I am thinking of trading in my Sunfire for something larger with four doors (maybe a Grand Prix) and was wondering how much money I could get for it? It is a 2005 Sunfire coupe with 26,000 kms. It doesn't have a single scratch on it, it looks identical as the day I bought it. I bought it brand new in mid-2005 and I'm the first and only owner. It is the base model except for the automatic transmission and the sunroof. I live in Kitchener if that makes any difference.
approximately $10-12 000 is my guess on your cars value. Whether a dealership would give that to you, I do not know.
Scott Fry wrote:approximately $10-12 000 is my guess on your cars value. Whether a dealership would give that to you, I do not know.
wow what are you smoking Im asking 12000 for mine fully modded lol
BuMmRz - I wish I had of known that last year I paid $9,000 for my Sunfire last year but so would have paid the extra $3,000 for yours......I hope the future buyer takes excellent care of it!!
Wow that's pretty disappointing, I was hoping to get 12k for it. I paid 18.5 (after taxes) and only drove 26 kms.
This is the last time I buy a brand new car, the money you lose in depreciation just isn't worth it. The only cars worth buying brand new are luxury cars which don't depreciate as much.
BuMmRz wrote:Scott Fry wrote:approximately $10-12 000 is my guess on your cars value. Whether a dealership would give that to you, I do not know.
wow what are you smoking Im asking 12000 for mine fully modded lol
Actually in most cases, people would pay less for a modded car than a completely stock one, especially used car dealers.
Or you buy a Toyota, because you can get a line-up of people looking for what you're selling.
To the OP:
That's life my friend. Bought my '02 Sunfire, base, 5-speed, a year and a half ago... it's not even worth half of what I still owe on it...
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2002 Sunfire -->
- Ractive steering wheel
- ASA 17" EM9 + Nexen N5000 215/45/17 (steelies for winter)
- D-Spec Lowering kit @ 1.4" (issues currently
)
- Rockford P250.1 + MTX MZS1004 + Panasonic CQ-C8313U head unit
- Barely legal tint.
BuMmRz wrote:Scott Fry wrote:approximately $10-12 000 is my guess on your cars value. Whether a dealership would give that to you, I do not know.
wow what are you smoking Im asking 12000 for mine fully modded lol
Bruce Country weed my friend....hahaha not quite I haven't been in Kincardine in awhile. As for where I got my numbers...i just looked on autotrader and took an educated guess.
Hence Why I'll never purchase a brand new Chev ever again. No matter what model (except maybe a truck) GM's re-sale is gawd awful. Have you tried Autotrader.ca? although slightly inflated via dealers, the prices are a good starting point.
Hmmm on Autotrader the most expensive Sunfire is 13k and it has only slightly less kms than mine. I guess if a dealer asks that much he should at least give me 11k, I figure 2k is more than enough profit for him to make.
The Poonman wrote:Wow that's pretty disappointing, I was hoping to get 12k for it. I paid 18.5 (after taxes) and only drove 26 kms.
This is the last time I buy a brand new car, the money you lose in depreciation just isn't worth it. The only cars worth buying brand new are luxury cars which don't depreciate as much.
Man, you are so wrong. Used premium dealers pay nothing for high end cars. Think about it, if you have enough money to buy premium car, why not get a new one. Your company can lease it for a wicked tax writeoff. Most wealthy pay little to nothing for their high end cars. Next time you see the guy drivin the Cayenne turbo. Know this...he likely pays less out of his pocket than you for your J.
11g's. The guy that's asking 13, knows he is takin less. J resale has actaully improved since the big warranty, but If you get that as trade, they have simply made too much money on you on the new deal. The only benefit to an artificially inflated trade price is that the trade in value is non taxable. My best advise to you is not to get to wrapped up in trade in value when it comes to the deal. You must look at the entire transaction. Many get tripped up into signing because they got what they wanted for trade. They figured they had won.....there are many places to bury profit.
Any new car is a bad investment. Even down to the guy that bought the collector muscle car that's worth a fortune now because he didn't drive it. Years of storage and basic maintenace to keep the car in shape. Plus the insurance....and so on make it a money looser in the long run. However, GM is really no worse than the others. The imports that seem to have such high resale simply cost that much more in the first place. Holding equity in a car makes no sense either. Yet everyone is sold on the idea.
Buying a new car is certainly a $luxury$. It also brings piece of mind knowing the car has likely only seen the dealers abuse. Most drivers can't even bother to warm an engine before they hit it. I know of many that literally miss repeated oil changes and basic maintenance. They just don't care because they know they will get rid of the car long before it's an issue for them. I go new because I want to break in my seats with my own brand fo farts.
It's actualy pretty tough getting used car with really low milleage. Lately, the daily rentals are coming up from the US, so there is decent selection of late model, low milleage vehicles on lots. Buying used is also very costly to finance. I priced out a used NA Solstice with 4 k on it. It was 160 dollars more a month than my new GXP. Go figure.
If you are a skillful new car buyer, you can in fact drive a new car(whatever brand) ever few years very economically. However, driving more economical cars certainly makes it tougher to come out ahead. A lease can get you into a better car for the same price, but you have to make the commitment and be weary of the deal you make. The car business is in fact full of smoke and mirrors, kreeps and scmmers.
Getting out of any car before it's time, simply costs. Someone has to pay for the word "New".
Craig Lewis wrote:If you are a skillful new car buyer, you can in fact drive a new car(whatever brand) ever few years very economically.
Can you elaborate on that? As soon as you drive it off the lot, it's worth thousands less.
My plan for the future is to buy almost-new cars (cars aged between 1 and 3 years) and then drive them for about 2 or 3 years and sell them and replace them with another 1-3 yr old car. This way I will always have a fairly new car, that I got for far less than it would've cost new, but when it's time to sell it, it should still be worth quite a bit of money.
I bought my Sunfire new because it was the first time in my life I had enough money to buy a brand new car, and I figured since I could afford it, why not? Looking back, I'm not TOO regretful, the Sunfire did serve me well, but assuming I get 10k for it, that means it cost me 8.5 k to drive it for 2.5 years, and I could've done better if I'd bought a 2 year old car, it would now be a 4.5 year old car but it wouldn't have depreciated 8.5 grand, not to mention that I could've bought a larger and more luxurious 2 year old car for less money than I paid for my new Sunfire.
Yup just face it Your going to take a loss
I myself will probably never buy new
I'd like to add.
If you finance and you plan on switching new cars fairly often, you keep you cars in good shape anyway and don't mod, A lease is the way to go.
.GMAC sets the residual value much higher than reallity in order to keep payments low.
.You only pay the taxes on the lease and not the total value of the car.
.Warranty all the time. I tell you, as a man connected in the car business, that my used car purchase kicked me in the ass. I literally could have leased a CTS for the price I paid to drive it. Stupid POS.
.Lowest possible maintenance costs. ie. I didn't even get tires on my last car. That saved over a grand right there. Hense taking a little pain out of the off the lot depreciation.
The big value being the freedom of not having a billion people haslte you when you are trying to sell a used car. Anyone wanna buy a Cooper S? Do you have any idea of the dinks that are interested in this car?
GM encourages leasing because it essentially garantees a paycheck and the likelyhood of repeat business. If one purchase finances and wants out early, they are still going to pay for the entire cost of the financing. The J-body made sense to purchase finance if you are going to take care of the car and drive it to the end. In that case, it's likely a better value compared to most any vehicle. I am willing to bet that it's cheaper overal over 8 years of similar use than any other choice. I would say the same for the replacement. The money you save when compared to more expensive imports could be used to buy that new 1080p big screen and surround sound setup. If you deisire better fit and finish and need the next gen styling, it's a valid choice, but it comes at a price. No new car is a wise investment.
The blanket statement that GM cars are a mistake to buy new is an understandable position, and may describe the spot some one might be in. This could very well have been avoided had a few different choices been made. Getting my new car at any other time would have cost me far more. I waited and waited until the time was just right. ONe day meant 3200 dolars diff. If you paid too much, should you really be blaming GM resale? Should the new Solstice owner be pissed because he/she decided to buy the car when they were hard to come by and comanded a premium just like any other hot for the moment car. I got mine in the winter with over 50 cars on the lots. I had my hand in a few Cobalt SS/SC deals over it's life. At some points, they were cheaper to finance than my old Z24. Typical resale values with that in mind are pretty good. Having the cash to buy cars outright brings out a bunch of different variables. It also affords you the luxury of being able to jump in and out of cars at will with managed losses or even profit with the right choices of used cars. If you are paying cash, you are likely paying a great deal less for GM in the first place, making the actual depreciation ratio very competetive.
Sorry for the ramble. I get kinda defensive when people slam buying new GM cars. Partially because I have made money selling them and I feel I was an honourable salesman and gave fair value to my customers. Only one deal did I ever feel shame for making too much. That was by ligitimate accident. I drive new GM cars. I go so far as to buy the information that I need in order to get the best deal available. If I cared what the resale value of my car was, I would be pleased considering what I pay.
I must say that specific circumstance make the world of a difference when it comes to advice on car deals. I am speaking in general terms becasue I don't know all the details.
The Poonman wrote:Craig Lewis wrote:If you are a skillful new car buyer, you can in fact drive a new car(whatever brand) ever few years very economically.
Can you elaborate on that? As soon as you drive it off the lot, it's worth thousands less.
My plan for the future is to buy almost-new cars (cars aged between 1 and 3 years) and then drive them for about 2 or 3 years and sell them and replace them with another 1-3 yr old car. This way I will always have a fairly new car, that I got for far less than it would've cost new, but when it's time to sell it, it should still be worth quite a bit of money.
I bought my Sunfire new because it was the first time in my life I had enough money to buy a brand new car, and I figured since I could afford it, why not? Looking back, I'm not TOO regretful, the Sunfire did serve me well, but assuming I get 10k for it, that means it cost me 8.5 k to drive it for 2.5 years, and I could've done better if I'd bought a 2 year old car, it would now be a 4.5 year old car but it wouldn't have depreciated 8.5 grand, not to mention that I could've bought a larger and more luxurious 2 year old car for less money than I paid for my new Sunfire.
I know my writing skills are pretty shady, but if you read through my coments a few times, you might better decipher what I am saying. At one time, I had some documents that better articulated my meaning. My comments are certainly not structured enough to be scientific proof.
There is no question that buying a 1-3 year old car and driving it within it's warranty is viable. Especially if you have the money to buy outright or have a good enough bank rate. But if you have a good enough bank rate, you likely have the money anyway. Used car financing is big business and comands big profit. If they are offering you a good rate at a used dealer, they are making the money up inside the price of the vehicle. I used the example of the used 2.4 NA Solstice compared to my new GXP. If you are buying a used 2 year old car and planning a few years, you are also likely running out of warranty. I always wonder why a year old car is on a used lot. Was it a daily rental=horendous abuse? Why would someone get rid of a car the first year? Or even second for that matter. It's not a wise choice money wise. Could it be a problem car that someone had had enough of? Was it bent and fixed. That still happens. Full warranty coverage is a good bet. But warranty is another bigggg profit zone for the dealer. A salesman could in fact get paid upwarsd of 400 in commision alone. If you don't get warranty, a car designed to start falling apart just after warranty(as all cars are) is going to start costing money. Just how much, you never know. You have to give cosiderable value with warranty. Hedging your bets to show favour in a choice gives an uneven playing field. I have seen many a repair bills costing as much as a years J paymenta. Just think of all those Oddessy drivers and their trannies. Whew. If you pay for it outright, have total coverage and get a smart deal, you can in fact win. But most all of us finance.
I recal that J-s with air were selling for 13 before tax. I see decent resale.
If I haven't been able to justify the value of new GM, I'm not sure I can. I would need all the information to justify it in your specific case.
I can only assume a few of Craigs comments are pointed towards my remarks regarding Brand New GM''s. Let say first off I'm not mad or defensive or any sh!t (you know how intent or subtlety gets skewed in writing) I've Known Craig for many many years and can honestly say when it comes to cars he's without a doubt the most experienced, intelligent and painfully honest guy I've ever met in this department.
My GM comments are influenced from my ownership of my last car, an '05 Cobalt SS S/C. Of the 10 cars I've owned, driven and loved over the years only one hasn't been GM and thats me and the wifes '07 Mazda 3 GT sport (who am I kidding? It's the wifes
)
Being the guy that (IMO) GM targets as their core market, I feel my experience with GM from day F-ing one was a disaster for GM on all levels. I'm not going to bore you with the story of my isolated incident with my Cobalt, but suffice to say that the actual car was the best part of the whole situation . I loved that damn car, but the bullsh!t from GM, 3 dealers and even the lowly salesman was so goddamned pathetic I feel there's no other direction for me but out the door. I can also add that I would also never buy ANY car brand new ever again simply for the depreciation. Whats that saying that buying a car is the worst single investment you will ever make...albeit it's also the most necessary.
Until GM cleans up it's act and starts to realize it ain't 1985 and they are far from #1 in N. America, they'll continue with the groupthink that Customer service and product quality are second to profit.
I know they're a business, but I was the next gen. of GM car purchaser..I now drive a Mazda. 'Nuff said??
The Saturn dealership babies my step mother.....
My Cav
I give up...
i'm buying a VW those people love trees, so they should love eachother too... "Andy"
I've heard great things about Saturn dealers......Actually priced out a Saturn Astra a few weeks ago. God the interior just kills that car.
Dude go to www.autotrader.com or .ca whatever it is and search used vehicles High and low for your model and see the price ranges
I actaully don't get why Mazdas are taking so much business. It's a Ford for god sake. I see a car that has all the trendy and youthful styling accessories like funky lights, but past that, meh. And no coupe.
I do get why customers are fed up with the pathetic service in GM dealers. I suffer from the same issues and almost panic when my car has to go in. Most damage to my cars has been done in GM dealers. Including the fatal blow to the Monte Carlo. The one car I wanted to keep. I have become a shop whore because of it. Desperately searching for a group of people that actually give a @!#$. I have become the very breed of customer I have lothed(spelling?) for years. I see how the discust can develop. Buying a first year hot car might have been a risk both in price and in reliability. Adding to the discust in the experience. Remember this....there is more profit in used cars. By far!!! Asuming that market is safer is entirely off. You are opening a whole new can of risk management.
I was working on creating a GM world somewhat sheltered from the nighmare. I have since shelved it since my unpopular brutal honesty has been quashed in favour of the typical con. With GM head office, Bull@!#$ Baffles Brains. So I'm out. I managed a smokin deal on this car, so I'm actually still driving GM. I had a vintage Porsche in my sights for my new toy. I might already regret the choice.
GM is more concerned with conquest sales. They actually have forgoten about the people that have kept them in business all this time. What they don't seem to understand is that once they are pissed off enough to go, there is no chance in hell they will come back.
Anyway,
Used car pricing....
Like the fellow says, Autotrader gives you the current status of the market. Take the top and bottom out of the picture to get a better idea. Having an imaculate car in a flooded market doesn't get you much, but helps to close the deal on a private sale. If the car is as clean as you say, you might have luch within the community.
10,000km=1000 dollars. It's not a set value, but gives you the idea how your car fits in pricing. A car with 20,000 should be about 1000 bucks more than one with 10,000km. This would relate to the average priced car, so take a few bucks off to compensate.
so something happened to the monte at a dealer eh craig that sucks i always loved that car
but ya i agree with all of you, and i know the problems that kyle had and from working for onstar i know what the dealer network is like for GM and it is complete @!#$ yes you get the few good ones out there but all in all they treat their customers like @!#$, unfortunately this is not GM's fault to a point because there is nobody at GM breathing down the dealers back when there is a complaint
but i like Craig am that customer that sits and watches everything the techs do when they have it in their possession
this is why i still have not got the ignition recall done on the zed because i just do not want some stupid pimpled face high school kid even touching my car let alone driveing it because if anything happens to it i would feel real bad having to kill him for it
Golden mile Crushed the jacking points of the car. And yes, I watched it happen. Argh!!! I was taking it too City before that because they have an oil change pit, but they dented the hood, looked at me, and pretended they didnt' do it.
Don't bother with the ignition recal. You have to hold the starter on for some time before it heats up. I bet you know that holdign a starter that long is not very good thing to do regardless of the recal or "defective part".
ya thats why i really wasn't in a big rush
hey this is a lttle off topic but do you know if RSM played with the fuel in my car, i am trying to figure out why it was running so rich
