Bye Bye 03 4Runner!
 

Well, my 03 4Runner left to its new home late last week. Before it went out, I took it up the mountain aways to take some shots in the snow.

Later that night I did a full-on detail for the new owner, and it came it out like new; actually, I'd say some things were actaully better than new! Pretty cool that a vehicle can still outshine many brand new vehicles after 2 years, 2 winters, and 30,000kms.

Overall, anyone that ever drove or rode in the thing loved it. I couldn't have been happier with the vehicle's performance, and would recommend it to anyone looking at this type of rig.....actually, a good friend of the family bought it!

Cool view of my "city." These are all on a logging road less than 10 minutes from my house in town.....the beauty of BC :D

Too bad, my camera was on a bit of a goofy setting for some of the pics, but most turned out ok. I've got all the full res shots if anyone would like them, just ask.
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These were at a small mountain lake a little farther up the road.
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After a few hours of cleanup; I was an automotive detailler for 4 years, so it helps to have access to a nice big shop and all the equip!
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nice, why'd you sell?

looks great. nice shots -- sad to see it go.

Kinda sad, but don't worry, there's a 270hp solution in the works :cool:

Wow you are getting a brand new 2005 Nissan Pathfinder V6....

















or maybe a new 2005 Toyota 4Runner V8.:boink: :boink: :boink: :biggrin2:

I understand if you don't want to post it, but I'm curious how much you sold it for.

so you're buying an 05 v8 to replace this? why not just go with the supercharger?

Basically, no one in my family ever keeps vehicles more than a few years, just the way its always been :) We always sell before (hopefully) losing much money. I got what we wanted for this one, so it's gone. The fact that the 2005 has more power is just an added bonus, would have bought it even if it stayed the same :D

I know there should be a better explanation than that, but there really isn't! The 05 will be for sale just as quick.

:confused:
that doesn't make sense if you're doing it to save money. cars depreciate the most in the first two years of ownership. if you kept your cars longer you would end up paying less. you may as well lease unless you put a ton of miles on it.

Different strokes for different folkes. Probably the most economical way of owning a car is to buy used at a great price and keep it till it drops. But most of us are not up to living with all the hassles that come with a old car. Hey, now that I am older I don't have to drive all that junk.

Some people say buy new and keep it 10 years. I tend to be in this group, except I keep it for 15 to 19 years.

My father in law when he was alive used to sell his car when it hit 30,000 miles. I used to kid him that he changes cars when the ash tray was full. But he got a lot of different cars and enjoyed new cars. Now that I am getting closer to retirement, I suspect I will be a little more like my father in law.

well on average i keep cars about 1.5 to 2 years before I sell so i'm not criticizing at all. i totally understand that...i was just curious how they were saving money this way. personally i've lost craploads of money doing this. just lost 12k on my year old 350z :(

I've just been brought up like that, never really known anything different. Hell, I think I had 5 different cars before I turned 17. It's a weird concept for most people, and many would rather pick 1 and stick with it....believe me, I know we're the weird ones lol

Loki - I'm not saying we're making any money this way, just trying to lose as little as possible, while driving brand new cars all the time..

i guess that's where i'm confused. if you sell within the first 2 years you lose much more than if you were to keep a car for 5 years. if you do this over and over again, you end up losing much more than if you were to just hang on to each car for 5 years.

i speak from personal experience btw...i'm a new car-aholic. :o

for you new car addicts....they do make "new car smell" in a bottle. Maybe that'll help you keep em for a little longer and save more money. :D

J/K good luck with your new purchase! and the one after that! and so on.....

Thanks! Didn't want to start a financial debate, this schedual works for me, and is definetly not for everyone. Just wanted to share some pics :D

BTW, just got back form the cleanup shop......here's a sneak peek:

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muahahaha

Hey Northof49,


You forgetting to tell everyone that you work at the dealership. Thats why you can
move up market more easily :D I'd do the same if I was in your position. Makes me jealous.

Make sure you tell me when the new V8's come in.
:awais:

I agree 100%

The first two years of a brand new vehicle's life are by far the fastest depreciation. Selling a two-year old vehicle in excellent condition is a dream come true for people trying to save money. After all, the first owner took the major hit in depreciation and the second owners end up with a vehicle in almost new condition for considerably less money.

There is nothing wrong with buying a new vehicle every two years if that's what you want to do, but don't be fooled into thinking that you are "saving" money by doing so. It is the worse thing you could possibly do financially when buying/selling your vehicle.

Look me up when that happens.

debate? i was just pointing out that you aren't 'saving ' money by getting a new vehicle every year or two. there's no debate...you aren't saving any $ this way. :D

I have owned over 13 brand new automobiles in my life. I made the mistake of trading mine in every two-three years. I added up all of the taxes, depreciation hits, extended warranties lost, mods not recovered and I believe I have spent well over $50K in just trading vehicles.

My father, old school, strongly believes in getting a new car at 50-60K. At that mileage, you are highly susceptible to a major repair being needed or maintenance (4 new tires and 60K maintenance adds up to $1K alone), so maybe that is where I got the fever to get a new car so often. That ideology is based on American cars being disposible and doesn't really apply to long-term Toyota's.

We live in a free country and you can do whatever you wish with your money. If your weakness is cars, so be it.

Ya, that definetly helps a bit ;):

The first 2005 V8 hit the ground here Dec 8th, but it's *ahem spoken for :D I'll let you know when we actually get some for stock (hopefully real soon, but shipping has been strange lately). Pricing is up on toyota.ca finally.....although on my 05's window sticker it still says TBA :)

......two-three years........didn't you have an '02 also......I guess beginning of '02 and end of '03 would get that result. I completed agree about the 60k point........the work at that point really adds up extremely quick.

Good case in point. I bought an '02 Black Sport, had 38K miles and then the 4th generation came out with the V8. Gotta have the V8, so bye-bye '02, hello torque.

I paid $30,130 for my '02 SE 4WD. I traded it for $22,500 with 38K miles. I paid $30,500 for my '03 SE 4WD.

The value in '03 was substantially higher than the '02, had I sold it private party I would have gotten $25-26K.

So, overall, if I had been selling my Toyota's every 2-3 years, I would not have lost as much money.

American cars depreciate faster than a used condom.

'Disposable' American cars owned:
Ford Bronco
Chevy Z28
Ford Thunderbird
(2) Ford Exploders (sport 4WD)
Chevy K15
Ford F150

Oh, most of you know probably this already, but in case not, here's good add-on for the 03+'s. Get some of that clear 3M vinyl (the stuff they use to make invisible bras) put on behind the rear muds flaps. Drove the 03 for just a short while after purchase and it started getting road rash from rocks/sand kicking up. It's cheap enough to buy, and easy enough to install. It helps quite a bit, and is much tougher and easier to replace than paint. I'll take some pics later today cause I suck at explaining.

Don't need it, grey cladding is tough as nails.

Nice pics, some of those can be used as screensavers..Do you have a link for HighRes pics??

Thanks! I'll try to get one up later today.

i love my 4-runner its a 90 and in really good shape i believe that a car that stays together and running for 15 yrs now needs to stay forever...some people dont understand that but my 4runner is like my family she will stay with me as long as i live and hopefully my children will see her in the same light so she will live forever its like a 57 mustang you keep it that long and its a classic especially a 4-runner which is the best truck ever made

Let's forget the economic debate -- that's some incredible scenery in the pics! Thanks for posting them.

I love to trade vehicles, had over 40++ since I started driving back in 1965. Not always new but always the neat ones. Porches (911,944,928S4), Mercedes (SL), Vettes, NSX's, Madza RX7TT, 1967 Camero convertable, 1969 Chevelle SS 396, Toyota Landcruizer, Dodge 3500 4x4 Cummins Turbo diesel (you get the idea). I know that my taste is all over the map but I love cars/trucks and even though I have driven a few for a lot of miles, I normally don't keep them over a couple of years. Drives my wife crazy :) It is interesting I made money on a few of the higher $$$ vehicles and did not loss that much on most of them. Got to look at it as a cost of doing business :D