New guy

[SteelHorseCowboy]

Hey y'all! New here, just wanted to ask a quick question or few.
Currently driving a 2012 Dodge Avenger
*gag* *vomit*
Hate it.

Really in need of a truck, really can't afford one, not even an old beater. This is also why I have the crap mobile Avenger, it's what I could afford.

I have an opportunity to place a bid on a 2005 Tahoe. Yeah, not a truck but it's better for my needs than what I've got.

It's a retired cop car (K-9). This makes it better for me than a regular consumer market SUV. Everything is vinyl, open cargo area. First thing I'd do is yank the rear seat out.

Oh, might help to know I'm a sewer system superintendent of a very small town of 1,500 people. This ride would be used for work, hunting and fishing. Meaning it will be subjected to nastiness. A lot of nastiness.

It hadn't been cranked in over a year and a half. I jumped it off yesterday and after a few moments of pinging it smoothed out and purred like a kitten, Vortec V8. I checked a few things out. Everything works except the lights and sirens have been removed. Trans fluid don't look bad, oil looks like tar, coolant is where it's supposed to be and looks surprisingly clean.
Something's broken with the front suspension on one side. Local mechanic's already checked it out, said it's about a $300 fix. Can't remember what it is.

My question is, the dash came up with 140K miles and 6,000 hours. I know cop cars tend to sit at idle pretty often. Do these numbers add up to decent run times? By that I mean, does it seem like it's spent far too much time sitting at idle, or does this seem normal?

Opening bid is $400. There's been almost no interest from the public, I'm thinking of placing a bid for 6-7 hundred.

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[HiHoeSilver]

Hey y'all! New here, just wanted to ask a quick question or few.
Currently driving a 2012 Dodge Avenger
*gag* *vomit*
Hate it.

Really in need of a truck, really can't afford one, not even an old beater. This is also why I have the crap mobile Avenger, it's what I could afford.

I have an opportunity to place a bid on a 2005 Tahoe. Yeah, not a truck but it's better for my needs than what I've got.

It's a retired cop car (K-9). This makes it better for me than a regular consumer market SUV. Everything is vinyl, open cargo area. First thing I'd do is yank the rear seat out.

Oh, might help to know I'm a sewer system superintendent of a very small town of 1,500 people. This ride would be used for work, hunting and fishing. Meaning it will be subjected to nastiness. A lot of nastiness.

It hadn't been cranked in over a year and a half. I jumped it off yesterday and after a few moments of pinging it smoothed out and purred like a kitten, Vortec V8. I checked a few things out. Everything works except the lights and sirens have been removed. Trans fluid don't look bad, oil looks like tar, coolant is where it's supposed to be and looks surprisingly clean.
Something's broken with the front suspension on one side. Local mechanic's already checked it out, said it's about a $300 fix. Can't remember what it is.

My question is, the dash came up with 140K miles and 6,000 hours. I know cop cars tend to sit at idle pretty often. Do these numbers add up to decent run times? By that I mean, does it seem like it's spent far too much time sitting at idle, or does this seem normal?

Opening bid is $400. There's been almost no interest from the public, I'm thinking of placing a bid for 6-7 hundred.

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Without question. Do it. The hours are good for the miles, which are low, especially for a police truck. The 05 is one of the best years in many opinions (mine included).

Change all the fluids, fix the front end, and drive that thing like you stole it, which, at that price, you may as well have.

 

[Big Mama]

The truck was probably taken out of service a while ago. Most pd’s stop at 70-90k. Like ** said jump on it that things got an easy 100k or more left in it.

 

[915_Tahoe]

i'd go for it, even if it comes back as juck you can make money off for parts or resale on the street.

 

[SteelHorseCowboy]

Big Mama, it was probably retired from it's original PD at a bigger city around that many miles, then passed on to our small town PD. Just found out yesterday it was passed on to my sewer department about three years ago when the PD got all brand new vehicles I believe from a state grant. The putz it was given to didn't like it, so parked it and it hadn't been cranked since, until I jumped it off Sunday.

Here's a gripe:
So the PD is whining that they need new vehicles.
Truth is, they probably do, because they haven't been maintained at all. Overheard one of them saying a couple haven't had an oil change in over a year (I reported this) in the hopes they'll die and get replaced.
The kicker to overhearing that? I heard the officer mention this WHILE I WAS UNDER my work issued beat up POS 2008 F-150 banging on the starter while my assistant turned the key. Because the town's so poor we couldn't get a starter.
The PD wants 2019 Suburbans. Decked out for police use, last I heard was around $80-$90 grand each, depending on all the options.
I hate our 5 cops. Have a lot of cop friends, and know many in neighboring PDs. But our 5 are just flat out dirty.

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[SteelHorseCowboy]

Sorry, forgot about this thread. Found out when I tried to turn in my bid, I can't bid on town auctions for ethics and transparency policies. Basically, can't allow anyone the opportunity to try to claim I won by knowing the right people.

It's okay though, cause the winning bid was several hundred bucks more than I was willing to bid anyway. The new owner still got it for a steal, I think around 1K.

 

[MrBalll]

Had any luck finding anything else?

 

[SteelHorseCowboy]

Yes and no. What I really need more than an SUV is a 4X4 truck. I was leaning towards that Tahoe mostly because a former K9 unit is about the next best thing especially at the price it sold for.

So here's the yes and no part:
Plenty of good deals around here right now. The bad, these "good deals" are cropping up right after a series of major floods. So I'm very leery of buying any truck that seems priced abnormally low, seeing as this area (Monroe/West Monroe LA) is notorious for people selling their second hand junk at near new prices. I did find a certified pre-owned truck at a nearby dealership, but it's out of my price range by about 3 grand. If I finance one, I'm trying to keep my payments low because we're also looking to buy a house.

I've started looking in my Mom's area, in the red hills of Mississippi near Starkville. Folks around there ask more fair prices and they haven't been continuously under water for the better part a year.

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[iamdub]

LOL@dirtyOuachitaParishcops

I know that's no help, but I had to.

 

[SteelHorseCowboy]

LOL@dirtyOuachitaParishcops

I know that's no help, but I had to.

I think I know more cops than civilians, and have no complaints about any of them on a professional or personal level. Except the cops of a certain town I won't name because my paycheck is written at the same town hall.

Here's a funny one: back before I moved from Mississippi and lost my Cadillac in a divorce, a Mississippi Highway Patrolman pulled me over. He caught me red handed doing 90mph on I-55 in that Caddy.
This dude was so polite, courteous, and professional that I ended up THANKING him for my ticket.
It wasn't until I was a few miles down the road that I started thinking, "Wait, WTF just happened?"
Oh, my ex wife lost that car before the divorce was even finalized. She hit two deer and got plowed from behind by a drunk driver. Not all at once, it was several days between each incident. Karma, or Carma?
Man I miss that car. Going from a fully loaded DeVille to a base model Avenger is one hell of a step down. It doesn't even get as good gas mileage and I ain't figured out how the hell a little four banger sucks more gas than a 300 V8.

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