There *might* just be a few decent dealerships left out there... LOL.

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Dec 8, 2006
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Illinois
I was involved in the purchase of a $12,000 pickup truck for a family member this week. Anyone who is aware of what is going on, knows that $12,000 really doesn't get you a whole lot in a pickup anymore. The market for unmolested, but affordable pickups is really tight here in the Midwest. When you find one, you must move quickly. Since I knew the previous owner of this vehicle very well, an older guy who had driven it since new, I zero'd in on this one and bought it. Buying this truck wasn't a "want", it was a "need", and knowing the PO was a huge bonus. The PO only traded it in because he simply had a "want" for a newer one... LOL... a 2019 Silverado LTZ.

I had already spoken to the PO about the truck. If he had any known reason for me not to pursue buying this truck, he would have bluntly told me that I wasn't interested in it, and it would have ended it right there. He is the type of guy who takes pride in his trucks. He drove it up to Wisconsin to get a set of new truck "take off" rims and tires put on it right before the pandemic, just to freshen it up a bit. It needed new tires anyway, and the clearcoat was starting to fail on the old rims. No bueno for a guy like him.

Because I knew the PO and the truck (I rode in it 3 days before he traded it in), I bought it over the phone in 15 minutes. No test drive, nothing. Not needed. Truck is 75 miles away from me. Had to be one of the salesman's quickest and easiest sales ever. All he had to do was answer the phone.

Since the dealership had just taken it in on trade just a few days earlier, they hadn't even had a chance to run it through their shop. I got the standard spiel from the salesman... 200 point inspection, then the 'Quick Lane', then detail it... blah blah blah. I really wasn't paying attention. The PO was aware that it was in need of front brake pads and rotors. OK, that's something that I can easily do myself with less than $150 in parts, but I dropped a hint to the salesman that it would be nice if they could take care of that when it was in their shop being checked over, since I already knew about it. Why not? My expectations were an oil change, a wash, a vaccuum out, a set of license plate frames... and a brake job if I was lucky enough.

Got a call from the salesman at the dealership yesterday afternoon, and here is what they are doing before we take delivery: A front brake job... yep, the mechanic agreed. Great, I'm happy. Then he continued... In addition, they are replacing the upper control arms (plus an alignment), and a power steering pump (seepage). Then, after they're done with it in the shop, it will go to their Quick Lane service center, where they will rotate the tires, change the oil and filter, check the air filter and load test the battery... all of the more routine stuff, and they'll take care of whatever is needed there. After that, it will go to the detail shop for a full detail. (which it barely needs).

I'm a bit shocked that there is a dealer out there who is doing so much on an 12 year old "as-is" vehicle before delivery... well aware that it is already sold. It is a dealership in a small town (less than 5,000), which makes it somewhat less surprising. But still, it appears that there might just be a few decent dealerships left out there...

I took the picture below, after the PO had put the new wheels and tires put on it. I know it doesn't look like the paint on the two doors match, but that is 100% high quality GM Fort Wayne factory paint, right there. LOL.

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Nice looking rig. That sounds like a great dealership to deal with and they really went the extra mile for you. It's always nice to have new rims and tires on a vehicle too....just like a $1000.00 bonus on a used vehicle. Good used trucks are very difficult to find.
 
Congrats and best of luck with it.
So, it's a 2010 with how many miles?

It is nice that they gave the front end a good look-over AND THEN IMPROVED IT.
Perhaps a busier time would've resulted in a less thorough (or merely hastened) inspection.

Yesterday a friend took his newly acquired (4 mos. ago) 2017 Jeep Grand Cherokee in for a dealership alignment @ 35,000 miles.
He'd just learned that the vehicle had been in a crash (FR corner) and some parts had been replaced.
His tire shop (4 new Artic Claws 2 weeks ago) printed out the alignment and indeed the FR wheel was out.

The dealership read him perfectly. They brought him under and showed him the new parts.
They also showed him where lube should be shot (fasteners?) and other tips. I know what I'll be doing with him come Spring.
Apparently, guys who fix auction sourced vehicles can do body work but can't align a wheel. I bet they ballpark it and skip the alignment bill.
The dealership nailed the alignment and made my pal feel good for $160.

Based on that -the only story from that dealership I've ever heard- I'd patronize them.
 
Well done. Your family will enjoy that beautiful truck! Sounds like that dealership's head is in the right place.
I had a similar experience with our GS at a local Lexus dealership. I was pleasantly surprised.
 
130,000 miles. Less than 11,000/yr. That's low miles for a truck, in this area.

Most everything else in this area, in this price range (pick one or more of the following):
  • 200,000+ miles.
  • Beaten like a rented mule. Filty dirty, inside and out., with 4 mismatched all terrain tires, at least one in the wrong size.
  • Modded under the hood, with an obligatory K&N cold air intake, and aftermarket gauges.
  • Used as a 3/4 ton (gooseneck ball kit still mounted to the frame, and airbags on the rear axle).
  • Wide rims that went out of style several years ago, along with a hacked up stereo system and a trashed interior.
  • Missing about a square foot of sheet metal total, due to rust.
  • Questionable lift kit with 16" rims (spray painted black with runs in the paint) and cartoonishly large P285 tires, and fender flares that stick out 4 inches from the body.
  • Auction vehicle with four previous owners, that just recently showed up in this area, from several states away.

And some of these were at new car dealers. LOL.
 
  • Wow
Reactions: GON
Nice to hear positive stories every now and then... Good dealers do exist! Not quite a unicorn, but it feels like it some days.

And your assessment of used trucks for sale isn't that far from the truth! I felt that way the last time I shopped a used truck - and that was in 2011! The next one was new since I remembered the previous shopping experience...
 
Well done! The dealership probably has a smart owner that knows from previous experience that word of mouth sells. They must also know or consider that they want to try to get any future business from you. Hats off to them for treating you so well. That is fine looking truck, and is indeed been well preserved.
 
Nice looking truck. 2012 is about where they start falling in value making a clean example a bargain.
 
Too bad you couldn't have bought it straight from the PO.
Yes, it would have been nice, but it just didn't work out that way. Neither of us really realized it, until it had already happened.

However, I wouldn't have gotten any of those repairs, buying it directly from the owner. There is some value added here, in knowing that it has apparently been gone completely over.
 
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That is really nice. I guess they still are able to find deals, and then sell them for a decent enough profit to justify that.

When I bought my 4x4 Ram Cummins, which I got a deal on especially in this market, I was pleasantly surprised that the seller changed oil in both diffs, the engine, transfer case and manual transmission.. he also swapped new headlights (the aged ones are notorious for yellowing). I was happy with the truck as described, and the extras they did.

Its nice to see a little extra touch, not just the bare minimum…
 
I sold a 2005 Saab 9-5 Aero wagon to a guy who had just wrapped his Saab around a tree. He grew up 2 miles from me and moved 70 miles away after college. I felt a high degree of relaxation and honesty with him; a fellow Saab guy.

He mentioned a "grinding noise" in the rear which I absolutely never heard.

He was to return the following day with the money so I broke out the rear brake pads I had intended to install and did it for him. I even had the rotors dressed. Nothing was horribly worn. I just felt like surprising him.

He was impressed. He also said he noise was gone. Again, I never heard any noise nor did I detect any change.

So if I owned a garage I'd be broke, I suppose.
 
nice job...it looks great and seems like you got a great deal (especially in light of today's market)...enjoy!...I've been "looking" for some time myself but $12K wouldn't get you much of anything today...nice to know the vehicle history too...

Bill
 
They got the truck ready to go, and we were able to take delivery of it last night, right before they were getting ready to close up until Monday. (*whew*).

I bought this truck over the phone. When I got on their lot, I've never seen anything like it, in the last year and a half. This small town Ford dealer had 101 new F-150's on their lot. When I made a comment to the salesman about it, he commented that they usually have 250 new Ford trucks, so they're down a bit. This is in a town of 2,800 people.

Never seen anything like it. For comparison, the Ford dealer in Chicago, who claims to be the largest Ford dealer in Illinois, has 127 new F-150's.
 
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