1st Gen camper shell buying info

Platinum Metallic. 2000 only.

 

$199 out of Nashvegas for an AC mid-rise? Or maybe high rise. Silver. Link: https://nashville.craigslist.org/pts/d/nashville-topper/7806779054.html

Been on there 4 days with no luck!

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Nah I know blue steel, that looked more like platinum metallic

 

Looks like the A.R.E. MX.

 

I think that's the one with the window in the short angled part up front? Seems like it'd be a good one for camping.

 

Yep that's the one...
It would be sweet if it was a window. But it's literally just a blacked out piece of glass attached to the fiberglass. I had the MX on my 1st gen and while driving across the country a rock must've hit it and it shattered. Also have an MX on my current 2nd gen truck. As noted earlier though, it will likely be my last A.R.E. topper now that Real Truck has bought them out.

 

That's just the image I have. Not sure why blue steel is highlighted. You're right, it's platinum metallic.

 

High rise metallic grey AC cap, $500 in Springville AL (NE of Birmingham, between Gadsden & B-ham)

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When I bought my ARE MX new in Y2K, they asked if I wanted that roof window, it was same price either way. I chose to get it (shouldn't have) and it's only blacked out around the perimeter. It has not broken in the 24 years I've had it but just about every other piece of hardware has failed.

 

I'm assuming all they're doing with that is, if you order, they zip out all but a ½" lip around the perimeter, then use windshield adhesive to hold the glass in?

 

It has a rubber gasket and 2 machine screws. I took mine off when I repainted it and used a tube of black silicone when I put it back on. The thing is stupid as I was when I chose to get it. It weakens the structural integrity of the topper. Every MX I have seen had one, so I'm glad I'm not the only idiot in the world.

 

$100 for a white cover, not bad

 

DC cap in Cleburne, TX $700

 

DC in Cypress, TX $1300

 

Nice looking camper. Shame it's for a FIRT gen.

 

And holy shit 2x the price it should be. Max I could see paying for that is $900.

 

How much is a new one? I don't see why $1300 for a topper is perceived as pricey. I bet he will sell it at that price or close to it.

 

I posted the actual prices I saw on refurbished (virtually brand new) and brand new on an earlier page of this thread. I believe the number I got was $1,400 for a base model, no frills (solid front window, no carpet, no overhead light, etc.) refurb, or $1800 for a nicely optioned refurb, and brand new starting around $2,200-2,400. It's been a while, I don't fully recall and I'm too lazy to dig back into the first 30-40 pages

I can see that going for $1,300 in California. Those are definitely CA-style prices. I don't see it selling for much more than $1k in Texas though.

 

I'm not paying over $500 for a topper for a 25 year old truck (and likely a 25 year old topper).

 

I priced out a color matched cap with sliding windows from a local "truck accessories" place for my DC... It was almost $4k out-the-door with a 6 month lead. If that $1,300 cap was down the road from me I'd snag it in a heartbeat since it is color matched to my truck.

 

It all boils down to the law of supply and demand, which is power to the people. I have been searching for a RCLB mid or high rise topper for 3 years. Last year I found a guy selling a RCLB FGT and I sent him an email about buying the topper separately if the buyer of his truck didn't want it. He replied that he would put me on the list and that another guy already contacted him with the same request.
People generally buy a topper when they plan to keep the truck long enough to get their money's worth. Few people own 25 year old dodges and chevies that they plan to drive another 5 years, but the situation is quite different for us.
Every sector of the market has a used price/new price ratio. It depends on the age, wear and demand of the product.

 

Pay whatever it's worth to you. I waited a long time before I found a color matched sub $500 topper with all the windows intact for mine.

 

I don't even have the option of paying for one, let alone at a price I like.
In any used market there are sellers who sell their stuff at way below what they could get if they were shrewd. I'm too old to wait until such a seller comes along. I do not fault people for shrewdness, the law of supply and demand protects us from them.
One of my concerns is that if one pops up, the seller might price it too cheap and someone else will snatch it up before I get my claws on it.

 

Your location will make it hard to find anything being that your in the least populated part of the country. You'll have to be willing to travel to get one I imagine.

 

Yes and no. There are a lot of first gen Tundras out here. No idea how our numbers compare to other places, but we have a lot of them per capita. I haven't looked in a while but there were definitely plenty of toppers for sale when I was looking. Most with broken rear windows...But if you're looking for something very specific, especially RCLB...that's a whole other deal. I've only seen a couple regular cabs in-person. I might have seen 2 for sale the entire time I was looking. I see ACs and DCs on the road every day.

I could have done better, knowing what I know now, but paying $320 for mine, even with the broken rear window, isn't something I regret. Knowing what I know now, I could have replaced the rear window for ~$200. But the learning experience cost me far more than that...

 

Just for fun, I'll throw this out here. In Oct 2022 I was selling my 2006 dbl cab with an A.R.E. Mx high rise topper. Had sliding win-doors on the sides and carpet lined. No window at all up front but had the rubber gasket boot that sealed out all moisture from getting in the bed as well as made for easy access from the cab to bed. I also had added a Yakima roof rack to it. I had the truck listed on local fb marketplace as well as auto trader. I had someone local reach out to me to buy just the topper, to which I told him I really didn't want to separate the topper from the truck unless it was worth my time. He offered me $1000 and I told him no thanks. He called me back a week later and offered me more. I basically said unless you want to pay $2500 for the topper I'm not interested in parting it out. Mind you I think I paid like $2000 for it new in 2012 before I added the roof rack a few years later. That same day I had a buyer for the truck and I mentioned if he didn't want the topper I would discount the price of the truck. He said he only wanted a truck with a topper on it because a new one built to that spec would cost at or over $3k. The topper buyer also called me back and said, that @$2,500 he was in. I ended up not selling him just the topper due to the other buyer but the story is an example of supply and demand. New is almost double what toppers cost 10 years ago. So some buyers will pay for an overpriced used one just to save money on what it cost to get the new one. Is $1300 high for a used topper? Maybe, but market is driving the value for some sellers, and some of the buyers who are in the market are more than willing to pay inflated prices of used items. I mean look at the inflated value of 1st gen tundra's in general. Way overpriced for a 20 plus year old truck. Yet they still sell at inflated prices.

 

I might consider selling mine. What color? Mine is repainted white.

I’d kind of like to do full bed replacement on one truck eventually.

it is nice for sleeping though. And I could easily store it. I’m just annoyed with it leaking and haven’t put the time in to swap all the seals. And I hate the boot and haven’t put time in to figuring out the front slider I got for it.

 

The truck is 056 natural white.

 

Hot damn looks like we've got a transaction possibly here

 

I’m expecting this is where you end up confirming that $900 is the most anyone would pay