Buying a used vehicle...sigh

Iraqvet05 wrote:
I have been doing a ton of web shopping for a low mile, used F250 crew cab gasser. I'm just doing my due diligence and trying to get the most out of my purchase but to my wife, it has become my latest obsession.

In larger metro areas, prices seem to be inflated due to the high demand of quality used trucks and high dealer overhead. If you have walked into a new corporate branded dealership lately, the overhead expense they incur is obvious. Similar F250 XLTs in Kansas City and Middle of Nowhere, Oklahoma are priced thousands of dollars apart and you can probably get a good deal if you are willing to make the drive to Nowhere, OK and trust the accuracy of the seller's description of the vehicle.

When I first started looking at used vehicles, I didn't pay attention to the Carfax reports but now I look for it ever time and skip vehicles that do not offer them for a few reasons. One trend I have noticed was the number of vehicles originating in Canada. The Canadian connection confused me until I found this article that explains it's pure economics that push used Canadian vehicles south of their border to the tune of 16,000 vehicles a year. I'm certainly not opposed to an exported truck and hope this helps the consumer (like me) get a better deal on a used vehicle. In another Carfax report, I found a truck that was sold in August 2017 out of Alabama. A quick search of the town in Alabama indicated they had a major flood in June 2017....coincidence? I think not.

The search goes on and I will be ready to make my purchase later this month but that still doesn't set my mind at ease on what's available in the used market and the dreaded dealer negotiations. Frankly, I'd rather get teeth pulled than deal with a over-bearing salesman. My budget is limiting my dreams of purchasing a new truck but I'm hopeful I can find a quality used truck and be happy with the purchase price...fingers crossed.

I'm in the same boat as you, been looking for a long while now. Only difference is I'm looking at a Lariat because I want a OEM backup camera and power folding mirrors, and they are rare on the XLT. I found a 2016 Lariat 4x4 crew cab 6.2 V8 with 32K miles, nearly pulled the trigger on it, but it was way more muddy underneath than I thought, and the door lock had been punched, etc.

End the end, we decided to go new as I simply tired of trying to find a barely used truck that fit my requirements for a price of less than new. Of course that meant ordering, but I'm patient when I'm getting exactly what I want. Best of luck.