Real-World Trade-In Values

ateixeira · April 2011

I predict this is gonna be ugly...

Mods probably hurt the value - it's no longer collectible, if it ever even had a chance.

That type of owner usually drives it hard, else why would they add power?

I suggest selling it on a Mopar forum to a selective audience, one that might actually value the mods.

nyccarguy · April 2011

To be prepared to get offered somewhere between $22K & $25K. The car was never abused or raced, but it wasn't driven like a 12 year old Corolla that sits at a train station all day either.

ateixeira · April 2011

From a, what, $40k investment? Plus mods?

Tell him to keep it. At some point it will stop losing value, and perhaps even gain value down the road.

But he shouldn't have messed with it.

nyccarguy · April 2011

He's moving on to his next & newest love. He's 2nd on the waiting list at his dealership for an F10 M5. He drives an X5M everyday & his wife drives an F01 750 Li w/ X Drive.

nyccarguy · April 2011

I think he was one of the 1st "on the block" to get his Challenger when they were still selling for over sticker.

ateixeira · April 2011

More money than he knows what to do with, then?

Ask him if he wants to adopt me. I'll drive that Dodge. LOL

stickguy · April 2011

the real answer is to build a bigger garage, and just keep them all.

qbrozen · April 2011

you might expect round about $18,500 on it.

qbrozen · April 2011

Funny. In looking this one up, an automatic transmission is actually a deduct! I'm not sure I've ever seen that before.

So... here's the thing... as a trade-in, it is showing at $30k-$31k. Depending on the dealer, the mods could be a wash, a deduct, or an add. The only way i see them being a (small) add is at a Dodge dealer who has a market for such a vehicle.

The smartest thing to do is put all the stock parts back on, get the $31k trade value, and then sell all the go fast parts separately.

nyccarguy · April 2011

Thanks as always for your help gbrozen. I'll relay the information to him. When he got the car, the ONLY transmission available was the slushbox.

jayrider · April 2011

Abrozen, my 03 is loaded with only 33k miles. Only driving it about 1-2k per year. Put a set of bilsteins on and have all maintenance records. My feeling is that stuff like that means nothing to a dealer in trade. Does it mean anything to me as a private seller?
03 Liberty Ltd--awd--auto
ABS and Side curtain air bags [ very rare in 03]
leather --moon roof
No wrecks or damage. Paint is excellent.
White with no badging [have a complete set]
Drives like new.

qbrozen · April 2011

It means much more on the private side. To a dealer, the only things that make a difference are those that make it more presentable on the lot and prevent them from having to sink any money into it. A car that needs anything gets low trade value almost immediately. One that is perfectly clean, newish tires, brakes, etc ... on that dealer can stick a sign on and pull up to the front line for sale ... can command more if negotiated. But not a whole lot more.

Your car could be a good example. It may be sparkling clean, full service history, and clean accident history .... but if you still have the original tires on there, you can forget about top trade value.

Your range is $8700-$9500.

moggsquadx · April 2011

Looking to get a '12 Focus as soon as this weekend. Still doing my research but trying to figure out what I should hold my ground at with my trade in value. Any good advice is much appreciated.

2006 Mercury Milan Premier 4 cylinder - 59,500 miles
Tungsten Grey with two tone interior
Purchased brand new in 09/2006

auto, air, power win/locks, cruise, power steering, tilt wheel, 6 disc cd changer, dual air bags, power seats, side air bags, leather, alloy wheels

-Runs great mechanically, oil changed on schedule
-Newer tires with
-Was in accident 2 years ago needing semi-major front end work. Looks fine
now but Im sure it will show up on its record.
-key job on both passenger doors. Doesnt seem too deep, but was told
the whole car would need re-painted to get rid of it.
-rust bubbles on the roof near windshield, but should still be under the 5 year
warranty.

FAIR / GOOD / EXCELLENT
NADA appraisal $7550 / $8650 / $9550
KBB appraisal $7575 / $8600 / $9200

Not sure if my car should be considered fair or good?

Other 2006 Milan's being sold at dealers in Southern Utah are going $9,000 - $12,000 with some examples below.

$9k 75k miles
$12k 62k miles
$9.9k 56k miles(cloth seats)
$10.9k 74k miles (manual transmission)

sebring95 · April 2011

Was offered $21k on a straight up invoice deal on a Sierra. He pulled up auction values right there with me and they were indeed $18k-$19k for typical. He said with condition of mine, new tires, and few extras he'd have no trouble moving it so we settled on $21k. He said prices are higher every week they go to the auction.

corvette · April 2011

Between the accident history, the unrepaired keying, and the rust bubbles, the car is in rough condition and you will see less than the "fair condition" price on trade. The rust-through warranty won't apply for rust bubbles--the sheet metal must have a hole rusted through it. The only thing it has going for it is relatively low miles for a 2006. The "going for" prices you posted appear to be asking prices, not selling prices. Edmunds shows about $5,100 in rough condition, and that sounds about right to me.

qbrozen · April 2011

congrats.

qbrozen · April 2011

Not sure why the WHOLE car would need repainting. But, anyway, I do agree it is in kind of rough condition. Miles are close to average, really.

BUT, I think $6500-$7k should be more like it.

samm43 · April 2011

The reasons are numerous.
- you can see the wear on them which tells you a lot about the condition of the car and can help pinpoint whether said worn items (tie rod ends, ball joints, struts etc) were replaced and when, in lieu of an actual service and maintenance record or to help substantiate one that is presented with the car.
- depending on miles, you can see if they were probably OEM, which also helps substantiate the odo reading
- you can put your own tires on because as a buyer you plan to keep the car and many want better tires, for ride, or quietness etc etc etc and the seller simply wants to be rid of the car and advertising 'new tires!' is a catch phrase that almost always reveals the very cheapest tires possible are what's on the menu.
- if you buy your own tires you have control over who installs and warrants not only the tires themselves but the balance etc.

I have felt this way for many years, yet few seem to agree, (go figure) so am not really expecting anyone here to either but thought I would put it out there for anyone in the midst of negotiating a buy on a car that needs rubber. That puts you in the driver's seat in all the best ways.

Sam

samm43 · April 2011

That is a deal breaker for me at practically any price. This means that there is enough 'dirty metal' content within the sheetmetal in that area that it will continue to break out over and over again after repairs, but usually breaks the windshield before the 3rd time. And once you have windshields breaking due to rust, that basically takes an otherwise perfectly good and competent car, off the road. I say this because I tend to keep my cars for many years and have seen quite a few cases of this on older, otherwise quite sound cars. Almost any other part of a car can be repaired.

Regarding Ford - nothing seems to change. Rust near a windshield breaking out in only 4.5 years. Sigh, they don't deserve the recent success they seem to be enjoying. People's memories are so short.

Sam

qbrozen · April 2011

I agree with you. Unfortunately, I have yet to find a dealer that will keep the old tires on AND price the vehicle accordingly.

fushigi · April 2011

Now that her 10 year warranty is about to expire, my wife is looking to replace her Elantra, purchased new in May '01, with a Cruze, new Elantra, Forte, or maybe a small CUV. I'd say there's an 80% chance we'll do a private party sale; 20% dealer trade-in.

KBB is listing Excellent/Good/Fair private party values at $4195/$3845/$3270. I was figuring condition as "Good" but my own random guess before looking it up was closer to $3K.

Location: Chicago suburbs
Year/Make/Model: 2001/Hyundai/Elantra GLS
Body Style: 4dr
Engine: 2L 4 cyl AT
Driveline: FWD
Mileage: 77000
Color: Silver exterior/Grey interior
Major Options: Added CD player but that was about it. Does not have ABS or TC but does have the front & side air bags.
Condition:
A couple of door dings on each side. One minor stain on the front passenger seat. A slight bit of rust visible.
Tires - Assurance TripleTreds w/maybe 20K on them. Plenty of wear left.
Brakes - about 10K miles on them.
Maintenance - All scheduled maintenance done on time. Everything works. AC gets super cold. The couple of recalls Hyundai issued have been taken care of, including the recent subframe rust issue for cars in the snow/rust belt.
Other: No accidents. Windshield replaced once and the replacement has a minor nick in it on the passenger side. It was fixed and hasn't grown.

jayrider · April 2011

If you put an ad in the paper --3200 and accept 3000-- it will be gone in less than a week. Put your mpg in the ad and expect 3200-3500. Place it on thurs. and it will be gone over the weekend.

qbrozen · April 2011

Miles are nice and low.

A dealer is only going to give you $2k for it. I think the post above is right. List it for $3500 and kiss it goodbye in no time at all. Heck, if you have some time, be bold and list for $3995. That will still be lower than any dealer retail price.

fushigi · April 2011

Thanks for the quick replies!

We'll almost definitely go private party as there are two family members who are interested in an inexpensive car with decent fuel economy. If neither of them pan out my brother in law will sell it. I'm sure he could get $3500 but then we would have to pay him a commission.

stickguy · April 2011

if it was closer, and it was 6 months from now when my daughter could get her permit, I would be interested at $3k.

would likely freak her out, but that's her problem!

explorerx4 · April 2011

I would think the top half of the 2 doors can be repainted.
Had the rear quarter of one of my vehicles repainted about 4 years ago.
Got the same spiel, 'have to paint the whole side, hard to blend.' i just had them paint the quarter and you still can't tell it was repainted.
Also, the roof area is pretty well defined, so worst case that can just be painted too.
Was your windshield replaced when the car suffered the front end damage?

moggsquadx · April 2011

No, the windshield was fine (Jan2009). It later got cracked from road salt (Summer2010) and was replaced last summer, but the rust bubbles were already there.

I have a deal in the works for a 2012 Focus, just need to bring my car in for appraisal. Not sure what to expect, hoping $6700+

explorerx4 · April 2011

The main thing in your favor is that low mileage used cars are short supply.
You probably won't get a big discount, if any, on the '12 Focus.
Post on another thread about how you feel about the Focus when you get it.

jayrider · April 2011

The deals on the 2011 Focus are great.

28firefighter · April 2011

Two cars I could use a real world check on value for. I know one of them many here will scold me for considering given my issues with the BMW.

#1 2010 Ford Fusion SEL V6
Mileage: No greater than 25000
Automatic
Sunroof, Leather, Sync etc.
Multiple Colors
CPO
Pittsburgh area (if thats outside your reach, then Philadelphia area should suffice)
Asking is anywhere from 18,9 to 20,5 - One owner, most former rentals.

#2 2008 VW Passat 2.0T Lux
Automatic
Base Lux options (which is loaded up to begin with)
36,000 miles
Blue Graphite Color over Tan Leather
CPO to November 2013 or 74k miles
Asking 18,988 - one owner, no hits from the carfax
Same region

Thanks!
28FF

corvette · April 2011

I would only scold you for considering the VW. I'm surprised that there are a lot of used Fusions with leather, V6, and sunroofs (I'm guessing they have the smaller of the two V6 engines Ford offered)... Most rentals are strippo models with cloth seats, a four cylinder, and no hole in the roof.

28firefighter · April 2011

I knew I would get scolded for that.

In my experience lately, the rental agencies are taking a lot more of the upscale versions of the mid-size sedans because that is what a lot of the clientele is demanding. I know several people who have rented lately and received fully loaded Fusions or similar.

qbrozen · April 2011

OK. About $16k for the Fusion with 15k miles .... then deduct ~$120 for every 1k more miles. So, in other words, a 20k mile example takes a $600 hit.

About $14,500 on the Passat. In my experience, VW dealers want a fortune to CPO a car, though, so keep that in mind.

28firefighter · April 2011

Thanks for getting back to me. I think the clear choice in terms of warranty/reliability is probably the Fusion. Plus I can buy an extended warranty with little deductible extending it to 6 years/100k miles through Ford.

explorerx4 · April 2011

not sure if a rental fusion is considered a fleet vehicle. sometimes those are not eligible for a ford extended warranty.
get a vin and plug it in to one of the online ford warranty sellers.

morton22 · April 2011

The local rental outlets here in LA have flooded the market with '10 Vibes. They're pretty much all the base version with AT, 1.8 liter, around 35-40k miles. Asking prices have been in the $13,500 to $15,000 range. If I walk in to the store with $11,000 plus tax, would I have a chance of driving one home?

jayrider · April 2011

Rental car sales aren't usually negotiable.
your offer is too low to be considered.

corvette · April 2011

It appears there were quite a few of those in rental fleets. I'm sure the dynamics of the second generation Vibe were much improved from the first generation, but the second gen is one of a handful of cars that looks much worse than the old one. The first generation still looks new and sleek to me.

qbrozen · April 2011

$13,500 is right about the correct number for one.

worth about $11k as a trade in.

28firefighter · April 2011

2004 BMW 330xi
Black/Sand Interior
84,250 miles
Steptronic
Leather
Sunroof
Cold Weather Package (rain sensing wipers, heated seats, ski bag in second seat etc)
Premium Package
Xenon's
Satellite Radio

Tons of recent service on it, including a lot of preventative maintenance.

The bad: The body has some light dings (no breaking of the paint) on the hood, roof, and trunk lid from a hail storm we had in Pittsburgh a month ago.

Trade-in please, and also maybe a suggestion for private party though I'm not sure I could do that to someone.

Will be sold in the Philadelphia area.

theflush · April 2011

I may be trading in our 2003 Mazda MPV LX with 150,000 miles. Dark blue with couple small parking lot dings and some rust in the rear wheel wells. One of the power sliding doors has had issues latching shut at times. Engine and transmission and all other features work fine. Interior is in good shape. Edmund's average condition trade in value is about $1700. I would appreciate everyone's input on what you think a fair trade-in value is. Thanks.

emoney123 · April 2011

2008 Audi Q7, Premium 3.6, cold weather, panorama sun roofs. condition between good / excellent (kbb). 33,000 miles. New tires. Lease ends in 45 days. We will owe about $1,500 in mileage...

Residual is $25,900. I am seeing similar cars listed all for over $35,000. On kbb.com, from trade ($32-34k) and private sale ($36-38k).

We were thinking about buying a toyota, but then looking at these numbers got me thinking. We have never bought our car out of a lease, but am I crazy not to? Even if we just trade it in at Toyota for $32k, we just saved $7,500 ($6,000 + $1,500 for mileage) right?

stickguy · April 2011

don't bank on getting those numbers though (guides don't buy cars, UCMs do!).

If you are looking at Toyotas, just take it in and have them shoot you a number while you are at the dealer. Most likely they won't even have to really look at the Audi (at most a quick once over) and find out for sure.

You can trade in a lease like that if you have equity. I have a friend that did it some years ago with a GMC SUV (she got it just before the market got hot). Got a few grand trade equity out of that baby.

Plus, the toyota dealer will be buying out the residual, so you won't have to come up with the mileage overage either, so add that to your savings.

of course, if you like it, not a bad price to keep it. At least you know how the prior owner treated it!

emoney123 · April 2011

ok thanks - I will run it by toyota to confirm!

qbrozen · April 2011

tough to say with the damage. $8500-$9k maybe?

This is the one that's been in the shop non-stop, right? Yeah, I wouldn't sell that private party, personally.

qbrozen · April 2011

it is going to depend on some of the other options, but $1500-$2k is likely.

qbrozen · April 2011

Looks like it should be more around $30k-$31k, possibly more depending on options (3rd row? Nav? 20" wheels?).

But, in any case, it would seem you have some equity there. I'm surprised the residual is that far off.

sebring95 · April 2011

And don't forget....that equity has been paid for. No free rides!! If those are real numbers you'd be crazy to not try to squeeze it out.

I believe I've heard that Audi has different terms for early buyout. I believe that residual price is ONLY good if it's sold directly to the leasor. So if you try to trade it you get hit with a surcharge. I believe they waive it if you're trading at an audi dealer. One more reason I put leases in the negative column..

qbrozen · April 2011

I believe that residual price is ONLY good if it's sold directly to the leasor. So if you try to trade it you get hit with a surcharge.

And even if that is the case, there is nothing preventing you from buying it and trading it in. I'm sure the dealer you are buying from won't have a problem doing it that way.

emoney123 · April 2011

Thanks everyone - I will double check with Toyota. If they are anywhere over $30k, then we have enough equity to make it work.

We like the Audi enough, so we coudl hold onto and wait for the most opportune time to trade it

. I like not having any pressure on us to have to do somehting

Real-World Trade-In Values

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