car trade-ins: what do I need to know ?

[rh71]

Basically have a choice between junking a '90 Accord (fuel delivery problems + slipping transmission, etc.) or trade it in toward a new OR used car. If it's a new car, it's not likely going to be anything over a $15k car that we want.

How do they go about the trade-in? Do they (dealers, etc.) assess the value of the car by looking at it almost part-by-part or do they take an overall look at the condition and say it'll be worth X amount ? I'd much rather do a trade-in than junk it for all of $100 max (so I think). The catch is that we don't necessarily need another car right now, but I'd like to get fair value for it if I can. And the dealer is willing to take it.

Also, trade-ins can be done at any manufacturer's dealers right? I can trade-in a Honda for a Pontiac if I wanted to?

 

[csiro]

Best advice is to negotiate the price of the trade in first, before discussing the purchase price.

 

[JeffreyLebowski]

the evaluate it by it, mechanical and cosmetic condition and go by their blackbook, which is about 15% below Bluebook.

some dealers will say Oh we can give you $1500 instead of $1000, but all they do is add the $500 to the final sale price of the car.

If you just want to get rid of a car and don't care about the value, just trade it and ask for X amount and go from there.

 

[conjur]

Most dealers check with an auction dealer to find out what your car would go far (they check recent auctions on the same model year, similar mileage, etc.).

IOW, you don't get squat for trade.

Manheim is most commonly used.

 

[TwinkleToes77]

We just were at the dealership buying a new suv.. and at first they only offered us $1900 for a 97 cavalier.. but then when they couldnt work the financing out to the payments we wanted they increased the trade in value to $4000. So it is very negotiable. Just stand firm.

 

[Timboly]

I'm pretty much in the same situation as you.
Check out this site, it's got a lot of great information for people buying/selling/leasing automobiles.
Car Buying Tips

 

[calpha]

best advice for trade ins is to not do it and sell your car first.

A-la Clark Howard.

Of course, he also recommends having financing outside of the dealer, and just going in with as much cash as you can afford, and negotiate the price (but don't tell them up front you already have financing).

Most people don't know but dealers also make money off of doing the financing there. If I'd have tape recorded the last car we bought, I'd have a lawsuit. The dealer (before interest rates were in the slums) gave us a rate of 6%, and said verbally, that's what our rate would be, even after he did the paperwork. I asked him point blank...what's our interest rate? No payments for 3 months---and when we got the first payment, I called the bank it was through and inquired on the interest rate was 8.5%. After talking with a very nice CSR, she informed me that a lot of dealers get kickbacks when the interest rate is over a certain amount, and she was pretty convinced that's the difference in our rate.

Off topic I know...btu I'll never finance another car again based on that experience without getting it in writing.

BTW...we got screwed on our trade in too but that was before I started listening to clark howard.

 

[radioouman]

If you don't really need this car, why not spend the $1000 or so for a new transmission and for someone to diagnose the fuel problem, and just keep it. It's cheaper to fix the old car than to buy a new one, especially if you're keeping that car around as a third car or backup

 

[Spac3d]

Originally posted by: radioouman
If you don't really need this car, why not spend the $1000 or so for a new transmission and for someone to diagnose the fuel problem, and just keep it. It's cheaper to fix the old car than to buy a new one, especially if you're keeping that car around as a third car or backup

He did say etc. To me, it wouldn't be worth the hassle of having an older car that needed repairs.

 

[vi edit]

Trade in's on used cars are hard to judge. They'll fiddle around a lot with the numbers to overinflate your trade in amount and make you feel good about the trade in. When, in reality, all they are doing is lowering the sale price of the car you are buying.

A dealer might have anywhere from $500-$5,000 markup on a used car. Unless you work for a dealership, you don't really know. The best you can do is guestimate what they bought it for at an auction or gave the previous owner a trade in for by looking at wholesale prices (black book) and then adding in other items that the dealer did - belt changes, new tires, replacement of parts, ect.

I've found that it works best to get a solid price for your trade in, and then negotiate a price on the car you are buying. Most dealers will just give you a number on a piece of paper and say that's what you owe. Don't fall for it. Have them show you exactly what they are giving you for trade, and exactly what they are offering the car for. Treat them as two different parts and negotiate independently of the price. The dealer will fight you tooth and nail to do it, and some will flat out refuse to. If they don't play your game, walk out. It's your money on the line, and you are providing them with your buisness.

But to answer your question, your car is so old, and in such poor shape, you're just going to be given a "courtesy" quote of probably $700-$1200. Anything over that and it's just money you could otherwise negotiate off the selling price.

 

[rh71]

Originally posted by: radioouman
If you don't really need this car, why not spend the $1000 or so for a new transmission and for someone to diagnose the fuel problem, and just keep it. It's cheaper to fix the old car than to buy a new one, especially if you're keeping that car around as a third car or backup

I'll go into the details of the problem with the car for a brief moment here. Dealer finally gives us the skinny on the various problems. Fuel pump was exerting only 25psi(?) as opposed to the normal 35psi. They suggested the cause was rust with the fuel lines (which is somewhat true). To fix the fuel problem there, it'd be almost $2k. To fix the O2 sensor elsewhere (a must) is $100. On top of this, there's the mysterious slipping tranny situation. He said it's not critical it be replaced, but it does slip at 40mph and I wouldn't want to be throwing in anymore money into a car with a very uncertain future. It's almost 14 years old. So given the rusting and the dying transmission, we're deciding to get the most we can from it, rather than junking it for $100 to some tow-truck company. After all, we did just spend $320 for a full tune-up less than a month ago.

 

[Looney]

To bring some lube... Astroglide preferred.

 

[vi edit]

You could always write it off to charity and offset your taxes with the deduction.

 

[rh71]

Originally posted by: vi_edit
You could always write it off to charity and offset your taxes with the deduction.

That did actually cross my mind. Know approx. how much in return ? Is it a percentage of something ?

 

[radioouman]

Originally posted by: rh71

Originally posted by: radioouman
If you don't really need this car, why not spend the $1000 or so for a new transmission and for someone to diagnose the fuel problem, and just keep it. It's cheaper to fix the old car than to buy a new one, especially if you're keeping that car around as a third car or backup

I'll go into the details of the problem with the car for a brief moment here. Dealer finally gives us the skinny on the various problems. Fuel pump was exerting only 25psi(?) as opposed to the normal 35psi. They suggested the cause was rust with the fuel lines (which is somewhat true). To fix the fuel problem there, it'd be almost $2k. To fix the O2 sensor elsewhere (a must) is $100. On top of this, there's the mysterious slipping tranny situation. He said it's not critical it be replaced, but it does slip at 40mph and I wouldn't want to be throwing in anymore money into a car with a very uncertain future. It's almost 14 years old. So given the rusting and the dying transmission, we're deciding to get the most we can from it, rather than junking it for $100 to some tow-truck company.

Ah, OK. Well, with that many problems, then you won't get the Kelley Blue Book trade in value. Your best bet is to just trade it and expect $300-$800 toward another car. You might consider donating it. Many places take car donations, fix them up and sell them and the money goes to charity. Then you get a tax write-off because of your donation.

 

[radioouman]

Originally posted by: rh71

Originally posted by: vi_edit
You could always write it off to charity and offset your taxes with the deduction.

That did actually cross my mind. Know approx. how much in return ? Is it a percentage of something ?

We donated a 1986 plymouth reliant. They gave us a receipt, and valued the car at $1000. We ended up with about $300 off of our taxes at the end of the year. Not a huge deal, but better than paying a towing company to scrap it.

 

[jurzdevil]

trade-ins on cars these days are really bad. dont expect too much.

2 months ago my was going to trade in his 2k1 impala with 25k on it and would have been reamed. bluebook was 13500..best dealer offer was 8000. he kept the car.

i would still trade it in. you'll still get more than you would for junking it.

 

[vi edit]

One other "bonus" on trading in, besides convenience, is that you reduce the amount you pay taxes on by the trade in amount. Not a big deal on a car this old, but if I was to trade in my passat for $16,000, I would not be responsible for paying taxes on $16,000 worth of the purchase price. That's $800 less in taxes at 5% interest, and $1280 at 8% interest rate.

That's one thing that many people overlook when trading in.

 

[Thegonagle]

I can tell you that if it's not running right when they evaluate your trade, that thing's not going to be worth much more as a trade than as scrap.

You can bring it in as a trade, but really, from your perspective, they're doing you a favor by getting rid of it for you, so take what you can get, and don't worry about it afterwards.

Personally, I'd look at donating it first, trading it second, and junking it third.

So, out of curiosity, by "fair value," what do you think it's worth?

 

[JeffreyLebowski]

Originally posted by: TwinkleToes77
We just were at the dealership buying a new suv.. and at first they only offered us $1900 for a 97 cavalier.. but then when they couldnt work the financing out to the payments we wanted they increased the trade in value to $4000. So it is very negotiable. Just stand firm.

check your paperwork carefully, make sure they didn't pad the numbers somewhere else, it is very common for them to do this. Plus a alot of times the salesman will tell you a lower# than what it actually is, if you bite, he pockets the difference.

 

[rh71]

Originally posted by: Garfang
So, out of curiosity, by "fair value," what do you think it's worth?

All I meant by fair value is > $100. It is worth something, so junking it would be a complete waste to me. The junkyard would earn a few hundred if they were able to sell all those parts they take from it. Why shouldn't I attempt to do something similar right? Let's not waste if I can use it to my advantage.

Given there are even brand new parts in there (not that it's worth anything in a questionable car)... I wouldn't mind getting even close to $1k for it. $800 is fine too.

 

[heartsurgeon]

car dealers are out to make a buck...
they are out to screw you as much as possible
if you think anything else about them, your a hopeless sucker..

you sell your used car (NEVER TRADE IN)..
that transaction should be completely separate from any purchase.
repeat..get your best deal possible on the sale of your used car..do not
predicate the sale price of your used car to the dealer on anything else.

if your stupid enough to think they are going to give you more money
for your car if you "trade" it in, your gonna end up just paying that much more for the new car you purchase.

you negotiate your used car sale separate.
you negotiate your new car purchase price separate.
you negotiate financing separate.
you get your best deal on each one individually.
this way you can rationally apply knowledge about new, used financing costs to determine what a decent "price"
is. if you start making it complicated...the dealer just gets a greater opportunity to screw you out of more money.
dealers are not your friends, buddies, nor are they going to do you a favor..they are not a charity organization.
they are the enemy...buying a car is war...the weak, the confused..will just end up paying more.