PSA: Sell you car to Carvana instead of trading it in.
A few data points from helping a girl I know buy a 2021 Grand Cherokee Limited this week:
Trade-in / purchase offers for 2012 Lexus RX350, FWD, 95k miles, black/tan, one-owner, with no damage but above average rock chips and embedded black dog hair in interior:
Austin Jeep dealer: $13,000
Houston Jeep dealer: $12,250
Carmax: $16,000
Carvana: $18,350.
Shopped Houston Jeep dealer for new 2022 Grand Cherokee Limited WK 4x4. None in stock. Several on the truck in transit. Salesman quoted $49,450 MSRP plus $5,000 and wouldn’t budge. Insisted they’d all be sold before the truck arrived. I balked. While I was walking out, salesman says we should talk to the manager. Within two minutes, the price was down to MSRP plus $500. Kind of annoying. Ended up buying a pristine 2021 model with 11k miles from their used car lot for $41,900 which was $1,000 less than their “Internet Special” price. Dealer threw in a new set of floor mats and a new rear cargo cover. MSRP on this particular vehicle when new was $44,450.
Takeaway: Unloading the trade-in on Carvana for a premium price seemed like such a win that it soothed all the pain of buying a practically new vehicle in an inflated market.
New vehicle has black interior to camouflage future dog hair.
Bernard