How far would you drive

B

bobthebuilder

New member
to buy an unknown truck? I'm usually not hesitant about making a vehicle buying experience into a road trip but after my last failure on eBay (2002 Subaru Legacy GT wagon that needed, headgaskets, centerdiff, clutch, tires AND had rust. All this after the seller told me the car was in fine shape, BS) my wife is less than excited to travel 6+ hours to look at a 26 year old truck.

Anybody with experience here?
 
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Before I drove more than an hour to look at a truck, I'd have the seller drop it off at a dealership for a prepurchase inspection. It'll run you about $100, I expect.
 
Its a truck thats listed for sale here. The seller has sent me a bunch of pics and seems very forthcoming regarding any issues. I'm just having a hard time convincing my wife!
 
All depends how good the deal is. Diesel hilux for 1000 bucks I'd drive as far as I had to lol. But realistically if u get all the right pictures ur not completely caught off guard.
 
Just have her drive it all the way back home... that way she'll fall in love with all its cute little quirks and imperfections....:thumb3:
 
KidVermicious said:
I have a suspicion that this may not work out nearly as well as you want it to. :rofl:
Click to expand...

I agree with ^! She previously drove my lifted 83 Landcruiser and liked that so maybe she'd like it, maybe.

I have a friend that lives 20 minutes or so from the truck who offered to check it out for me so maybe that will aleviate my wifes fears
 
I probably wouldn't go much past 2500 miles. Living near Chicago it's pretty much a given that I'll need to look outside of the local area if I want something that isn't a pile of rust. :)
 
My last 4runner (not a pleasent return trip) and current car were at least 3 hour trips one way to pick them up. To get exactly what I wanted though I have had a local dealer do an inspection and had one shipped across the country, which turned out to be one of my all time favorite trucks. So I guess if it's really what you want...distance be damned.
 
Went with a friend in '11 to buy an '86 4runner 240 miles away sight unseen. He was trading the car we drove there to get it. The truck went 7 miles on the highway, blew up, seller said it's not his problem over the phone. 48 hours of b******* later we arrived home with the blown up truck on a buddy's trailer.

Never again. I'll never drive more than 60-90 minutes for a vehicle ever again.
 
I drove about 90 miles (approx 90 min) to get each of my 4Runners.
Might have gone farther, but nowhere near 6 hr one way.
 
In my mind, if you're going to spend a couple grand on a vehicle, why not spend a hundred bucks on gas to go get it?
 
If it was a car i HAD to have and would definitely not find one closer, then id drive 6 hours or more for it. But it'd have to be something pretty special. And then again i do love road trips...
 
The real problem is it's hard to get a good deal and a good car at a great distance. If it's a good vehicle, at a reasonable price, they generally go quick. That's why buying local is better. As soon as it pops up on cl, or where ever, you need to be the first or second person to call them and setup an appointment. If you're willing to pay a premium for something that is difficult to find in your area, then your odds increase. I live in a college town, so my radius was larger than normal. I was willing to drive ~ 150 miles to look at a truck. I got lucky and found one about 30 minutes away, but that was after a few of the ones I wanted were sold before I had a chance to go out and look at them.
 
I bought a one way plane ticket and drove mine home from Atlanta Georgia to the Tampa Bay Area in Florida.

I say go for it, even if something goes wrong it will be a fun adventure.

Guy,
 
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