So do I trade my stupid new Dodge Ram for this?

http://austin.craigslist.org/ctd/2977750497.html - It's back. Took the pics below a little over a year ago, when it was last for sale. Steering wheel is a little more worn now, but underside is just as clean as it was.....

154K is a little high on the miles, but I bet I could trade the Ram even.

Mike.. really now. What kind of question is that? HELL YES you trade the ram for that.

It's nearly as clean as my white one, but 50K more miles than I had. I'm sure I can make it pretty....just needs some trim and detailing. Wish it was another color outside. I like the tan inside.

I'm really temped....it's CLEAN.

JUST DO IT Mike!Dont think about it or it will be gone to someone else!
Jim

whats with the price jump?? i think it's nice and all and definitely CLEAN. but i thought you really wanted an occ. if its not exactly what you want i wouldn't buy it, you'll probably regret it.

imo...

Get the RMW and perform your magic and then you can trade the RMW for a nice low mileage
OCC!
Thats if you can give up the LT-1 power!

It's a really clean wagon, and the right year, but it's two years older and 50K more miles than the Ram. After all the work I just put in the Dodge, not sure if this is trading down...

Still, it's a clean local car and is really tempting.

I really think I'm going to save up a bit and look for another Roady or Cruiser with really low miles in maroon, DGGM, or black. I'd rather start again with a low-mile car...they just feel so much tighter.

But again, this one sure is calling my name. It's about a mile from me here at the office...

Ouch!

I've been staying off the forum lately....trying to keep my happy thoughts and force myself to like that Dodge.

-Mike

The Ram is nice, I like mine, and it's not nearly as well equipped as yours, but I have one and I sure couldn't afford to drive it as a commuter. Even if gas was cheap, I still wouldn't want to drive a pickup everyday if I didn't need to. I would say trading that for a wagon would not only be a sensible choice for a family man, but from an economic standpoint you will in the long run save lots on gas. Also, I like the AGWs. However, only buy it if it's what you really want, or, if you can't stand waiting for a wagon any longer. Since I sold the red wagon, (which I shouldn't have bought anyway) I keep finding wagons I would like to have but I hold back and keep telling myself I need to save my potential wagon ca$h for now and wait to find the DGGM Caprice I've been wanting for like, ever. Unless of course I come across an "offer I can't refuse"...

[quote="benn"]whats with the price jump?? quote]

Typical used car dealer. It was under $3K the last time he had it, a year and 20K miles ago! Ha!

81X11 wrote:

...I'd rather start again with a low-mile car...they just feel so much tighter...

All the road feel stuff can be fixed on a higher mileage wagon. The real advantage with a low mileage wagon is the interior is not a fallen apart piece of sh|t like all Roadmasters over 70 to 80k are. The cheapness of the '94+ RM interior makes the Caprice interior look like it was handcrafted by Swiss watchmakers. It makes me sad to think my step-dad's 53k mile RMW's interior will slowly fall apart and there's little I can do about it. Every time I touch something in that car, I think "will doing this eventually harm it in some way?" Probably the #2 reason I stick to OCC's and Caprices. And for that, waiting on a low mileage RMW may be well worth the wait...

I'm just amazed that he was able to find one that wasn't white.
.

81X11 wrote:

I don't recognize this.
.

I agree on the interior...especially the door panels. I've replaced all the clips and epoxy'd all mine...they were TIGHT and perfect, but I was still always careful about slamming the doors.

If you're trading even up, why couldn't you still save up for a more perfecter one later on. Don't marry the thing, just date it till the right one comes along.

150k miles is't high anymore either.

WOW... that's clean. Wish mine was that clean!

Bewber wrote:

If you're trading even up, why couldn't you still save up for a more perfecter one later on. Don't marry the thing, just date it till the right one comes along.

150k miles is't high anymore either.

I marry all my vehicles. You should see the Ram after two weeks of work. It glows now. I don't know how to leave a vehicle alone....

I just noticed the price jump thing. I wouldn't pay $3,500 for it. I would offer him, oh, say... $2,950. Is this a reputable used car lot or is this guy a shiester? A lot around here had a '94 MAB WB4 on his lot that had 206k miles on it. After months of sitting around at $1,400 he put in on Craigslist under the guise of a private party sale, same price and mentioning none of the problems I saw when I tried to test drive the thing. On CL he said it had 180k on it... I also have seen people picketing that guys lot, lol. If that car has been sitting around the lot for a long time, there may be something fishy about it is what I'm getting at.

Nice car, but wait for the right wagon to come along Mike.

Mike

81X11 wrote:

Bewber wrote:

If you're trading even up, why couldn't you still save up for a more perfecter one later on. Don't marry the thing, just date it till the right one comes along.

150k miles is't high anymore either.

I marry all my vehicles...

John dates all of his, then tosses them unceremoniously to the curb after slapping them around for a few months.

Lynol wrote:

I just noticed the price jump thing. I wouldn't pay $3,500 for it. I would offer him, oh, say... $2,950. Is this a reputable used car lot or is this guy a shiester?

Pretty bad reviews. If it's back on the same lot a year after selling, I wonder if he ended up buying it back from an unhappy customer with a good lawyer. Then again, based on the pictures of the underside, it might be worth it even if the engine were seized and mice had chewed out the wires...

The price jump must be to cover the $550 to replace the trim on the front doors .

A lot of dealers do in house finance, and end up doing their own repos.

Mike, go see it in person, listen to it run, take it for a drive. if it still appeals to you then make the deal so leave that lot with the wagon and some cash. be hard nosed, they can sell three trucks like yours in the time it takes em to sell one wagon. you got the upper hand use it.

Enjoy the art of deal making.

If it had about 70-80K miles on it I'd be at the dealer now.

I figure with my Ram and some savings when the right wagon pops up, I can jump on it. I thought about it and just don't want a gold one with 150K miles on it.

I want DGGM, maroon or black, and under 100K miles.

Will be on the hunt this fall if all goes well. Maybe sooner if I hate driving the Ram. I'm going to the DMV tomorrow to register it and see if it'll pass inspection. We'll see.

If your not sold on LDM then pass on it. Personally I can't stand driving my Ram 2500. I just hate the way trucks drive in general. Combine that with the laughable fuel economy those thing have I would say keep and eye out for a wagon you would actually like to own.

You wont be able to haul all those extra kids around now either unless you throw them in the
back.Dont you dare put your dog back there either.

Well if you apply the Top Gear Rutledge Wood Test, I guess it would have to be the wagon, since it won when the Dodge didn't.

In spite of that, I personally would hold out for the right wagon. It doesn't make much sense to me to buy one you won't want to keep and that's California prices for a wagon, a bit high IMO for those miles.

That or show up on the first hot day of summer with 1500 bucks and a crying baby that needs a diaper change. You might get what you want.

Do what you want mikey,.

you,re gonna anyway,.

i dont know why you didnt just sell the ram to begin with?

let me give you some food for thought.

you have business in pittsburgh...so you gotta come here anyway. why not drive up... sell it here.
we have roofers, scrappers, farmers, contractors, weekend boaters (we actually are the #2 city in registered boat ownership in the country) and people who just need a pickup. gas prices have people thinking about weather they really need 4wd or not.
a rust free truck is big $$$ !!!! we have 07' models with totally rotted out bedsides. that may be a $5000 truck here...maybe more i dunno. then fly home and buy one of them super clean texas wagons. just think $5000 is some "walkin around money" you could really pick the one you want for that. ....just sayin.

buickestate wrote:

GOOD LORD!!!

a1awind wrote:

i dont know why you didnt just sell the ram to begin with?

let me give you some food for thought.

you have business in pittsburgh...so you gotta come here anyway. why not drive up... sell it here.
we have roofers, scrappers, farmers, contractors, weekend boaters (we actually are the #2 city in registered boat ownership in the country) and people who just need a pickup. gas prices have people thinking about weather they really need 4wd or not.
a rust free truck is big $$$ !!!! we have 07' models with totally rotted out bedsides. that may be a $5000 truck here...maybe more i dunno. then fly home and buy one of them super clean texas wagons. just think $5000 is some "walkin around money" you could really pick the one you want for that. ....just sayin.

\

It's not a bad idea, just didn't know if anyone up there would want a 2WD truck.

You said '07's are already rusted out?? That's insane!

Oh and this will make some of you laugh, this Caprice wagon showed up here on Craigslist last night. Needs a front clip...but it is a red LT1 car. Wonder what the miles are? Hahaha!

http://austin.craigslist.org/cto/2981616933.html - 94 LT1 Caprice....wonder how bad it really is??

Would love to see Misty's face if that was sitting in the driveway...

Every time I go up to upstate NY I'm amazed at all the newer cars that are rusted out. Wheel wells on Silverados and Grand Prix's and rocker panels on Caravans seem to top the list from what I saw. A truck like your Ram could get more money here since it's not rusted, but do think more people would want a 4wd truck up here, I know I would. Does that Ram have a 8' bed or a 6' bed? A short bed has no commercial truck appeal, but a long bed will always get good money. You're probably best off to fix up the Dodge real nice, sell it and have a lot more money to spend. That red Caprice looks smashed good, but it is a cool color. I took a hiatus from wagon searching for the winter so as not to blow all my funds on a meteoker wagon I might happen to come across on CL, then be w/o the cash I need when a real nice one comes along. You might want to just do that. Don't settle. Don't compromise. Wait it out and find exactly what you want. You do have plenty of projects to keep you busy in the mean time, lol.

Lynol wrote:

Every time I go up to upstate NY I'm amazed at all the newer cars that are rusted out. Wheel wells on Silverados and Grand Prix's and rocker panels on Caravans seem to top the list from what I saw. A truck like your Ram could get more money here since it's not rusted, but do think more people would want a 4wd truck up here, I know I would. Does that Ram have a 8' bed or a 6' bed? A short bed has no commercial truck appeal, but a long bed will always get good money. You're probably best off to fix up the Dodge real nice, sell it and have a lot more money to spend. That red Caprice looks smashed good, but it is a cool color. I took a hiatus from wagon searching for the winter so as not to blow all my funds on a meteoker wagon I might happen to come across on CL, then be w/o the cash I need when a real nice one comes along. You might want to just do that. Don't settle. Don't compromise. Wait it out and find exactly what you want. You do have plenty of projects to keep you busy in the mean time, lol.

The Dodge is a shortbed quad-cab model.

And yep, my plan is to finish the Dodge "restoration", get it looking like new, and put some funds aside too. When the right wagon comes along I'll snatch it up.

For now, I have a vehicle that I'm not scared to park anywhere and that all my countryfried relatives think is classy.

Wow awesome score.

got to love the lack of rust in texas

[quote="81X11"]

a1awind wrote:

we have 07' models with totally rotted out bedsides.

\

ok maybe "totally rotted out" is an exaggeration. but there are rust bubbles there
i think it was '04 or '05 Pa started using this calcium chloride spray along with salt.... i guess penndot figured that the salt wasnt getting into the hard to reach nooks and cranny's of your car. ever since then it seems like cars rust out at twice the speed!

[quote="81X11"]

a1awind wrote:

You said '07's are already rusted out?? That's insane!

I just had a customer stop by yesterday with their 05 Dodge and he wants me to put fender flares on it to hide the rust that eaten away his bed.

Really sad how quickly vehicle rot around here and to see some of those pix's you post of junkyards seriously breaks my heart. Rock solid called junk. I know those are the facts but dammmmmmmmmm.

a1awind wrote:

ok maybe "totally rotted out" is an exaggeration!

Not further north you go. that is safe to say around here.