first time tacoma buyer..

is this a good buy?

theres a nearby dealer thats selling a 97 xtra cab, manual, 4x4 LX (not sr5) for $5000 out the door. but it has 223xxx miles. it has 3 owners, and last owner had it for 10 years. zero accidents in car fax report. i know 97 is kinda old, but i've seen alot of older tacomas sell for more..

should i buy this tomorrow?

 

I wouldnt pay more than 4,000 myself. For 5 g's that better come with a life time of oil changes.


Considering that it's a average trade in and paint is in good condition. Just don't be too eager to buy it, just offer as to what your willing to pay before hand. Use nada or Kelly and decide for yourself. You have seen the truck and assuming you drove it. Check for leaks under the truck, condition of tires, pull dip stick and smell the oil etc.. Etc... That is a lot of miles and I believe that year had rust problems so check the frame for rust. Ask for service records if any, is the spare tire there? Look at everything and if you need to replace things like tires adjust that in your offer. The only way your going get a good deal is if you work at it by looking at everything.

 

use KBB and see what numbers you get

 

I would keep looking through the classifieds. I bought a 99 TRD SR5 4x4 with 229k from the second owner (he purchased w/11k in 2000) for under $4k. But if you really like it, just make sure most of the maintenance has been performed.

 

Well.. Kbb is at 3500 for "good" condition from private party. I know dealers are a little more, but about 80% of Tacomas I see for sale on Craigslist , are way higher than their blue book value and they still sell like crazy.. I wouldn't mind spending 5k, I just don't want it to break down on me with such high miles..