A new Ford dealer in my area has some interesting cars in its used car inventory. I want a car with a stick shift and they have a 2017 Audi A4 which has very low miles- under 8k. How can I check what a fair price is? My experience with Edmunds is they make you give them all sorts of personal information, and then you get hounded by dealers. Anyone have a good recommendation for a used car value website that won't suck me into a world of spam emails?
Good web sites for used car values?
- Thread starter PeterGreen
- Start date
GON
$100 Site Donor 2024
Peter,
I am a big proponent black book auction prices. It will show what the dealer will expect if they sell/buy the car at auction. It allows you to know what the dealer thinks its true cost is. You can negotiate knowing that the dealer will get xxx dollars at auction.
Find a dealer that provided a black book appraisal on-line. It is a fantastic tool. I am also a fan of edmunds, and am able to get their appraisal without providing personal information.
Note the KBB used dealer pricing appraisals is an average of new car dealer average retail list price. It has nothing to do whatsoever of what a cars actual values is, or actual selling price. One should never ever use KBB retail price as a tool- it is a complete joke.
My goal is to never pay more for a car than it will sell for at auction. It takes a lot of time, work, and patience to find Sellers that wil do that. When a dealer sends a car to auction, its costs them in time, transportation, and auction fees.
I am a big proponent black book auction prices. It will show what the dealer will expect if they sell/buy the car at auction. It allows you to know what the dealer thinks its true cost is. You can negotiate knowing that the dealer will get xxx dollars at auction.
Find a dealer that provided a black book appraisal on-line. It is a fantastic tool. I am also a fan of edmunds, and am able to get their appraisal without providing personal information.
Note the KBB used dealer pricing appraisals is an average of new car dealer average retail list price. It has nothing to do whatsoever of what a cars actual values is, or actual selling price. One should never ever use KBB retail price as a tool- it is a complete joke.
My goal is to never pay more for a car than it will sell for at auction. It takes a lot of time, work, and patience to find Sellers that wil do that. When a dealer sends a car to auction, its costs them in time, transportation, and auction fees.
I've used Edmunds to make offers to a number of used car dealers but never got one to take me up on it.
A4's are fun. My SIL bought a new one with the 6MT around 2008 and kept it 4-5yrs.
The car value situation to me is in uncharted territory given the circumstances.
The car value situation to me is in uncharted territory given the circumstances.
https://www.nadaguides.com/Cars
NADA is what a lot of dealers in my area use. It seems to pretty closely reflect asking prices posted on Autotrader, and CarGuru.
NADA is what a lot of dealers in my area use. It seems to pretty closely reflect asking prices posted on Autotrader, and CarGuru.
Just search autotrader for A4's within ~400miles or so from your zip. Maybe from model years 2014-2018 to get a feel for asking prices, then go from there.
The best pre-owned deals I've gotten are this type of situation, where you're buying a make/model that's different from the selling dealership.
The best pre-owned deals I've gotten are this type of situation, where you're buying a make/model that's different from the selling dealership.
Originally Posted by Wrenchturner44
https://www.nadaguides.com/Cars
NADA is what a lot of dealers in my area use. It seems to pretty closely reflect asking prices posted on Autotrader, and CarGuru.
Yeah, I always used Nada, never pay more than retail and usually I shoot for the middle between average and clean trade in. Private party you try to get somewhere between rough and average trade in.
https://www.nadaguides.com/Cars
NADA is what a lot of dealers in my area use. It seems to pretty closely reflect asking prices posted on Autotrader, and CarGuru.
Yeah, I always used Nada, never pay more than retail and usually I shoot for the middle between average and clean trade in. Private party you try to get somewhere between rough and average trade in.
Well, that's the weird thing. This dealership just opened about a quarter of a mile from the Audi dealer the same people have operated for over thirty years (and before that they had a Datsun dealership.) I can't understand why they are selling this at the Ford dealership and not the Audi dealership.
I use cargurus.com and Autotempest.com to see what cars are selling for around me. Use that as a guide.
I have been a dealer for nearly 20 years. I also used to be a remarketing manager for Capital One Auto Finance and liquidated about 10,000 vehicles a year.
Appraisal is a big part of my daily work.
KBB used to be absolutely terrible for appraisals. Now they're surprisingly decent IF your vehicle has been driven right along the average miles. The trick is to kink it down a notch in terms of condition. Average is below average. Very good is average and so on. KBB doesn't work well with oloder low mileage inventory. It's actually calibrated to a wholesale dealer valuation tool called the Manheim Market Report.
Edmunds used to be great, but Carmax took over that operation and now it's more of a lowballers paradiese. NADA Guides is finance fodder. They tend to overvalue but you can use them to counter an insurance claim on a totaled vehicle. I have known plenty of folks who used that for their salvaged daily driver.
Hope this helps.
Steven Lang
48 Hours And A Used Car
Appraisal is a big part of my daily work.
KBB used to be absolutely terrible for appraisals. Now they're surprisingly decent IF your vehicle has been driven right along the average miles. The trick is to kink it down a notch in terms of condition. Average is below average. Very good is average and so on. KBB doesn't work well with oloder low mileage inventory. It's actually calibrated to a wholesale dealer valuation tool called the Manheim Market Report.
Edmunds used to be great, but Carmax took over that operation and now it's more of a lowballers paradiese. NADA Guides is finance fodder. They tend to overvalue but you can use them to counter an insurance claim on a totaled vehicle. I have known plenty of folks who used that for their salvaged daily driver.
Hope this helps.
Steven Lang
48 Hours And A Used Car
Originally Posted by macarose
I have been a dealer for nearly 20 years. I also used to be a remarketing manager for Capital One Auto Finance and liquidated about 10,000 vehicles a year.
Appraisal is a big part of my daily work.
KBB used to be absolutely terrible for appraisals. Now they're surprisingly decent IF your vehicle has been driven right along the average miles. The trick is to kink it down a notch in terms of condition. Average is below average. Very good is average and so on. KBB doesn't work well with oloder low mileage inventory. It's actually calibrated to a wholesale dealer valuation tool called the Manheim Market Report.
Edmunds used to be great, but Carmax took over that operation and now it's more of a lowballers paradiese. NADA Guides is finance fodder. They tend to overvalue but you can use them to counter an insurance claim on a totaled vehicle. I have known plenty of folks who used that for their salvaged daily driver.
Hope this helps.
Steven Lang
48 Hours And A Used Car
Thanks Steve-
A post from someone who knows what they are talking about on BITOG is actually refreshing.
I have been a dealer for nearly 20 years. I also used to be a remarketing manager for Capital One Auto Finance and liquidated about 10,000 vehicles a year.
Appraisal is a big part of my daily work.
KBB used to be absolutely terrible for appraisals. Now they're surprisingly decent IF your vehicle has been driven right along the average miles. The trick is to kink it down a notch in terms of condition. Average is below average. Very good is average and so on. KBB doesn't work well with oloder low mileage inventory. It's actually calibrated to a wholesale dealer valuation tool called the Manheim Market Report.
Edmunds used to be great, but Carmax took over that operation and now it's more of a lowballers paradiese. NADA Guides is finance fodder. They tend to overvalue but you can use them to counter an insurance claim on a totaled vehicle. I have known plenty of folks who used that for their salvaged daily driver.
Hope this helps.
Steven Lang
48 Hours And A Used Car
Thanks Steve-
A post from someone who knows what they are talking about on BITOG is actually refreshing.
Originally Posted by macarose
I have been a dealer for nearly 20 years. I also used to be a remarketing manager for Capital One Auto Finance and liquidated about 10,000 vehicles a year.
Appraisal is a big part of my daily work.
KBB used to be absolutely terrible for appraisals. Now they're surprisingly decent IF your vehicle has been driven right along the average miles. The trick is to kink it down a notch in terms of condition. Average is below average. Very good is average and so on. KBB doesn't work well with oloder low mileage inventory. It's actually calibrated to a wholesale dealer valuation tool called the Manheim Market Report.
Edmunds used to be great, but Carmax took over that operation and now it's more of a lowballers paradiese. NADA Guides is finance fodder. They tend to overvalue but you can use them to counter an insurance claim on a totaled vehicle. I have known plenty of folks who used that for their salvaged daily driver.
Hope this helps.
Steven Lang
48 Hours And A Used Car
That probably explains why I never pay retail even at a dealer, at that point it's more like good trade in. I always figured people who paid retail are the ones who have bad credit and have to do the buy here pay here type dealers who end up charging more so it skews the average retail number up higher. Or that it includes those that don't negotiate very well so retail ends up higher. I've been a cash buyer for the last several cars.
I have been a dealer for nearly 20 years. I also used to be a remarketing manager for Capital One Auto Finance and liquidated about 10,000 vehicles a year.
Appraisal is a big part of my daily work.
KBB used to be absolutely terrible for appraisals. Now they're surprisingly decent IF your vehicle has been driven right along the average miles. The trick is to kink it down a notch in terms of condition. Average is below average. Very good is average and so on. KBB doesn't work well with oloder low mileage inventory. It's actually calibrated to a wholesale dealer valuation tool called the Manheim Market Report.
Edmunds used to be great, but Carmax took over that operation and now it's more of a lowballers paradiese. NADA Guides is finance fodder. They tend to overvalue but you can use them to counter an insurance claim on a totaled vehicle. I have known plenty of folks who used that for their salvaged daily driver.
Hope this helps.
Steven Lang
48 Hours And A Used Car
That probably explains why I never pay retail even at a dealer, at that point it's more like good trade in. I always figured people who paid retail are the ones who have bad credit and have to do the buy here pay here type dealers who end up charging more so it skews the average retail number up higher. Or that it includes those that don't negotiate very well so retail ends up higher. I've been a cash buyer for the last several cars.
