Miles vs. Year?

[Godlover]

Sometimes when I'm searching through ads I wonder if there is a good way to determine what is the better value: An older low miles vehicle or a newer high miles one. For example: I found a really nice 2006 F-150 Lariat Crew Cab 4x4 with 50,000 5.4 engine in excellent condition for the same price of a 2013 F-150 Lariat Extended Cab 4X4 with 140,000 Ecoboost V-6 also in excellent condition for the same price. If those are the only choices - which would you choose?

 

The same kind of thought could go in purchasing a Venture. Is the low mile 99 Venture a better buy than an 07 high mile? How does one determine such value?

[eagleeye]

I'd say the lower miles would be better if it is what you want. IE, extended cab vs crew cab as an example. but a very older bike with low miles might just have other issues. It is a crap shoot at best.

[MiCarl]

Not sure where Newton is, but here is how I look at vehicles:

 

I keep them a very long time. I figure mechanical stuff can be fixed, but rust always wins. Here in Michigan rust is a big deal. I'll take miles over age any day. Type of miles matters too - stop and go delivery type miles = lots of wear. Highway miles hardly count at all.

 

Hard to imagine how that 2013 could get 140,000 miles without being on the highway most of them. On the other hand, that Ecoboost is fairly new and we don't know how the turbo will hold up.

[eagleeye]

I'd buy the 99 venture, and besides it is my favorite color

[djh3]

Me personally would stay away from high milage 4wd. I dont need it, its more drive train junk to weqr and tear. Transfer case, chains in it, extra differental an axles etc. Plus take more fuel to run all that stuff. At the agew vs milage on the V6 I to would say its highway miles. So why did the guy buy 4wd? Does he plow parking lots on the side? You might ask what maintenance has been performed.

[cowpuc]

This is an interesting topic.. A couple years ago my youngest was looking for a car. She had 1500 bucks and an eye on a high mileage Taurus (had 185k on it). Good looking car. Test drove and, as most Taurus's of that year, specically high miles, the tranny slipped.. I asked her to be patient (hard when you have NO wheels) and we would find something. Time turned up a much older, lower mileage, Honda Civic for the same price as the Taurus. It was a rusted out little beater with 110k on it (Michigan car all its life).

She really did not want to be seen cruising around in a rust bucket but, she caught to my reasoning and thought to give it a try. My thoughts always wrap around how far I am probably gonna get out of what ever amount of dollars I am going to spend.. People that know me know I REALLY do not care what other people think or how they feel about the vehicle I am driving.. Rust, dont matter - dents, dont matter - drive train dependability - OH YEA, MATTERS..

I explained to my daughter that for 1200 bucks (cost of either the Taurus or the Honda), the decision could fairly easily be made by figuring which one could she actually drive 10k miles for every one of her 100 dollars in investment. I told her to jump on the internet, do a little research and see how many Taurus's she seen around with 305k on them (120k + 185K). Than do the same thing with the Honda and see how many of them she found around with 230k on them (120k + 110k). It wasnt long and she came back with a smile on her face and said, yea Dad, lets go get the Honda.

Rusty (her little beat up Civic) is still with us and is still going strong after 2 years (knock on wood).. It is indeed a crap shoot BUT, there are ways making sure the dice are not loaded..

[Godlover]

Me personally would stay away from high milage 4wd. I dont need it, its more drive train junk to weqr and tear. Transfer case, chains in it, extra differental an axles etc. Plus take more fuel to run all that stuff. At the agew vs milage on the V6 I to would say its highway miles. So why did the guy buy 4wd? Does he plow parking lots on the side? You might ask what maintenance has been performed.

 

In Iowa almost all pickups are 4WD and most are not used for plowing snow. Especially the Lariats. I'm not buying - just posing the question.....

[Chaharly]

In Iowa almost all pickups are 4WD and most are not used for plowing snow. Especially the Lariats. I'm not buying - just posing the question.....

 

I've got my eye out for an older, low mileage venture. The way I look at it, mechanically the age shouldnt (i hope) effect the engine parts. I think most engine wear is done by miles. That being said though, things like ignition coils and other sensitive electronic dudads would be more effected by age. I guess the valve springs could be effected by age though too. My biggest concern with getting an older Venture would be having an old ignition coil suddenly go out because of how fine the copper is.

 

I havent owned a vehicle less than ten years old though, so my opinion isnt the most educated just blabbing to blab

[Peder_y2k]

Ye pays yer money n take yer chances, even with new stuff! Like in gambling, try to minimize yer losses and that's how to win.

Pete, in Tacoma WA USA

[pbjman]

Cars last so much longer these days. In the price range I usually buy a car, everything has well over 100k. Heck, I bought my Safari van with 150K for 3000 bucks and now it has 257k. Did engine work at 240K for about 700 bucks then unfortunately had to do trans work at about 245K for 1200 bucks. But still, other than brake pads, tune ups, tires, etc, how can you beat 100,000 miles for under $5000?

Whether it's a motorcycle or car, I look at it's CONDITION relative to the price. The determinants will be condition, age, mileage, and price. I also research a little to see if there are any major known problems in that particular year/model.

In the examples you gave, I'd probably go for the '13 truck; the 140K miles wouldn't bother me if it was priced accordingly.

For the RSV's, I DID go for a low mileage (21K) '99.

(I could be wrong, but I would expect a high mileage '07 to cost more than a low mileage 99)

[Godlover]

One thing a person gains by going for the 2013 F150 with high miles is better and more technology. The comparison that I made to the Venture is a bit difference as the 2nd Generation Venture didn't change during its run. If I were seriously shopping I would go for the higher miles 2013 simply because I love the looks and all the new gagets. Miles don't really bother me....

[Chaharly]

One thing a person gains by going for the 2013 F150 with high miles is better and more technology. The comparison that I made to the Venture is a bit difference as the 2nd Generation Venture didn't change during its run. If I were seriously shopping I would go for the higher miles 2013 simply because I love the looks and all the new gagets. Miles don't really bother me....

 

The only thing about the 2013 ( i know your not a serious buyer) is how long those little 3.5L ecoboosts hold up. They are a really new design and until tere are millions of them out there you may not know how dependable it is.

[Sailor]

Just picked up a high milage Dodge Chinook motorhome. The deciding factor was that it was still the original owner who drove truck for a living and it was well maintained and in terrific condition. In this case high mileage and age were topped by good condition, and low price due to high mileage and age. Each case is different and you have to decide what aspect is most important to you.

[djh3]

A long time ago like 93 or 94 I bought a 90 f 150 with straight 6 300cid. It had 90k on it. The fellow was a construction engineer and traveld around southwest Oklahoma . You could tell all highway miles mostly and well taken care of. Dip stick clean, trans fluid no smell and red not rust brown looking. I put almost 100k on it befor I sold it and it still ran great except a/c.

[MiCarl]

Rust, dont matter - dents, dont matter - drive train dependability - OH YEA, MATTERS..

 

I agree to a point. When my stuff won't stay in or the rain won't stay out it's too much rust and time to replace. Of course on a vehicle without a full frame rust can be a structural issue too.

[Flyinfool]

its actually not that hard to run up 100K+ doing delivery work in just 1 year.

A friend of mine puts on 200K per year doing delivery work. He buys a new truck every 6 months, He can not have a breakdown cause a late delivery.

 

If it is all highway miles there will be very small front end damage from road derbies. The front end will look kind of sand blasted and there will likely be some stone chips, a city driven car will not show this due to its lower speeds.

 

There is no perfect rule of thumb, each vehicle must be evaluated on its own merits.

[MiCarl]

its actually not that hard to run up 100K+ doing delivery work in just 1 year.

A friend of mine puts on 200K per year doing delivery work. He buys a new truck every 6 months, He can not have a breakdown cause a late delivery.

 

If it is all highway miles there will be very small front end damage from road derbies. The front end will look kind of sand blasted and there will likely be some stone chips, a city driven car will not show this due to its lower speeds.

 

There is no perfect rule of thumb, each vehicle must be evaluated on its own merits.

 

Another thing you could look for is nicks, scratches and dents in the bed and on the tail gate. These would be signs of a delivery vehicle.

[Flyinfool]

My trucks get a lot of rash in the bed, it is not delivery but I do use it as a truck. I am not one of the city folk that buys a 4x4 truck just to be able to say I have a truck. But if the bed is perfect and scratch free you know the truck has probably not worked a day in its life.

 

You can also look at the hitch an tell if it has spent a lot of time towing a trailer.

[Oldodge]

I am not the guy to ask as I always seem to choose the wrong one in these situations.

[Du-Rron]

Trucks and bikes are apples and oranges.

 

10 % of the trucks on the market are "Low Mileage". 90 % of the bikes on the market are "Low Mileage".

Certain trucks, like Diesels are high mileage and does not really make a difference. Certain bikes like the RSV are also high mileage and does not really make a difference.

Edited February 14, 2015 by Du-Rron

[BlueSky]

The 2013 seems like a good choice. However, on the F150 forum I participate in, somebody posted his ecoboost threw a rod at 22k miles. I don't think it was the truck's fault because he had had it tuned and probably beat on it pretty bad. That is the impression I got. However, his warranty was invalid since he "tuned" it and the dealer quoted $12,000 to replace the engine and the turbos that had also been damaged. Any turbo engine can be "tuned" to turn up the boost and who knows what might happen then? The 2006 5.4s have their own issues. The spark plug replacement is a major operation that usually results in some of them breaking in half and have to be extracted using a special tool. Also, some owners have problems with the VCT, variable cam timing.

 

If it were me and those were the choices, I'd buy the 2006 if it isn't from the rust belt.

[wrenchrob]

I work for a Ford dealer. So far the v6 eco boost has been pretty good. There have been some issues with the timing chain stretching and causing some drive ability concerns. Also the spark plugs do not last very long in them but they are easy to change.

[Godlover]

It was good to read the different responses. There is no clear or simple answer to the original question. It comes down to personal tastes and opinions.

[eagleeye]

It was good to read the different responses. There is no clear or simple answer to the original question. It comes down to personal tastes and opinions.

 

I started to reply several times, but you just answered your own question better than I could have. My answer was about the same.

[ricksbike]

I don`t even think age is an issue,I worked at a Cadillac dealership for ten years,I think we had more problems with the newer cars than the older ones with high miles,you have to figure if it`s relatively new and has high miles,it has probably been driven on the highway,and it`s kind of a fact that highway miles are a lot easier on a vehicle than around town miles.