I’ve been casually researching and looking for a tow vehicle for several months now. I’m not in a huge hurry although I would like to have 4xd capability for this winter instead of toughing it out again with my glorified sled of a commuter car (Pontiac Vibe). A local dealer has just posted a 3/4 ton Suburban with 164k miles on it priced low enough that I wouldn’t have to take out a loan. Only problem is that it’s 20 years old. As someone who is stupid when it comes to vehicles and can barely change her own oil, is this a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad idea? I’ve been prepared to look at some newer trucks due to my practical incompetence but would need a loan (which is why I haven’t been in a hurry). I really really don’t need a truck for any reason other than to haul, so the idea of an SUV is appealing because I DO need to haul people. I realize the only reason this vehicle is in my price range is due to the age. Am I a fool for considering it?
It is not just the age, it is the wear and tear.
Nothing on this vehicle will be under warranty, and there is no telling how hard this truck was used. Everything on this vehicle is at the end of its life. Including the frame if you live where they salt the roads all winter
Unless you know a supremely ethical, and altruistic mechanic it could easily turn into a money pit.
If it was a horse, and this dealer was selling it, would you buy it?
If you buy something like this be able to spend several thousand dollars to fix things that might be wrong. Maybe little is right now, but next week…?
We owned a 1987 3/4 ton gasser Suburban in the past. It was an excellent tow vehicle. It also needed an engine rebuild right around 165,000 miles. In 1993, IIRC, the cost to do a quality rebuild (my engine core) was about $3000. That included some new accessories like an alternator and power steering pump. I don’t know what you’d pay today for the same thing.
Walk carefully, here.
G.
When I first went to driving trucks, I spent as much as I could afford on the truck. But the part of me that loves the planet kept feeling guilty about it, so I bought a 20 year old compact car. I kept meticulous records on that vehicle over the course of two years and didn’t like how things turned out. So I sold it and bought another, spending a little more on it. Again I kept meticulous records, and again I was disappointed.
In both cases, I found that my average monthly outflow on those vehicles, taking all the repairs minor and major and averaging them across the time I had them, I was coming out to something like $200-250/mo to keep them running.
Maybe I could’ve gotten some of those repairs done cheaper by using Julio down the street who works out of his garage and only takes cash. I definitely didn’t listen to the NTB joint that wanted me to spend $2500 on a car with a blue book value of $1200 … but I went to places like Goodyear and Napa and made repairs that kept them safe to drive.
So that’s when I realized that if I can’t do the repairs myself, then keeping an older vehicle going can actually be as costly as leasing new or making payments on new or nearly new.
If this is going to be your tow vehicle, I’d say keep shopping.
Oh, just remembered my neighbor … they inherited “grandma’s buick” that had been in the garage for 15 years and driven very seldom. So a 15 year old car that had less than 20K miles, looked showroom beautiful. They thought this would be a good car for their teenager. Turned out it was hard for them to find parts or had long waits to order them. They too found over the course of a couple years that in spite of the thing seeming so pristine, it just wasn’t worth its upkeep.
Best of luck to you!
In short, no.
I love older, higher mileage vehicles, because I’m cheap, but I do most repairs myself. It will never work out, $$$ wise, to save the money buying an older vehicle if you have to pay a mechanic to investigate every squeal and squeak.
The loan will be worth the peace of mind and hassle. You don’t have to buy new, just newER.
I have a 38 year old Chevy Suburban that I tow a four horse stock trailer, usually with three horses. I usually drive about 500 miles a year. I spent $2,000 to buy it, and maybe, in a big year, $500 to make sure it’s running perfectly.
I think if you’re OK with it and you have a good mechanic, it works. It costs me $75 a year to register it and about $300 a year to insure it and my old car.
If the brake lines have been redone, I’d go for it.
You are going to need a good mechanic. One who will tell you what has to be fixed and what doesn’t. My truck is 15 years old but only has 50k on it as I use it primarily to tow. So far it has not shown its age but I have a super awesome mechanic who I trust…
Mechanically incompetent = NO
THat said… I have a 1996 Chevy Dually that takes a lickin’ and keeps on tickin’. I bought it for $5K in 2007. IN 9 years we had to put a new engine in it in (2009 -totally my fault, put water in it when it overheated and cracked the block), two fuel pumps, a tie rod end, a steering stablizer, and the usual brakes, tires & tune ups. I feel like I stole it! It runs like a champ. I’m fully vested in seeing how far it can go. But, I"m sleeping with my mechanic, so I’ve got the repairs covered. 
Yeah…so I don’t even know enough to know if my mechanic is “good” versus just being a nice guy. Guess it’s best to pass and keep looking and saving. Thanks for the feedback!
A 20 year old truck CAN be reliable if properly maintained. But due to the fact this one is at a dealer and you don’t know its history, I would be skeptical of the maintenance and use it has had. Keep in mind, old GM products have notoriously bad brakes - so aside from general durability issues, that is a major thing to look at. Cooling systems (thermostats, heater cores, etc) can also go bad quickly on old vehicles and will leave you stranded. If you aren’t mechanically savvy, I would suggest saving up and looking for something newer or at the very least, something that has a very well documented history.
I had a 1996 Tahoe which is the sister/brother to the Surburban. I loved that truck, and it had a great engine/tranny/drive train. BUT, the brake lines, fuel lines and frame were rusting/rotting out beneath me. It wouldn’t pass inspection due to the frame rust and once the frame rusted, there is no (cheap) fix for it.
3 of my friends all had the same vehicle all around the same model year and all of us traded them in around 13/15 years later due to rust.
I actually had the brakes go on me when a brake line rusted out and broke. Thank goodness I had the trailer with me so I used the trailer brakes to stop the truck.
I loved that truck but it became a money pit. Too many things were rusting out and even though the engine, tranny and drive train were work horses, it couldn’t fix the frame rust issue.
I purchased a 2001 truck with 140,000 miles but I have access to a mechanic who gave it a PPE and works for the cost of beer. Parts are cheap, it’s the labor that kills.
My other vehicle is a Sunfire with 251,000 miles. Runs like a top thanks to my mechanic.
I have a 2002 GMC 1/2 ton Yukon XL and it is in mint condition - stored indoors, washed weekly, never driven in winter. Thing looks brand new underneath.
I still spend about a grand a year on trans fluid plus whatever hose decides 15 years is enough and it wants to be replaced. Just had to do the differentials.
Even a really clean older truck requires maintenance. If you’re really clueless, you might want something newer and maybe acquire some mechanical know how anyway because the dealer is going to screw you even repairing a truck under warranty.
