Decisions Decisions... Your thoughts?

Disclaimer: Links on this page pointing to Amazon, eBay and other sites may include affiliate code. If you click them and make a purchase, we may earn a small commission.

MattRobPhoto

Active Member
Joined
Sep 6, 2019
Posts
60
Reaction score
33
Location
San Antonio, TX
Ok... so, here we go! I have had Chevy 1500s for years. I lift them 4" and put wheels/tires and make them look all rough and rugged and they look REALLY nice. My current is a 2017... looks great! Drives and rides like crap in my opinion and while it's a 5.7 it's a slug!

I've ALWAYS wanted a Raptor! It's one of those trucks that are simply, BAD ASS. I don't HAVE to do a damn ass think to it to make it LOOK bad ass and/or to make it drive and feel BAD ASS! Yes, I can upgrade stuff but I don't have to! What a nice truck. It's pricey, but I have learned. you get what you pay for. IF you by a 29K Truck and dump 20K more into it in upgrades... you STILL have a 29K truck! Period! (eye roll) Hence, I'm a little upside down in my 2017 Silverado still. It looks great though! (more eye roll)

I have a bad ass pristine 2016 Z06 that SITS in the garage! I don't drive it! It's too precious and it's a pain to uncover and to move my truck over, then I have to be careful where I drive it... what's the weather like? Bla bla bla... I love the car, but I DO NOT DRIVE IT! I was thinking of selling the car and then paying down the truck and getting a raptor... but.....hold on! New plan.

I have thought and thought about the Trail boss, and the GMC At4 and all that... but I ALWAYS go back to the Raptor. Always. I've never even driven one!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Here's my thoughts and I just realized this! Duh! I have equity in the car... I could take the Z06 in and trade that bad boy in on the Raptor. Get WHAT I WANT... have it, then sell the Silverado outright and be DONE!

I'm pretty damn confident that I would drive that raptor EVERY DAY! It would NOT sit in the garage, it will NOT hide from rain or bad weather or the beach or WHATEVER!

Thoughts??????????????
 

nmp1

Full Access Member
Joined
May 30, 2019
Posts
315
Reaction score
343
Location
NJ
sell both and drive the raptor. you will probably save a decent buck on the insurance alone and owe nothing. ive been in your shoes, i just sold 2 sports cars i barely drive for a multitude of reasons. now i have a raptor on order and while i wont be daily driving it, i wont be afraid to use it more often and in all types of weather. to me the raptor is perfect if you want a mix between a muscle/sports car and and light duty pick up. fun to throw around and drive fast in but you can still do home depot runs, put all your friends and family in, or pull a trailer. they are pricey but they hold their values well and you really dont need to mod them. i always find myself explaining the concept to people that just because you dump money into a vehicle doesnt mean its more valuable. the trail boss/at4 is cool but its not a high speed runner like the raptor is, it is more of a rock crawler/heavy hauler (like a power wagon) and you cant drive it like a raptor. the raptor is so extensively modified from the standard f150 that is really isnt one. other manufacturers have made half ass attempts to compete but the truck is in a league of its own. how many times have we seen magazines and youtube channels not include the raptor in a "best off road truck" test because the raptor has such an advantage. and when they do include it its like bringing a machine gun to a knife fight and the other manufacturers cry like a little kid being picked on. "but but our truck has a v8. yeah and your v8 whatever just got destroyed by a "leaf blower" that make over 500 pounds of torque.
 
Last edited:
OP
OP
MattRobPhoto

MattRobPhoto

Active Member
Joined
Sep 6, 2019
Posts
60
Reaction score
33
Location
San Antonio, TX
YES! The insurance is KILLING me on that damn VETTE! And it just SITS there... looks hot and sexy but it just sits there. When I DO take it out I burn up due to the heat coming through the roof and frankly I can't see shit! I want a bad ass and FUN truck to drive that is SOLID! My current truck the Silverado 1500 is lifted and all that and ever since it just does NOT maintain the ride quality and it already rattling around making noises and all that mess.

I'm still a little upside down in the truck (17 Silverado), but I have a little equity in the car at "trade in value' so how does it work for my to trade both?? I could easily push them on the Z06 as they would want the damn thing of course. But the truck? What do I do there? Never delt with both vehicles before...???
 
Last edited:

nmp1

Full Access Member
Joined
May 30, 2019
Posts
315
Reaction score
343
Location
NJ
You could trade both and the dealer could owe you money if the raptor is less. The 1500 will probably be worth more stock to them and you could sell the parts. Or sell the 1500 privately and when it’s sold use the cash to pay off the raptor while using the vette and a down payment.
 
OP
OP
MattRobPhoto

MattRobPhoto

Active Member
Joined
Sep 6, 2019
Posts
60
Reaction score
33
Location
San Antonio, TX
I still owe a little more on the truck than what it's worth right now.
I will make a couple grand on the Vette.

So how does that work... they basically just pay off my Truck and take it from me.
Take my car, pay that note off and apply the couple grand towards the Raptor?.

I drive out with a BAD ASS new Raptor... ONE truck payment and a much lower insurance rate. Is this correct?

I'm essentially just "selling them" my truck for what I owe on it... MY "win" is that I'm free and clear of that note now. THEY get the benefit of selling my truck for much more than they paid me for it AND they get to sell off a Raptor out of their inventory. AND They get a VETTE that they will make BANK on!

Right??
 

GR8Ride

Full Access Member
Joined
Feb 17, 2019
Posts
443
Reaction score
200
Location
Upstate New York
As you know selling them both yourself will net more initial cash. It is a PIA to do so as it takes time and you lose some tax credit when purchasing the Raptor.
I would just trade them in at the dealer after doing some homework. Know what the true market value is for each. Then do each transaction separate. This will clearly determine that you are getting what you expected from each vehicle. When negotiating for the Raptor that is also handled separately. Start your hunt by telling the dealer that you are ready to buy a Raptor. 2019’s are selling below invoice so make an offer around that target. Get that deal squared away then move to each trade separately.
Just as I was told here on the forum and they were sooo right...don’t wait you will never look back. I smile every single day since May when I made a similar decision.
Good luck!


HAPPILY EVER RAPTOR
 

Jonny V

FRF Supporting Member
Supporting Member
Joined
Mar 22, 2019
Posts
712
Reaction score
668
Location
Carnation, WA
I’ve had my Raptor for 3 1/2 years and it still makes me grin every time I get in it. Take both of those rigs down to the dealer and :grd:
You’ll discover that you do a whole different type of mod to a Raptor...lift kits are for looks. And as bad ass as a Raptor is, it’s not built for looks. It’s built for high speed off roading. It’s not really all that good for towing or mud bogging or carrying a bed full of gravel. Your current truck is probably better for any one of those chores.

Raptor mods are generally aimed at one thing...making an already stupid fast off roader even faster. I’ve owned four wheel drive trucks my whole life (I’m 52). None of them are even half what the Raptor is. My 2012 SVT is superior to ANY new four wheeler on ANY dealer lot, with the possible exception of a new Raptor. Yours will be the same. You’ll never look back.
 
Last edited:

Badgertits

FRF Addict
Joined
Jan 24, 2019
Posts
2,730
Reaction score
2,376
Location
Ma
I should comment since I came from 3 GM trucks (last was a ‘15 6.2 GMC all terrain lifted like yours) - the GM trucks w/ the 8 speed trans K2 versions are.....suspect, build quality is spotty & the tranny is known to be trash, that being said I think they’re honestly the best LOOKING generation of trucks in the last 20 years. GM makes vastly superior V8 engines....but I only missed the V8 growl for about 5 mins after my raptor purchase-

I literally just came from 48 hr road trip (Boston to philly & back next day) 850 miles total due to some sidetracking- the truck is soooo much more comfortable, composed, better handling, & “tighter” in every way than my last GM trucks.

All that being said....I also have a vette, a modded C5 Z06 I own outright only has about 40k miles on it....& I don’t want you to be misled, while I’ve had multitude of vehicles (25+) many different types the Raptor is EASILY my favorite all around vehicle & best DD hands down....however the C5Z is still my favorite & holds the title as the single vehicle I have held on to longest @ 7.5 years.

Truth be told I had intended on taking some cash I’d saved up + my C5Z title in hand & buying a new leftover 2018 Z06 that I got down to like $67.5k if I remember correctly- & then a deer stepped out in front of my GMC @ 70mph & totaled it....so I needed another DD not another toy, for a brief moment contemplated taking that cash I saved up ($15-20k) + the stupid $33.5k ins. Payout (owned GMC outright) + C5Z & going bonkers @ GM dealer getting another new GM truck + a C7 z51....but then I drove the raptor & all bets were off.

I’m extremely happy w/ the Raptor purchase & you would be as well I’m sure, but nothing is gonna out the same grin & satisfaction on your face as ripping that vette around town.

Bottom line- I still vote for you to get raptor but recommend trading down to a C6 or C5 Z06 or something like that to still have a toy car to whip around.
 

smurfslayer

Be vewwy, vewwy quiet. We’re hunting sasquatch77
Joined
Dec 16, 2016
Posts
16,074
Reaction score
23,561
So, don’t look at this for resolving a financial headache. You’re right side up on the ‘vettte, upside down on the truck. Probably a bit more so on the truck based on your post. To me, the issue here is that the current truck is modded and lots of money dumped in it and you still owe. This isn’t going to change by purchasing a Raptor.

The Rap is an expensive truck and costs more than it should. Don’t get me wrong, 2.5 years in I can honestly say I’d buy Lucille all over again. What concerns me here is that it sounds to me like you’re going to create a pretty big financial hole for yourself to dig out of.

Now, if you can sell the z06, dump that money on to paying for your current truck and make the financials right side up, then I’d consider the Rap.

The Rap is a fantastic, do it all vehicle and it can do quite a lot of off road shenanigans really, really well. Even so, it has decent on road manners for a huge truck, could fit a family of 5 silverback gorillas in the cab while hauling a bunch of American Tourister luggage in the bed for them to destroy, in air conditioned comfort. So aside from not fitting well in garages everywhere, it’s a great substitute for SUVs with a lot more fun factor.

So if you can make the money work, great, now is a good time to be Raptor shopping. But don’t use this as an excuse to make bad money decisions.

HTH
 
OP
OP
MattRobPhoto

MattRobPhoto

Active Member
Joined
Sep 6, 2019
Posts
60
Reaction score
33
Location
San Antonio, TX
Wow! What a GREAT forum and great advice. I appreciate all of you taking the time to reply and offer me the insight here. Thank you all so much!

Ok...so! That pretty much settles THAT "decision!" LOL! I am freakin EXCITED! We now move into "WHEN."

The good thing here is that I have options and as time continues, I continue to pay down both of the current vehicles, so that's all positive.

In terms of "when"... I know it's a great time of year to jump on the 2019's, but what about waiting for the 2020's? Given the financials, I'm not sure that would be "worth" all of the increased pricing. I would bet I could get a pretty fair deal on a 2019 still.

There are some specifics that I would LOVE to have and since I'm going in deep, I think I should HAVE them and not settle! I want that grey color with those gun metallic wheels and not the polished aluminum wheels. Any thoughts there? Is that a certain configuration/model I need to look for?
 
Top