Depreciation
Thread Starter
Pro
Joined: Jun 2013
Posts: 515
Likes: 34
From: Hackensack new jersey
Depreciation
my neighbor and i took his c-7 to the dealer to get a price on the 2015 model. his is z-51 w/3lt interior. low miles. the same salesman that sold him the c-7 worked out the trade in to be approx 8,000-10,000 in depreciation. needless to say he said thank you and we left. too big of a hit. just saying! any body else get any trade in figures?
Team Owner
Joined: Aug 2007
Posts: 136,140
Likes: 2,432
From: I live my life by 2 rules. 1) Never share everything you know. 2)
St. Jude Donor '11-'12-'13, '16-'17-'18
You'll ALWAYS get a lower value with a trade in
Sell the car yourself and you'll pocket more $$
Sell the car yourself and you'll pocket more $$
Le Mans Master
Joined: Oct 2004
Posts: 8,615
Likes: 60
From: Haymarket Virginia
my neighbor and i took his c-7 to the dealer to get a price on the 2015 model. his is z-51 w/3lt interior. low miles. the same salesman that sold him the c-7 worked out the trade in to be approx 8,000-10,000 in depreciation. needless to say he said thank you and we left. too big of a hit. just saying! any body else get any trade in figures?
The higher the MSRP the more you are going to lose.
Carmax is his best bet. I'd say depending on miles, color and options he's looking at a $3-6k loss. He better sell it NOW before the 2015's hit.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Oct 2004
Posts: 6,813
Likes: 287
From: Toronto Ontario Canada
First year depreciation is steep. You will find that after a few years it levels out. Nobody should buy a Corvette thinking they are making an investment. They make too many of them for this to be possible.
Pro
Joined: Jun 2014
Posts: 722
Likes: 274
From: Colorado Springs, CO
Carmax low balled me
Took the car to the Chevy dealer that I bought it from and he gave me $2,000 more.
My only mistake is I did not order a C7 at that time, so I lost my sales tax credit.
Six months later I ordered a 2015 C7 A8 Z51 Coupe fully loaded and tried to get the sales tax credit and was told it was too late. The only consolation is being personal friends with the owner I got more than the sales tax credit as a discount.
My car will be produced week of 8/11 and is 3000
Race Director
Joined: May 2008
Posts: 10,742
Likes: 629
From: Manheim Pennsylvania
my neighbor and i took his c-7 to the dealer to get a price on the 2015 model. his is z-51 w/3lt interior. low miles. the same salesman that sold him the c-7 worked out the trade in to be approx 8,000-10,000 in depreciation. needless to say he said thank you and we left. too big of a hit. just saying! any body else get any trade in figures?
Team Owner
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 26,714
Likes: 344
From: Houston, TX
Trade in value is not depreciation. Depreciation is the amount the dealer resells it for. When you trade a car to a dealer (or sell it to Carmax) you are effectively allowing them a commission for reselling your car. A lot of folks don't get that. If they give you $8000 less for the car than you paid for it, they are going to want to make at least $3000 on it, so the depreciation is really $5000.
Corvette Stories
The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts
Top 10 Most Expensive Corvettes Ever Sold on Bring A Trailer
Brett Foote
10 Things Every Corvette Owner Needs (2026 Edition)
Michael S. Palmer
8 Most "Only Corvette Owners Understand" Quirks and Problems
Pouria Savadkouei
10 Reasons the C6 Z06 is Still A Performance Benchmark After 20 Years
Joe Kucinski
How Much Horsepower Every Corvette Engine "LOST" in 1972
Joe Kucinski
Top 10 DOs and DON'Ts for Protecting Your Convertible Top!
Michael S. Palmer
Top 10 Most Explosive Corvettes Ever Made: Power-to-Weight Ratio Ranked!
Joe Kucinski
150 hp to 1,250 hp: Every Corvette Generation Compared by the Specs That Matter
Joe Kucinski
8 Coolest Corvette Pace Cars (and Replicas) of All Time
Verdad Gallardo
Melting Slicks
Joined: Sep 2013
Posts: 2,299
Likes: 466
From: Long Island New York
If you really want to look at what depreciation is from a market perspective, it is how much less did a retail buyer pay for the used vehicle compared to the lowest price paid by others for the same vehicle new. If OP paid MSRP, then $8,000 off what he paid is a very good deal since MSRP-$5,000 is what Kerbeck is selling new 2014's for.
Pro
Joined: Jul 2014
Posts: 602
Likes: 119
From: Southern Ontario
Well what a surprise, depreciation on a car. As someone else said this isn't supposed to be an investment, unless it's your investment in fun and enjoyment 
When you trade in a car you get wholesale prices for the most part as the dealer expects to sell retail, hard not to take a hit. Selling privately reduces that gap.
The 2014's will depreciate as will the 2015's in time, it's inevitable. I don't give it a second thought. Rather look at the 'Vette in my driveway than a bunch of digits in my stock portfolio any day.
When you trade in a car you get wholesale prices for the most part as the dealer expects to sell retail, hard not to take a hit. Selling privately reduces that gap.
The 2014's will depreciate as will the 2015's in time, it's inevitable. I don't give it a second thought. Rather look at the 'Vette in my driveway than a bunch of digits in my stock portfolio any day.
Drifting
Joined: Apr 2006
Posts: 1,257
Likes: 7
From: Bluffton,SC
What did he expect?
Would you buy a used car for close to what a new one would cost?
That is how the dealer would look at it, and as said in another post , the remaining new 14's are listed at $5000 under MSRP. You are competing for sales with those discounted new ones which does not help.
Drifting
Joined: Sep 2013
Posts: 1,505
Likes: 13
Trade in value is not depreciation. Depreciation is the amount the dealer resells it for. When you trade a car to a dealer (or sell it to Carmax) you are effectively allowing them a commission for reselling your car. A lot of folks don't get that. If they give you $8000 less for the car than you paid for it, they are going to want to make at least $3000 on it, so the depreciation is really $5000.
When you understand that you understand that the moment you drive the car off the lot, assuming you paid MSRP, the car is worth $8000 or more less to that dealer. What they offered is actually better than I would have expected.
Race Director
Joined: May 2008
Posts: 10,742
Likes: 629
From: Manheim Pennsylvania
The trade-in example listed prior is pretty much what I projected. With my selected options, and purchased just before the April price increase, my trade-in will be very reasonable. Waiting for a reason, will not be a 2015.
Racer
Joined: Jun 2014
Posts: 327
Likes: 58
From: DFW
2020 C8 of the Year Finalist - Modified
He was just asking
I am sure he understands that he would take a hit. I think the question is was it too much of a hit or just right. All he asked was has anyone else got a figure to compare what he was getting.
My answer is if you paid sticker and you are taking a 10k hit you are doing well. I bought mine for employee pricing and it was about a $9200 discount off MSRP.
My answer is if you paid sticker and you are taking a 10k hit you are doing well. I bought mine for employee pricing and it was about a $9200 discount off MSRP.
Burning Brakes
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 1,184
Likes: 3
From: KADS- If it has wings or an engine, I can break it. Dallas TX
$9200 off is a great deal. Just think 6 months ago, people were paying over sticker. The buying frenzy, where you could not get one. and now the discounts are starting to come out.
The corvette is a mass produced sports car. If your willing to wait a few months, you can work a great deal, and save a ton of money.
The corvette is a mass produced sports car. If your willing to wait a few months, you can work a great deal, and save a ton of money.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Oct 2004
Posts: 9,217
Likes: 153
From: Ft Mill, SC
As others have said, the first year new vette buying frenzy is rapidly coming to a screeching halt, as the 15's are about to start production in less than 3 weeks. For those wanting to unload their 2014 to maybe upgrade to a 15 A8 or Z06, now is the time( 2 or 3 months earlier would have been better). The first year hysteria only lasts so long and that time has come and is just about gone. Same thing happened with the C5, C6, C6 Z06, ZR-1, ZR1, etc and will happen again with the C7 Z06, C7 ZR1 or ZORA, C8 etc. Just the normal life cycle of our beloved vettes.
Racer
Joined: Nov 2013
Posts: 271
Likes: 5
Well what a surprise, depreciation on a car. As someone else said this isn't supposed to be an investment, unless it's your investment in fun and enjoyment
When you trade in a car you get wholesale prices for the most part as the dealer expects to sell retail, hard not to take a hit. Selling privately reduces that gap.
The 2014's will depreciate as will the 2015's in time, it's inevitable. I don't give it a second thought. Rather look at the 'Vette in my driveway than a bunch of digits in my stock portfolio any day.
When you trade in a car you get wholesale prices for the most part as the dealer expects to sell retail, hard not to take a hit. Selling privately reduces that gap.
The 2014's will depreciate as will the 2015's in time, it's inevitable. I don't give it a second thought. Rather look at the 'Vette in my driveway than a bunch of digits in my stock portfolio any day.
Well said. These are not appreciating assets.
Unless you keep it for the next 40 years or all of a sudden GM stops making them for whatever reason. I also like what another poster in this thread said about, "It's an investment in FUN"
Hopefully we all have a diversified investment portfolio for appreciating assets.
