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Opinions, Keep or Trade?

2020SilverMidnight

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First, I am always more on the side of trade myself, as I trade at least every 2 years. But, I am torn in this decision for the first time in my life. My truck will be 2 years old Feb 7th, and it is a 2020 Big Horn 4wd with the Night edition pkg. It has the dual panel sunroof, which I love. It has 31,300 miles on it and runs like it did when it was new. It has always been serviced every 5000 miles. I put LED bulbs in all the exterior lights. So this truck really needs nothing. Well, except for tires.

Now, I am looking at a 2022 Laramie 4wd with the Sport pkg. It is of course significantly more money than what I paid for my truck. With exactly the same equipment that is on my Bog Horn except it has leather and cooled front seats. The truck built the way I want it is almost $61k.

While they are giving me payoff for my truck (I was upside down in my trade when I bought it), it does leave me paying a little more money. But it isn't about the money. I am torn because I absolutely love my truck now. I do like leather, but I am not sure I want it. I like having no miles or very few miles, but I am sure my truck still has a lot of life left in it. I love the tri white color of the Laramie, but I also love the billet silver of my Big Horn. So guys/gals I am torn. I have looked at other brands, maybe to sway me one way or another. But I keep coming back to Ram. I have had Ford and Toyota trucks as well, and I always like the Dodge Ram better.

So, what would you guys do? I am welcome to all opinions. I am not going to get upset or butt hurt one way or another. Just curious the path you'd take. Thanks in advance!
 

StraightArrow

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My $0.02…

I used to trade every 2-3 years as well. At some point, I realized how much money I was wasting on that steep “new truck” depreciation.

Now, I keep a truck at least until it’s paid off. (That is unless it’s a lemon…). When I finally do upgrade, it’s “more special” and I still have money for savings and other hobbies.

Plus, I don’t “lose” all that money I spent on upgrades (wheels/add-ons/tonneau cover/blah/blah).


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BowDown

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31K miles isn't a lot of miles, I put 277K on my 2003 with relatively little problems and none till around 250K.
If you love your truck, keep it and enjoy no payments for a while once you pay it off but no one here is going to be able to answer your questions for you
 

IvoryHemi

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Doesn’t sound like your sold on the Laramie, so just roll with your current truck or build one that you would be excited to upgrade into
 

Hydroblueguy

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First, I am always more on the side of trade myself, as I trade at least every 2 years. But, I am torn in this decision for the first time in my life. My truck will be 2 years old Feb 7th, and it is a 2020 Big Horn 4wd with the Night edition pkg. It has the dual panel sunroof, which I love. It has 31,300 miles on it and runs like it did when it was new. It has always been serviced every 5000 miles. I put LED bulbs in all the exterior lights. So this truck really needs nothing. Well, except for tires.

Now, I am looking at a 2022 Laramie 4wd with the Sport pkg. It is of course significantly more money than what I paid for my truck. With exactly the same equipment that is on my Bog Horn except it has leather and cooled front seats. The truck built the way I want it is almost $61k.

While they are giving me payoff for my truck (I was upside down in my trade when I bought it), it does leave me paying a little more money. But it isn't about the money. I am torn because I absolutely love my truck now. I do like leather, but I am not sure I want it. I like having no miles or very few miles, but I am sure my truck still has a lot of life left in it. I love the tri white color of the Laramie, but I also love the billet silver of my Big Horn. So guys/gals I am torn. I have looked at other brands, maybe to sway me one way or another. But I keep coming back to Ram. I have had Ford and Toyota trucks as well, and I always like the Dodge Ram better.

So, what would you guys do? I am welcome to all opinions. I am not going to get upset or butt hurt one way or another. Just curious the path you'd take. Thanks in advance!
I’m a trade every 2-3 year guy also. I say trade every 3 years or 36,000 miles. Yes I know this cost money, but I trade before I put any money into my trucks. However you can buy a lot of new parts for what a new truck, taxes, and loans cost. I have a 21 Laramie sport, the leather is kinda fake and the tiny vent holes in the seat always have something stuck in them, the cooled seats do feel cool on them hot sunny days. I will probably buy a new tundra trd pro or a Silverado zr2 next. I love the hemi, but hate to think about how reliable these rams or any new truck are when they get 50,000 - 60,000 miles. Good luck in whatever u decide👍🏻
 

2020SilverMidnight

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Thanks guys, I appreciate those who have expressed their thoughts. Keep them coming.

A little backstory, I was very very interested in the new Tundra that has come out. And I mean very interested, as the Tundra has always been one of my favorite trucks. But, I do window tint for a living, so I have the pleasure of seeing new vehicles quite frequently. After tinting two brand new 2022 Tundra Limited trucks with the TRD OffRoad pkg (which is what I was looking at), NO WAY am I buying one. Still a very cheap plastic truck in my opinion. Interior isn't that nice to warrant the extra cost. So I wrote it off immediately. Plus, the V8 is gone. I am not a fan of V6 turbo trucks. I know eventually most trucks, if not all, will go this route. But for me, as long as I can get a V8 I will.
 

Nsleone

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Well I’m certainly bias since I keep things basically forever🤣 but I will say the nice thing about the big horn is you can always add some the things a Laramie offers after the fact if you want and still save a little bit of money. By “things” I mean leather seats, LED lights, and so on. I’d stay with the big horn. You already did the led’s which is one of the bigger upgrades to Laramie, and the 22’s lose some features due to chip shortages you might not even realize initially. My truck has a 4 way lumbar on the driver seat, the new big horn and Laramie’s don’t. Only the new limited trucks. I know it’s a small thing but it might matter to you. Good ole shrinkflation is doing its work on the new trucks at least from what I can see
 

Mountain Whiskey

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First, I have to admit I am a vehicle hoarder. My wife thinks I need therapy because she is on her 3rd vehicle in her life. Me? I have thinned it down to three vehicles and two motorcycles currently.

That said, while a new truck is cool and all, it is more than money up front. Sounds like you have your current truck the way you like it. Tires are just a wear item, they don't count. (Well unless you upgrade. Rims are almost standard with tires but then comes the lift and other accessories) A new truck is just a whole nuther list of crap to tweak. Keep what you have until something special comes along. Not just leather seats that are going to wear out faster than your cloth seats. What happens when you trade the truck you like and the window leaks, the battery won't stay charged, any other list of things may be an issue. Drive this one till you get your money's worth out of it.

If you never want to actually own the truck, just lease it to begin with.
 

Idahoktm

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Go with your gut. It sounds like you're interested in upgrading, otherwise you wouldn't be looking at a new truck. Life is short... enjoy it.

I kept my last truck for 11 years and it was 13 years old. I really missed out on some nice upgrades over the years. I won't do that again.
 

squid013

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Depends on many things. With my 19 i bought used i was well upright when i bought it, then last year inwas offered 15k more than i paid so i went shopping and ended up adding 4k to my note and got a lower payment and added 6 months to it all.

It will be paid off early none the less. For me it was 4k to get a full factory warranty and the exact truck i wanted from thr start

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OldMarine

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happiness is not having what you want...it's wanting what you have. Keep a beautiful, well running truck, you have no idea what horror you might be getting into with a different one. I have 32,000 on my 19 Limited...it is just barely broken in, runs perfect, looks beautiful, and is paid for. Wouldn't/won't trade it even for the 10K more than I paid for it that Vroom offered me. Good luck!
 

PurpleRT

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IMO keep what you have. Not enough of a difference between the two and you still have low mileage. Anything you buy off a lot now unless your ordering from Mark Dodge or something you gonna end up paying MSRP plus with the chip shortage some features may not be available. Instead take a little bit of money and make your Big Horn your own and stop looking at other trucks because there always will be something bigger and better and not to mention the financial hit you tend to take every time you do that.
 

SD Rebel

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I usually change vehicles every 2-3 years, with full size trucks, assuming you got 15% - 25% off MSRP which is customary in normal times, you can easily make the change with plenty of equity assuming you have good credit.

However, in this market, even though your vehicle is worth more than a couple of years ago, so is the new vehicle and without the discounts, it may not be worth it, especially if the market changes in the next year or so and you get caught out on the market/depreciation curve, essentially buying at the top of the market.

Now, if taking that deprecation hit is fine for you, then do what makes you happy. But this market is so elevated and production so spotty, I recommend you wait.

Also note, there should be a pretty substantial mid-cycle refresh for the RAM 1500 for the 2023 model year. Why buy essentially a different variation of the same model, when a refreshed one is coming online is less than a year, probably 9 months away.
 

jgc650i

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With my daily driver I rarely make it to the 3 year mark before getting something new. My truck is used for fun and utility and not my daily driver, so I usually keep them at least 5+ years at a minimum. That said, with this crazy used car market right now I did just decide to transfer my equity to a new one while the used market is still so high. Have a 2019 Limited and just put an order in for a 2022 Limited a couple weeks back. Going to take advantage of hitting reset on the warranty and getting a couple of the new bells and whistles like the new Uconnect 5, HUD, digital rearview mirror, trailer surround camera system, etc. Yes, it will cost me a little bit (not all that much in context of what it would be in normal times), but with the insane equity in the existing truck from this Covid bubble it just seems like a lost opportunity to not take advantage of the market before it pops.
 

NRitland2

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First, I am always more on the side of trade myself, as I trade at least every 2 years. But, I am torn in this decision for the first time in my life. My truck will be 2 years old Feb 7th, and it is a 2020 Big Horn 4wd with the Night edition pkg. It has the dual panel sunroof, which I love. It has 31,300 miles on it and runs like it did when it was new. It has always been serviced every 5000 miles. I put LED bulbs in all the exterior lights. So this truck really needs nothing. Well, except for tires.

Now, I am looking at a 2022 Laramie 4wd with the Sport pkg. It is of course significantly more money than what I paid for my truck. With exactly the same equipment that is on my Bog Horn except it has leather and cooled front seats. The truck built the way I want it is almost $61k.

While they are giving me payoff for my truck (I was upside down in my trade when I bought it), it does leave me paying a little more money. But it isn't about the money. I am torn because I absolutely love my truck now. I do like leather, but I am not sure I want it. I like having no miles or very few miles, but I am sure my truck still has a lot of life left in it. I love the tri white color of the Laramie, but I also love the billet silver of my Big Horn. So guys/gals I am torn. I have looked at other brands, maybe to sway me one way or another. But I keep coming back to Ram. I have had Ford and Toyota trucks as well, and I always like the Dodge Ram better.

So, what would you guys do? I am welcome to all opinions. I am not going to get upset or butt hurt one way or another. Just curious the path you'd take. Thanks in advance!
This is always the hardest question to give an opinion too. It is so specific to the driver, your situation, and how much you like your current truck.
If I were you I would keep your current truck for a few more years and let the auto market and supply chain issues cool off ( if they ever)

That’s just my two cents.
 

PurpleRT

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If assuming you bought it new you drove the first 31k without ventilated seats or proximity sensors what’s stopping you from driving it another 31k without those features then seeing where the markets is at at that time and see what Ram is then offering ?
 

AngelPhoenix

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If it's doing everything you need it to do, and running smoothly, I'd keep. Take another look at a trade around the 50K mile mark, before the powertrain is up.
 

2020SilverMidnight

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Thanks guys, again, I appreciate all your thoughts. And again, there is nothing on my current truck I would change, it has everything I want or need. I don't need a Laramie or the other creature comforts that come with it. I am simply used to trading every 1.5-2 years. Sometimes sooner, but I have never kept anything over 2 years. Until now I guess.

Like one poster said, it's hard not to take advantage of the Covid bubble that the car market seems to be in. But I know I should keep what I have. I was only looking at a new truck because of the timeline for me, not because I need a new truck. I could live with and love my current truck forever, unless they do change up some things and make it more interesting. Then I might have to trade. But for now, I am simply going to order new wheels and tires next week and let it roll. This has been a good truck to me.
 

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