topic I traded in my old truck when I bought a newer used one, what is the gain loss basis its asking for in TurboTax? I use it mostly for communting to work with call back trips after hours. in Deductions & credits

I traded in my old truck when I bought a newer used one, what is the gain loss basis its asking for in TurboTax? I use it mostly for communting to work with call back trips after hours.

TALOSH67 — Mon, 23 Feb 2026 10:40:18 GMT

Re: I traded in my old truck when I bought a newer used one, what is the gain loss basis its aski...

JohnB5677 — Thu, 19 Jan 2023 22:30:19 GMT

If this is a vehicle used for personal use (mostly commuting) you will only have a taxable condition if you sold or traded it for more than your original purchase price. Loses on personal vehicles are not reported. The purchase of the new truck has no tax impact on your original trucks trade in.

If you do use your truck for business purposes, you will have to dispose of it as an asset, and pick up the new truck as a new asset.

Re: I traded in my old truck when I bought a newer used one, what is the gain loss basis its aski...

TALOSH67 — Thu, 19 Jan 2023 22:32:46 GMT

OK, I GET THE ASSET DISPOSAL AND AQUISITION PART. BUT WHAT DO I ENTER IN THE GAIN/LOSS (100%BASIS) PARTS? DOLLAR VALUES OR A PERCENTAGE OF TIME USED FOR BUSINESS, OR SOMETHING ELSE?

Re: I traded in my old truck when I bought a newer used one, what is the gain loss basis its aski...

xmasbaby0 — Thu, 19 Jan 2023 22:39:43 GMT

@TALOSH67 Are you self-employed? Working as an independent contractor? Or are you employed by someone else? Do you get a W-2?

Re: I traded in my old truck when I bought a newer used one, what is the gain loss basis its aski...

xmasbaby0 — Thu, 19 Jan 2023 22:48:40 GMT

@TALOSH67 @JohnB5677 The OP is a W-2 employee. She cannot use her job-related expenses on a federal tax return, so not sure what the user clicked on to get the questions about gains/losses, yada yada.....

Re: I traded in my old truck when I bought a newer used one, what is the gain loss basis its aski...

AmyC — Tue, 24 Jan 2023 18:30:10 GMT

The truck should not have been claimed if the miles were for commuting. The fact that you trying to dispose of it would imply business use and you would have recorded each year the total number of miles driven and the business miles portion for a different amount of business use each year. If you do not have a business and have not been reporting the truck, there is nothing to do with the sale of the truck except enjoy the new one.

If you have been using the truck for business, the basis is a dollar amount. The basis equals the amount you paid minus the depreciation you have taken or were allowed to take. This amount varies depending on actual expenses or standard deduction each year.

If you used actual expenses, locate the depreciation taken each year and add it up.
If you used standard deduction, part of each mile was depreciation. You will have to locate the mileage for each year and multiply it by the depreciation amount for that year. Then add all the years together and subtract it from the basis. he annual depreciation amount per year included in the Standard Mileage per IRS Publication 463 (Page 23) Car Expenses
2012 - $0.23
2013 - $0.23
2014 - $0.24
2015 - $0.22
2016 - $0.24
2017 - $0.25
2018 - $0.25
2019 - $0.26
2020 - $0.27
2021 - $0.26
2022 - $0.26