Warning Rant ahead lol

 

So am i the only one who feel's the price of used diesel trucks has hit epic stupidity level's??? I know they last longer and seem to be better equiped to certain job's but, I'm seeing stuff that looks like it's one day away from the scrap yard selling for $5000....when it's really only worth $500...The older they are the higher the price i mean i seen today a 91' model dodge 3500 single rear wheel truck 4x4 reg cab with dents, ding's, hole's, and rust EVERYWHERE... 500,000 mile's leaking fluid's from every orfice possible while the only good piece on it is the $800 set of Stacks and there asking $7500 with a rebuilt title....wth??? why is this

 

Myself and a friend went looking a few years a go for truck's I found a great deal a 2001 dodge 2500 4x4 V10 auto with 70k mile's on it 0 rust it did have a rebuilt title (Tree limb broke the windshield and the passenger front door).. I paid $2500 and $500 for repairs and the paint was half that cost so $3000 it's got 170k on it now and (Knock on wood) to this point only ever done normal maintenice on it brake pads, oil, filter's etc..And i pull the same load's if not bigger and can leave him in the dust while i get 10-13 MPG But He bought a 2001 dodge 2500 4x4 with a rebuilt title with the 24val auto, 300k mile's then 400k now, rust all over, and leaks everywhere and he paid over $9500 and had to replace the lift and inj pump a month later and still works on it all the time and only get's 15 MPG...  He said that the MPG made up for the $6,500 difference (not including his constant repair's) if you do the math I'm way better off as i've got people wanting to buy it mine for $6,500 atm and he has Junkyard's offering him $800 in scrap .....I understand the older stuff will last longer and less prone to fail as todays modern computer stuff but i can get a gasser and do the same or more for a 1/4 the price is there any sign of the market going down any time soon i want to add another Diesel truck to my line up so i can retire my old 1974 Dodge D300 and 2001 dodge 1500 (My first truck) so i can restore them...

 

But i will not give gold price's for a polished turd.. anyone else with me Guess my rant is over

Blame  Obama.    JK.   ok,  not really kidding..

 

Blame  Mopar1973man.com!   Seriously,   cool sites  such as  this one,   and  the  countless   others   dealing with   mods, upgrades,  high performance,   ALL  WAX, ROMANTICIZE,   AND  LURE   countless     'newbies'   into   the   'hobby'.    Forums  have  taken off the shroud of  mystery..  and   info is  available to anyone..   

Everybody wants to  play!

 

Long gone are the  days of   'dang ol dirty diesel, underpowered  boat anchors'      and   now  we have   firebreathing  beasts   that  can  run   sub 10 second quarter miles,   pull sleds  300 feet  down the dirt track...   and  on the flip side,    build  a  motor  that  can    roll out  25+  mpg  down the highway.    I tell ya,    just  reading  even  a few of  the  available forums  is  addicting!  

    People like to tinker.   We also like to  'show off'   "looky what  I DID!"

 

So   I say this<     "  More interest,  means  more  demand....  drives the price! "

That's a big slice of pie right there. Dodge Cummins will around for a long time kind of like the 60's and 70's muscle cars. I think this is the playground our trucks are now heading towards and why the prices are still high. Heck all the trucks you see now are barely 150-250k miles on the clock anyone that knows a 1st or 2nd Gen is barely getting started in life. The big problem is trying to find a truck body and interior that isn't ate to hell and back.

"Worth" is very subjective. It  If something is not WORTH it in you opinion, you won't buy it unless you NEED it. Worth should be determined between buyer and seller;  employer and employee;  doctor and patient;  etc.!!  WORTH gets FUBARed  when government and politics get involved!!!!

'Worth"    to me,   on a  vehicle,   is  what it'll     salvage out at...       150-200 bucks  a  ton.   

May I add another side to this issue that you can consider.  I study economics,trends,marketing, etc., and the young man of today is not spending $20,000 on a wedding, ring, or getting set to purchase a new house with a huge mortgage.  That "traditional" life style is not for him.  Neither is ABC,CNN,FOX news.  He is connected by phone to his "friends" and get the real truth from them.  They tell him about their student loans, how hard it is to make ends meet, job,wife,and kid problems.  He listens to them all around the world.  So the young men of today is ditching a compact car (too traditional) and is headed to a truck so he can travel light, be more normadic, go where the jobs are turning up, get out of the way of weather disasters and in general, not be tied down to anything or anyone.  It will take 10 - 15 years for this trend to expire.  So the price of a diesel is reflected by this surge.  Fixing up an old truck and selling it will be profitable as a side hobby if you can so it.  The young man of today is influenced more by his phone-media friends then advertisements.  This is his life line.  Another trend that is roaring to life is in NY.  Take Long Island, Staten Island, for example.  There are about 9 or 10 bridges and 3 tunnels (Long Island..don't quote me on this) that carry the traffic each day.  Young people there are buying inflatable rafts, boats, to be used to hit the waterways as they know that they are trapped with traffic.  Store a truck or bike down the coast is their escape!  So you see there is a lot of things that one needs to take into consideration re that truck price.  Yes, the large cities are definitely going to see a huge jump in those prices.  More people...more opportunity to sell.  Think about it!!!!Peace Moparmom

You took the words right out of my mouth Mom!

It just hit me  today.. (lots of time to ponder while raking hay)  that   on a percentage basis,  there  are fewer  people today that can afford  new stuff.   So that means  there are more people  looking at good used..   which  drives the price!

I'm seeing that in  the ag market.      Tractors  have  done the same over the years,    New  150 hp  tractors  are   ~ 150k      And  old   JD   150 hp  tractors    (4430, 4440  for example)   are fetching  15-18k for  a   shelled out  machine..     I've  seen   some that had fresh OH, Paint, new tires... bring  over 40k.   They didn't cost that much  30 years ago when new.

Everybody wants a pre emission truck. Hard to afford let alone justify a 60k dollar pick up unless you are using it to make a living, or life is treating you right. Then there is the whole maintenance/repairs end, once the warranty is up the owner is responsible for the repairs and it is getting harder and harder for the average shade tree mechanic to accurately diagnose/repair. So the practical solution is buy something older that is easier and cheaper to maintain. We all know how reliable and durable these trucks are, 10 yrs old is nothing for a Dodge/Cummins pick up. I just used my 16 year old truck to drive to the east coast and haul back a 5 year old SUV with an electrical failure. The only shortfall is time and rust and that is making these trucks harder and harder to come by. I don't see the value levelling off or depreciating any time soon.