- 1 bad Rad. hose, heater core, Ball Joints, set of tires in 2 years of ownership

 

2000 Ram 1500 Ext. Cab in 2006 with 66k miles- Too many problems to list, cost me 4k in repairs and was never right

 

 

2002 Ram 1500 Ext. Cab in 2007 with 77k miles- Nothing the first 2 years other than a U joint and a set of brakes- last year of ownership with 100k on it- Water pump, heater core, a/c Compressor froze took out the serp. belt, front end needed work.

 

2005 Ford F-350 Ext. Cab Diesel in 2010 with 117k miles- 8k in typical repairs in 4 months,

 

SO, I finally went to a new truck. I had hit or miss luck with higher mileage vehicles. The Chevy was decent and I did put 30k on it. It's still running. the only reason I dumped it was that the cab corners rusted out and I didn't want to have body work done on a 150k mile truck. In hindsight it would have been a good decision. The 00 Ram was crap but the 02 was good, it just hit all the repairs at once which sucked.

 

The Ford was typical 6.0 Powerstroke. Guess they all really are JUNK.

[yukon_denali_05]

I've had hit and miss on used cars. I am very picky when buying a used car. I check TSBs, consumer reviews, forums, etc to find out what the common issues are. I always typically buy the last year or 2 of a previous model (like my '05 YD XL) because most of the manufacturing defects are usually addressed by then. If I buy from a car dealer, I'll buy it with a certified pre-owned warranty. I only buy 1 owner cars with maintenance records. The best car i bought used (besides my current ride) was in 2005 and it was a 1995 Mercedes E320 with 91k miles at the time from a one owner college professor that religiously performed all the manufacturer maintenance. The car was "pristine". If I buy from northeast, I check that the car has been garage kept. I still have my E320 and it has 186k miles and only repairs to date is water pump, struts, tires, brakes, radiator and lower ball joints.

 

Every FURD i've had has been absolutely JUNK. I had a Mercury Mountaineer(5.0), Ford Thunderbird (5.0), Lincoln LS (worst POS), Windstar (CRAP) and all were absolutely worthless.

 

Buying a car is like buying a house - neither is an investment. You just need to find one that will do the job, that you'll enjoy, and won't be dumping money on and draining your pockets.

[tyhuck]

Lots of good advice here. Ide add that you shouldnt be affraid to take a long test drive before buying. Make sure that it runs well, shifts well, and will perform to a higher standard than you will require. Take it to redline when leaving stoplights, brake hard when stopping, use exagerated steering when taking turns. You will scare the hell out of the salesman if you are at one of those places where they ride with you, but you will have a better idea of what you are looking at. Then when you get back, let it idle and listen to the engine for any knocks or pings, clicks, pops, rattles, or squeels. Then kill the engine and crawl underneath and look at the suspension and the exhaust. Look for caked mud and flaking paint or rust while you are under there.

 

Also, pay attention to the salesman. If he seems to over-eager to sell you the truck, theres probably a catch. Hes probably trying to unload his crap on you.

 

Ide also stick to something around 75K if you can afford it. I bought mine in Dec. 2010, and it had 87K on it, but it seems to have been very well taken care of.

 

Hope this helped.