you won't get more than a couple hundred more with pristine paint. the problem is the mechanical age of the vehicle - plain and simple.

by the way, i'm pretty sure the T-100 you keep referring to has the same 3.0 engine that your 1990 runner has. i don't think they had the 3.4L that the 3rd gen runners have. that's why they're so slow and they didn't last in production. for such a big truck, they are WAY underpowered.

i think you can get $2000-$2500 for your runner as it sits today. maybe $3000 if you clean it up and get it looking as good as you can. now take that, get your dad to co-sign for you and put that down on a nice 96 that you find on ebay or autotrader. you an get a hi-mileage 96 4WD for about $6000-$7500.

subtract $2500 out of that and you have $3500-$5000 that you'd borrow. do it on a signature loan at 10% for 24 months, and the payments range from $162 to $231 for that much.

personally, i would advise against it though. i've been there, done that, and wouldn't recommend it. it may not sound like much, and it may not sound like that long, but for such a young kid, $200+ per month is a lot of money and you have to have that every month for 2 years. also, you'll want to do stuff w/ your friends and take trips, etc, at spring break and summer, but instead, you'll be strapped down to your job cause you have to make payments.

here's my suggestion: get a good job this summer, maybe even two jobs. work your ass off. at $6/hr and 50hr/week (easily doable), then you should be able to get about $300 a week and save up about $3000 by the end of the summer if you get started now. you may have more if you really get at it and work some side jobs on weekends. then, at the end of the summer, start to look for a nice 3rd gen. sell your 90 and walk if you have to. be patient and find the right 96 for the right price and you'll pay cash for it. your parents may be able to help you out by getting a few thousand and buying the 3rd gen before you sell your 90 so the right one won't get snatched up w/o you having the money ready to get it.

if at all feasable, don't get into debt at your age w/ a car loan. don't do it.

 

yeah I really don't want to do payments, but I can afford 200 a month easily. Won't tell you how much I make an hr now, but I usually rack up around 400 or more a month. I've been sick all this week, so I haven't been at school or work. Now that's a week's worth of money gone, but I didn't really spend anything over the week, since I've just been lying around. My parents both had said that within this year sometime, I'm gonna get a new(diff) car, so monthly payments is expected. I could afford 200 a month no prob, and still have a lot left over. Over the summer, I'll have so much money lying around, that i'll be able to add lots of stuff to my car, or trips.
(BTW T100's did come with the 3.4 V6 from 95-till last year made)

 

the above post is great advice, especially when it comes to debt/payments.

 

This is correct. It started life with the 3.0 and then transitioned to the 3.4 around when the Taco came out.

 

Personally I think you are wasting your money on a T-100. I just don't like them. Bamachem is absolutely right too about being young and have a car payment. Up until three years ago I always had a car payment since I was 16(34 now). I enjoy the money much more spending it on myself or whatever then sending $200-300 a month to somebody else.

Let me take a stab at this. You want $6K for your truck because you owe $3K on it and want to have something you play with? It seems like your logic.

This is what I did for 3 summers up until last year. I worked my normal job 6-4:30, 6 days a week and at night from 1am till 4am I'd deliver the newspaper. brought me an extra $800 a month just to spend as I want. My trick was NEVER include the paper route money with my bill money. That way I could walk away from the route any time I wanted. I used that money to buy my kid a new dirt bike one year, the next year I payed for a guided bear hunt and the last year I bought my son and daughter go carts and went on a cruise to Mexico with my wife.

My point is, just like everyone else has said save your money and get what you really want(as long as it isn't a T-100 lol) You will enjoy it ALOT more. And if you old enough to get a full time job you ned to get away from retail or fast food, however you make your money. There's alot more money in trade work!

Dennis

 

in a way, I do owe 3K, only because my parents bought it for me. I don't have to pay them back, except for the 200 for the clutch kit, wich i paid, and the $500 i owe them for the labor done buy gruelichs.

What's wrong with the T100's? Do you just not like the way they look? I think they look almost exactly the same as the Tundra. They're just cheaper than the tacoma's or 3rd gen runners, and have the same engine.

I would only be paying a car payment if the vechile was 10K or less, because if I sold mine, and whatever money I have in my account, then that can go as a down payment. Then I could be close or at half way there. I wouldn't want to have a car payment that i'll have to pay for years and years. Just like one or 2. And I'm sure if you had some money saved up, and wanted to pay off a large part of the payment, then you can do that at times, to help get it paid off quicker.

My parents did say since my sister had her first car for I think a year and 3-4months, and then she got a new car, and is paying payments, while going to NAU, that they'd make the same deal with me, I just never thought about because I have a way way way better first car than my sis did(1974 Super Beetle that had a top speed of about 60mph, and took about 30 secs to get from 0-45, not kidding) Plus the air on this things can freeze you into an icecube it's so cold. Sucks they had to get rid of these systems from all the people whining about the environment.

 

Dude, a paintjob isn't going to get you a thing. You think it'll give you a better chance at 6k? You'd be spending at least 2500 on a paint job, plus bodywork. There's a 70-something Ford Maverick in my town with a super expensive "cosmic" custom paint job on it that probably cost at least 5k. Lets say the Maverick is worth $300.00(being generous) + 5k for the paintjob, so youre saying this car would be worth $5,300? There's an old saying I remember. "You can't polish a tird". Not saying your runner is a piece of poo, but you get the idea? Plus for the price of 6k, somebody might be inclined to buy a nicer, newer runner off ebay for $3,500 then pay a shipping company $1,500 to deliver it to them. Anybody that would pay 6k for your ride should have their head examined.

 

Poo???? Somebody has been watching "Dirty Jobs", great show. On another note....they are right. My advice to you is do what it takes to keep this thing running (don't paint it) and save a set amount every month ($150-$200) as if you are making a car payment to that dream ride you want. Put it somewhere where it is hard to get to- most credit unions have programs so you can have money go straight from your check into an account that you can't get money from easily. DO NOT TOUCH THIS MONEY FOR 2 YEARS. Then go shopping and stay away from the dealerships- you waste your money there. You end up paying them hundreds and thousands over what you could get in a private deal and all they do is transport and clean these things up- basically polishing terds. My reasoning for this advice is if you are still in High School why do you need anything nicer or more powerful than you have? You have a REALLY nice ride for a young man- I wish I would have had anything a 1/4 as nice as this when I was in school. Take care of it, wheel it, and just be sensible- interest on loans and debt just allow more rich people to be richer and play golf all day. This can be your own little way of STICKING IT TO THE MAN!!!!!!! I try to every chance I get. This truck in the picture IS my ride and I am 29 and make good money. I laugh at all the morons paying $500 to $700 a month for a ride and then they are scared to take it fishing or haul anything because they might scratch it. Plus think of all the things you learn from owning an older vehicle and keeping it going- trust me this will help out later on in life. You may as well learn it now while you still have mommy and daddy to fall back on. Ok- I will stop, I just hope you get my point. Just my $0.02.

P.S. - Looks like you have some kind of leak there on the passenger side front.

 

leak was a power steering pump leak, which I don't know if it's stopped since my dad installed new one. Just filled it up with fluid at work 2 weeks ago. I think since it was just installed, the new fluid just got sucked right through it. Don't know though.

My odds of selling this now are pretty much 0 since I've been sick all week, and still recovering. Have to catch up in school and work. Might have a good chance over spring break, but there will have to be something I would like more than mine. Which would either have to be a Tacoma, or a T100.