I Sold My Ford Ranger To Carvana

I just sold my 2024 Ford Ranger to Carvana.  It was not my plan to get rid of it after thirteen months of ownership, but the deal was too good. This marks my fourth vehicle sold to Carvana since 2021, but I owned those other vehicles for more than two years each.  

Related articles:  I Sold My Camaro To Carvana, Choosing The Right New Vehicle, I Sold My MINI to Carvana

Rationale

I didn’t have a legitimate reason to sell the Ranger.  Other than a characteristic engine vibration, it was a well built truck with no squeaks or rattles.  That’s a big deal as I sold my Subaru Outback due to an annoying dash rattle.  Overall, the Ranger was a great truck that offered a lot of utility.

You may be wondering if this was such a great truck, why sell it?  That’s a fair question and one that my wife asks often.  I track all of my vehicles’ values on a monthly basis.  I watched the value of the Ranger take a dip in October 2025, rise a little in November, then spike another $5,000 in mid-December.  Since the Carvana offer was valid for seven days, I started looking for a new vehicle

Searching for the Next Vehicle

On December 31st, I called one of my previous sales consultants to see what incentives were available at year end.  While I did not plan to buy a vehicle when I started this week, momentum took over.  The dealership shared a couple of important programs that expired on January 2nd, so I made the snap decision to buy a new vehicle from them and sell the Ranger to Carvana.

Once the dust settles on the Ranger sale and new vehicle purchase, I will share more details about the new vehicle.  I have some modifications in mind for this “blank slate.” truck.

Carvana Offer Accepted

With the appointment to pick up my new vehicle two days away, I needed to work fast with Carvana.  My sales consultant was busy putting the deal together while I accepted the Carvana offer and arranged for them to pick up the Ranger on the morning of January 2nd.  

Before Carvana could pick up the Ranger, I wanted to return it to stock appearance for the next buyer.  This did not affect the offer from Carvana (which was based on a non-modified vehicle), but I wanted to do it anyway.

Prep For Carvana Pickup

Before the January 2nd Carvana pickup, the list to return the Ranger to stock was long.  In my article 2024 Ford Ranger: One Year Experience, I detailed the modifications done to the Ranger.  As with all of my vehicle customizations, everything is reversible.  That approach comes in handy when selling a vehicle.

Steps Taken

Over the course of the past year, I added and removed different graphics and hood trim, so I only had a few items to address in order to return the Ranger to stock form for the next owner:

• Remove the aftermarket side steps and reinstall the factory running boards.
• Swap out the wheels and tires.  At about 3,000 miles, I replaced the factory Goodyear Wrangler tires with Michelin Defenders to improve the ride.  Later, I bought Bronco wheels, painted them green, then installed the Wranglers on the Bronco wheels.  I decided to keep the Michelins (on the Ranger wheels) and sell the truck with the original Wrangler tires on the Bronco wheels.  The Wrangler tires only had about 5,000 miles on them. Confused?  Again, you should talk to my wife!
• Remove the Roar Pedal throttle controller.  This was a fun and inexpensive modification that improved the throttle response of the truck.  It is plug and play, so I unplugged it and planned to play another day.
• Remove the Desert Does It Seat Jackers.  These are custom spacers that install under the front legs of the driver’s seat.  It raised the seat bottom enough that taller drivers can ride with more comfort.
• Remove the aftermarket floor mats and reinstall the like-new factory mats.
• Reinstall the factory bed liner.  I previously removed the bed liner, installed a Lasfit bed mat and added a truck box.  I’m going to use the truck box for storage in my workshop.

All of the above tasks took about four hours to complete.  The end result was a Ford Ranger that looked and drove like the day it was bought.

Carvana Sale Day!

Around 11:30 am on January 2nd, the Carvana rep was in my garage inspecting the Ranger. Within 20 minutes he finished his tasks and had me sign-off on the deal. 

He parked the Ranger at the end of my driveway and arranged for a flatbed truck to take it away.  By 3:00 pm, the Ranger was gone and the money was in my bank.  Easy!

Final Thoughts

After selling four vehicles to Carvana in the past four years, their process gets smoother each time.  I haven’t had the courage to buy one from them, but a few people I talked to were very positive about the experience. That is a thought for another day. 

If you bought a Carvana vehicle, please share it in the comments.  I’m very interested to know about your experience.  If you happened to buy my Ranger  (VIN 1FTER4HH3RLE36768), then you now have some history of that truck.