2018 used pickup trucks for sale in Colorado

What a 2018 pickup costs in Colorado

The 2018 model-year used pickup market in Colorado currently shows an average asking price of $17,112 across 2 listings, with average odometer readings around 68,045 mi. Compared with the national 2018 average of $16,781, prices in Colorado are running about 2% higher. Pricing in line with the national average means you are shopping a healthy, liquid market — neither distressed nor inflated — and should be able to negotiate normally.

Colorado sits in the Mountain region, and that geography matters when shopping a specific model year. Colorado is high-altitude, dry, and four-wheel-drive country. Used 4WD pickups are everywhere and typically command a premium over the same listing in flatter states. Diesel half-tons are popular for towing campers into the mountains on summer weekends. For a 2018 truck specifically, expect roughly 84,000 mi of expected lifetime mileage as the rough national baseline — anything significantly under that is either a low-use creampuff or a reset, and anything significantly over is a working truck that should be priced accordingly. Use the average odometer figure above as your local yardstick.

The 2018 model year falls into a specific equipment generation for most major nameplates. For Ford, 2018 F-150s sit in the aluminum-body 13th-generation run that introduced lightweighting and the second-generation 3.5L EcoBoost. Ram 1500s of the same vintage straddle the DS-generation classic body and the new DT generation depending on trim. Chevrolet and GMC half-tons are the K2XX or T1XX platform depending on year cutoff. Toyota Tundras are still on the second-generation aluminum-bed platform unless you are looking at a pre-redesign truck. Knowing which generation you are buying matters more than the model year itself — shop the model index for generation-by-generation buying notes.

Specific to Colorado: altitude affects naturally-aspirated engine performance; turbocharged trucks are increasingly preferred locally. For a 2018 truck — now 7 model years old — that inspection matters more than it would on a one- or two-year-old truck still under factory powertrain warranty. Frame, suspension bushings, brake lines, and any aluminum-to-steel galvanic-corrosion contact points should be inspected on a lift. Pay particular attention to coolant condition (a sign of how the previous owner maintained the truck), transmission fluid (especially on 8- and 10-speed automatics), and the condition of the rear-axle pinion seal. A pre-purchase inspection from an independent shop typically runs $120-$180 in most Mountain markets and will surface 80% of the issues that turn into expensive surprises later.

Cross-shopping adjacent model years is one of the highest-leverage moves a used-truck buyer can make. The 2017 market in Colorado is typically 11% cheaper for what is often a mechanically identical truck. The 2019 market trades higher prices for lower mileage and more remaining factory warranty. If you are not locked into a specific model-year for tax or insurance reasons, run the math both ways before committing. Most buyers find that one model year on either side of their target is where the best total-cost-of-ownership math actually lives.

Once you have narrowed to two or three trucks worth driving across the state to inspect, treat the test-drive as the most important hour of the purchase. Cold-start the truck yourself before the dealer does. Listen for lifter tick on overhead-cam V8s. Drive at least 30 minutes including highway, low-speed turns from a stop, and at least one panic stop on dry pavement. A 2018 pickup with 68,045 mi on the clock has plenty of life left in it if it has been maintained — and almost no life left in it if it has not.