Okay I have belonged to this forum for a long while now but I dont post very often. I have a '01 Dakota sport 4x4 4.7/Auto with 105k miles. its got PW, PDL etc. Anyways I'm a full time 20 year old college student who lives at home and works 35 hours a week for $12. My parents do help me out since I live at home and are pushing me to get rid of the truck and the payments while in school. I owe $6k which is about what its worth. What would you do in my situation? keep the truck and pay it off over time? I dont want something big to go and be stuck with the payments...but on the other hand I wouldnt get much of a truck for what i have saved up and I put it to use when I'm not in school. Is $6k alot to owe on a '01 with 105k? I am just looking for some outside opinions cuz I'm sure other people have had a similar situation. Thanks and sorry for the long post!

 

I think 6k to owe on an 01 with 105k is a bit much. I don't think you'll get that much for it. Let me give you an example. I just sold my 2000 Dakota with 47k 4.7 4x4 Auto fully loaded for 8000. And that was a couple hundred over what it was "worth" because it was in showroom condition. After I bought it I worked on getting it to showroom condition. I say this because the value of a vehicle is subjective. it may be worth some amount to you, but the actual value is really what someone will pay. Here's another example. I paid 6500 at a dealer with a warranty for an 02 Silverado 1500 4x4 fully loaded with 115k. So I got twice the truck for basically the same price you want for your Dakota. It's really subjective.

I say keep your truck, make the payments and pay it off. Try to pay it off earlier as much as you can without putting your finances in jeopardy. If something "big" is about too go then fix it now while your not in school. Go over the whole truck, make sure everything is in perfect working order, that way when you get to school, you have more peace of mind that everything works and will continue to work as it should

It runs good, it gets decent MPG's for a truck. It's not too big, but it's still got good size.

I personally had to sell my beloved Dak because I needed a full size. I was pushing my Dak too much too often and needed a full size.

 

what is your idea of going over the truck and checking everything? Im a pretty good mechanic and I have done almost all the work on the truck from a yearly tranny service to my brakes/shocks to a steering rack replacement, etc. But I agree it would be hard to sell these days especially since its not "showroom" condition cosmetically anyways

 

i bought my 01 4.7 4x4 with 114k for $6250

 

If its in good running order I would keep it, 105k isnt all that much this day-n-age, plus when its paid for.. its paid for..

 

yeah, 105 isn't bad at all. I've got 260k on mine.

 

ya its in great mechanical condition. i service it more than regularly. I guess I got a little over my head in thinking out loud and wondering how long I can make it last once its paid for. But your right, 105k isn't a whole lot

 

Well, just check all your seals, ball joints, make sure your not leaking anything too severe. Make sure your brakes are in tip top, and your fluids are all good.
Basically thats it. If everything is looking good then your chances of failure are much lower. Since you do most of your own work I have to say keep that Dakota and pay her off. You'll be happy when you pay her off and have no car payment anymore and have a great running truck. It feels good. Trust me. Besides, 105k really isn't much. She'll last a lot longer especially since you keep up the maintenance.

As far as the value of it, the examples I gave you are just that, examples. I'm sure if I got my hands on your truck, I could make it sell for 7000. But it might take some time. It's all about finding what someone will pay. But, owing 6000 on it and that being what it's worth in my opinion is a bit high. Try to pay her off as soon as you can, but again, don't get yourself in trouble.

 

Yeah and the thing I like is I know EXACTLY what has been done to it which is alot so if I got something else I would have to start back at the beginning. Thanks for the replies guys....and btw those 2 pics are somewhat recent and rare as shes always dirty lol

 

I dont want to pee in the dodge lover party, and this is nothin about dodge as much as the fact your college kid, and have an evil truck and payment...

but how many miles you drive a month? I have 2 reasons for the one suggestion for you. Now, this is an opinion from older person, you might not like the opinion, that is fine.

IMHO, you have too much vehicle, too much payments to be exact, for a college person. you 'need' the cheapest most econimical vehicle you can find, like a 10 year old 4banger import of some kind, that gets at least 25mpg. if you hunt hard enough you will find such a beastie, for like 500-1000 bucks. No, I agree, the girlfriend will have to like you for you, not the fancy truck...

2 So then you are looking at 115k miles. I hunted for 8 months to find a dak, everyone I drove that had an auto and mileage at or over 130k, either had a new auto, or was needing one! I paid 4.5k for 126k mile 4.7 v8 4x4 extracab, that needs a clutch (I paid too much).

Get your degree, save all your money, pay cash for everything you can, do NOT get in Debt! Trust me. you get out of school, and hopefully find that job, save up money, drive to the used car owner's address you found on something like craigslist or this forum, buy your dream truck with crisp 100 dollar bills for less than you thought you would negotiate to.

That is my advice, from a guy who doesnt spend his car money on school loan payments!

BTW thank god I didnt have loan payments, like now when times a a little bit tough...