Here’s Why This 1997 Ford Dump Truck Is Almost a Steal at $72K
Just last year, this one-of-one diesel dump truck sold for nearly $85,000.
You're looking at one of the cleanest '90s Ford trucks left. It only gets sweeter when you learn it has a 7.3-liter Power Stroke diesel, a ZF-5 manual transmission, and just 1,600 miles on the odometer. Obviously, it's also a dump truck, and that's why some people are scratching their heads—why spec an F-350 so specifically for work and never use it? That didn't stop someone from bidding $72,050 on it and winning the auction on Wednesday. And while it may seem hard to believe, they actually got a steep discount.
See, I wrote about this truck in 2023. I spoke with the previous seller, Anthony Clavenna at Gateway Car Connection, who specializes in pre-emissions diesel pickups. He acquired it from New York and told me, "Basically, the truck was ordered by a guy that owned a large Ford store. He ordered it and hauled one load of gravel in 1999, so that's the only thing that's ever been in the bed." It wasn't even titled until 2020, so before that, the main documentation was a certificate of origin.
Clavenna listed the Ford for $84,800 and it sold within days.
Fast forward nearly a year, to this week, and the dump truck hit Bring a Trailer with no reserve. That's a bold move, especially since the classic truck market has settled down significantly in recent months. It seemed especially trivial when the high bid was "just" $50,000 with less than an hour remaining on the auction. Clearly, the price jumped from there, but it looked like the seller might take an even bigger bath on it for a minute.
The Old Body Style 7.3-liter has driven 20 more miles since the last time we saw it, and it's been living in Michigan after a short stint at Gateway in Missouri, near St. Louis. There don't appear to be any new scratches, dings, or imperfections—as you can imagine, this is a pride-and-joy piece. It's presented in the same pristine condition with 16-inch Weld wheels, a scantly scratched steel dump bed, and not so much as a mustard stain on the red cloth interior.
If you ask a collector, they'll tell you a vehicle is worth what someone will pay. But does that mean the value of this truck has sunk nearly $15,000 in a year? It's tough to say. There are other high-dollar examples in showrooms across the country that have sat for quite a while as the market settles. NJ Truck King, one of the most prominent retail spots for classic pickups, listed what it claims to be "the absolute hottest" OBS Ford it's ever had for $104,900 in March. That F-350 is still for sale, though now the price has been lowered to $79,900. I can't say for sure, but had it been listed right after the dump truck in question sold for big money last year, it might've gone for six figures.
At the time of publishing, the dump truck seller has yet to comment on the auction since it ended. A handful of Bring a Trailer users applauded the new owner, with one even saying they "stole it." That's hard to believe when you could scoop up a new 6.7-liter Super Duty with a dump bed for not much more. Then again, a new one wouldn't have the classic look. Or the red interior. Or a manual.
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