New Vs Resale - To Wait?

[Food2000]

Hello Everyone,

Little background is that i used to be a mechanic and have always bought my cars old and used

This will be my first venture in considering buying a newer car. From my lurking and researching around... i have realized that resale for jeep is quite high.

Do you guys have any experience in terms of what it's like to wait (lets say months to years) for these cars to go on the used market to buy one? Right now it looks like they're holding value quite well...

Again, i have no experience with buying a new car from a dealer or financing a car, i've always bought cash and from resale websites (criagslist, autotrade etc...).

Thanks everyone for tips and advice !

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[ZTMAN]

I just purchased a new JT. After negotiating price below MSRP, the trade was thrown into the equasion. My trade was a 2016 JKU WW that I bougt new 3.5 years ago for $29,500. It only had just north of 10k miles at time of trade, but I got $27,500 for it. The dealer has it on the lot for $32,500. My guess is some fellow is going to come along and pay more for a 3.5 year old Jeep than I paid for it when it was new.
Jeeps do hold their value, but there is really no track record for the JTs, but I would expect they will follow tradition.

Based on the recent release, you may be waiting a long time. If you really want a JT, I would get one now.

 

[Food2000]

I just purchased a new JT. After negotiating price below MSRP, the trade was thrown into the equasion. My trade was a 2016 JKU WW that I bougt new 3.5 years ago for $29,500. It only had just north of 10k miles at time of trade, but I got $27,500 for it. The dealer has it on the lot for $32,500. My guess is some fellow is going to come along and pay more for a 3.5 year old Jeep than I paid for it when it was new.
Jeeps do hold their value, but there is really no track record for the JTs, but I would expect they will follow tradition.

Based on the recent release, you may be waiting a long time. If you really want a JT, I would get one now.

That's very helpful information... and as thrifty as i'd like to be with buying a used - JT... i am not sure if there's a whole lot of savings vs effort. Am i wrong about this?

I know in the past... i was always under the impression that as soon you you drive it off the lot.. value diminishes however.. i am not sure if that applies to jeep which seems to have a strong following of enthusiast and resale.

 

[ZTMAN]

I think you are on the right track Food. IMO there is no reason to buy a used late model jeep because you are going to pay close to what you can buy a new one for. That new car smell is nice too.
Remember, if you do not spend it, your heirs will.

 

[Klutch]

We no longer live in the 1980s when new cars and trucks would significantly depreciate the moment you drove them off the lot. Here in the 21st century:

- Cars and trucks last a lot longer than they used to. Not long ago, if you bought a new car or truck and took REALLY good care of it, you'd get more than 100,000 miles before the engine needed a complete rebuild. And, you might not want to bother because, if you didn't live in the southwest, the car or truck was likely rusted out anyway.

- These day, if you take care of most any car or truck, you get over 200,000 miles of good, reliable service. And with modern, factory rustproofing, the paint and metal will be in good shape. Shoot, a friend of mine just went over 300,000 on his Dodge Dakota. It's still running strong.

- Late-model used cars and trucks are currently outrageously overpriced; especially if you want something desirable such as a Honda, Toyota, Subaru, Jeep Wrangler or any truck. Ever since the "Cash for Clunkers" program, used car prices went WAY up and they have stayed up. Dealers do anything and everything they can to make sure those priced stay high.

- If you compare buying a desirable, late-model used car or truck to buying the same new car or truck in the same trim, you can easily come out the same or even save money buying new. Example: My neighbor moved in from Germany a couple of years ago. She needed a car and was driving a rental. Like many people in Colorado, she wanted a Subaru Outback. She went to a local dealer and found a very nice, very clean, used outback. She decided she wanted it, but wanted to run it by her husband, still in Germany, before buying. On a whim, she drove by the Subaru dealer and checked out new Outbacks. She bought a brand new Outback, in the same trim, for $3,000 less than the used outback.

- Manufacturers often offer incentives like rebates and very low interest financing. These incentives can save you a bundle on a new vehicle. They aren't available at all on a used vehicle.

- If you're paying cash, cool. But if you're not paying cash, any new car loan has a lower interest rate than a used car loan. Furthermore, you can often get a dealer to cough up a SUPER low interest rate loan if you agree to buy an extended warranty. Cheap money is good. Combine the cheap money with a rebate and you're saving some serious coin compared to buying used.

- And, hey, you may not even need an extended warranty because when you buy new, you get the full, factory warranty.

- Buying a used vehicle can be a crap shoot. These days, many people put gas in their vehicles and drive them and that's it. They don't change the oil. They don't get alignments. They don't flush the cooling system. Shoot, they may not even air up the tires. Then they trade-in, buy a new vehicle and drive that one while performing no maintenance. Yippee, you just bought the trade-in and later wonder why it's blowing smoke at 40,000 miles. What's that? Your used car is "Certified"? Well, unfortunately, that can mean something or it can mean absolutely nothing depending on the dealer.

- Another risk is you might end up with a salvaged vehicle. Many, many scams involve cleaning up flooded cars and reselling them. And no, it doesn't always show up in a CarFax. Years ago there was a problem in my area where a local guy would buy seriously wrecked Subarus, cut them in half and weld together the non-wrecked parts. A lot of people were stunned when they went to trade in those Subarus and the dealer told them they had a "Franken-Car" that was unsafe and nobody would knowingly buy. Such scams are endless.

- Yeah, sometimes bad things happen when you buy a new vehicle. Lucky for you, the factory warranty covers it. If the dealer can't fix it after multiple attempts, you can invoke the "Lemon Law" and force the manufacturer to buy it back. No, it's not easy, but it is an option and it does work. If you bought used, too bad, so sad. Unless you pay extra for a warranty, the vehicle is sold "As Is".

I have bought many, older "Classic" vehicles. I have bought multiple new vehicles. I can't see myself buying a late-model, used vehicle. Whenever I see the sticker price and crunch the numbers, it just doesn't make sense. Your mileage may vary.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

A DEALER paid me 19,000 for my 2011 47,000 mile Silverado. So it's not like the past where a used truck got you very little. Especially around here, trucks bring big bucks even used. And Jeeps - they hold value well.

One of my wife's friends was looking for a "good used SUV" this past fall - she thought she'd save a bundle and go private sale. Well, she's had a lot of trouble. Figure these people are not always, but often, selling for reasons. As long as you know exactly what to look for and can check the person out - what's their place like, other cars, smell the transmission fluid, ask for maintenance records, etc.

I will never buy even a used vehicle off craigslist, that sort of thing. I'll only buy from people I know or who I can do research on. Been a mechanic since the 70s myself and I've seen to many "issues". I've checked out a lot of "used cars" for other people and found stuff you'd not believe. Windshield has a small crack? Wow, the car has been sectioned - great job, but I figured it out. No, not in those online car checker-outers either. Many, maybe mos, are, but not all. I've found flood cars that had no such record.

I only buy certain cars and the sort I'd buy are these days only available from collectors or car people. My used cars appreciate, not depreciate. My $500 car is now worth about 10 grand, my $13,000 car just sold for 25.

As far as a used JT - it's going to happen but they won't be much less, if any, than brand new untitled JTs.

 

[Ichthus]

Klutch did a great job above of spelling out my logic on this topic. It doesn’t take much research around here to find that it’s fairly easy to get a new Gladiator or Wrangler for 10% under MSRP. When you consider that MSRP’s often increase $500-10000 per year (or more), you can quickly figure out why a used Jeep that LOOKS like a good value, when compared to the MSRP of a brand new one, is really more representative of a freakishly sound financial investment by the first buyer.

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