At a yard sale?

If you happen to drive on U.S. 31, between Traverse City and Charlevoix, Michigan, you may notice a very large dump truck parked in someone’s front yard, with a “for sale” sign in the front windshield. Maybe it is just me, but I thought this was extremely odd. If I had a dump truck and wanted to sell it, I don’t think that I would try to market it this way.

First of all, I don’t think my wife would appreciate the aesthetics of a dump truck in the front yard. I think she would prefer flowers or shade trees. A front porch and swing would be nice. Maybe even a picket fence. But I don’t think she would like a dump truck.

Secondly, this does not seem to be an effective way to sell a dump truck. People in rural areas will often park a used car, or a motorcycle, or a boat, in the front yard with a “for sale” sign affixed. This may be as good a method as any to sell these types of items. The marketing costs are minimal (what does a “for sale” sign cost?) and, depending upon the traffic volume, you might be lucky enough to have a potential buyer happen by.

But a dump truck?

What are the odds that someone in the market for a dump truck will drive by this two lane highway? Can you imagine this conversation: ”Oh dear, look! A dump truck! We’ve been thinking about buying a dump truck. Let’s turn around and see what he wants for it.”

Keep in mind that this is a two lane stretch of highway connecting Traverse City (and points south) and Charlevoix (and points north). The road does not connect New York and Philadelphia, or Los Angeles and San Diego. U.S. 31 may be the busiest highway in the region, but that is not saying much.

For the heck of it, I tried to find the traffic count online, but I was not able to find it for this stretch. U.S. 31 has “average daily traffic” of up to 29,700 in the heart of Traverse City, its busiest part. As U.S. 32 approaches Petoskey (north of Charlevoix), the count approaches 18,700. The count must be significantly smaller between these towns. (2019 update – I had links in 2005 to the traffic count information, but I did not update them for this reposting.)

This may sound like a lot, until compared to a typical urban highway. Local freeways in Detroit have ADTs of over 200,000. Major surface streets in the Detroit area, like Telegraph, Woodward and 8 Mile carry up to 75,000. And yet I don’t think I would try to sell a dump truck on my lawn even if I lived on 8 Mile Road.

If I had to sell a dump truck in the olden days, I would probably take it to a specialty construction vehicle dealer. A potential buyer would more likely try that method to find a dump truck. At least the buyer could do a bit of comparison shopping.

Nowadays, I might try the internet. Trucktrader.com has 43,000 truck listings. There were 200 ads found using the “dump truck” search term with an “unlimited geography” search, and 42 in Michigan. There were three dump trucks listed at trucks.com and 125 currently for sale on eBay.

By the way, if you are in the market for a used dump truck, they are not cheap. Most used dump trucks were in the $35,000 to $50,000 range, or were listed as “call for price”.

If you happen to buy one and don’t know how to use it, for $195 you can buy a 16 minute video on how to operate a dump truck”. (2019 update: I found many “how to” videos, but not the one I referred to in 2005). I may be a slow learner, but I don’t think I could learn how to operate a dump truck in 16 minutes.

If you are an impulse buyer, and find yourself the owner of a used dump truck, you may ask yourself: “What am I going to do with this thing?” Well, the North Carolina Dump Truck Association has the answer for you. The state Division of Motor Vehicles commissioner recently gave a speech to the association on the benefits of a modern dump truck. You can find it on the North Carolina Department of Transportation public information office website. (I couldn’t find this link in 2019 either.)

I’m not trying to make fun of the North Carolina Dump Truck Association, or anyone at the North Carolina Department of Transportation. I’m simply amazed that someone would think to transcribe this speech and post it on the internet.

“ADT” not only stands for “average daily traffic”, it also stands for “articulated dump trucks”. When I first saw this term, I assumed that an articulated dump truck was one that was well-spoken, and that an “unarticulated” (or would that be “inarticulated”) dump truck had a difficult time expressing itself. I’m still not entirely sure what it means, but I think to truckers, an articulated dump truck has some extra features, like automatic tailgate or heated body.

I didn’t stop on U.S. 31 to see if the local dump truck was articulated. Next time I drive by, I just might stop by and ask it.