Lightman said:
I'm buying an 04 because I dont want the extra year of depreciation the 03's already have, which negates any rebates they may have(currently 2500). The 04 has lost the cheesy fake woodgrain in favor of some sportier brushed aluminum of some sort, different front grille and body side moldings, gps nav available(dvd), and 48RE for 04 is beefed up even more, and exhaust brake compatible. Lastly and most importantly , I've done some exhaustive searching, and can't find an 03 with the exact options I want.
Depreciation on a diesel pickup? Krike, you haven't looked at used trucks lately have you?
If this business deal goes through, I'll need to buy yet another truck in addition to the new one I'm shopping for, and I've looked around at used diesels. Even a stripped down work truck with a diesel is outrageous. I agree the $2500
might rival the depreciation for being late in the model year, but the lower cash price will work out better in the long run. Plus I've not seen any pricing on '04's but there is always a bump in sticker price. I'll bet the rebates will be back in a couple months if not sooner. We got $1500 on the 1-ton back in April (plus a $500 farm bureau discount). Did you know about that rebate? Only costs like $50 to join the farm bureau and you can get a $500 rebate.
I wouldn't complain about any improvement to the 48RE as well. Even the Allison tranny is supposed to be spec'd fairly close to what the Duramax is putting out, and somehow I doubt the 48RE is as beefy as that. These new diesels are just torque monsters. I pulled my lightest load sunday (a Bobcat and 18' trailer, about 8,000#) and it was a joke. The guy I was pulling for normally uses a gasser F-250 and he couldn't believe I was pulling hills in 6th gear without slowing down. I was a bit surprised myself, but I'm used to much heavier trailers so I had no clue how it would pull light stuff.