Hey guys, I love my '04 Dakota 4.7, but it's a Club Cab and access to the rear seat is really poor. My kids are still small and they're already growing out of it.

I'd like to find a Quad Cab Dakota, but I stumbled across this '04 Quad Cab 1500 ST and I think the guy is willing to let it go cheap. It's a Hemi, 5 speed auto, 4x4, manual transfer case, no options that I can see, 56,000 miles. He's owned it since 2006.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/4568728...in/photostream

It's definitely been rode hard and put away wet...spur marks all over it...small dents, scrapes, and/or key marks on pretty much every panel. The left rear quarter looks like it came down on something pretty hard. The rear bumper's got some good sized dents. The interior is pretty rough, cigarette burns, greasy stains, frayed seams, etc. Some clown put aftermarket power windows in and just yanked off most of the hand cranks. One rim is pretty much trashed and has to be replaced. Three hubs have stripped wheel studs. It looks like the last oil change was in May of 08, and it's accumulated less than 2,000 miles since then. Kinda weird, really.

Before I make him an offer, I'm going to go over it with a fine-toothed comb and make sure the mechanicals are sound. Assuming they're all good, what would you think something like this would go for in a private party sale?

Thanks in advance! Carl

 

Without actually seeing it I'd say a reasonable price, given all the damage, would be around $7-8k. The only reason it is even worth looking at even with all that damage is the fact that it has low miles, a Hemi, 4x4, and is a QC.

What price range and area are you looking for? It is a bit of a hobby for me to search for trucks.

 

Thanks for chiming in, Frank.

Should have said, I'm in Southern Connecticut. Tough to find deals on used 4x4s up here, because we've had a couple of really rough winters, and besides the folks who want one "just in case", we have a whole new crop of "woohoo, Imma make me some green plowin" types.

Truth is, I haven't been looking for a truck at all lately. I finally found my Dakota about six months ago and it was just what I was looking for (read: clean and cheap). I've been very happy with it, except that I couldn't believe how crappy the rear seat access is. But since there's no money in the budget for any kind of upgrade, I figured I'd just have to live with it for a few years.

Then I drove by this Ram and saw the FOR SALE sign, and it was so sad-looking, I thought, "maybe I can pick it up for not much more than I could get for the Dakota", and as it turns out, the seller is...um..."motivated", as they say in real estate. He's asking $5500. I had an appointment to see it yesterday and he didn't return my call, so I just stopped by and looked it over a little more closely. I still haven't driven it.

There are so many red flags, I've already decided it would have to go dirt cheap for me to be interested...even less than he's asking. But that's one of the red flags, why hasn't somebody scooped it up for a work or plow truck at that price?

Anyway, waiting on the build sheet from Chrysler to see if it has posi or anything else I missed. Hopefully I can drive it today or tomorrow.

 

Quick update: got the build sheet. No options except the Hemi and the Towing package.

 

$5500 is pretty good but i would look into its service and schedule maintenance history.

Actually after reading your OP again i would move on.

 

Agreed. Wouldn't touch it for $5500. But for...I dunno...$4000, I'd think about it pretty hard.

 

Its a buyers market out of there so use that to your advantage.

 

Wow $5500. In Texas, that truck is worth a lot more even with the damage. But if he is advertising it for $5500, it is yours to take if you show up with $4800 in cash.

 

I dont think I would even give 5500 for the truck. I just went to the dealer and they appraised my truck at 11500. Its an 07 w 50k, and in IMMACULATE shape. They said it would have been 9500 stock, but they have been selling lifted trucks like crazy lately (oil/gas field is crazy busy here)

 

Thanks to everyone who chimed in on this thread.

Turns out the owner has a severe case of cranial rectosis. I finally met him in person and drove the truck. There was so much mechanical whirring and roaring (bad accessory bearings, I'm guessing) that I couldn't hear the Hemi exhaust note at all. Not good.

More bad news about the title (my uncle in Long Island has it, it's registered in his name) and the reason for the long gaps in mileage (it sits for six to eighteen months at a time - outside, natch - when I go back to South America to visit).

I asked how long it was since the last oil change..."about a month" was the reply. Yeah, I don't think so. One month with less than 100 miles wouldn't have turned the oil black and sludgey. The oil change sticker on the windshield says May 2008, and I believe it.

The final straw was when I asked him, "How much are you asking again?" Turns out, I had misheard him originally. He didn't say fifty-five hundred, he said ninety-five hundred. Talk about not even being in the ballpark...I was thinking between $3500 and $4000 for that rolling wreck.

Looks like I'll be keeping the Dakota after all. Thanks again!

Carl