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Learning, Sharing, and Teaching => Ask a Mustachian => Topic started by: Tyler118 on January 18, 2018, 10:44:52 AM

Title: sell or keep??
Post by: Tyler118 on January 18, 2018, 10:44:52 AM
Hello all,

My name is Tyler. I'm new to the forums here. My question is I have a chevy Silverado that I have a loan on. I owe $12,000 on it and according to KBB it's worth about $15,000 for trade in. I have a take-home vehicle for work and my wife as a brand new paid off car. I've been thinking about trading it in for a $2,000 old pickup truck with lots of miles but seems to drive good after test driving it. I guess I'm not sure if I should trade it in now or try to to quickly pay it off by putting $3,000 i have saved up and make extra payments. I just purchased a house on a 15 year mortgage. I can manage to pay both but wouldn't be able to save up much or make extra payment on the house to try to pay it off early.

Thanks in advance!

Tyler
Title: Re: sell or keep??
Post by: Phoenix_Fire on January 18, 2018, 10:57:53 AM
Tyler, as you will soon discover if you haven't read much on here, everyone will tell you to get rid of the new vehicle and go with the old cheap one.  The other thing to consider is do you need a truck, or could you drive a car that will be more efficient in mileage and upkeep. 

Get rid of your payment and go with the cheap vehicle.
Title: Re: sell or keep??
Post by: brute on January 18, 2018, 11:11:10 AM
What do you need a truck for? Lifestyle or work? If it's lifestyle, then ditch it. If it's work, get the right vehicle for you at the lowest reasonable price point.

Title: Re: sell or keep??
Post by: Tyler118 on January 18, 2018, 11:25:06 AM
The truck is mainly for lifestyle. I live in Nebraska so four-wheel drive during the winter is a plus. I'm also doing projects and some remodeling on the house so i use the truck to haul supplies. I have a takehome car for work and my wife has a Honda CRV that we use for trips so i'm not too worried about the fuel efficiency.
Title: Re: sell or keep??
Post by: Lady SA on January 18, 2018, 11:43:03 AM
So if I'm understanding it correctly, you and your wife have 3 vehicles between you? That is like 2 cars more than you need unless you work in opposite directions. This is the MMM forum, you should be biking to work or carpooling!

Also, vehicles are not intended to facilitate a "lifestyle". Vehicles get you from point A to point B quicker than walking. Consider what your primary uses of a car are, and figure out what you need a car for 80-90% of the time. Likely commuting, right? And there are like 1 or 2 times a year when you need some hauling power -- perfect time to RENT a truck for a day! This is MUCH cheaper than paying a bank for the privilege of having a hauling vehicle sit in your driveway the other 90% of the time.
For your house projects, I remember growing up my parents would strap supplies to the racks on top of our tiny car. It necessitate smaller, more frequent supply trips, but having a small car didn't keep us from remodeling. The few times we needed to haul big things, my dad rented a larger truck by the hour and picked up the items (strategically, he bought all the big things at once for this one specific trip).

Sell the truck. If 4 wheel drive is important to you, you might look into replacing one of the remaining cars with another cheap, 4wd option. Otherwise, look into alternatives -- I live in a very snowy, icy location and have a 2wd, but I supplement in the winter with snow tires and feel just as stable as a 4wd car, sometimes even more so because I "stick" to the slippery ground better. Snow tires are like night and day, I could climb trees with them on! If winter conditions are a concern with your smaller cars, look into more suitable tires.
Title: Re: sell or keep??
Post by: Tyler118 on January 18, 2018, 12:53:55 PM
 Thanks everyone for the advice. I'm going to sell my truck and get something more suitable!