Never seen a metal grill shell before.

 

True, that would be the only part I'd repaint myself... the rest would be trash.

 

I'm thinking of trading in the '08 for maybe a '10 or '11 if I can get a decent price for both.


I want to trade it while it is still worth something and before the little things start to pile on.


The new grill would be to keep it clean.

 

chipped up grill, minor dings and scratches..etc do NOT drop the price as most think. Having a perfect truck only adds like $500 to the overall value, so for the headache and heartache to keep things perfect. It's not worth it.
The only reason I do, is for me. Not for when I trade it in.

I've worked at several dealerships. I have been to a couple of auction houses locally and some dirt and scuffs/scratches do not deter anyone from bidding high.
Trucks especially are expected to have some minor chips/bruises.

One thing that is a total turn off is RUST. That is the only killer.

Example...My father uses seat covers. He put them on his brand new truck. They look terrible. He wants to keep them clean so when he trades it in they will add to value. I told him he's wasting his time and not enjoying his truck because even the dirtiest seats only bring down the value of a shampoo detail($150). So, he wasted $40 on seat covers and used them for 4yrs for absolutely nothing. He was readjusting them all the time. Hassle.

 

Funny!


I did the same thing with the carpets in a GMC Safari I owned. I covered ALL the interior carpeting with another layer of carpeting. Then one day when the truck was 10 years old I said f*ck it.....time to enjoy the OEM carpets.


2 hrs later the truck was totalled. The insurance adjuster actually commented on how clean the truck was....helped with the cheque.

 

True.... doesn't add value to a trade-in but it does add a better ability to sell it privately... I've seen people walk away from trucks that have some bumps and bruises.... so keeping it nice definitely adds something to it...

 

Most still have loans when they sell, so they dont go the Private sale route...

Also, I agree, if your selling it privately, your on the retail end, where as your on the wholesale end at the dealership. Everything needs to be top nothc(maint..etc) for private sale, so all-in-all there's not much more value because the dealer whacks $500 for shop bill regardless of what it needs. Doing a fresh fluid change front bumper-back is $500 in fluids alone, not to mention the time and gasket s as well. The there's the tires and brakes.etc

It is a truck. Anyone looking for a 7yr old mint truck needs to just save time and go to the dealer. They'd be wasting their time privately.

 

I don't know man.... I've seen plenty of very nice 5+ year old trucks that are in great shape for what they are, and most of them were actually being sold privately... now they are generally posted at a higher price point than what they are worth but that's just b/c most private sellers let their attachments and emotions get involved with the price (as well as impending financing to pay off)... either way great trucks are out there, you've just got to look harder to find them.