what makes a good budget used farm / chore / work truck

gwjd · Feb 29, 2016

hello everyone

I wanted to bring up the question of. What years / models of 1/2 and 3/4 ton trucks are priced fairly, on the used market. in serviceable condition under 150,000 miles.
new trucks are great but for not daily use they are $$$$. I have no real brand preference but models with catastrophic failures or week points, would not be a good value...

for the guys that are running the mentioned trucks what kind of life span are you seeing?

The exact scenario that i am speaking of is something that you would not use as a daily driver. but would be used for bad weather, hauling light to medium loads. and occasional towing under 10K lbs of course with the proper brakes and hitch.

thanks

Diamondpilot · Feb 29, 2016

I think when you get to that many miles it's a crap shoot. And what you call a good price is subjective. I would much rather spend $18,000 on a cherry truck than $12,500 on a real beater.

My gut tells me the best bang for the buck is the GM 6.0L gas 3/4 ton trucks. They do pretty good overall.

Chris

murphy1244 · Feb 29, 2016

I bought a 95 chevy W/T for 2400.00 not purty but it do work.

terryknight · Feb 29, 2016

how much money do you want to spend? how old a truck are you willing to accept?

i think Chris's recommendation is pretty good there is a lot of "value" in the GM gassers.

that being said i bought a 97 ccsb f250 with 137K for 4800 in august. i spent ~$2000 on it (fix the AC, fix the rust, new bakes all around, new headlights new mirrors, new exhaust, rebuilt the spare Dana 60 front axle i had and swapped it in added a locker to it) and now have a very nice truck as my beater. i did most of the work myself. i put 4500 miles on it this winter. next year i can tag it historic and pay less for tags. there is no way i would pay $10K let alone more for a beater truck.

QRTRHRS · Feb 29, 2016

Mine is an E450 box truck. The V10 sucks fuel and parking is an issue at times but I use it for everything from hauling hay to selling "stuff" at the flea market. Goes better in the snow than some of the 2 wheel drive pickups I have had. Even better if I throw the chains on. On occasion I see one where someone has removed the box and put on a stake bed.

zzvyb6 · Feb 29, 2016

A walk around a junk yard will help you decide. Look for years and models that can supply parts for the truck you choose. To me, a 'farm' truck is one with large trailer pulling capacity, room for a toolbox, jack, generator, compressor, etc/ 4wd to get me unstuck from the mud, good ground clearance, short turn circle (no extended cab), and good heat and A/C. Stay away from snow plow trucks, they are usualy beat from plow loads (as in when they hit curbs and rocks). A stick shift is sometimes good to keep neighbors from borrowing it (can't drive a manual transmission), but if you need a family member to help you move something, its a problem.

gwjd · Mar 1, 2016

Diamondpilot said:
I think when you get to that many miles it's a crap shoot. And what you call a good price is subjective. I would much rather spend $18,000 on a cherry truck than $12,500 on a real beater.

My gut tells me the best bang for the buck is the GM 6.0L gas 3/4 ton trucks. They do pretty good overall.

Chris

this is true

om21braz · Mar 1, 2016

If you live somewhere rust isn't an issue - I'd look for a 92-97 Ford F-250. IMHO, these years define "pick-up truck". May have to go gas to get a decent price as the diesels are commanding higher and higher pricing. This coming from a GM man too.

mojoinco · Mar 3, 2016

Diesel is a no go for me on a high mileage truck. Maintenance is too expensive.
Forums for particular trucks are great places to find the 'gotchas'. Those particular options or model year that have a 'feature' that is a deal killer.
The 80-97 gas Ford's, for example, are a real pain to fill up with fuel (takes a long time due to the filler neck design and 'back splash' tripping the nozzle). Not an often discussed feature, but a pain. Also, certain other details a used truck might need, some of the F350's had 3 bolt auto hubs, some had 5 bolt. Replacement 3 bolt hubs cost more due to a conversion. Each brand (and model range) will have some similar set of issues.

You will find that there are similar lines drawn for the carb/throttle body/fuel injection/sequential fuel injection eras. Another change is when they started grounding everything via a hard ground wire. So much better than when they grounded through the body panels (probably coincides with the fuel injection changes).

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flusher · Mar 3, 2016

gwjd said:
hello everyone

I wanted to bring up the question of. What years / models of 1/2 and 3/4 ton trucks are priced fairly, on the used market. in serviceable condition under 150,000 miles.
new trucks are great but for not daily use they are $$$$. I have no real brand preference but models with catastrophic failures or week points, would not be a good value...

for the guys that are running the mentioned trucks what kind of life span are you seeing?

The exact scenario that i am speaking of is something that you would not use as a daily driver. but would be used for bad weather, hauling light to medium loads. and occasional towing under 10K lbs of course with the proper brakes and hitch.

thanks

My farm truck was a 2004 Isuzu NPR stakebed truck (8x14 ft Supreme bed) with the 6.0L GMC gas engine, 4-speed auto tranny, GVWR 12,000 lb, curb weight 7000 lb, 49,500 miles showing when purchased. Paid $11K on eBay. Far better buy than overpriced, high mileage 3/4 and 1 ton pickups that you usually find on the market.