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should I buy this B2300?


YT-1300

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SPECS
I looked at a 2002 Mazda B2300.
-regular cab with 111,000 miles
-5-speed
-4 cyl, 2.3L.
The seller is trying to flip trucks and said this was his first one. Answered all my questions and seemed nice.
Asking price: $6,000

THE BAD
-It looked like it was a work truck at one point: it had holes in the bed rails that looked like there was a bed frame attached, and there were dents and peeling paint on the back of the cab where the third brake light is, as if stuff was leaned there. The bed liner was pretty beat up.
-The seals on top of the doors at the bottom of the windows were either gone or worn out, and the metal on the passenger side one was dented. Looked like it's been pried off, then hammered back on.
-The door handle on the outside was missing. The door opened fine from the inside.
-There was some tin foil on what I'm assuming is the AC unit. It was the component up by the passenger side against the fire wall. It had tin foil on one side. I couldn't tell if it was OEM. Is this normal? The AC seemed to work ok.

THE GOOD
-The cloth seats (60/40 bench) looked decent, as did the headliner. The floor was plastic, which is fine with me (easier to clean).
-It has a new radiator, fan and thermostat (the seller called it a thermometer) and either an aftermarket muffler or one with a hole, since it made a "buzzing" noise when I drove it.
-It drove and shifted fine. Clutch felt tight enough, and the shifter was only a little loose, but this is only the 2nd one I've driven.
-The undercarriage looked ok.
-Brake fluid was a bit dirty
-Oil looked ok

MY THOUGHTS
I think $6000 is way too high. Blue book is $2600-$4400 in fair condition and $2800-$4800 in good condition. Is the used truck market is SoCal so hot now that $6,000 is justified? This is the 2nd seller that told me he flips Rangers. I see these trucks all over, so I figured they were cheap and that parts were readily available, but are they getting, or do they have, some sort of cache now?

I was looking at a 2001 Ford Ranger with a 3.0L V-6, 5-speed manual with 131,000 miles that sold for $6500 ($7500 asking) that was nicer cosmetically than this one. High blue book in excellent shape is $6200.

Thanks!
 


Colin

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$2500 seller is a jackass thinking he can get $6k for a beat up work truck.
Don't buy from flippers. The buy stuff at prices you should be buying and then do some "fixes" and try to sell it for at least double what they paid.
 

superj

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ranger edge
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3 liters of tire smoking power
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Manual
2WD / 4WD
2WD
Total Lift
none
Total Drop
none
Tire Size
235s
My credo
Grew up in the 70s, 80s, and 90s
Yup, so way to high. That's a 1k-2k , maybe, truck
 

Jazzer

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Hard pass, new thermometer or no. :mad:

-Jazzer
 

Uncle Gump

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My credo
Lead follow or get out of my way
You just keep looking... the right deal will come along. Be ready to pounce when it does.
 

Sloryd66

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Orlando, FL
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Mazda B2500
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4" Wulf
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265/65/17
My credo
If I learned from my mistakes, I'd be a genius !!
Pass and keep an eye out for a better deal. You’ll almost always inevitably have to throw a little money at whatever you buy as you discover things that should’ve been addressed by the previous owner(s) that got neglected. I always take that into consideration when looking at a used vehicle and either use it as a bargaining tool to see where the final price will truly be out of pocket if I need to fix some issues. That’ll tell you if the vehicle is a fair deal once you determine the final true buy price including the cost of the “fixes”.
 

YT-1300

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$2500 seller is a jackass thinking he can get $6k for a beat up work truck.
Don't buy from flippers. The buy stuff at prices you should be buying and then do some "fixes" and try to sell it for at least double what they paid.
I should find where these flippers buy trucks and go there. I think they have friends and neighbors that do the mechanical work for them, so they get it cheap. I'd like to tell them to detail the engine, wash the truck and get all their personal junk out of the way before I come look at it. This particular one is being used by the seller's dad as a daily driver, and all his crap was behind the seat. I went to move it back (I'm 6'-2") and ran into a bunch of shoes and other stuff.
 

superj

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Vehicle Year
2004
Make / Model
ranger edge
Engine Type
3.0 V6
Engine Size
3 liters of tire smoking power
Transmission
Manual
2WD / 4WD
2WD
Total Lift
none
Total Drop
none
Tire Size
235s
My credo
Grew up in the 70s, 80s, and 90s
Yes sir. There is a guy selling two mid 90s rangers for 1k here, and both run fine. You just have to have luck on your side and keep your eyes open
 

Colin

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I should find where these flippers buy trucks and go there. I think they have friends and neighbors that do the mechanical work for them, so they get it cheap.
Keep your eyes and ears peeled, look outside of your general area, tell your friends and family that you're looking for one. You do the mechanical work, that keeps the cost way down.

I'd like to tell them to detail the engine, wash the truck and get all their personal junk out of the way before I come look at it. This particular one is being used by the seller's dad as a daily driver, and all his crap was behind the seat. I went to move it back (I'm 6'-2") and ran into a bunch of shoes and other stuff.
Good luck with that....
New to buying used vehicles?
 

YT-1300

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Keep your eyes and ears peeled, look outside of your general area, tell your friends and family that you're looking for one. You do the mechanical work, that keeps the cost way down.

Good luck with that....
New to buying used vehicles?
Ha! :) No, but it just seems that people could be a little more deliberate about keeping a vehicle they are trying to sell neat and clean. I wanted to tell the guy to have his dad keep his crap in a duffle bag. There was a circular saw blade that could have ripped the seat!
 

YT-1300

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Seems like the going asking price here in Southern California is around $5,000 or so and up. I've seen a few for less; around $4,000. The cheaper ones were work trucks. I've widened my search to see if I can find what the flippers are buying.
Thanks for all the comments and help, I really appreciate it!
 

Colin

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2WD / 4WD
2WD
Ha! :) No, but it just seems that people could be a little more deliberate about keeping a vehicle they are trying to sell neat and clean. I wanted to tell the guy to have his dad keep his crap in a duffle bag. There was a circular saw blade that could have ripped the seat!
The only time I've bought a vehicle that I didn't need to clean as soon as I got home was from a senior or from a car person
 

James Morse

1997 XLT 4.0L 4x4 1999 Mazda B3000 2wd
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31x10.5-15 K02's on the Ranger, 235/75R15 on Mazda
My credo
The perfect is the enemy of the good.
Offer $1500
wait a while until more new cars out there then there will be more used
we hope
look for cab plus you will thank yourself
 

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