Running my own business (sort of)

[stewart8980]

Hey guys. So last night I met up with a girl who I was friends with in middle and high school. During our talk, it was brought up that her dad is looking to sell his old pickup truck that he barely used anymore, and it just so happens that I need a new car.

It is a 1991 GMC Sierra 1500 1/2 ton.

It looks like this but dark red and minus the bed rack:



Basically he is offering me the truck for $500, but there are some issues with it.

1. The brake lines need to be replaced.
2. The transmission needs to be flushed and refilled.
3. The windshield has a crack that needs to be either repaired or replaced.
4. The rear slider window is shattered (not important).

Other than that, the truck has about 120,000-140,000 miles on it and is in great shape.

He gave me an interesting proposition. Mind you, I am 4 months from 18, so I am still relatively young when it comes to buying a car. He offered to "pay" me $10 an hour to do odd jobs around his house until I payed off the cost of the truck (essentially 50 hours of housework). For a person in my financial situation, the idea of receiving a truck for some housework sounds like a really good deal to me.

After talking to him, the idea popped up in my head that next summer, it could be a good idea to post some classifieds or flyers to see if I could make money doing odd jobs around my town, since I would have a work-capable truck.

So my grand idea is to pawn some items that have just been sitting around my house that won't be missed, pay for part of the truck and work off the rest, fix the truck whilst learning about how to maintain a vehicle, and eventually next summer, make some money doing jobs with the truck. To me it sounds like a great way to accomplish a few things I've always wanted to do, at once.

What do you guys think?

Any comments, thoughts, suggestions, warnings, etc are appreciated.

[IconBasser]

sounds like a helluva lot of work to fix up that truck, but hey, I don't know the first thing about working on cars.

[jive1]

As a guy who owns a business, I say with a hearty voice - GO FOR IT!

Right now your tuition for the lessons you learn running a business is cheap. The tuition is much harder when you get older and have more responsibility.

Look at it this way, even if your business fails, you will learn some great lessons that will help you for the rest of your life.

One thing I do recommend is to get business insurance, just in case you mess up and have to pay for damages.

[MakiSupaStar]

Right arm dude! Right arm!

[tycobb73]

I would focus on the moving business. My in law has done it with decent results.

[MJ5150]

Sounds good, but I would put some limits around what kind of housework he is going to make you do. If not, for the next 50 hours, you will be the guy to do all the crap work around his house that he doesn't want to do.

-Mike

[Kawai-chang]

Well, you're looking at a few hundred for the windshield, maybe less if you can find one in a boneyard. Tough install though. Tranny flush and fill, if you do it is the cost of the fluid, shouldn't be too hard. Brake lines. Well my philosophy has always been: Stopping is good. Personally I'd take it to a mechanic and have a pro do that. Few more hundred.

Not trying to dampen your spirits on the vehicle, but just want to let you know that there are going to be some costs involved.

If he's willing to do it, could you do your plan to include some of the repair costs as well as the purchase price?

[Jonyak]

Originally Posted by Kawai-chang

Brake lines. Well my philosophy has always been: Stopping is good. Personally I'd take it to a mechanic and have a pro do that. Few more hundred.

bwahaha this made me laugh out loud.

hose repairs will probably run you about a grand total.

as for he business thing it is a great idea. I would even consider finding someone who would contract you and your truck for work.

[bigfatbass]

There is really no such thing as a transmission "needs" a flush and fill. Saying it requires this service is just saying it is showing some transmission issues, and rinsing out the loose bits of metal MAY mask the problem and get you down the road for a bit before you have to replace the whole thing. Not a deal breaker since you can work off the main initial nut, but plan on spending close to $2k (including the brakes and the other stuff) to get it ready to handle being a working truck again. If you have a mechanic you trust have them check it out and see what they think it might take to make it solid.

Again, not a deal breaker considering the possible work=truck arrangement, but like the others above me in the thread, we want you to be aware of the investment that may be required.


I applaud your initiative!

[DRafalske]

I don't think that guy is really doing you a favor by selling that truck to you for $500. Transmission issues, brake issues, glass repairs. Yeah, easily 2 grand to get that back on the road again if you can't do any of the work yourself.
You better check with your insurance too. If you're hauling stuff for other people, and getting paid, then you're a commercial vehicle. Insurance may not carry that for someone your age.
If it all works out though, then go for it. Nothing like being your own boss.

D

[stewart8980]

Thanks for all the input guys!

I've talked to him more about it, and realized that if the truck is still covered by his insurance than he could get the windshield replaced for free. Other than that, I calculated out all of the cost, and the parts alone (plus the truck) will come out to be around $1300-$1400.

Housework- He told me that he had some landscaping he wanted help on, and possibly powerwash his house (it's not that big). I know nothing about powerwashing, but I've done landscaping before.

As for having a trusty mechanic, I am actually on a friendly basis with a guy who owns a garage a town over (through surfing- what are the odds?).

The brakes- He told me in complete sincerity that only the lines needed to be replaced, not the pads or the discs.

As for the $$$-

I have an extra Jazz bass I can sell (incidentally the truck guy also runs a music store in New London, CT) to him, plus an old amp. I also have 2 old PlayStation 2s and an old Xbox I can pawn.

Any other ideas for making money would be appreciated.

[Let It Fall]

im all for old trucks and fixing them up. Look for a junk yard nearby and do the work yourself it wont cost much.

HOWEVER

That he says the transmission needs a flush and a fill [and a filter] is kinda iffy. By all means its cheap and easy to do yourself, but WHY does it need that? He probably thinks the transmission is going and that will fix it. Transmissions are funny, sometimes new fluid will fix them [I experienced this] however i would not guaranty it or say without a doubt thats all it needs. And its not like hes just telling you because of maintenance, because if he were he would have MANY more things that need to be done.
-belts
-spark plugs
-spark plug wires
-differential fluids
-radiator fluid
-timing belt [if its a belt]
-air filter
-tranny filter
-vaccume lines
-brake fluid
-belts

And second, its all fine and dandy that you need to replace brake lines.. BUT WHY... There is a problem, nobody just wakes up one day and decides there is two things their truck needs transmission fluids and brake lines. Something caused him to mention them, if they were just rusty, he wouldn't have mentioned it. His brake pedal probably is spongy or very weak. It may have leaks [which is NEVER good in breaks]

[stewart8980]

Originally Posted by Let It Fall

That he says the transmission needs a flush and a fill [and a filter] is kinda iffy.
And second, its all fine and dandy that you need to replace brake lines.. BUT WHY...

As for the transmission, he explained to me that he thought it shifted fine, until it had to go from 3rd to 4th, but I have no idea what that means the porblem is. He said it would still shift, but was clunky.

As for the brakes, I have no idea why, but I will definetly look into it.

I'm kind of hoping that repairing something like this will help me learn about maintaining cars, so that way I'll know the right thing to do when there's a problem with a vehicle that really matters.

[Stumbo]

Originally Posted by stewart8980

AHe said it would still shift, but was clunky.

It''ll be due for a rebuild soon enough.

As for the brakes, I have no idea why, but I will definetly look into it.

Sounds like the truck is kinda beat and uncared for with a lot of deferred maintenance. I'd guess that most of the other required maintenance wasn't done as well.

How the oil? When's the last oil change? I'd get a compression test done on the engine to determine the actual wear and tear on it. Mileage is only one gauge.

I'm kind of hoping that repairing something like this will help me learn about maintaining cars, so that way I'll know the right thing to do when there's a problem with a vehicle that really matters.

Unless you have the correct (expensive ) tools, nothing gets done properly on a car or truck, especially for the big stuff.

Seems to me you'll be putting in a lot of hours and money for repairs. What about insurance? Who much wear do the tires have? Check the air cleaner filter...see how dirty it is. There may be hidden problems.

Maybe there's an Autoclub in your area. They have inspection stations where you can pay around $50 and get a reliable report on what's wrong with your vehicle. Sounds like a good idea before you jump on this.

Adjust your purchase price based on the amount of work/costs needed to be done on it.

It's no fun to break done on the highway with a load
Good luck.

[MJ5150]

Man, forget all these guys questioning the mechanical stability of the truck.

Just make sure it has a kickin' stereo system with some subs behind the seats, a few LEDs mounted under the seats and dash, and a pair of fuzzy dice hanging from the rear view mirror. If you hear some funky sounds when driving, crank up the stereo volume.

-Mike

[DRafalske]

Originally Posted by stewart8980

The brakes- He told me in complete sincerity that only the lines needed to be replaced, not the pads or the discs.

You act like this is something minor.
I work on cars on the side. I can replace a set of pads and rotors in an hour or less depending on the vehicle. Replacing the lines is a totally different animal. Much more time consuming, and thus, expensive. You'd be better off if it "only" needed pads and rotors.

Good luck.

[stewart8980]

So do you think that this truck sounds like a better deal? Since the only thing it "appears" to need is a new caliper?


http://providence.craigslist.org/cto/1813872195.html

I don't really care about the exterior as long as there is minimal rust
I'm not committing to anything, I'm just trying to figure out the best way to save some money in this

[MatticusMania]

Originally Posted by MJ5150

Man, forget all these guys questioning the mechanical stability of the truck.

Just make sure it has a kickin' stereo system with some subs behind the seats, a few LEDs mounted under the seats and dash, and a pair of fuzzy dice hanging from the rear view mirror. If you hear some funky sounds when driving, crank up the stereo volume.

-Mike

You sold KeithBMI the unce unce failtruck, didnt you?

[DRafalske]

That looks like a better deal as long as it runs and drives ok. 117k miles is not a lot. The frozen caliper, in and of itself, is not a huge deal. Frozen calipers can, and often do, cause collateral damage to the pads and rotor on that wheel. The rotor might be ok, but the pads almost certainly need to be replaced as well. The good news is brake parts for that truck are ridiculously cheap, and these are the types of things you can fix yourself with basic hand tools if you don't mind getting dirty. Your local library probably even has online shop manuals you can access from home if you have a library card (mine does).
A shop would probably charge a few hundred to replace a caliper and set of pads. The parts are probably less than one hundred of that.

[sloasdaylight]

Originally Posted by MatticusMania

You sold KeithBMI the unce unce failtruck, didnt you?

haha