Here are some great ways to make sure you maximize your car's value.
Make sure your vehicle looks and smells presentable
While this isn’t the be-all and end-all, it can’t hurt to make your trade look pretty. It will indicate that you have probably taken good care of the vehicle while you have owned it, reducing the pre-owned vehicle manager’s risk of over-appraising it.
Let’s face it: If you looked at a vehicle on a dealer’s lot that was in wonderful condition and had no funky smells or noticeable stains, you’d be more interested and probably willing to pay a little more. On the other hand, if you looked at a vehicle that was dirty, smelly, and basically “ratty,” you would probably have a negative reaction… even if the dealership promised to make the car pristine by the time you were ready to take delivery.
This is because part of buying a vehicle is logical, and the other part is emotional. Usually, emotion controls the majority of the decision-making process. For the same reasons, you can bet that your trade-in will generate a more positive reaction if it is clean than if it is super-dirty.
Scratches, dings and dents should never deter you from trading your vehicle. You might simply want to run it through a car wash prior to bringing it in.
Check the book value of your vehicle
Evaluating a pre-owned vehicle is very subjective because its value depends as much on market conditions as on the condition of the individual vehicle. For instance, small all wheel drive SUVs tend to increase in value when gas prices rise, because people in the northeast usually don’t want to sacrifice all wheel drive for good gas mileage. Although the factors affecting a trade value can be numerous and daunting, luckily there are many guides that can serve as resources if you would like to get an idea of where you stand. We have found Kelley Blue Book to be the most fair and unbiased guide, as it gives readers accurate wholesale, private party values, and accurate retail values.
It is very important to understand that although guides are helpful, there are many of them and none of them ever agree on an exact trade value for any vehicle. This means that they should only be used as exactly what they are: “guides.”
The best way to get an accurate market value assessment of your vehicle is to have one of our pre-owned vehicle managers appraise it for you. However, it does not hurt to bring your research with you so that our managers can use it as a resource to assist in evaluating your trade.
Check auction values of your vehicle if available.
When evaluating a trade, we base the value on numerous elements including its condition and what we can buy your vehicle for elsewhere. It makes sense. Think of it this way: would you purchase a vehicle from another dealer if you knew you could buy the same one with Key Auto Group for less, all else being equal? Hopefully not!
Generally, we compare your vehicle to those available at local dealer auto auctions. There are two main reasons for this. First, if we feel your vehicle is “retailable,” we will be willing to pay approximately the same amount we would pay at auction. Furthermore, if we plan to wholesale your vehicle after you trade it because it does not fit our inventory profile, we will review auction reports to predict what it will sell for at auction.
If you make yourself aware of local auction data, you will likely be more informed as to what represents a fair value for your trade.
Check to see what your vehicle is selling for elsewhere
Another way to gauge your vehicle’s trade value is to examine what it is being retailed for. Indeed, most dealers will try to retail a vehicle if it is in good enough condition. Perhaps check the retail value of your vehicle in the area and subtract room for profit and reconditioning. This should help you arrive at somewhat of a fair number.
Bring service records, if available
Generally speaking, trade-in values are “educated guesses” made by pre-owned vehicle managers as to the wholesale and potential retail values of a particular car. There is inherent risk in this system, as some trade-ins end up needing more reconditioning/service work than the manager had originally expected. The risk of over-evaluating a trade makes a pre-owned vehicle manager’s job very difficult and stressful.
For this reason, it is much easier to offer top dollar for a trade if we know it has been routinely serviced and maintained. If you’ve always had your service work done at our dealership, say so. This way we can look up the history and incorporate it into our evaluation. If you have had the work done elsewhere, do your best to retrieve the information from that service department. Most reputable dealerships and “quick lubes” will happily print a vehicle history for you to present to us upon your arrival.
Don’t bother waiting until the end of “negotiations” to mention your trade. It doesn’t matter, and can even hurt you
The theory of strategically delaying mentioning your trade until you’ve negotiated a fair price does not hold true at Key Auto dealerships. While this might be true at other dealerships, Key Auto Group operates in a manner that does not reward this strategy.
Our lowest price is always clearly marked on the retail vehicle’s windshield and on our website, so there is no reason to delay your mentioning of your trade. In fact, we are likely to offer you more for your trade if you mention it earlier, because we will have ample time to research its value and give you as much as we can.
At Key Auto Group, your trade value is your trade value, and has nothing to do with the price of the vehicle you’re hoping to purchase.
We offer Actual Cash Value for all trades, meaning we don’t base the evaluation on the vehicle you’re buying. Anytime a dealership tells you that your car is worth more if you buy Car A as opposed to Car B, run, don’t walk, away. What they are really telling you is that Car A is marked up at a higher profit than Car B, and they are willing to show you more fake money if you buy Car A because they will make more real money by your doing so.
Since all of our prices are clearly and fairly marked on the windshields and online, your trade value is not a function of the vehicle you’re looking to buy. In fact, we’re happy to offer you fair value for your vehicle even if you decide to buy a vehicle elsewhere.
Make sure your vehicle looks and smells presentable
While this isn’t the be-all and end-all, it can’t hurt to make your trade look pretty. It will indicate that you have probably taken good care of the vehicle while you have owned it, reducing the pre-owned vehicle manager’s risk of over-appraising it.
Let’s face it: If you looked at a vehicle on a dealer’s lot that was in wonderful condition and had no funky smells or noticeable stains, you’d be more interested and probably willing to pay a little more. On the other hand, if you looked at a vehicle that was dirty, smelly, and basically “ratty,” you would probably have a negative reaction… even if the dealership promised to make the car pristine by the time you were ready to take delivery.
This is because part of buying a vehicle is logical, and the other part is emotional. Usually, emotion controls the majority of the decision-making process. For the same reasons, you can bet that your trade-in will generate a more positive reaction if it is clean than if it is super-dirty.
Scratches, dings and dents should never deter you from trading your vehicle. You might simply want to run it through a car wash prior to bringing it in.
Check the book value of your vehicle
Evaluating a pre-owned vehicle is very subjective because its value depends as much on market conditions as on the condition of the individual vehicle. For instance, small all wheel drive SUVs tend to increase in value when gas prices rise, because people in the northeast usually don’t want to sacrifice all wheel drive for good gas mileage. Although the factors affecting a trade value can be numerous and daunting, luckily there are many guides that can serve as resources if you would like to get an idea of where you stand. We have found Kelley Blue Book to be the most fair and unbiased guide, as it gives readers accurate wholesale, private party values, and accurate retail values.
It is very important to understand that although guides are helpful, there are many of them and none of them ever agree on an exact trade value for any vehicle. This means that they should only be used as exactly what they are: “guides.”
The best way to get an accurate market value assessment of your vehicle is to have one of our pre-owned vehicle managers appraise it for you. However, it does not hurt to bring your research with you so that our managers can use it as a resource to assist in evaluating your trade.
Check auction values of your vehicle if available.
When evaluating a trade, we base the value on numerous elements including its condition and what we can buy your vehicle for elsewhere. It makes sense. Think of it this way: would you purchase a vehicle from another dealer if you knew you could buy the same one with Key Auto Group for less, all else being equal? Hopefully not!
Generally, we compare your vehicle to those available at local dealer auto auctions. There are two main reasons for this. First, if we feel your vehicle is “retailable,” we will be willing to pay approximately the same amount we would pay at auction. Furthermore, if we plan to wholesale your vehicle after you trade it because it does not fit our inventory profile, we will review auction reports to predict what it will sell for at auction.
If you make yourself aware of local auction data, you will likely be more informed as to what represents a fair value for your trade.
Check to see what your vehicle is selling for elsewhere
Another way to gauge your vehicle’s trade value is to examine what it is being retailed for. Indeed, most dealers will try to retail a vehicle if it is in good enough condition. Perhaps check the retail value of your vehicle in the area and subtract room for profit and reconditioning. This should help you arrive at somewhat of a fair number.
Bring service records, if available
Generally speaking, trade-in values are “educated guesses” made by pre-owned vehicle managers as to the wholesale and potential retail values of a particular car. There is inherent risk in this system, as some trade-ins end up needing more reconditioning/service work than the manager had originally expected. The risk of over-evaluating a trade makes a pre-owned vehicle manager’s job very difficult and stressful.
For this reason, it is much easier to offer top dollar for a trade if we know it has been routinely serviced and maintained. If you’ve always had your service work done at our dealership, say so. This way we can look up the history and incorporate it into our evaluation. If you have had the work done elsewhere, do your best to retrieve the information from that service department. Most reputable dealerships and “quick lubes” will happily print a vehicle history for you to present to us upon your arrival.
Don’t bother waiting until the end of “negotiations” to mention your trade. It doesn’t matter, and can even hurt you
The theory of strategically delaying mentioning your trade until you’ve negotiated a fair price does not hold true at Key Auto dealerships. While this might be true at other dealerships, Key Auto Group operates in a manner that does not reward this strategy.
Our lowest price is always clearly marked on the retail vehicle’s windshield and on our website, so there is no reason to delay your mentioning of your trade. In fact, we are likely to offer you more for your trade if you mention it earlier, because we will have ample time to research its value and give you as much as we can.
At Key Auto Group, your trade value is your trade value, and has nothing to do with the price of the vehicle you’re hoping to purchase.
We offer Actual Cash Value for all trades, meaning we don’t base the evaluation on the vehicle you’re buying. Anytime a dealership tells you that your car is worth more if you buy Car A as opposed to Car B, run, don’t walk, away. What they are really telling you is that Car A is marked up at a higher profit than Car B, and they are willing to show you more fake money if you buy Car A because they will make more real money by your doing so.
Since all of our prices are clearly and fairly marked on the windshields and online, your trade value is not a function of the vehicle you’re looking to buy. In fact, we’re happy to offer you fair value for your vehicle even if you decide to buy a vehicle elsewhere.
