So I called the guy in West Haven with the Black 1998 before I headed down there. I forgot to ask yesterday, but I asked what year the engine was from. It turns out it was from a 1996, which may be legal in CT, but not everywhere. If I move I don't want to have a truck that I can't even register. I guess in CT they don't check the engine vin against the vehicle vin, but I know some states (CA, AZ, MD and others...)d0 and the engine has to be from the same year or newer.
I was back on the hunt and found this one:
http://providence.craigslist.org/cto/1247842409.htmlIn short, I offered $1500 and they said OK!!! I left a $50 deposit and will go pick it up tomorrow with the truck and the trailer. It is a little rougher then the pictures show, it has some damage on the rear bumper, front bumper, corner of the hood, and a little on the grill. The driver side seat bracket has a busted weld ( fixable), interior needs to be cleaned. The inside of the lift gate is missing the panel, the electric lock is on the floor, the rear wiper isn't working and the rear defrosted doesn't work. The passenger side window doesn't go down. The valve cover gasket leaks, and the brake fluid is black, the power steering fluid is pretty dark, and the coolant is still the orange color but could be changed. The oil looks ok, and the tranny fluid is ok, but I will change both. No check engine light, the underside was undercoated so no rust, no other drips or leaks besides the valve cover. Three of the tires are BFG long trails with about 75% trad left, and the other is a Good Year that has about 25% tread. Cold AC, all lights work, everything else looks ok. It was the cheapest 4wd under 200K I could find for the $$$. I needs a little TLC, but I am hoping to get a few years out of it.
kbb value for fair condition is $3150, so $1500 is not bad
