Vehicle advice !

[Pallet Pete]

We have a 98 s10 that is getting tired of hauling firewood and I am asking $800 I may be starting a new job soon and we drive 60 miles a day round trip as of right now however we will need two vehicles for the new job. This puts us at 120 miles a day between two cars ! There is a member here who has a pickup I would love to buy for firewood hauling and plan on buying if I can. There is a ford ranger in my garage I am restoring as a good winter 4*4 truck for work and back. So hear is the question-

1998 S10 2wd
2.2L 4cyl
Auto
217,000 miles
AC
Rusty
It is mechanically good as I take care of my cars myself.
The motor still runs good however the body looks like a Michigan rusty body.

What should I ask for the price ?

Yesterday a gentleman called on it and looked at it then procedded to tell me it had a blown head gasket I explained I do all my own work on it and hardly ever pay unless I get in over my head ( which happens on occasion ) so it is in good shape. This is how most of the viewings have gone they all give me some bs about what's wrong with it and that they won't give me any more than $100 dollars ! There is nothing mechanically wrong it's just old. I think there is a price / age thing because no one over 20 has bothered looking and all the 20's think they are full blown mechanics. This is frustrating because I usually run vehicles straight into the ground before I get rid of them instead of selling them. Any advice on how to handle this would be appreciated.

Pete

 

[MasterMech]

I think you're asking price is fair if it's mechanically in shape and the body is structurally sound. If I'm looking at a machine/car/truck and there is something obviously wrong with I will politely explain what I think is wrong and point out how I came to that conclusion. You can reverse it by asking the buyer to explain why he/she thinks the head gasket is blown, etc. Oldest trick in the book to just spout off some random, terminal problem, in hopes that the seller really doesn't know his vehicles and will sell it cheap because they now believe it's junk.

Got a pic of this thing Pete?

FWIW: Most in the market for a trusty, rusty S10 are looking for the 4.3L six and 4x4. Especially the long bed, single cabs from the early 90's.

 

[Pallet Pete]

Yup I am waiting for my phone to charge up so I can put it up here.

Pete

 

[JustWood]

I just sold a 96 with same exact specs and 144,000 miles about a year ago but the body was mint. I had bought it down south and other than faded paint,some stone chips and a few scratches the body was cherry-no bondo.
I got $1500 and was happy.
Bare minimum that truck is worth $500. You can drive it to the junk yard in the spring when scrap is high and get $300-$400. Take the tires/rims off and sell for another $100.
The 2.2's are well known for blown head gaskets so the guy could be right.

 

[MasterMech]

The 2.2's are well known for blown head gaskets so the guy could be right.

Any white smoke from the exhaust Pete? Ever see milky oil? Do you ever top off the coolant? Has it ever overheated?

 

[Pallet Pete]

No problems I do all the work myself and am very mechanically inclined. That was an example of what people are trying to tell me. I had one guy say the exhaust was bad and then tell me 200 max. I did the entire exhaust in September cats and all. Truthfully if it had issues I would fix them before I sell. Ripping people off is not my thing ! Here is the pic MasterMech The bed wells are rusty and the cab corners too.

Pete

 

[loadstarken]

I have a little "88 S-10 extended cab 2wd with the 2.8 and I bought it 5 years ago for $1500. The first week I had it I put in a new stereo, tires and a lumber rack. Great truck! It has done its fair share of helping people move, hauling to the dump, loads of bark, trips to the scrap yard and MANY MANY trips of free firewood! I will never get rid of it and when/if the 2.8 ever dies I have a 5.3 with 15k miles on it ready to go in.

IMO a working, running and reliable truck is well worth $1500. It is useful to anyone in construction and is pretty much a requirement of owning a home!

 

[MasterMech]

No problems I do all the work myself and am very mechanically inclined. That was an example of what people are trying to tell me. I had one guy say the exhaust was bad and then tell me 200 max. I did the entire exhaust in September cats and all. Truthfully if it had issues I would fix them before I sell. Ripping people off is not my thing ! Here is the pic MasterMech The bed wells are rusty and the cab corners too.

Pete

Stick to your guns on price.

when/if the 2.8 ever dies I have a 5.3 with 15k miles on it ready to go in.

That should wake it up a bit!

 

[gmule]

If it was a 4x4 I would be booking a flight

 

[firefighterjake]

My own take . . . you know it is in good working order . . . you know they are simply blowing smoke at you in the hope that you will go very low . . . you know that the truck is worth at least $500 . . . stick to the price you want . . . and if folks truly think it has a major issue and you will not budge on price they will move on . . . if they're just angling for a lower price and they want it bad enough they'll pay . . . if they're simply hoping to feel like they got a good deal and treat you right and offer $100 or so less than the asking price and are willing to fork over cash I would go with that deal . . . they feel as though they got a good deal and you end up selling the vehicle to someone who treats you decent without making you second guess your price or your vehicle.

 

[Hogwildz]

Next time a person says the head gasket it blown, pull the dipstick and ask them to show you the froath or water marks.

 

[MasterMech]

Next time a person says the head gasket it blown, pull the dipstick and ask them to show you the froath or water marks.

Had a Mustang (5.0 HO V8) with warped heads that used coolant like crazy but never smoked and never discolored the oil. Doesn't always show up in the engine oil. If it's not using coolant or overheating, then the head gasket is OK.

 

[EJL923]

The miles and only being 2wd are going to hurt. Me personally, i would probably offer $500 tops, just my opinion. As for the people offering $100, i sold my 98 exploder with bad transfer case to a junk yard for $250.

 

[Pallet Pete]

I had a gentleman offer 1100 today ( 25 minutes ago ) if I hold it for him ! He wants it for his son's firt car. I ask 800 and I get 1100 We will see if the cash gets to my hands.

 

[Hearth Mistress]

I had a gentleman offer 1100 today ( 25 minutes ago ) if I hold it for him ! He wants it for his son's firt car. I ask 800 and I get 1100 We will see if the cash gets to my hands.

Fingers crossed he comes through for you! If, not, last summer, I sold my not safe to drive 2000 Chevy Tracker with 98k miles with no brakes (brake lines rusted though) and broken transfer case for $800 to webuyanycar.com - in case you want to check them out

 

[Pallet Pete]

Fingers crossed he comes through for you! If, not, last summer, I sold my not safe to drive 2000 Chevy Tracker with 98k miles with no brakes (brake lines rusted though) and broken transfer case for $800 to webuyanycar.com - in case you want to check them out

Jeni who are they ? I just googled em looks like they are out of PA is that right ?

Thanks
Pete

 

[Hearth Mistress]

Jeni who are they ? I just googled em looks like they are out of PA is that right ?

Thanks
Pete

I guess are they are here on the east coast, sorry, but there are all sorts of places around with similar programs. I travel to Detroit often for work and see a lot of ads for similar services. Cash for cars I think is a national program but for sure there are others. Just wanted to give you another option but hope this guy pans out for you!

 

[Lighting Up]

There is also a company call Carbuyco.com they buy cars, use the two buyersto get the most if your deal falls through...good luck!
md

 

[Freeheat]

Had a Mustang (5.0 HO V8) with warped heads that used coolant like crazy but never smoked and never discolored the oil. Doesn't always show up in the engine oil. If it's not using coolant or overheating, then the head gasket is OK.

The older gm V6's had leaking issues but it was at the intake , wont leak into the engine but out and down the block

 

[Pallet Pete]

Ok thanks guys it sold last night finally ! Tons of lookers lots of jerks and it ended up going to a real nice young guy who needed a daily driver. I gave him a bit of a deal because he was so nice and honest actually.

Pete

 

[Swedishchef]

I had a gentleman offer 1100 today ( 25 minutes ago ) if I hold it for him ! He wants it for his son's firt car. I ask 800 and I get 1100 We will see if the cash gets to my hands.

The rich keep getting richer and a poor man like myself never gets a break Great deal for ya Pete! $1100??

 

[Dune]

Hey Pete, I will give you $600 if the deal falls through. My 4 cyl, 4 speed, 2 wheel drive Jeep Comanche was stolen this fall and I really can't afford to drive my one ton everywhere I need to go, plus the wear and tear on the one ton is way more expensive.

 

[Pallet Pete]

The rich keep getting richer and a poor man like myself never gets a break Great deal for ya Pete! $1100??

That one fell through he never showed up made me wait till 11pm when I finally said to heck with it and went to bed. I had two people bounce checks and one more try to convince me it was a turd not worth 100 bucks but he wanted it so bad I could see it in his eyes. I told him to get off my property ! Last night a young guy called right after we got home and two my surprise he wanted to come get it right away so 10:30 pm he showed up. I turned all the lights on so he could see it handed him a flashlight and said go to town he went for a test drive he was sold. This is odd for me because I never sell cars usually I plow them into the ground then drive then fix and plow them into the ground again.

Pete

 

[Pallet Pete]

Hey Pete, I will give you $600 if the deal falls through. My 4 cyl, 4 speed, 2 wheel drive Jeep Comanche was stolen this fall and I really can't afford to drive my one ton everywhere I need to go, plus the wear and tear on the one ton is way more expensive.

Check your PM's Dune ! Ford Ranger beat to hell waiting there.

Pete