How do you justify a new truck every 2-3 years?

[JimCost2014]

1 minute ago, OnTheReel said:

I shouldn’t say I’m not happy with it, as it has been a great truck and the nicest vehicle I’ve ever owned. Mainly it’s just that the double cab is not working out for me anymore. I wish I would have sprung for a crew cab, and a few more options at the time, and I probably wouldn’t be in this spot. Mine’s about as basic as an SLE comes, no remote start, no heated seats, doesn’t even have fog lamps. I was happy to compromise a bit and save some money at the time since I paid mostly cash for it (and had basically nothing to trade in). But having owned it for over 2 years now, I’m starting to want for more space, more features and more power.

 

Having had a ‘19 as a loaner last weekend was not a good thing for me either as it had most of the stuff I’ve been missing and it drove much nicer too. Pretty sure they set me up in this trap. 

 

I suppose the lesson is to buy what you want the first time.

Not necessarily, there was some appeal to the truck you have now, just a lesson learned in life, there is always something better coming in the future.

[dieselfan1]

7 % off that's it? 

I would be looking at a leftover 2018.

Way better deals plus you know what they say about a first year model. They have the 2018's  dialed in if you ask me. I know mine are. Plus the 2019's are kind of ugly, again, if you ask me .

 

Edited January 13, 2019 by dieselfan1

[RyanbabZ71]

My view is you're going to pay one way or the other.  For those who run their truck into the ground and keep forever and don't have a payment, blah, blah, blah...How do you possibly justify a note on a new truck for $60K when the time eventually comes and you have little to no equity to trade or sell privately? 
 
If you time it right, you can have a manageable annual expense and always be in something under warranty.  I also had a 2016 Silverado LT and had great luck with it.  I just traded it with 23K miles on it (and got high end of "very good" on KBB) and upgraded to a leftover 2018 LTZ at over 25% of MSRP.  I did the same thing a few years ago on the 2016.  I'm paying about $2,500 or so cash per year for this, which I think is reasonable and manageable.  I'll look to do the same in 2-3 years once the T1's have the kinks worked out and probably look at a leftover 2021. 
 
To someone's point about buying used every few years, that makes logical sense due to depreciation.  The only difference in this day and age (and maybe things will change) is that the discounts on leftover "new" trucks has rivaled the price of used trucks, so why wouldn't you go new?

That is my thought at least get something of value out of it. Seems like a good time, I actually have about 3 people who want it and 2 want it for nothing which will not happen


Ryan B.

[Grumpy Bear]

7 hours ago, outrag1 said:

My view is you're going to pay one way or the other.  For those who run their truck into the ground and keep forever and don't have a payment, blah, blah, blah...How do you possibly justify a note on a new truck for $60K when the time eventually comes and you have little to no equity to trade or sell privately? 

 

If you time it right, you can have a manageable annual expense and always be in something under warranty.  I also had a 2016 Silverado LT and had great luck with it.  I just traded it with 23K miles on it (and got high end of "very good" on KBB) and upgraded to a leftover 2018 LTZ at over 25% of MSRP.  I did the same thing a few years ago on the 2016.  I'm paying about $2,500 or so cash per year for this, which I think is reasonable and manageable.  I'll look to do the same in 2-3 years once the T1's have the kinks worked out and probably look at a leftover 2021. 

 

To someone's point about buying used every few years, that makes logical sense due to depreciation.  The only difference in this day and age (and maybe things will change) is that the discounts on leftover "new" trucks has rivaled the price of used trucks, so why wouldn't you go new?

That's an easy one. I don't. Only owned two new cars in my life. Even Pepper was used. 1300 very sweetly treated miles without a single defect priced around 55 cents on the dollar. I bought a 15 Mazda used with 125 miles on it at 50 cents on the dollar and traded it for Pepper making some money on the Mazda in the trade. Why buy one for 60K when you can buy a WT used a year later with under 2K on the clock for a quarter of that? I made the trade for 8K in cash.

 

In the 10 to 20 years in between I save the money I would have spent on the payment and more expensive insurance and normally make these deals in cash and trade. If fact as it is a cash deal I don't have to cover the thing past liability. If it burns to the ground on the lot I'm not out a fraction of the cost of 'playing the game'. 

 

My phone was outdated the day I bought it. So is the tech in the truck you just bought this year which is next years model. Heck it was out of date when it was being drawn up. Crank windows go up and down just like electric and I don't have to buy a 20K package to get them. Even base models these days are pretty well equipped. I got a nice radio I never listen to. A HVAC system that is killer. Power steering and brakes. Cruise and tilt.....great connectivity. Oh and I saved north of 40K over your example.

 

With the surplus I bought a LOADED 2009 Buick Lacrosse CXL with 30K on the clock for about 20 cents on the dollar. Looks like a new one. Oh and I got to keep the Honda for a 'salt' car and daily driver. 

[JimCost2014]

22 minutes ago, Grumpy Bear said:

That's an easy one. I don't. Only owned two new cars in my life. Even Pepper was used. 1300 very sweetly treated miles without a single defect priced around 55 cents on the dollar. I bought a 15 Mazda used with 125 miles on it at 50 cents on the dollar and traded it for Pepper making some money on the Mazda in the trade. Why buy one for 60K when you can buy a WT used a year later with under 2K on the clock for a quarter of that? I made the trade for 8K in cash.

 

In the 10 to 20 years in between I save the money I would have spent on the payment and more expensive insurance and normally make these deals in cash and trade. If fact as it is a cash deal I don't have to cover the thing past liability. If it burns to the ground on the lot I'm not out a fraction of the cost of 'playing the game'. 

 

My phone was outdated the day I bought it. So is the tech in the truck you just bought this year which is next years model. Heck it was out of date when it was being drawn up. Crank windows go up and down just like electric and I don't have to buy a 20K package to get them. Even base models these days are pretty well equipped. I got a nice radio I never listen to. A HVAC system that is killer. Power steering and brakes. Cruise and tilt.....great connectivity. Oh and I saved north of 40K over your example.

 

With the surplus I bought a LOADED 2009 Buick Lacrosse CXL with 30K on the clock for about 20 cents on the dollar. Looks like a new one. Oh and I got to keep the Honda for a 'salt' car and daily driver. 

Great example of the life that you have, not sure how any of it pertains to the OP's question. He is not asking for financial aid or advice on how to buy the truck, more of rhetorical question with enough "yes" votes to sway him to get what he want's, maybe not really what he needs, but not my decision either to make for him.

[duquephart]

11 hours ago, 2009GMC said:

Definitely look into selling your truck private party instead of trading into dealer. You almost always get more $$$ private party even if you save some on tax with trade in.

 

I swore I would never buy a new vehicle and have always kept my trucks for ever? Still have my 208K mile 1997 k1500. 

 

I am also debating on trading my 2018 in when T1XX has mid cycle refresh. My 2018 has been OK. Nervous about possible engine lifter damage, vacuum pump, AC, 8-speed trans. But we mostly hear negative issues on the net vs the thousands that have not had any problems.

 

I finally bought new because a few year old truck with 30 - 50k miles was not that much cheaper than a new truck with the 20 - 25% off MSRP Laura Buick GMC was offering. Now my state sucks with tax and I had to pay 10% tax even though I bought out of state. Also vehicle registration in my state bends you over for the first 5 years. Based on MSRP depreciated value, my 1 year registration was $1200.

 

After all that maybe this will be my first and last new truck lol.

 

It seems these hold their value pretty well as far as deprecation goes...

 

Pretty hard to move something that new private party.

[mookdoc6]

12 hours ago, Nanotech Environmental said:

IMHO, people that put on a lot of miles, (50k per year and up) should upgrade every 2-3 yrs. The rest of us don't need to. 

 

If you want to, that's fine. It's your money. Why aren't you happy with your current '16?  I have a '17 like yours with more than 2x the miles on and still love it. Best vehicle I've ever owned.

I would agree for the guys/gals who rip the snot out of em and I know quite a few they are done with em @ 3yrs and on to the next truck. Usually it's justified, as it's their bread and butter maker. 3yrs is getting higher resale and the dealer usually let's em get away with murder on the price because they will be back very quickly.

[bkesting]

14 hours ago, OnTheReel said:

Thought this could be a fun thread.

 

So I’m at a crossroads with my 2016 Sierra. Frankly I’m just not happy with the truck anymore. It has just over 25k miles and I have had it for about 2.5 years. It was just in for service and the tires are at 6/32 and will probably need replacement if I keep it for another 6 months. Same for the front brake pads. Lots of city driving. 

 

So right now I’m looking at just trading it in before it needs any major things and while it’s still under warranty and theoretically worth more. I can get an ‘19 LTZ CC 6.2 for about 7% off sticker. I know that waiting longer will bring better deals but I’d also lose more on my current truck. It’s completely paid off and worth about 25k average trade-in at the moment. 

 

I think it makes perfect sense to make the move now, and I could theoretically pay cash for the new truck...but I still have the “penny pincher” in the back of my mind from when I used to be poor saying it’s a waste to only get 2 or 3 years out of a brand new truck.

 

Wondering how some fellow “new toy lovers” deal with the internal struggle, and justify the deal to friends (and spouses) who may raise an eyebrow at getting something new so often, even though your income can support it.

 

 

 

 

A '16 Sierra with only 25,000 miles on it should be worth at least $30k on trade, maybe even $33k.  That's what Kelly Blue Book says

[Wayne3593]

Well honestly, the tires that most vehicles leave the factory with suck. Nearly 30k miles out of what I assume are the Goodyear or Bridgestone tires sounds decent to me. As for the brakes, that does sound weird for them to be wearing out already. I do a lot of city driving too and have a little over 50k on my pads and still have life left in them. If you do it yourself, a quick look on Autozone have front brake pads priced for $25 to about $60. The only real expense would be the new tires which will probably set you back for about $1000. The Michelins I put on after the factory Goodyears hit the tread indicator cost me about $1100 after road hazard warranty but for 18" wheels which I believe cost more than the 20" wheels (20" wheels are more common). Just food for thought.

[KARNUT]

I don’t get some people’s logic. If my name is on a mass produced product I’m not going to put my worse on it. My trucks did lots of highway miles and off-road every day. If I stayed with factory tires I generally got no less than 45K miles. I usually had 1000 lbs or more in the back. If something mass produced usually it cost less to produce it. So it should be the same or better not worse.


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[Grumpy Bear]

9 hours ago, JimCost2014 said:

Great example of the life that you have, not sure how any of it pertains to the OP's question. He is not asking for financial aid or advice on how to buy the truck, more of rhetorical question with enough "yes" votes to sway him to get what he want's, maybe not really what he needs, but not my decision either to make for him.

But yours to comment on. I see. Well seems on point to me. It is an encouragement to reconsider the cost against his 'want' and why I don't trade as his title suggest. Read the title of this tread then try again. 

Edited January 14, 2019 by Grumpy Bear

[2017Darkness]

I trade every 2-3 years while my truck is still under warranty. If i'm going to be making a payment on something, I'm going to drive what I want and enjoy every minute of it. I started this process with a 1999 Audi about 12 years ago I bought wholesale for about $5000. I traded it the next year on a 2010 Silverado that I bought under employee pricing and wound up with about $2500 in equity. I only worked 3 minutes from home and would walk sometimes before my first kid was born. I traded the Silverado on a leftover new 2011 Avalanche (crushed them on the price) and had plenty of equity in the trade because of the low miles. Drove that for 2.5 years and 17,000 miles until I traded on a new 2015 Sierra SLT. They gave me $38,000 trade against the Sierra and I did re-up the note for another 6 years, but dropped my payment $200 a month. Traded the Sierra about 6-7 months ago with 34,000 miles on it for my current 17 Silverado with all the bells and whistles and $5000 worth of lift and wheels and tires. Sure, I have another 6 year note on it, but I pay less than $400 a month for a $63,000 truck and owe about $23,000 on it. I have other things I like to spend my disposable income on, and those aren't brakes, tires and other maintenance items.

Edited January 14, 2019 by 2017Darkness

[Sierra Dan]

One other factor to consider is time spent out of the game.

While I and most people probably prefer not having a car or truck payment, the longer you wait before getting into

a new one, the more sticker shock you will have whether brand new or low mileage used.

Keeping a vehicle longer also eventually turns into more maintenance as it ages.

So at some point there is a sweet spot on staying into a newer vehicle.

 

[KARNUT]

I may trade often do to mileage my wife doesn’t. We have 3 of her paid off cars all with less than 100K miles. The oldest Hyundai she drove 5 years my daughter drove 7 years mostly under warranty. My grandson gets it next. So I do both.


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[JimCost2014]

5 hours ago, Grumpy Bear said:

But yours to comment on. I see. Well seems on point to me. It is an encouragement to reconsider the cost against his 'want' and why I don't trade as his title suggest. Read the title of this tread then try again. 

I guess interpretation and perception is the key here, you see the question as an opportunity to give advice and how to buy outdated phones and 10 year old Buicks and how thrifty your lifestyle is, and correct me if I a wrong, but the OP was only asking about a truck. I see the other side of the coin, as where you see settling is better, I say enjoy life, do things that put a smile on your face and do not worry about the little things like saving a few dollars if you are in a position where it does not make a difference. Which I would say describes the OP, or else he would have not created the post.

Edited January 14, 2019 by JimCost2014