Trade-in inspection

[AnnaRa]

I currently own a Jeep 2022 which I want to trade in for Tesla 3. I got an initial offer from tesla of $18000 (CARMAX and CARVANA were a bit higher).
My question is about the inspection when handing over the vehicle. I read a lot of people here say they don't really inspect your car. I will soon upload the photos, they all seem great. in reality I know there is some (very superficial and you have to try hard to see) - hail damage around the car, it's also black so not sure you would even see it without a professional inspection.
what would you suggest I do?
fixing this damage before trading in will cost around $5000.

 

[jmaddr]

My two cents...
There's not much you can do if on the day of pick-up if they walk outside and do a manual inspection. However, that wasn't the case in my scenario and many many others. They just haven't manually inspected trade-in most scenarios I've read. You can't do much of anything to hide it, so I wouldn't both with that.
I'd be more concerned about Tesla lowering their value before your pick up date. They have done this when they ask you to sign your paperwork before pickup and the trade-in value was older (generally over 30 days). You don't say where in the US you are located, but if you are in a state which offers sales tax reduction based on the value of the trade in, I would hold off until your delivery timeframe. It's going to be a timing thing for you.

For example, if Tesla has offered $18k, that tax value (at 8%) would be $1440. The week before pickup and before you sign your papers, get 7 day valid Carmax, Carvana, written quotes. If they are valuing your car for a good bit more than $1440 over Tesla's, it's a safe bet to just sell them the car and use the excess they are paying to cover the extra taxes at pickup. Hopefully it's much more than $1440. If it's close or less than $1440 over, you can goto pickup day and if Tesla says they will no longer give you the 18k for whatever reason, and you are still within Carmax/Carvan 7 day and mileage validity period or the other place, you can always go right back to them and sell it. Again, Tesla will usually make you sign most of the documents before delivery so you should know what their final offer is close to pick-up. It's a little bit of a gamble but a small one IMHO. I haven't heard of Carmax or Caravan not honoring their written trade-in value unless something significantly changes with the car like an accident or huge mileage swings.

 

[AnnaRa]

yes I completely understand the example and advice you provided, thank you! I guess I'll have to get an estimate from CARMAX and CARVANA after having them look at the car and see the damage and not just based on the online form

 

[EAV1]

I'm in Europe, but hopefully someone can explain how the trade-in process works. I'm planning to trade in my regular 2020 M3 and get a regular 2024 M3. Tesla is pretty useless when it comes to answering questions. 1) My windshield needs to be replaced because of cracks. Should I just do it right away, since I have insurance and I only need to pay 200e? Or should I just hand over the car in that state and save the 200e? 2) They have given me an initial estimate of 23 500e for my current M3. I'm not really satisfied with the offer and want slightly more. The Tesla guy who contacted me wants me to carry on and place an order and that maybe the prize they will pay will go up once they have inspected the car (hard to believe). Is there any way to bargain with Tesla? I want 25 000e before I commit to buying a new M3. 3) Anything else that I would need to now, since Tesla is not very clear about the trade-in process.

 

[ewoodrick]

All 3 of the companies that you mention seem to care that much beyond the original pictures. In my experience, the people who take your car are just paperwork shufflers.

Unlike many dealers which look to find as many issues as possible

Trading into Tesla, just makes the whole process a little easier, no need to get someone to take you to pickup your vehicle.
Carvana and Carmax are really easy to work with, Carvana just sent someone to pick up the car.
If you can float the cost of your trade-in, you'll make a little more money with Carvana/Carmax.
If you don't want to float the money, or the trade-in offsets the tax enough, then Tesla just makes it too easy.