They cost too much these days to trade off all the time like we used to.
They also retain a much higher percentage of their original value than they used to.
His truck would sell to a private party here for $16K-19K. It would be over $20K on a dealers lot. That is probably 60-70% of what it cost new.
The longer he keeps it the value drops and the cost of a new truck goes up. He can trade it today and put $15K-$20K with it and buy a new truck. Or wait 5 years and get $5K for it and expect new trucks to increase in price by another $5K. And hope he doesn't spend $5-8K on a new engine and transmission.
Everything is a gamble, pay your money and take your chances. If the truck were 2-3 years newer I'd say keep it. Two-3 years older and closer to 150,000 miles and it'd be better to just keep it. This one could go either way, but I'd make a decision before you hit 100,000 miles. It is a lot easier to sell one with 99,000 on it than 101,000.
