Hi, my name is Mike. I traded my 2003 Ranger in for a car last winter because I didn't want to be bothered with gas mileage in the low teens while driving a V6 and I wanted to get out of an auto loan quicker. Long story short, my car is paid off and I really miss having a truck and now I'm looking to get into another Ranger or Dakota.

This is the one I'm looking at: 2001 Dakota V8 4x4 High Miles. It has everything I want except it's high miles and it's priced $1,000 more than I'd want to spend for an identical truck with 60,000 less miles (not that I know where to find that). Regular cab, 4.7L V8 (strong preference), 5 speed manual (a must for me), 4x4 (strong preference), looks to be mostly loaded with just under 174k miles for $6000.

So my question is what is actually a good price for a truck like that? In my mind I'm think about $4000 is fair. Also, considering the mileage should I avoid towing with it? If so I might as well just skip it since that's part of the reason I want a truck. What high mile issues do people usually run into with the 4.7L engines?

I'm thinking I'll offer them a fair price and if they accept I'll look into it, if not I'll just hold off until I find something better or lose interest. Thanks in advance for responses.

 

5speed makes up for the high miles. 1 owner you could have gotten lucky. he might have taken good care of it.

 

I'm not worried about the trans, just everything that gets worn with usage. Ad says one owner but carfax says two. What would you say a fair price is if you think the truck still might have a lot of life in it?

 

may have been like my truck- bought by one person but then transferred title to person in family? My dad bought my truck but when I turned 18 we put the title in my name.

That said, there's a couple topics around here somewhere that detail what to look for in a used Dako.

 

I have a general idea what to look for in used vehicles. I'll make sure to check one of the articles on this forum if I decide to go out and check out the truck. I guess what I'm trying to figure out is what's a good/fair price considering options and mileage?

 

The big thing on Daks is ball joints. 4.7 and the 5 speed should be fine at that mileage, so it should be fairly solid. I would say 6 is fairly reasonable for the option set. I'd go take a look at least.

 

It sounds like a nice truck...like mine! haha...
Are you mechanically inclined? Would you do work yourself? 174K is a ton of miles. I would ask for maint records. Where are you located? obviously that has a little to do with it. If it's a dealer, and there are any mech issues, you can probably get it for 4. I would be weary of the miles, but not immediately dismissive

But, as long as the steering/susp is tight, and the truck runs strong, oil is ok, you might have a decent find that was well maintained. Do you have a mechanic, if you dont do it yourself? A compression check would help find any issues with internals on the motor. Rear/U joints as well...Brakes. standard things. If there is sound mechanics, you can tow till youre blue in the face....or, empty in the wallet.

 

The main problem is that the truck is 6 hours away, I have a limited amount of tools and don't know any mechanics in St. Cloud. I can do basic maintenance stuff on my own, but anything particularly complicated or difficult I'd rather have a mechanic do it (in addition to having limited tools I have limited time). I haven't got an e-mail back from the dealer yet so I don't even know if it's something to consider yet.

I think if there's nothing wrong with it and it's well maintained I'd want to pay less than $5000, but if there's anything wrong with it I'd want to pay less than $4000. Perhaps I need to wait for a local private party sale to pop up.

It sounds like the 4.7L 5 speed combination in the Dakota is just like the 4.0L SOHC 5 speed combo in the Ranger in the sense that if you take care of it, it will outlast the body of the truck it's in. I really wish I just kept the Ranger since I already knew it was solid, but I think I may really like having a Dakota if I can find a good one for the right price.

 

Sucks it is so far away.
My body is solid, and mechanics are after a little refresh. Well worth the trouble. I would wait for a local sale, like you are thinking.
I debated on Ranger vs Dak for a while, then I sat in a new ranger, and couldnt fit as comfortably. Also, power/payload was a big plus of the Dak. Either way, If you check it out, Im sure you'd be happy, and if the dealer is worth anything, they should give you at least a 30 day warranty, if not 90. Anyway, good luck...they are a blast in the snow

 

Got a call from the dealer today. They bought it wholesale so no maintenance records. I offered 4k and they said no. I'll keep looking.