Don't forget the buyer's fee on the auctions, in this case 4.5%, so it really went for $16.2k.
Purchase Feedback (and how much rust is too much?)
- Thread starter CakeMountain
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Don't forget the buyer's fee on the auctions, in this case 4.5%, so it really went for $16.2k.
CakeMountain
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- #62
Yup, exactly. Also, I would have also needed to pay shipping to get it to Maryland. Prices are crazy.
I’ve been holding off on posting this for a few days. The market is what the market is. High mileage, imperfect 100’s are selling well above “value”. If that’s not what you’re interested in, now isn’t the time to buy. Period.
I paid twice the “value” for mine, happily. And then put a bunch into it to fix it. Keep in mind, this was a rust free example with less miles than anything you have posted on this thread. I still had thousands of dollars of needed fixes on a very clean example.
Lots of people here will tell you that you need a rust free example with impeccable service records. If you bought 5 years ago and paid 10k for a 100k mile truck in perfect condition, there isn’t a single 100 today that makes sense to purchase. So these posters aren’t wrong, per se, but they got in on the bottom floor.
A bargain shopper won’t get far in this market. And I doubt prices are going anywhere anytime soon. I’ve bought and sold two Tacomas in the last 10 years. Both were purchased well over book value and both were sold well over book value.
These trucks are expensive. They were expensive to buy new. They are expensive to buy used. They are expensive to fix. They are expensive to maintain. They are more expensive if not treated right. And even more expensive if the previous owner hasn’t fixed all the expensive stuff for you.
If you are like me and the 100 LC was the only real option for an upgrade based on lifestyle and family, find one. Be the fast and have your stuff together. Make a good choice (I passed on two or three and watched the market for almost two years). Buy the truck. Prepare to start throwing money at it.
And then...enjoy your 100 and give it your own value by the memories you make with it. It’s the best vehicle I’ve ever owned, even though I could have bought a brand new car and more for what I have in it. And you can see by the picture that I haven’t gone crazy with a “build”.
I paid twice the “value” for mine, happily. And then put a bunch into it to fix it. Keep in mind, this was a rust free example with less miles than anything you have posted on this thread. I still had thousands of dollars of needed fixes on a very clean example.
Lots of people here will tell you that you need a rust free example with impeccable service records. If you bought 5 years ago and paid 10k for a 100k mile truck in perfect condition, there isn’t a single 100 today that makes sense to purchase. So these posters aren’t wrong, per se, but they got in on the bottom floor.
A bargain shopper won’t get far in this market. And I doubt prices are going anywhere anytime soon. I’ve bought and sold two Tacomas in the last 10 years. Both were purchased well over book value and both were sold well over book value.
These trucks are expensive. They were expensive to buy new. They are expensive to buy used. They are expensive to fix. They are expensive to maintain. They are more expensive if not treated right. And even more expensive if the previous owner hasn’t fixed all the expensive stuff for you.
If you are like me and the 100 LC was the only real option for an upgrade based on lifestyle and family, find one. Be the fast and have your stuff together. Make a good choice (I passed on two or three and watched the market for almost two years). Buy the truck. Prepare to start throwing money at it.
And then...enjoy your 100 and give it your own value by the memories you make with it. It’s the best vehicle I’ve ever owned, even though I could have bought a brand new car and more for what I have in it. And you can see by the picture that I haven’t gone crazy with a “build”.
CakeMountain
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- #64
Seems you're getting the return I'm looking for - smiles per gallon. Thank you for the input. Definitely can't wait two years, so I'm probably paying the bubble price. Hopefully all these new GameStock millionaires don't decide to buy used land cruisers.
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Well said, a lot of people weighing in just aren’t up to date on current market reality
Prices are definitely at an all time high. I've been following the east coast market from MD to NC for 3 years now.
Honestly, I still think prices are a bargain for what you get. A nice $15k pre-covid example is now $20k. If that $5k difference is going to make or break this for you, the running costs ought to scare you more than they do. If you want one, buy a nice one from a reasonable private party and enjoy it.
This phenomenon is hardly unique to 100s. Broncos, e46M3s, S2000s, E39 M5s, R230 AMG Merc and other period notables have had similar appreciation.
This phenomenon is hardly unique to 100s. Broncos, e46M3s, S2000s, E39 M5s, R230 AMG Merc and other period notables have had similar appreciation.
CakeMountain
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- #68
Welp, tried to pay the BaT tax today, but I was outbid. Maybe next time. Back to waiting for my craigslist alerts.
Ditto. Not enough garage space at the moment, but still very tempted.
>$4k in parts went into my 100 last year. I did all the work myself.
each situation is different. I just bought a 2005 lx470 for 9800. Ultra Clean Michigan truck, all the service records, with better than average rust. Actually quite good considering it has 255K and is 15 years old and spent its entire life in Michigan. It was garage kept and maintained very well. 1 owner. I think 9800 was very "fair" to both the seller and myself. The PO sat on the truck for almost 3 months because she was asking 16K. I waited until she dropped it 3 times, as soon as it hit 12,900 I went to take a look and made an offer of 8K cash in hand. She knew the value of the truck, she wanted 10, we settled at 9800.
Here's the truck for reference - 2005 Lexus LX · LX 470 Sport Utility 4D - Cars & Trucks - Farmington Hills, Michigan | Facebook Marketplace - https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/370121200759613/
Here's the truck for reference - 2005 Lexus LX · LX 470 Sport Utility 4D - Cars & Trucks - Farmington Hills, Michigan | Facebook Marketplace - https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/370121200759613/
The reality is not everyone can put their life on pause and fly somewhere down south. Personally my family situation doesn't afford me the luxury of being able to drop all my responsibilities to buy a car 500 miles away. I waited until I could find the best specimen for the price in my local area. I grew up in the rust belt, Some of you on here are a bit overboard on the rust thing IMO. I've also had great luck with Ziebartz for undercoating my vehicles. Superficial surface rust is not that big of a deal. A truck can look really really crusty and not have a single structural issue.
CakeMountain
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- #74
I'm still out there looking. I'm currently following up on a couple of leads right now and trying to get the trucks in for PPI. There are lots of opportunities out there if you set your alerts right. When I finally get a truck purchased, I'll put together a thread on my search strategy.
CakeMountain
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- #75
The search continues. I'm seeing enough trucks that I had to start a spreadsheet to keep track of everything. I probably should have done that sooner.
CakeMountain
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- #76
Today is an exciting day. I'm getting two PPi's done, one locally and what appears to be a super clean truck in South Florida.
Good luck cake, fingers crossed one of them will work out.
Just a heads up. I had a PPI done on mine at a Toyota dealer. Out of state.
They missed that my radiator was on its way out and that it needed a new steering rack. Not that I cared but they also provided no information on the AHC system that had been hacked up. I knew it had been modified but their PPI didn’t even mention it.
My point, unless someone very specific does your PPI...still plan on a few thousand in required repairs.
My heater T’s blew on the way to the shop immediately after taking delivery, as soon as I drove it away from the truck driver I knew the rack was bad, etc. So, depending on the PPI and who does it, don’t expect much.
They missed that my radiator was on its way out and that it needed a new steering rack. Not that I cared but they also provided no information on the AHC system that had been hacked up. I knew it had been modified but their PPI didn’t even mention it.
My point, unless someone very specific does your PPI...still plan on a few thousand in required repairs.
My heater T’s blew on the way to the shop immediately after taking delivery, as soon as I drove it away from the truck driver I knew the rack was bad, etc. So, depending on the PPI and who does it, don’t expect much.
CakeMountain
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- #79
Yeah, nothing is perfect. Hopefully it will catch anything catastrophic.
CakeMountain
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- #80
Truck acquired, 2004 LX 470 156k, no rust
