How accurate have the Tesla trade-in values been? I don’t overly feel comfortable giving a non-refundable $250 and feel as if I’m being strong armed.
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MX100DM3P2017
Member
I no longer trust Tesla trade-in estimates. My 2018 Performance M3, red with white interior, 10K miles, in perfect condition is now only getting $31k - $33K estimate from Tesla as of today. On July 28th, Tesla offered $47,000K - $53,400. 3rd party car dealers today offered $46K - $48K so Tesla is far below other offerings. Question is, why such a large drop in trade-in values in two months? Is Tesla going to lower the new car pricing or is this a glimpse of bigger problems?
The used car market is basically collapsing on itself. If you can swing getting rid of your car, you should probably sell it sooner than later. Used car values are basically dropping 1-2%/week and likely to increase as the fed continues to raise the rate.
While this statement is true in of itself, let’s not forget Tesla trade-in values have always been less desirable and inaccurate. I would love to be the buyer for Tesla. And I can assure you, they are shopping trades for top dollar.
The reason Tesla doesnt offer as much is because the trade-ins go directly to wholesale (the exception being some used Teslas.) Used car dealers (ie local car dealers, Carmax, Carvana, AutoNation, etc.) will attempt to sell decent trade-ins at retail before falling back to auctions (a last resort); retail generally has higher margins.
I'm guessing when Tesla gives an estimate, its using publicly-available wholesale used car data. They have no intention of selling most trade-ins which is why they generally dont match folks that do. The wholesale market is in even worse shape than the retail market.
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Tesla gets the same numbers as any other dealership in the country. While region may have different values on the same vehicle; Tesla’s numbers are significantly lower than most other offers. Which really hampers taking advantage of state tax credit.
Yes, but dealers will attempt to sell at car at retail before sending it to the wholesale market; Tesla does not. The wholesale used car market is in even worse shape that the retail market. Sellers inability to sell their existing inventory is changing their buying habits on the wholesale market (sending prices down.)
Tesla offered me $29k for my 2016 MX with 112k miles. I advertised on several sites and sold it to a guy from Portland who drove all the way to Northern California. He paid $47.9k and most importantly was attracted to the free Supercharging. I had lots of lowball offers around $40k. He found the listing on FaceBook.
ridgebackpilot
Member
Does Tesla usually honor its trade-in estimates? The reason I ask is that I'm considering trading in my 2022 Mustang Mach-E on a Tesla Model Y or Model 3.
Oddly enough, I received a much higher trade-in estimate from Tesla than the price quotes I received from Vroom, Driveway, and GiveMeTheVIN.
The Tesla quote was as much as $8-10K higher than those from the wholesale buying sites. There are a couple of possible reasons why: Perhaps Tesla is a new car dealer and want to sell their new cars, so they offer more for trade-ins to encourage customers. Of course, it could also be "bait-and-switch" on Tesla's part to encourage customers to order their cars by quoting much higher trade-in values than they're willing to confirm as part of the transaction.
Anyone have experience regarding whether Tesla usually lives up to its initial trade-in estimates?
Oddly enough, I received a much higher trade-in estimate from Tesla than the price quotes I received from Vroom, Driveway, and GiveMeTheVIN.
The Tesla quote was as much as $8-10K higher than those from the wholesale buying sites. There are a couple of possible reasons why: Perhaps Tesla is a new car dealer and want to sell their new cars, so they offer more for trade-ins to encourage customers. Of course, it could also be "bait-and-switch" on Tesla's part to encourage customers to order their cars by quoting much higher trade-in values than they're willing to confirm as part of the transaction.
Anyone have experience regarding whether Tesla usually lives up to its initial trade-in estimates?
MX100DM3P2017
Member
No I'm not stuck. Selling my Tesla to a 3rd party has no affect on any new Tesla order. It just denies Tesla any new resale on a perfect low mileage Performance M3. As a Tesla stock holder this concerns me. Tesla should want low mileage, perfectly maintained vehicles. Tomorrow when I sell my PM3 to a 3rd party, I will get 37% more vs what Tesla offers, cash in the bank to pay for new Tesla or to purchase from someone else. I win no matter what but Tesla loses.
MX100DM3P2017
Member
Selling my Performance M3 to 3rd party tomorrow. Will just have MX 100D until I decide what to buy.
We ran into a similar issue with my wife's car. Was originally planning to trade it in to Tesla for a MY (due in December.) I had it appraised in July, was offered $38K. Mid-September, it dropped to $30K, before spiking a little to $33K after Hurricane Ian; immediately sold it to Carmax for that amount. We have another vehicle so we'll just make due with one car. Out of curiosity, I recently checked the value of the car again, and now its appraising for around $26K (a decrease of $7K/~20% in one month or so.)
Tesla had offered us about 10% less than the offer from CarMax. Where I live, there's a tax incentive on trade-ins so the end numbers weren't too far apart, but I honestly didnt trust the value of the car to hold til December. The offers are only good for 30 days, or 1K miles, so I would've had to roll the dice a few more times (assuming the MY shows up in December.)
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Why would you expect a trade-in value to be guaranteed for 4-6 (7-10) months until you get your new car?
Most Carmax/Carvana trade offers are valid for 30 days at best, no more. So two months later with them will get you a different value - just like Tesla.
Expecting different from Tesla doesn't seem to be a realistic expectation. They even highlight this in the app when you submit your trade in information.
Most Carmax/Carvana trade offers are valid for 30 days at best, no more. So two months later with them will get you a different value - just like Tesla.
Expecting different from Tesla doesn't seem to be a realistic expectation. They even highlight this in the app when you submit your trade in information.
matthewserta
Tech Guru
How did this go?
I received an estimate today, and I’m buying an inventory car on Friday. But after I paid the $250 deposit it’s now showing “offer pending”. I’m wondering if they’re going to try to offer less now that I’m locked in…
Strong possibility. That's the gripe. There really should be an 'out' if something changes that drastically. I keep hearing Tesla's not in the used car business. Okay, fine, how about you partner with a third party like CarMax? That way, Tesla has a backer and you can still maintain the tax credit. This is the problem with direct to manufacture auto sales, they only care about selling their car. Your current car is your problem and it's hard to shop trade values once you zero in on a vehicle you really like.
It’s a scam. They show an estimate and when you pay the deposit they reduce the estimate by thousands. Same thing happened to me. Offer reduced by 2.5k. I will recommend you to look for other offers.
Pretty sure Tesla is not going to be competitive simply because it's a problem that I doubt they want to deal with whereas regular dealership actually have a workflow for processing used car sales, by selling it at their own dealership, going through their network, auction, etc.
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