Trading In Tips

[Jager]

I’m with Paul; you will do better if you buy the new car without a trade-in and negotiate the selling price without having to hear the salesman talk-down your current ride. I have been able to get (on average) 20% knocked off sticker price of new vehicles. It takes a little work but it’s easier to do without a trade-in. You will get more for your trade-in vehicle if you sell it on your own (with a little work); dealers have to make money on the vehicles they purchase, they can’t offer you what the car is worth.

[Dale_K]

If you have a Carmax in your vicinity you will probably get a better price for your car than at the new car dealership. It will still be a wholesale price but in my experience selling them several cars, it was always better than any other kind of dealer.

A Ford dealer offered me $7k for my 2000 S that I bought only 6 months ago for $12k. I decided to keep the Boxster. There isn't much of a market in my area for high mileage Boxsters.

[ozspearo]

Hi all,

I'm in a slightly different situation. Sorry blinkwatt, not trying to hijack your thread, but thought some of the replies to my situation might help you too.

I live in a small town where there's little demand for a decent sports car, only family vans, pick up trucks and the occasional Mustang. I'm moving overseas at the end of the month and need to sell my '02 S. I've had a few less-than-serious enquiries so now I'm looking further afield. The nearest Carmax is a couple of hundred miles away but I'm heading there next weekend to give it a shot. There's also a P dealer nearby so I'll pay them a visit while I'm there.

Apart from Dale_K, has anyone else had any experience with Carmax, particularly if you're just selling and not trading in? What about Craigslist? I haven't had any experience with either, although I've heard there are more fake ads/scams than real ones on CL.

Oh, and in case anyone's interested, it's Artic Silver with 72k miles, 6 spd with a bunch of extras and spare parts. Price is negotiable depending on what spares and extras you want. Email me if you want more details. saf_069@hotmail.com

-Scott

[Jager]

Another option, instead of doing a trade-in, is find a dealership or used car lot that will sell your car on consignment. It works out great especially for the smaller car dealers. No outlay for the dealership having your vehicle on their lot and it gets your car out in public view. As long as you’re not in a hurry or need money ASAP, you set a price that you both agree to and let the dealership do the selling for you. I have been very happy going this route a couple times.

[Paul]

Originally Posted by ozspearo

Hi all,


Apart from Dale_K, has anyone else had any experience with Carmax, particularly if you're just selling and not trading in? What about Craigslist? I haven't had any experience with either, although I've heard there are more fake ads/scams than real ones on CL.


-Scott

I sold a year old Honda Fit with 11,000 miles to Carmax in about 30 minutes. I paid $15,700 for it new, their offer was $14,000. KBB said trade in was $12,500. They even gave me a ride home (20 miles).

I've sold 2 cars in the last 6 months on CL. Don't list your phone number or email address. Once someone responds, google their phone number, etc. before responding.

[Topless]

FWIW I use both Carmax and CL regularly. I bought my Box and my wife's Lexus there, both were one owner cars in very fine condition. I was selling one of my daughters cars (98 Honda Civic Dx) as she was moving to France. I took it to Carmax first and they offered $1400. I sold it 1 week later on CL for $3400 cash. I have also taken a few service trucks to Carmax and received below market offers. I regularly sell these trucks quickly on CL for double the Carmax offers. All of these vehicles were 10 yr old, with high mileage and would not meet Carmax standards to resell so I suppose that explains the low offers.

If you owned a really pristine 3 year old car with low miles and no dings or damage you would probably get at least a fair trade in value because they could just detail it and put it on the lot. I have no problem with the Carmax business model and I understand they must make a profit on every transaction. I tend to keep cars a long time so my trade-ins just are not very interesting to them. YMMV

[smshirk]

My wife is tired of shifting gears on her 03 E46 M3 so I went to a BMW dealer to trade for a CPO 5 series automatic, around 35k. They offered me 10k for the M3 with 35k miles. It is a 9 inside and out with the only flaws being curb rash on 3 of the 19 inch wheels. I just walked out without saying a word and they didn't try very hard to stop me. I've read that low mileage used cars are selling well, but out of warranty BMWs may be the exception, even those in great condition. I'm pretty sure I can get 20 to 23k out of it in a PP sale, maybe more if I just hold firm on a price.