California 3 month old trade up pricing

[Ricks Lightning]

Looking into trading my 3 month old Lightning Pro 55k msrp with factory , 9.6 pro power, tow package. Bed liner , tailgate steps. Added aftermarket electric tonneau cover, 4 separate steps, front view camera w monitor.
Not selling it because I don't like it, trading up because I love it. Looking to get a 23 Larient or Platinum for a good deal.

Problem Is the dealer claims my pro is only worth 35-38k. For a 3 month old 2400 mile spotless truck with an additional 2k worth of extras. Sure I can remove the tonneau cover and reuse it on the new lightning. But is the dealer screwing me on the pricing or do they drop that quick. I'm into it for 50k with tax and license. Plus 2k of aftermarket.

Anything under 80k msrp is still eligible for the 7500 Federal tax credit. So a Platinum is not eligible even if they discount the price below 80k as it's based on the msrp.

Love the truck, just thinking of more bells and whistles. But don't want to take a bath.

Rick

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[RickLightning]

Lariat...

Yes, your extras are worthless, except the tonneau for a fraction of what you paid. If you want to maximize value, you need to do a private sale. But yes, you will take a bath on a 3 month old truck.

It is not new that if you make short term financial moves like this on a vehicle, you take a bath. And yes, a Platinum is not eligible for a tax credit.

 

[Scorpio3d]

Looking into trading my 3 month old Lightning Pro 55k msrp with factory , 9.6 pro power, tow package. Bed liner , tailgate steps. Added aftermarket electric tonneau cover, 4 separate steps, front view camera w monitor.
Not selling it because I don't like it, trading up because I love it. Looking to get a 23 Larient or Platinum for a good deal.

Problem Is the dealer claims my pro is only worth 35-38k. For a 3 month old 2400 mile spotless truck with an additional 2k worth of extras. Sure I can remove the tonneau cover and reuse it on the new lightning. But is the dealer screwing me on the pricing or do they drop that quick. I'm into it for 50k with tax and license. Plus 2k of aftermarket.

Anything under 80k msrp is still eligible for the 7500 Federal tax credit. So a Platinum is not eligible even if they discount the price below 80k as it's based on the msrp.

Love the truck, just thinking of more bells and whistles. But don't want to take a bath.

Rick

If you put your info in on kbb.com it will give you a ballpark Then you can choose private sale or trade-in And see what the difference is. you can also check edmonds.com I think

Lariat...

Yes, your extras are worthless, except the tonneau for a fraction of what you paid. If you want to maximize value, you need to do a private sale. But yes, you will take a bath on a 3 month old truck.

It is not new that if you make short term financial moves like this on a vehicle, you take a bath. And yes, a Platinum is not eligible for a tax credit.

Yes!

 

[RocketGhost]

The dealer's offer seems reasonable. It's consistent with just about any new vehicle. When it goes to be sold as used it won't qualify for a tax credit and manufacturer incentives, used car loan rates are generally higher, warranty has already started, buyers don't know its history, etc. The dealer has to sell it at enough of a discount vs. new to get a buyer.

 

[invertedspear]

Remember the old saying, "A new car loses 20% the moment it rolls off the lot" so just that says your $55k OG price is at best $44k the moment you bought it. Factor in that it's too high a price to get any used car EV rebate, and sale profit for the dealer, $38k seems reasonable, you might get $45k used, but if I can spend 10k more to then get 7500 back and I get a new, not used truck, well, I'm going new. I love the 7500 federal credit, but it's a main reason resale value suffers.

I think you're going to have a rough time here. Good luck

Your only power at the dealer is if they will discount that Lariat to move it. In which case, tell them your terms and walk away and see if they call you back.

 

[Zprime29]

Consider the difference in sales tax savings. Not sure what it is for you, but for me it's 8.25%. So if buy an $80k Lariat, 80k * 0.0825 = 6600. So the way I think about it, is that I need to sell the truck for more than the dealer offer plus that amount in order for it to be worth my time and effort. $38k + $6600 = $44,600 in value from trading in. Not an easy pill to swallow, I hear ya.

Probably going to depend on how bad the dealer wants to off load a more expensive truck. You could always negotiate by asking for a bigger discount on the new truck to compensate for the low trade in. It'll be easier for them to sell the lower priced truck so they might be willing come down a little on the more expensive one. I've never been good at this kind of thing myself.

 

[Acottrell]

$55k msrp…..

Most likely you didn’t pay msrp and got a tax incentive. A second hand buyer won’t get those discounts so there is almost $7500 to $10k off the value right there. Add in it now being a used vehicle and the amount the dealer needs for profit, their numbers sound reasonable to me.

Far better than my ‘22 Lariat ER with 18k miles the KBB’s for $44-$50k

 

[RickLightning]

Consider the difference in sales tax savings. Not sure what it is for you, but for me it's 8.25%. So if buy an $80k Lariat, 80k * 0.0825 = 6600. So the way I think about it, is that I need to sell the truck for more than the dealer offer plus that amount in order for it to be worth my time and effort. $38k + $6600 = $44,600 in value from trading in. Not an easy pill to swallow, I hear ya.

Probably going to depend on how bad the dealer wants to off load a more expensive truck. You could always negotiate by asking for a bigger discount on the new truck to compensate for the low trade in. It'll be easier for them to sell the lower priced truck so they might be willing come down a little on the more expensive one. I've never been good at this kind of thing myself.

Math should be:

$6,600 new purchase sales tax

$38,000 x .0825 = $3,135

The tax SAVINGS are $3,135. You will pay $6,600 - $3,135 = $3,465.

Some states have no tax savings.

Some use the above formula.

Some are less.

 

[Zprime29]

Math should be:

$6,600 new purchase sales tax

$38,000 x .0825 = $3,135

The tax SAVINGS are $3,135. You will pay $6,600 - $3,135 = $3,465.

Some states have no tax savings.

Some use the above formula.

Some are less.

Oops, your right. OP is in Cali so there's definitely tax.

 

[RickLightning]

Oops, your right. OP is in Cali so there's definitely tax.

Which provides zero credit for sales tax...

 

[Ventorum94]

Remember the old saying, "A new car loses 20% the moment it rolls off the lot" so just that says your $55k OG price is at best $44k the moment you bought it. Factor in that it's too high a price to get any used car EV rebate, and sale profit for the dealer, $38k seems reasonable, you might get $45k used, but if I can spend 10k more to then get 7500 back and I get a new, not used truck, well, I'm going new. I love the 7500 federal credit, but it's a main reason resale value suffers.

I think you're going to have a rough time here. Good luck

Your only power at the dealer is if they will discount that Lariat to move it. In which case, tell them your terms and walk away and see if they call you back.

$55k actually becomes $37.5k when “the taillights cross the curb” ($55k less 20%, less the $7500 that actually lowered the original price to begin with).

 

[Ricks Lightning]

Went to a large Ford dealer in LA yesterday. pretty much a waste of time. They had multiple lightings and I found a Larient that would work. I wasted more time with an appraisal when it literally took the guy 2 minutes to walk around the car after spending 2 hours with the sales person. He said 35k. What's amazing is looking at some national sales sites they are selling pros with more miles and less features for 44k. Looks like I'm much better off selling it on my own or keeping it and adding the few features like Additive Cruise control, 360 cameras. I already have the lane centering and added a front view camera.

Rick

 

[Ricks Lightning]

$55k actually becomes $37.5k when “the taillights cross the curb” ($55k less 20%, less the $7500 that actually lowered the original price to begin with).

Not actually 100%, dealers are selling their demo pros that are driven hard by dozens of people with close to 1000 miles as new since they haven't been officially registered yet. Yet they are only discounting them a few K from MSRP. So would you rather have a vehicle owned and driven by 1 person or a demo driven hard by dozens? Looks like dealers are looking to make much more money on the used vehicles than on new vehicles.

In my case with a 55k msrp and a 35k buy back. Even if they sold it for 44k , they just made 9 k for letting it sit on the lot for a month or 2. Don't think they make 9k with a new 55k vehicle.

Rick

 

[RocketGhost]

What's amazing is looking at some national sales sites they are selling pros with more miles and less features for 44k.

Asking price isn't selling price. We don't really know what they are actually selling for. Right now I guarantee the price is negotiated down.

Not actually 100%, dealers are selling their demo pros that are driven hard by dozens of people with close to 1000 miles as new since they haven't been officially registered yet.

I believe the notion that demos are "driven hard" isn't the norm. Sure, it does happen. I've always driven cars I've tested and rented like I drive my own, which is pretty tame. And even if it's "driven hard," there aren't really bad consequences until it's consistently done over an extended part of its life. What could happen in a Lightning? Worn tires? Electric motors don't care how hard they are pushed.

 

[Zprime29]

Which provides zero credit for sales tax...

In that case I would not trade in, no advantage. A couple of grand is definitely worth my time to sell privately.

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