[IMG]ANY time you want the dealer to take a trade in be prepaired to bend over and grab your ankles. It generally does not matter how nice your car is or what make or model it is, they are not going to even come close to what you will get selling it yourself. [/IMG] TRADE IN=WHOLESALE VALUE.SELL IT YOURSELF=RETAIL VALUE.2 different things entirely.IF you want all the money,sell the item yourself.if you want some of the money,and less in taxes,trade it.

 

Would you honestly have a dealer "wash" your car? Why not have the local high school fund raising kiddies go at it?

 

All the above is good advice. Just wanted to add an additional thought. DO NOT go into the dealer and let the slugs at the door grab you. I learned many years ago they need to make thounsands on each sale to live. Call ahead and find out who is the top salesman, or the fleet salesman, or the salesmanager; these people make a great income and do not need to make their whole house payment off of your car. My slaesman at my Chevy dealer is number one in the zone. He only takes appointments to order a car. He does not need to go get approvial for anything. He is a TOTAL and complete joy to deal with. I have sent untold number of people to him and they all get the same treatment. Please do not let the slugs at the door get you!!!!!

 

Sounds to me like standard operating procedures for dealing with most car dealers. Last year I bought a G35 at Infinity dealer and they didnt play any games with price or trade in value, they even brought a copy of the kelly blue book to show they were giving me a fair price on my trade and it was the same price I found on the web, always know what the trade in value is before you go to a dealer. When I purchased my Vett I had to play the usual games at the chev dealer but after about 5 hours we came to a deal which I thought was fair. Never give your SS# to a dealer until your ready to buy, muliple credit inquiries can actually hurt your credit rating and then there is the identy theft thing, I sure as hell would not trust a car salesman!!!!!

 

That's why I printed out the Kelly Blue Book and Edmunds report before I went to the dealer. I also had a Carfax on my car. They got close enough for me to trade with them and cut out all the bs.

 

You made the right move just walking out and then hanging up. They must have thought you were a real sucker and would do anything to have that Z06. Guess they were totally wrong.

 

FYI, I just sold my super clean 97 with 39k miles on it for $22k... and I could have gotten more, but I got anxious....

sell your 97 first, then get the Z... it wont take long to sell a super low mileage 97 like that... ask 23.5, youll get between 22 and 23 for it...

 

Most dealers are mfers(sell at retail and give wholesale)...Almost all of them do a very common thing. They call it a reactor, lowball for your reaction, and then come to middle ground a.k.a. Most of you have had the reactor thrown at you... I'm sure of it. I'm glad to hear you walked

 

You have to fight fire with fire... this includes having no trade in to worry about...

Example:

They have car listed at 42k

You know car is worth (private party value) 37... which means they bought it for well under that... (probably a schmuck unlike original poster that actually fell for the ol' $10,000 trade in value!) Which means they probably took that car in on trade for around 33-35....

You throw them the $37k offer, wait for them to go "talk" with their managers, AKA: sitting and looking at kiddie **** on internet, to make you think they are talking...

Then when they come back out, they will offer $38.9, and say "OH WOW!! I cant belive my manager went that low!!!"

Then you walk away as you did, and let that salesman know that he just lost a 37k commission on a car they paid $34 for.... he will call you back, he has to eat too!

 

My disgust with dealerships and the games they play forces me to post again. Are there that many stupid people on the earth that this practice survives? The "go ask the manager" comment brought up my most recent experience at a high end Infiniti dealer. That SOB did exactly that and had the nerve to bring the paperwork back with a black magic marker pen...cross thru everything he was yacking at me about, and said....."I can't believe the price HE told me to give it to you for!!!" I don't know what I hate more. Stupid people that let this crap continue or the car salesmen that have absolutley no conscience whatsover.

 

This is common... and one will NEVER get a good price on a trade in at a dealer. You shouldn't have been surprised or insulted. Take the time to sell your car on your own. It will definitely be worth your time and requires minimal effort. Then go find your '04 Z06.

 

I wouldn''t let a stealership wash my Vette...maybe a Honda.

 

Mistake #1. They factored in that 2-3% "kickback" they get on the financing from the price of your trade-in. NEVER discuss financing until a price is negotiated.

 

It's a shame they treated you like that. I know how the business can be but there's always a decent way to treat folks and conduct negotiations. There was a '97 Silver Coupe that sold for $19,800 w/ 38K miles at the auction a few weeks back so the $10,000 offer to you is a a slap in the face. Good luck.

V8USA

 

Interesting posts. When making a large purchasing such as a house or car you need to go in armed to the teeth. Don't take anything personal my friend. Remember, these people are in the business of making money, not breaking even. Next time you purchase a vehicle you need to 1. know the value of your car. 2. know the value of the car you are buying. 3. have a copy of your credit report in hand. 4. ask for VIN number and run a CARFAX yourself. No body tells me my credit report/score but me. When I bought my Vette back in 2000, I knew my Malibu was worth $12,500 on the trade in and the MSRP was about $45,500 on the Vette. I got $12,000 on the trade in and got the Vette down to $43,000 and some change. I financed roughly 31K at 2.9%APR for 4 years. Back then that was pretty good and you could do that with a nearly 800 point credit score.

Don't feel bad, I searched for over a year to find the right car and it was mainly because most dealerships would not speak with me. I was stationed south of the Mason-Dixon line years ago. I remember I would walk into a dealership and no one would look at me. I would walk around the lot/showrooms for several minutes and calmly move to the next dealership. Sometimes I would even show up dressed in uniform and sit in the Vettes. I guessed they figured Chinese guys really weren't interested in Vettes.

It wasn't until I PCS to Ft Lewis, Wa that I was able to find my Vette. I just look back and think about all those people who lost out on a sale. Good luck.