Well, the old 1997 F-250 Light Duty gave it up last night. I had been hanging onto this one as it still seemed to run well but all the signs are telling me it is time to move this one along and upgrade to the 2018 F-150 I have been eying. It had to be towed back to my place. It appears that both the transfer case as well as possibly the head gasket let go last night. It will move under its own power but only in 4-low and it sounds like gravel inside the T-case. Coolant is also all over the place and the reservoir empty but pressurized with exhaust. Basically it will move under its own power up onto a trailer at this point but nothing more.
I don’t plan to spend a lot of time dealing with this so would rather let it go for parts or repair all at once than trying to part it out. I know there are some really oddball parts that were hard to find. For example, the shop always asks what the 6 or 8th number of the VIN is. I have the really rare one and it uses some really rare parts. I figure at this point the number of people still running these trucks or Fords such as Mustangs that might share common parts are far and few between and that the value is likely not much.
I know this uses a really odd 6 bolt crankshaft and a flywheel to match. I was going to just replace the flywheel when it needed a clutch and that wasn’t an option. Luckily turning it worked out fine. There were other 6 bolt flywheels available but the hole size and spacing is actually different than mine. It also uses the 7 lug rims which were getting hard to find if I needed them. I have an extra on hand as well as one on a spare.
Anyway, it was a good old truck while I had it but it is time to move it along and get that 2018. I don’t want to spend a lot of time parting out so am leaning to just getting rid of it for what it is worth but would like to maximize that value. I would consider parting out if there is some real unicorn of a part though that has value.
How’s the body and interior? If decent, around here (southern AZ), this truck would fetch at least $1500, even if the motor was locked up solid. Maybe even more, if the miles are relatively low (under 200k) and the body and interior are good. People post used trucks all the time, especially Toyota’s, with well over 300k miles, “needs new motor”, and they still want thousands of dollars for it. I look at those ads and laugh, but the ads do get taken down, so people are buying those vehicles.
Overall it is rough. That is why I am done putting any money into this thing. It came to me 15 years ago with 279,000. It never went up a mile so I have no idea how many miles are actually on it or were on it when I got it. Either way, it is high mileage and there is quite a lot of rust all over. A lot of stuff will need work soon so it is time to let it go. I am not even questioning that.
I figure I will post it for $1500 and see what happens. If it is more hassle than it is worth which is likely given my luck with Facebook Marketplace, I will call a scrap yard and have them come take it away or donate it. I will see which give the best financial benefit.
I remember talking to one of my Ford Mustang buddies and he said that flywheel is like unobtanium. People wanting to swap from automatics or needing a flywheel due to a clutch failure or whatever would pay a ton for them. I am not sure if this is still true or not. That was quite a few years ago and the Mustangs in question may be in the scrap yard by now.
I guess the only way to know for sure is to list and and see if there is a demand for the oddball parts, otherwise it will go to scrap. I don’t have time to deal with the nonsense of FB Marketplace this week so will do it next week. I swear I hate selling stuff on that site. All I deal with are illiterates and scammers. For that reason alone the scrap yard may be the best option.
Reading the description of this worn out truck I would not burden a charity with it . It is too costly to repair and really not safe for anyone. The charity would have to find a place to take it and hope they get some scrap value. After all that you can only claim what is left not what you think it is worth. Just see if you can get some money from a salvage yard and donate that amount .
If it’s that special the salvage yards will bid on it. Otherwise maybe a couple hundred and they’ll pick up. I think it is just getting too old for parts but what do I know?
If the body is rusty and beat-to-heck, there isn’t enough “meat on the bones” for anyone to want this to fix and drive. And at more than 279,000 miles, who is going to want mechanical parts from this thing? It sounds like you have succeeded in doing what I always try to do–you squeezed every last drop from this vehicle!
It’s not a 4x4 Toyota that is in a higher demand than most and almost bullet prof, so don’t expect much…
Your best bet is to post it on a F?50 forum as well as FB Market place, you will be very lucky to get $500 for it…
Call a few salvage yards or even some we haul, or we buy junk people and see what they offer, my advise is to take the highest bid and forget about it, not worth the headache for a couple hundred $$$ more while waiting a few months hoping it will sell for more.. IMO
If you can itemize your deductions which means they would have to be more than your standard deduction. You can only deduct what the charity gets for it and that has to be reduced by your tax bracket. If you are in the 15% bracket and you get a $200 deduction and you can itemize, you will reduce your taxes by $30.
Sounds like I found a solution that works best for me. The shop I use which is also the towing company that came to the rescue wants it. They say that the 7 lug Fords still come in a lot and new parts are quite expensive as I was finding. The rims alone are almost impossible to get and cost a fortune. I have two extra rims, one with the spare tire.
They say they will tow the truck back to their place and let it sit in the boneyard. Then they take a 20% cut or so of what they sell the used parts for and keep the rest for me. I won’t get the money tomorrow but over time they think it will add up to a sizeable amount, likely $1000 or more. The shop will of course charge labor to install the used parts for the other customers. Anyway, this sounds like a win-win for all of us. I don’t have to deal with the headache of troubles on Facebook Marketplace which I cannot stand and I will get more money in the end.
As for that 6 bolt flywheel, this one is different. Basically I ordered 3-4 6 bolt flywheels that should have fit my truck and kept having to send them back. Even the Ford dealer in town could not source the part. They kept giving me part numbers that I already knew wouldn’t fit. Since the flywheel was out at the time, I showed them the casting number and they couldn’t find any that matched it.
My charity of choice is donating used but still serviceable technology as well as sharing real world stories at the local schools. Many students cannot afford a computer at home and this gives them that option. Although I sometimes feel people are too dependent upon tech and don’t understand some of the basics, no one has a good chance in life these days without a connection to the tech world.
Yep! It will be gone and out of my hair while I don’t have to deal with any hassle and recover some money as well. There is no deadline for me to clean it out which is nice. I am dealing with some family obligations right now so the junker can sit there as long as it needs to. I hope to have it gone in two weeks though.
