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Trade-in Drama, should I just walk away?
- Thread starter beantownrich
- Start date
Let us know if you move forward with carbuyerusa. They have given me the highest offer for a Toyota Landcruiser that I'm selling.....but many of their online reviews are eye-raising
robeeen
Member
Trade in values have been going down on a lot of cars. I only know this because In September-January I was receiving emails begging me to buy my car from dealerships. At first they started at $46000 for my Audi A5. I bought it 3 years ago for $47000. My old salesman even wanted it. The offers kept rolling in but kept decreasing some. I finally decided on the Y and thought that I better sell it immediately because it's on a serious downslope. I got an offer for $42K in the beginning of March, and then a week later I put it up on Shift, Vroom, Carmax and Carvana. Everyone except shift offered me 33K!!!! Shift offered me $38K. I ended up selling 3rd party from someone off of Autotrader for slightly more than what shift offered. Point being, the market is insane right now.. The chip shortage is clearing up and more EV's are coming out (my Audi was ICE), and it's just having a huge effect. Perhaps Tesla was dealing with these swings with your car. It's still messed up and I would be mad too, but I can see why I guess.
Try carvana. I sold my Acura to them and they handed me a check when they came to pick the car up. I deposited check through mobile app while the car was being put on a truck. I appraised my car through carvana and vroom websites multiple times and accepted the offer that I liked. Prices of used cars change day to day in the current environment.
That is not completely true. If you look up Model 3 on the Tesla website there are a dozen of used M3 in the Minneapolis area at the three Tesla sales locations. So, Tesla is absolutely selling some of those trade in cars.
BGOwner
Active Member
Well, my comments were from March, things change. I noticed all those Used Tesla around me, and there are a lot, both M3 and MY, are all more then a NEW Telsa is, but no wait.
We walked away after they changed their estimate down more than 7000 on a non-expired estimate. Agree with what you said they hide by being impossible to phone. They created this problem and now they want to keep my $250 because I walked …. They put people in impossible situations who flip flops more than 5000$ during a sale ?
ucmndd
Well-Known Member
It's frustrating with Tesla but all car dealerships play games with trades. It all depends on what the market is doing that week. Tesla is frustrating because it's not a same day deal.
Unless there is a tax benefit to making both vehicles part of the same transaction then why not trade somewhere else like CarMax or one of the other online dealers? You will get the most doing a private sale but that is a lot of time and hassle.
I would avoid trading in to Tesla if possible and reasonable.
Unless there is a tax benefit to making both vehicles part of the same transaction then why not trade somewhere else like CarMax or one of the other online dealers? You will get the most doing a private sale but that is a lot of time and hassle.
I would avoid trading in to Tesla if possible and reasonable.
As someone who has been f*cked over by Tesla in the trade-in process.. it's much worst when they play their games. As there is a good chance you already placed a $250 non-refundable deposit and have done your financing paperwork with Tesla.. before you find out exactly how many games with they want to play.
With a traditional car dealer.. if the numbers on the deal somehow changed at the last minute.. then you just get up.. get back in your car and drive to the next dealership that is ready and waiting for your business. Tesla did this exact same *last-minute-lowball-offer* trick to me.. where they magically lowered the trade-in value of my car by $2,000 just ONE WEEK later. Thankfully after refusing the trade offer.. just two days after picking up my Model Y, I was able to sell my old car to another dealership for $4K more than Tesla's highest offer.
I keep warning people. **NONE** of these companies are your friend. All of them are interested in your business for just one reason = profit. One process probably works better than the other, right up until the point where it doesn't. I certainly understand why people love the easy everything-online process.. but there are certain situations where that process comes back to bite you. And its EXACTLY when there is nobody at Tesla you can even speak to resolve it. I was simply told.. over a freaking text message.. that's their best offer and there is nothing they do about the lowball price.
And that's exactly when you realize the concept of buying something so expensive is still a very YMMV experience when things don't happen the way you expect them to.
One thing we can both agree on: AVOID trading in your vehicle to Tesla if at all possible.
Simply not worth the headaches.
Selling your used car (which is what a trade -in is, no matter what you call it) is just like selling anything else. You have a price in mind, you talk to potential buyers, and you negotiate a deal with one (or more) of them. As my M&A colleagues liked to say, there's no deal until there's a deal. Until you get to the point of a signed contract and money changing hands it's all up in the air and subject to ongoing negotiation. In the case of Tesla and their trade in offers I'm pretty sure you're dealing with a bot, and you get whatever the algorithm is offering that hour. If it's not at the point of completing the contract it is only so much hot air, "estimates" weeks in advance without even seeing the vehicle are meaningless, I certainly wouldn't bother with them. Tesla probably does themselves a disservice by offering them. Like with all car dealers they are offering you a convenient transaction, at a price. Except in rare circumstances you will do better financially selling your car elsewhere.
It is clouded at traditional dealerships because there a good salesman will size you up and figure out what you value-- price of the new vehicle, trade-in value, interest rate and monthly payment, "free" floor mats, or whatever, and try to structure a package that makes you happy. But know if they are offering you a great trade-in value your probably paying more for the car elsewhere. They optimize their profit outcome however it works best to secure the sale.
It is clouded at traditional dealerships because there a good salesman will size you up and figure out what you value-- price of the new vehicle, trade-in value, interest rate and monthly payment, "free" floor mats, or whatever, and try to structure a package that makes you happy. But know if they are offering you a great trade-in value your probably paying more for the car elsewhere. They optimize their profit outcome however it works best to secure the sale.
Well, caravan is likely to be out of business soon so…. And their estimates are always lowball even compared to other buyers. Tesla made me a fair offer but I decided the car was worth more as a backup and removed the trade in.
That has nothing to do with what i said.. or the point I made.
Specifically what I pointed out was that Carvana, Vroom and Carmax will make an offer that is:
- Instant
- Online
- Good for 7 days
Great! So sell your car to them. Why deal with someone whose business terms and practices you dislike? It only irritates you and encourages their behavior. ( I certainly did not sell my old car to Tesla!) fortunately there is a robust open market for used cars, you have many choices.
Yeah never understood the trade in mystery. Tesla (unlike ICE OEM’s) doesn’t have used car lots. They don’t want the used cars. They offer a market rate that they can spin off to auctions and other used brokers to get rid of them. It’s a necessary evil the need to offer. It’s a service and at times an assist for tax deferral. Nothing more. They get hammered by this as their estimate (Like ALL others) is only good for 7 days. This is tricky when you are waiting months for a new car. Used prices move daily. Sell it on your own or except the simple low value solution. IF you got a good trade deal from Tesla, you didn’t try hard enough and you Could have gotten More.
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