So i went to a dealership near me today, and looked at a 1998 Chevy Slverado 1500 4X4 Z71. its got a pretty nice body, one dent in the rear chrome bumper, the taillight is broken ( I was planning on buying euro taillights anyways) and it needs a yellow reflector in the front right part of the truck, otherwise it has a great body. it has 171,000 miles. the 2 problems with it are #1: it has an egr sensor problem, causing it to idle rough, and #2: the fuel gauge twitches like a crack *****, i mean that sucker seriously moves, not too far, just two or three needle widths, but it moves faaast. but the transmission doesnt smell burnt or look burnt, it shifts smoothly and does not slip. the price is $5950, and i was thinking of somewhere in the area of $5000. what do you guys think? (oh and it will need new tires very soon) thanks!

 

I had a 1998 Chevy silverado z71 and the gas gauge did the same thing. It had 200,000 on it and still towed race cars every weekend great. I would offer 4200

 

did you get the fuel gauge repaired at all? and if you did what did it cost? (and what was the problem)

 

Offer around $4,000 and negotiate till he meets you somewhere in the middle. KBB has it in very good condition at $4,700. Also check the ads in your area and see what they are going for there.

 

Just a suggestion, don't offer too low($4000 on a truck they want $5950 for) at a dealer. A private sale is altogether different, but if you want this truck then don't take a chance on offending the seller. Too low and he won't take you seriously loosing your leverage on a negotiation. My guess is that his low is somewhee around $5500, so I would start at $4800/$4900. Bring up the tires and repairs it needs and see if you can snag it for $5200/$5300. Remember that he is a dealer not a private seller fallin on hard times, he is in business to make as much off of you as he can-not break even or loose $. Good luck.

 

If the KBB is $4,700 for good condition, that means no repairs needed, which doesn't apply to this one (EGR sensor, fuel gague, taillight, etc...).
Based on your description, it's worth $4200 or so.
Offer $3900 and settle on $4250.
Don't worry about hurting the salesperson's feelings, I doubt they worry about hurting yours.
If you get for that price and they complain about getting shafted by you, then you got it right.

 

I agree they don't get their feelings hurt easily. It is a business trying to make money and they will not turn down a reasonable offer. They know how to play the game. They ask more than they will accept because they know they will have to negotiate.