Found a 2002 F350 crew 4x4 7.3 (159,000ish miles) for $12500 ($14638 with taxes not adding interest yet) at a Dealer. Was $16000 (before tax). They dropped the price because of a few little oil leaks. I drove it some..didnt get up to 55 because it was about out of fuel and they didnt want it to run out on me. Trans shifted fine. AC and Heater worked. Interior is in great shape. Body in nearly perfect condition other than a small dent above right tail light.

Does this sound like a good deal? Im thinking it is. They were going to wholesale it they said until i told them I was coming to look at it.

 

I don't see any little leaks. I'd offer $10k. Spend another $1k getting the leaks fixed and the rest of the maintenance that's been neglected. Your best bet would be to find one that's private seller and get financing from a credit union or online bank like Pen Fed.

Edit: Is all that motor oil or is there trans fluid in the last pic?

 

if "THEY" are not willing to put $10 in the tank.. they do not want to sell it.

cheap on fuel = cheap on service.

when I purchased my used truck 2 years ago.. I was told under 50 mile ride was OK.
the car before that.. I drove for 2 days... but I paid for the gas..

if they were going to wholesale it.. they were willing to take HALF.. so 8, maybe 7

 

Hard to say whether the OP is asking for opinions on the $12,500 price or whether s/he's looking for assurance it was a fair price. Personally I think with that mileage and the few known issues you are aware of, the asking price is too high.

Chuck's First Ford comment is right ... wholesale prices are way below retail and they would take/have taken much less for it. I'd try $8k and see what happens. My father taught me when buying "you can always go up in price but rarely go down".

Good Luck and let us know how this story ends.

 

Oil Leak would scare me - do they / you know what it is and how much / what it will take to stop it?

 

Well i tried lowering the price..told the guy lets negotiate but hes like "I dropped it from 16000 to 12500. Thats the lowest I go. I have someone at wholesale who will buy it for 12500. Only two banks of our MIGHT finance it but it wont be like a face to face bank with personal contact..blah blah blah blah".

So in the end after taxes the 12500 when to 14620ish..plus if i go to the bank then theyll add more interest....

The rear leaks are trans fluid. Looked like it was coming from between the transfer case and transmission because it wasnt leaking from the pan.

 

Only two banks of our MIGHT finance it

that statement alone.. I would WALK...maybe Run

 

Red Baron, instead of "talking about a lower price" ... be specific and offer him a firm number. Say "this truck with the known fluid leak issues and who knows what unknown issues, is worth $8,000 for me to take on the risk and cost of repairing it to good working condition". Then say, if you can get really $12,500 ... you'd be a fool not to grab it". If you can't, then let's get realistic and make a deal".

Know you're absolute top dollar number and stick to it. If they won't make a deal at your top number, be PATIENT! There will always be another truck coming up for sale in the future that will meet your needs and budget.

 

Thats true...I may pass on it. I may call them and tell them that Ive researched and the asking price just isnt what I am willing to pay for the issues and how long I drove it for.

 

Those oil leaks could be from just about anywhere on top of the engine and could easily start racking up the shop bill. I'm not trying to scare you but you need to be aware that it could be as simple as replacing an o-ring on a plug or working on the high pressure oil system.

Am I the only one seeing the coolant level being WAY low? I wonder if some of the moisture on the crossmember is coolant?

If you are still considering the truck take it to a shop that knows the 7.3L (usually they also service local school buses). It would be worth the $100 to find out where the leaks are coming from to know how serious they are.

Personally, as much as I love the 7.3L, that has a few too many things going on to blindly pick up the tab for.

There's a reason the dealer isn't fixing it.

 

The statement highlighted in red is the OLDEST sales trick in the book to which I call B*U*L*L*S*H*I*T. You know, like the old line in the movie starring Robin Williams, where he teaches English to non-English speaking students where he states to his students, "When someone is not telling you the truth, they are full of.....?"


Myself personally, if I were looking at any vehicle and the seller were to utter that same line to me, would likely be enough for me to roll my eyes and walk away from the deal. My theory being, if the seller is feeding me a pile about offers, what else is he going to feed me a line about? Years ago, I never forgot about one particular experience where I was invited to take a Grand Marquis for a test drive from a Used Car lot. As the salesperson (and I use that term very loosely) entered the vehicle with me before we were about to commence our road test, he began with the usual tagline, "this car has NEVER been winter driven, NEVER been smoked in before...." as he was saying that, I pulled the ashtray open, only to find it OVERFLOWING with ashes. As I gestured toward my finding, his reaction was priceless, "Uh uh...... uh......."


Don't take this the wrong way, but you do realize we are talking 16 year old vehicle, RIGHT? We are also not talking about a collectible 'playtoy/investment vehicle' that would actually be worth financing to either keep for the longer term or sell for a profit years later. I don't want to imagine what the interest rate would be charged for a vehicle of this age, let alone which financial institution would even consider it in the first place. At the end of the day, you will end up paying at least quadruple its value by the time it's paid off. Is this vehicle worth THAT much to you?

And what about that engine oil leak between the engine block and bellhousing? Yes, it would be coming from the HPOP above, which the part by itself is not cheap. If it's the rear main seal, that's a transmission removal repair. If it's the oil pan seal (the more likely scenario), it's either transmission removal and raise engine, or engine removal repair depending of which method the repairing tech prefers.

 

Oil leaks are usually very expensive.

Not only is there the cost of repairing the leak, there is the cost of whatever is probably very close to failing from lack of fluid.

I am getting a vehicle similar to your's for free. Similar, except it has about twice the miles, but I'm getting it for $12,500 less. I suspect mine is worth 4 to 6K, having not seen it yet.

On edit: Supposedly no leaks, but I still might bail once I see it.

 

At that remark I would have told him he'd better take that $12.5 and run. Then I would have run myself.
This deal has a bad odor that I can smell even sitting here in my office.

 

See/read post #11.

 

I agree with mchan and dogridesintheback. All those leaks if you buy it are going to have to be fixed by YOUif you buy it. This dealer is having a hard time selling this because A) Overpriced B) All those fluid leaks.

Could this be fixed, sure... but dealer doesnt want to do it. Now if the dealer doesn't want to fix this, that alone should tell you that he doesn't care about the condition of the vehicle before the sale and if you are getting a problem child.

This dealer is out to get the cash and could care less if it breaks down 5 minutes after you buy it. Honestly you should run as far as you can from this one IMHO. If you truly are interested , tell the dealer you want to take it for an inspection to a FORD dealer and have them look it over, and see what the tech at Ford say's it needs to be fixed and the price tag. It may cost you a few hundred to do it, but that is the only way I could see even thinking of purchasing it is by finding out whats wrong and how much it is going to be to fix.

Honestly, I would keep searching for something else