To sell or not to sell? Opinions needed

Well this is gonna be a long scenario to draw out but could really use some opinions so appreciate any help. For starters I have just graduated college and pretty sure I snagged a very solid and comfy job for post grad life I start in August. At this point I have a 2011 single owner clean carfax tacoma 4x4 single cab with 63000 miles (auto) I purchased outright for 11000 owned by a grandpa and the only real mods include an arb bumper and new rims/tires (easily traded over). My new job requires a 40 mile commute each way and mostly highway so at this point I’m debating selling the tacoma and getting something more economical for the time being and then eventually snag a second car that is more for off-roading in the near future. I just found someone selling a one owner 2007 regular cab 4x4 manual with 188,000 miles with a squeaky clean report (great service history, it was owned by a family business and supposedly has a frame you could eat off of with just normal dents and scratches that a maintenance truck would have but was never used to haul) and I think I can get it for 5500. It was also just serviced 1000 miles ago and has: new water pump, thermostat, clutch, flywheel, 2 new tires, fluids, and not new but good brakes and bearings. Rather than getting a new good mpg car now I could sell the one I have (assuming around 14k) and get the 2007. Pocket 9ish grand and in 4/5 months after making sure the job is stable get a four door car or whatnot. Does this sound smart or stupid? Should I just keep the 2011 tacoma that has never let me down once? I also assume that low mileage reg cabs 4x4 are hard to find and I don’t see the point in driving the miles up so quick on mine when I can do that with one that has high miles. I also plan on off-roading quite a bit so I’m slightly afraid to beat it up too much since at this point it’s still an investment to me. Or should I just sell now and get a new better mpg car now and in the future get a truck for off-roading? Also is 5500 a good deal for a truck like that?

Thanks for the help if anyone actually decides to read that massive wall.

 

If the truck is paid for, just keep it for now and buy gas. It will take you a while to use up in gas what you would have spent buying a different vehicle.

 

Keep what you got, low miles and you will know quickly if the truck will work. Then make a choice.

 

Dude you have a paid off reliable truck that stole for $11k and will run another 20 years without any issues. You are going to trade it for something that will require more maintenance and not as nice for what? A couple of mpg's? Gas is cheap. Keep the truck you have. You will regret it.

Having a good comfy job you shouldn't be worried about the $5 or $10 a week you could save with a more fuel efficient car. Focus on saving money other places and not eating out/spending money at bars etc.

 

I wouldn't want to give up your current vehicle that you know the history of and has low miles.

Eat the gas for a while and save up to get a commuter. Or at least enough to put a good down payment on a car.

 

I'll give you $5,000 right now for your truck.

 

Well there’s the other option of buying the older 2007 tacoma that would ideally be just as reliable as well right? Great service history and wouldn’t mind banging it up since it’s older and has more miles? And that extra 8/9 grand I could put towards another car in 6 months? Thanks for the replies guys!

 

Keep what you have,you are NOT going to end up with $9000.00 in your pocket when all is said and done.

 

Keep what you have,you are NOT going to end up with $9000.00 in your pocket when all is said and done.[/QUOTE]
Is that due to the high miles? Cause all the important stuff was fixed 1k miles ago and the carfax is super clean. Has tons of service history too.

 

Do a year or so at the new job before you make this decision. Communing in your truck for that long won't rack up that many more miles.

 

100k+ more miles is a ton of miles to get into. Figure out what your budget is going to look like with the new job, start setting aside a "X" amount of money every month to go towards a commuter, and before long, you'll be there.

If the new job doesn't work out, you still have no car payment, the same truck as before, and maybe you'll get a job closer to you anyway.

No need to be hasty - the amount of gas you will be saving in a single cab tacoma shouldn't make or break you.

 

Wait, you already have a single cab, just an auto instead of manual? Is your current a 4.0L and the 2007 is a 2.7L? Or is it purely not to put more miles on the newer truck??

 

Purely to not put more miles on a newer, less miles truck as well as have more money in the bank for a second car. And I won’t feel so guilty banging up a 5k car vs 13/14k off-roading

 

If it were me, Id keep the truck, and put as much as possible into savings your first year. Reassess how the job is going after one year, then consider moving closer to work.

 

Why not go with the older truck then? Cause not sure if it will be as reliable? Thanks for the reply really appreciate it!

 

Personally, I would not sell. The difference between the two trucks on MPG is so small that it would be thousands of miles before you made up the difference. If you are really worked up about the MPG then find yourself a small sedan which can be dedicated to commuting and keep your paid off truck

 

I drive over 50k miles a year for work and this is what I did. camry, carolla, honda. Pick them up wicked cheap. not bad on insurance and you can find parts everywhere. I have a 2015 ac with 34k miles and it makes it more a joy to drive on weekends as a play thing.

 

I may have explained it poorly. But it’s not the difference in MPG between the two trucks, it’s the fact that I will have 2 cars sooner or later and one will for sure be an overland/ off-roading vehicle. So do I sell the one I have for a new car with better mpg right away, or sell the one I have for the 2007 which the difference in costs (about 9,000) will allow me to buy a better mpg car quicker.

 

Because its a huge gamble for not much gain. You have a good idea on the reliability of yours. You know less about potential hidden issues on the old truck. At 188,000 miles, its life expectancy isnt going to be very long if you're putting 80 miles a day on it. In fact, my wager is on the older one not lasting one year before you really start getting into the major repairs.

There are lots of things to worry about when transitioning to a new job. Don't add the time and expense of swapping cars to that.

 

I would still keep your current truck, save till you can get the fuel efficient beater/commuter then sink money into your truck that you have low miles on.