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I sold trucks for about 20 years. I've come to certain conclusions based on what I saw customers do. First, if you need the truck for your job, are you able to write your usage off tax wise? I've seen people write off almost the entire purchase price. If indeed that is the case or even if you can write off 80% of it, then I would let that be my marker as to when I get rid of the truck.If you are the sentimental type, keep the truck until it cracks in half. Does your business require you to have a newer truck? In other words, some clients decide what vendor they will use based upon what they see being driven. This business part may not apply to you but it could be a consideration otherwise. There is actually little to be gained as to whether to keep it or get rid of it as far as cost, kind of equal out. Yes you can drive a newer vehicle, but do you know that vehicle as well as the one you have? Many people last year got rid of trucks because of gas mileage as opposed to something wrong with it so there are plenty to choose from with less chance of getting someone else's head ache.
Weigh out your purchase cost and sale loss over a 5 year period. Usually it always cost less to fix a vehicle rather than get rid of it. You can keep doing that in 3 to 5 year blocks. Much depends n how you use the truck but always figure these things on worse case scenario such as transmissions and engines. A truck driven on the hwy can easily get to 300.000 miles w/o too much outside expenditure. So lets do this a bit more analytically. Your truck cost 35K. 3 years later, you think you can get 25K. (which I doubt or at least not in real money) But for the sake of argument, lets keep it at that. It cost you 10K to switch it out. If you keep doing it this way, over a 10 year period, your out of pocket would be approximately 30k plus your interest charges. Now lets project your own truck. How many miles will it have in 7 more years? If it is driven into the ground, you'd pay about 3-5 K in maintenance for tires shocks, breaks, belts etc. You'll have a truck that is worth next to nothing at the ten year period. So your present truck cost you 40K plus interest charges or lack there of based on years financed to own and run over 10 years. You can see how these numbers begin to equal out. In the short of it, unless there are business and tax advantages, money is not the issue to use as a swap criteria anyway, I'd go by what I want or what my gut tells me or even if I want a different color or a usage change. All these things are valid but it may not seem so because you can't measure certain other values with money.
Weigh out your purchase cost and sale loss over a 5 year period. Usually it always cost less to fix a vehicle rather than get rid of it. You can keep doing that in 3 to 5 year blocks. Much depends n how you use the truck but always figure these things on worse case scenario such as transmissions and engines. A truck driven on the hwy can easily get to 300.000 miles w/o too much outside expenditure. So lets do this a bit more analytically. Your truck cost 35K. 3 years later, you think you can get 25K. (which I doubt or at least not in real money) But for the sake of argument, lets keep it at that. It cost you 10K to switch it out. If you keep doing it this way, over a 10 year period, your out of pocket would be approximately 30k plus your interest charges. Now lets project your own truck. How many miles will it have in 7 more years? If it is driven into the ground, you'd pay about 3-5 K in maintenance for tires shocks, breaks, belts etc. You'll have a truck that is worth next to nothing at the ten year period. So your present truck cost you 40K plus interest charges or lack there of based on years financed to own and run over 10 years. You can see how these numbers begin to equal out. In the short of it, unless there are business and tax advantages, money is not the issue to use as a swap criteria anyway, I'd go by what I want or what my gut tells me or even if I want a different color or a usage change. All these things are valid but it may not seem so because you can't measure certain other values with money.
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