What don't I know? Buying a used Z06
 

I have a deal in place for a used 2023 Z06 3LZ with about 5k miles that this out of state Toyota dealer has had for roughly 6 weeks. Without going down a rabbit hole I can tell you I'm trading a 23 Tundra and 22 GT500 and they ultimately came within $1200 of my initial ask which effectively puts this car around its original $135k msrp.

They have a perfect 5.0 rating after 59 reviews on CarGurus. They've assured me nothing is wrong inside outside or mechanically with the car and the pictures and car fax back that up as much as it can. It also still has an active warranty.

So what's the problem?

I'm hoping there isn't one but the dealer didn't even care to get more than one pic each on my trades which feels desperate.

It's easy to be cynical but I guess it's easy to be naive too. They are highly reviewed and every communication so far has been great. Is it just a bad idea right now or in general to buy used or should I jump?

They didn't want pics of your cars because they're drooling at how much they're going to make on your trades.

That is a terrible deal trading those 2 cars for used z06.

:iagree: OP are you saying with those two trades the Z is down close to it's original MSRP? Meaning w/o them the sales price is well above MSRP? If so that's a horrible deal.

If you're set on this Z06, does it have its GM warranty intact (verified by a GM dealer)? I'd read through the forum and find the multiple threads of members posting new Z06s at MSRP and contact some of those dealerships. I wouldn't trade two vehicles for a used vehicle at more than it's MSRP.

2022 GT500 6k miles retail $89k
2023 Tundra 1794 17k miles retail $65k

For

2023 Z06 4k miles MSRP $136k (warranty in effect per GM)

I was thinking retail values on my cars being approx $155k would make it reasonable to assume a trade in value of $130k to maybe even be a little high no?

That's what was leading me to believe $130k for the above Z06 sounds reasonable. Am I undervaluing the trades? I looked on a few websites and they said I should only expect around $120-125k

Buy a new one or continue to enjoy your GT500 which is a very cool car. No rush to buy a used Z06 as the prices on new and used C8 Z06s appears to be adjusting rapidly. Inflation at 40 year highs has taken its toll on the US economy with half the country burried in terrible debt to make ends meet. Corvettes with price tags waaaaay ove 100 grand are becoming less adoptable every day.
Sounds like a very bad deal for you, hard pass on that one.
Good luck which ever path you take.

Is there something special about the build you like on the used one? If not, I’d look for a new one at MSRP that you like then you don’t have the worries of wondering what you don’t know. Plus the 23 is about to be two model years old, might as well go new for the same price/deal or hopefully better if you can IMO.

Thanks for that sir. This thread is definitely giving me pause.


I understand while my vehicles are dropping in value they're likely not dropping as fast as the Z06.


Was just picturing my trade in values being $125k to an average dealer, and $125k for $135k MSRP 2023 with 4k miles sounds like a reasonable deal probably even a few months from now.


Really not trying to be the guy that debates a crowd just trying to understand which variable I'm missing. Are you guys overvaluing my trades or am I undervaluing them? I've done some homework and I don't know what I'm missing.


I understand new would be inherently better I just don't think I'm gonna find a new one I'd want for under 150K and I'm not willing to go that high.

The new ones I see on Car gurus aren't appealing and there aren't that many. Is it better to call around or go thru Chevy's website?

OP, without your trades, what are they asking for the Z06? What options does it have, original MSRP, etc.?

Never work a car deal with trades included, too many ways for them to manipulate numbers. These two components should be negotiated as if separate transactions.

First negotiate the sales price of the Z06. When that's where you want it, then negotiate the trade-in values of your vehicles. If both are where you want them, finalize the deal. If one side of this is not where you want it on it's own, but get's close by manipulating numbers on either deal, probably not a good deal.

You ALWAYS lose money on trades. Those are 2 valuable cars you have and you want to give both to a dealer??

Sell private and make thousands more, not hundreds. You're literally leaving thousands on the table. Not sure why people just like throwing money away. And if you are, don't throw it at a dealer.

I used cars.com and from what I’ve heard, they seem to have the vast majority of available vehicles in the country listed. You could try the chevy site, worth a try at least. It did take me 5 months to find the right car at the right deal. I know it’s getting better, but it is still difficult to find what you want at the right deal.

What spec, color are you looking for?

This is easier said than done. I’ve sold quite a few cars, motorcycles and boats privately. It usually takes quite awhile and you have to put up with a ton of lowball offers, people that ask bizarre questions and ones that must want to take your stuff out and beat on it for fun. Not to mention on a very expensive car like his finding people that can qualify for a loan.

With the tax savings included, I’ve always come pretty close to retail for my trades. If I lose a coupe of grand in the deal to avoid the above, it is money well spent for me to save my time and aggravation to avoid the above.

The issue is, OP already did half of the work for them. All he has to do is show up.

When he shows up, dealer knows the deal is already done 90%, because he's not just selling the cars off to the dealer, but he wants something in return.

Desperation plays a huge part in this. OP should just order new and take his time and sell both his cars privately. You are always leaving money on the table trade or selling to a dealer. And he's getting a used z06 at that too. Not exactly the best deal on earth.

Sell PP and you lose Tax Credit. Depending on where you are that could mean $10-12K

If you like the car, it's under warranty and priced at what you feel like spending do the deal and buy an extednded warranty.

As stated above. Agree on the price of the Vette including all dealer BS fees and then agree on the value of your trades.

Above all. Do not buy the Vette sight Unseen. Do the deal in person

So what? We don’t know enough of the specifics to know if it is a horrible or not. Also, OP isn’t asking that. Some people want to get every single last cent out of a deal and others want a deal they are comfortable with and move on to the next thing they like.

If it is what he wants at the deal he is comfortable with, that’s on him. Ordering new would be great if you could find an open allocation in a reasonable time. I and many others couldn’t and don’t want to languish on some list.

Also don't forget we're getting a lot of spam/troll handles lately so it's quite possible the original post isn't even real.

You even said it in your post about dealer BS fees. So that's always expected when it comes to dealers. It's not just as simple as getting a value of the car for sale plus the estimated value of the cars you want to trade. Like OP said, they didn't even want any more but 1 picture which says something.

They know the z06 is a highly valued and desired car and OP has 2 very valuable cars. It's safe to say the dealer will take him for a ride once he makes the effort of taking his TWO vehicles to the dealership. Like i said once he shows up, the deal is basically done for them. They know they got him.

I'm real, and would admit I am ok missing out on $$$ by not going thru the rigamarole of PP. Totally respect anyone who has the patience to do that but as the one guy said we can't exclude the $10k tax benefit and I'd be ok losing out on approx $5k to not go thru an indefinite period of looky Lou's and flea market negotiations. I'm not a ppl person to be honest.

Here's the equation in the most concise format

23 Tundra 1794 HV 16k miles $65k retail
22 GT500 6k miles $90k retail

For

23 Z06 4k miles MSRP $136k

If my two vehicles retail at $155k it seems like $136k is a fair trade value.

I think what I've learned from this thread is I could probably get a similar brand new Z06 at MSRP but then the very next question is would that dealership be willing to give me 135K for my cars if they have to sell them at 155K?

And say they only give me 130k for my cars how much different is a deal for a one year newer model and 4000 miles less but for $5000 more? I would take that but at some point a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush right? And what if they only give me 125K which is what I've seen repeatedly on these car value websites?

And my cars values are dropping too, even if they aren't dropping as quickly but that's still math to consider. I really appreciate everybody's opinion I'm going to talk to more dealerships just to confirm my thinking

If the deal is acceptable to you (Z06 has everything you want, and the deal financials are acceptable to you), then the only thing I would really make sure of is the warranty coverage. I'd want to see a documented original date of sale, and documented date of trade-in on the Z06 to verify it was over the 6 month limit. From what I have heard on multiple deals, the warranty shows as valid until the first time it goes in for work even if it was sold/traded under the 6 month limit.

if this scenario was 18 months ago or even 12, i would say absolutely go for it and you would still be able to sell the GT500 for a lot more (because those are highly desired cars too with used prices still strong in certain areas). But my opinion you're giving up 2 amazing trades for a used z06. Not a new one. A used one, that's a 2023 so like someone said almost 2 MY's old.

It's a bit easier to get a new one now if you shop around. Production has been steady with the demand for the car dwindling down.

I still say go new if you want to do this trade with that same dealer if possible, or another dealer.