Something I’ve noticed for years around my town is that, when I see used pickup trucks for sale by owner, the asking prices are just completely out of line with those I see on similarly-aged cars.
Now, I occasionally see something reasonable, like this ad for a 2002 Ford F-150 FX4. The owner is asking $4500, and points out that the Kelly Blue Book lists the value at $5100.
And then I see ads like this: 1974 F100 Ranger Short - $4200. 40-year-old vehicle with an asking price only $300 less than the 12-year-old truck above. Judging by the ad, this is a bog-standard truck with no “customization” aside from the mag wheels. It’s not even a 4x4.
Or another recent ad for a 1975 Ford F150 with an asking price of $3500.
These are just recent examples. Like I said, I’ve noticed this for years.
It does’nt matter what you are selling, in this case its trucks. You can ask what you like, but you only get that price if the buyer agrees.
Most likely the seller has a price in mind, and your supposed to negotiate him or her down to it, and other times, some models of vehicle have a good resale value, no matter the age.
It may not be anything unique to truck owners but just that most people are not good at estimating the value of stuff, and tend to overvalue their own stuff.
I know little about cars in general, and even less about pickup trucks in particular, despite having owned two. But at least some brands seem to last a long time and hold up well, compared to passenger cars. And if so, they’d command higher prices than cars of similar vintage.
For one thing, once you go back more than 25 years you are looking at “antique” cars, some of which are going up in value. It’s the same reason a 1974 Ford Mustang lists for slightly more than a comparable 2002 Mustang.
Vehicle values tend to follow an upside down bell curve - start high, devalue sharply over the first 10 years, trend slightly downward for the next 5 years, plateau, then if still around and in good shape after 25 years start trending back up.
I think this is it; most people that I know have a hard time realizing that their stuff isn’t worth much, and that any “improvements” don’t really add value either.
That, and a lot of people just expect to haggle, and think that if they price their item really high, that they’re pinning down where the negotiations start.
I have a 1988 for f250 I seldom use and am considering selling. I just spent $2,200 overhauling the engine and trans was done about 10,000 miles ago. Paint is faded but body is good. I am hoping to get $3,000 but not sure if I can.
Technically, there were no '74 Mustangs. They were Mustang IIs, and are generally regarded as the worst cars to bear the Mustang name. They are also pretty much the cheapest ones out there, if you can find one that hasn’t completely rusted away. Some of the Mustang II Cobras might bring a pretty penny, but those didn’t arrive 'til '76.
This. Specifically, late -'60s-mid-70’s Ford and Chevy short-bed pickups have become a thing with the hot-rod crowd, and prices have gone up dramatically as a result.
I have heard/read in years past that in some specific regional markets, typically in areas close to the US Mexico border or in areas having high immigrant populations used Ford pickup trucks can go for premium prices, often well over blue book or similar reference prices. This was several years ago no idea if it is still true.
I tried to sell an 88 F250 with 60k miles about 12 years ago, and only had one offer of $2000. I ended up keeping it. I was looking at stuff for sale last month, and now people are selling the same 88 F250’s, but with 300k miles and they want $5000!
As HoneyBadger will attest, nothing classic or collectable about them.
I think a lot of truck owners pick a truck because it’s big and they need something to inflate their ego. Naturally, they’ll inflate the value too.
My favorite story of an overpriced truck came from an acquaintance. He sees a truck for sale by owner with a blue book value of $5000, but it needs $2000 of engine work. (Meaning, it should only be worth $3000, tops, right?) He “haggles it down” to $3500. Then he finds out it costs $500 more to repair than the estimate. So now he’s $6000 into a truck that still has a blue-book value of $5000.
When he tried to sell it a year later, he wanted $9000. After all, he put all that work into a $5000 truck. :smack:
That does happen a lot, and not just with trucks. Sometimes the owner does need to sell, but just doesn’t want to. Outside of a dog a truck is a man’s best friend. Only very small trucks fit inside of a dog.
I didn’t elaborate, but your point actually made the analogy even better. If the worst Mustang ever made is worth more than one that is 28 years newer, it certainly points out the collector value of some older vehicles. Honestly, I was shocked at Mustang II prices in today’s market.
This. I have no idea what old trucks actually sell for, but I know that a lot of people like that '60s/'70’s truck “look” and are willing to pay for it.
