I have had some major career changes so I am considering trading down to a 1997 F-250 4 x 4 Auto.,X-tended cab with 90,000 miles to save on payments and still be drivning a diesel? Any thing in particular I should consider about the Ford? I'm not real happy about the deal but the trade would lower my payments by half, or am I crazy for even considering it? Looking for an older Dodge but not having much luck.

 

You gotta do what you gotta do!! But i think your crazy!!

 

have you considering refinancing or something? How long have you been paying on the current loan? What is the term length? Most credit unions allow up to 72 months for vehicles valued over 15k In the long term a 97 may cost you a lot more in up keep and maintenance and down time than your payment. Just a few things to think about, but I totally understand budget crunches all too clearly myself. Ive had to down grade from truck to car several years ago and I was none too happy Luckily with my truck I have now Ive made extra payments as well as paid off a large chunk after I sold another truck that my next required payment is due in 2009 so if any financial crisis arises I dont have to worry about paying it.

 

Moving down 5 years and still haveing a payment is nuts.

 

i would say this..if you can, sell your truck outright,
and buy a used truck from an individual.

you will lose money on trade in, and pay the dealer profit on the ford.
in real money, you will pay about $4k there.

heck, post it up here for sale

in reality, there is nothing less important than our trucks.
family, bills, housing, all that stuff needs to be taken care of.

i was pretty upset when i tore up my 04, i was REAL upset when i had to trade it in,

but a lot of people are more comfortable in my Mega,
than they were impressed with my loud & fast 04

do what you gotta do. pray about it some.

 

Thanks for the input, it helps to hear others views. I've got some serious number crunching to do. Refinancing isn't an option since I took a $1300.00 a month lose in wages in December and it will be a $3200 a month lose in 2 more months, it has put me behind on several things. This just stinks overall! The only reason I was even considering trading was the dealer claimed they could get me finianced. Sorry had to vent!

 

IF you don't really need a truck, now's a really good time to sell it outright and pick up a small, fuel efficient car. I know, I know, it's not near as cool and it's just not as practical. But in the long run, there will always be other trucks when money is there for them. Trading down to a '97 F250 "Buck-board" as my only vechile wouldn't even be an option in my mind. Not that the Ford is a bad vechile, just that for a daily commuter, there are MANY other more practical options.

Good luck, If it were my situation I'd focus upon getting out of debt entirely - one of the most freeing things you could ever do. Just my $.02

 

yeah, if i could roll back time to when i had a king cab S-10 and a $200 payment, it would be ALL ME. dump it and get a cheap cash vehicle.

if you are sked to loose more $$ in the future, you need to prepare for that loss, not compensate for this current loss.

outright sale of the existing truck and getting a beater off www.craigslist.com would be the deal.

do what you gotta do.
20 years from now, the truck won't matter, but your family will know you how protected them

 

Not having a truck isn't possible...got livestock to haul and make extra money on, I never bought a dodge to be cool.. I bought it to work. If we could only see the future I would have kept my 2000 Chevy gasser and it would have been paid off a year ago... I have considered going back to a gasser but not sure that would be the best move either.
Oh well, just trying to figure out options....I got one that would let me keep the truck and pay it off...but I got to cash in my retirement money that is invested and it would allow me to pay off everything we owe and get by on my spray truck driving job.

 

Whats with a 97 truck and a payment? 10 yr old work trucks can usually be bought for less than the cost of a day in disney world,i wouldnt finance anything that old,it doesnt make sense.
sell your truck ,get rid of the payment,buy a solid work truck,dont look at sheet metal and shine,look at the undercarraige,and mechanical underhood,if it checks out ok under hood and chassis,go for it,and keep in running as long as you can.

 

What he said. Sell it and buy something you can afford to pay cash for. You should not be working for your truck, your truck should be working for you.

 

If you wait a little longer, I'm sure you can find an older Dodge Cummins. Just gotta wait a little. In the mean time, try to sell your truck.

 

^^^ What he said - sell yours outright and buy a 1st gen so that you'll still have the Cummins.

 

Same answer. Sell your truck outright. Even if you are upside down on it, it will be less of a hit overall than what you will get for a trade. There are plenty of work trucks around that are older and cheap. You even live in MO, so you can find one that is not rusted out.
Don't worry about hauling your livestock. Remember, 15 years ago, noone had a 300-500hp diesel to pull their trailer. A 350 Chevy will do it, just not as fast.

 

There are quite a few older CTDs in this area for sale. MDS motors in Rogersville always has 12 valves on hand for sale.