We, actually my wife, has saved up for some time to replace our 2005 Dodge Durango SLT that now (today/Oct 18, 2023) has 182,400 miles on it. Even with all of the repairs/maintenance costs we've invested in it, it has served us very, very well. Found the 2021 Durango GT on Autotrader that was being sold at a local Dodge Dealer. It has 28,000 miles on it, with all the "perks" that come with it, including a Back-Up Camera that is going to make hooking up the boat, launching/retrieving much easier. Actually, the dash looks more like an airline pilot's console. Numerous things to learn how to use. Guess most newer vehicles have the "push button" start and so does this one. Both of us have driven it and it's a total dream to drive. IOW, very quiet and smooth! We also got a nice repair package for electrical and engine repairs. Pick it up this Saturday and give them our 2005 Durango. All paperwork has been done and a deposit left to secure the vehicle for us. Have to make an appointment with DMV for Nevada license plate, as well as have U-Haul install a tow-bar on the back. The Dealer wants much more to install the tow-bar than U-Haul does. Now, the funny/weird thing: We still have our 2005 Durango, but the Dealer has already listed it on Autotrader! The Dealer put a picture of a new 2005 Durango, not ours, because we still have it. The milage is listed in the ad. Actually, the Dealer told us that they wouldn't sell our Durango on their lot, due to milage on it. They will send to an Auto Auction and get whatever they can out of it. Originally, the Dealer was going to give us around $500 for our Durango as a trade-in, but my wife talked them into $1,000. My wife told me this last Monday night, after we spent almost three hours at the Dealer waiting for paperwork and then signing all of it, "I'm already starting to miss this Durango", but we both knew we needed a newer one. All of the paperwork signing was almost like buying a house! Finally, no more rental cars needed! Just cancelled the one we had reserved for a few days during the NFR/National Finals Rodeo in Vegas. Wife is taking a couple of days off for that.
Congrats, Cody. Having a reliable vehicle takes a lot of stress off, and encourages you to not hesitate when you want to "just go" somewhere. My truck has been in the shop with various issues and I surfed the web looking at used ones before I gave the green light to do the work. Ain't nothing cheap out there, that's for sure.
Seems like numerous "bells and whistles" to learn. This Durango is so much more sophisticated than our 2005 is. This one will take us to: Lake Havasu, Carson City, Reno and, most likely, up to Lake Tahoe for a summer visit. What I still think is odd is that the dealership has our Durango on Autotrader for sale, but no price is given..............and, we still have our Durango!
Seems like they are not giving you very uch for your 2005 Durango. When I looked online the prices went from a low of just over $2,000 to a high (that i saw) of over $6,000, and an average of somewhere between $3-4,000 in price. With everything you have had done with yours, i would have thought it would have gotten a much higher price than $1,000 that they gave you. It will be interesting to see what they ask for it once they have your vehicle and are selling it.
@Cody Fousnaugh I bought a 2019 a few years ago. It was tough getting used to all of it. When I first got it, I gave a friend a ride to her doctor. When we left, a chime kept going off. I couldn't figure out what the problem was. Everything sets off a warning in new vehicles. I pulled over and was gonna restart the car to see if it would clear the error. Then my friend said "I don't have my seat belt on." That fixed it. @Yvonne Smith I thought the same thing, but there can be lots of variables (including location.) I saw 2-3 year old trucks with over 120,000 miles on them going for $25,000. It's a weird market.
Well, the two front seats aren't in the best condition and that can be easily seen. And, a vehicle with 182,000 miles on it isn't worth much. The Durango won't be sold thru the dealership. It will go to an auto auction, with "No Reserve" on any bid. IOW, the dealership will take whatever someone at the auction will pay for it. And, Yvonne, dealerships don't really care about how much money has been put into an old/older vehicle. All they know, and basically care about is the milage on it and looks. We did take great care of this Durango, but doesn't phase a dealership that much.
Bells and whistles. I was given a new Subaru Forester as a loaner while my Impreza was getting a recall done, and I did not feel like I was in control of it. It had some kind of lane centering when it didn't like where I aimed it, and bells and beeps were telling me what? I do not know.
Well it is too late now with signed papers. Used car dealers lie. Just the way of it. I have a 1996 Dodge and almost anywhere I go, people offer to buy it. Or maybe that is just a pick up line.
We recently bought a new Ford F150. It did not come with a manual like in the old days; there was more of a pamphlet referring to online support. We are still trying to figure out all the ridiculous features and turn off stuff like the reminder to check for children in the back seat. There is a screen in the middle of the dash that is larger than my ipad, and it has internet connectivity. Since trucks "used to be" mostly work/farm vehicles, I have to wonder what all that technology is for. I know we will never use most of the technology as long as we get the seats adjusted and turn on the climate control.
They are putting in metal items in the center lines in the roads around here for the warning that you are drifting while driving, I think. When I get into a newer car I am very distracted by all the tech . I still have my 2009 Toyota Matrix, manual trans, roll down windows. Less computer stuff to break. Hope it will be my last car.
My husband was planning to trade (or sell) his 2012 Jeep Wrangler this year or next, but the wreck pushed those plans up since the Jeep was totaled. With all the stuff going on with his mom's estate and other family mini-dramas, we just went to the closest Ford dealer and picked a truck from the lot, mainly based on color and looks. After a test drive and a bit of haggling we wrote them a check then got home and realized all the new features we will have to learn.
We are still driving my daughter’s 2000 GMC Sonoma, and it runs just fine. She has her new Mini Cooper (actually not new anymore, she has had it a couple of years now), plus she is working in the Netherlands, so she is not driving either one of her vehicles anymore. The truck is 4x4 and hard for short little me to get up into, and i would very much like to have an older economical vehicle to drive, but Bobby seems happy with the truck, so we probably won’t ever get another vehicle.
This car is like modern day farm equipment. Compared to my old farming days in high school, I can't believe how advanced todays tractors, combines, planters and other crop equipment are. The days of "non-techy" are definitely gone. We love "bells and whistles" and will learn all of them that come with this Durango.
I, just now, looked up the Kelly Blue Book on our 2005 Durango and answered all of the questions (to the best of my knowledge) and the $1,000 we are getting for a trade-in is right there at the top of the Kelly Blue Book trade-in value.