I went to subaru today to try and talk to someone about test driving an STI (i was by the dealership and just stopped in).... i was sort of just wanting to drive the car so i acted interested in trading in the G35. I parked right up front and instantly someone walked out to greet me and my nicely washed G35 and ask the question before i even got a chance to tell them "are you interesting in trading that in?" After looking at the car i was told that they do not have demo's of the car and would only allow me to test drive an sti and had to keep the rev's under 4k rpm... i really wasnt interested in driving it around like it was a normal sedan or something so i passed... i then asked him to give me an estimate on how much the difference in payments would be or whatever (basically what id get on my trade)... he gets the used car manager up there and for a 2004.5, 6mt, BEAUTIFUL g coupe with spoiler and prem package with only 14.5k miles.....



$23,000 for a trade in. I smiled and said nevermind and walked out rudely. I was kind of insulted and although i thought id hear a lower number than what id really try and get for it if i was going to trade it in (KBB and edmunds said 29k and $29.1k respectively).... but damn 6 grand less than what i was thinking i could get for it? Is this normal or just because im a young kid? Is it because im trading a car in that they could sell for about the same price as the STI? I think my car may be able to be sold by them for even MORE than the STI (he was thinking around $31k i believe) and edmunds says $33k for my car value at the dealer....

I guess the good news is, I really don't care what subaru is offering cause i would NEVER trade in my car for the subaru. I'm gonna mess with the guy a little when he calls though (i gave him my number cause he was adamant that i gave him info before going for a test drive). I'm going to tell him that ive decided to by an APS turbo system because it was going to cost about the same as my trade in to get the STI and be a lot faster, better looking, and my luxurious

 

it's a stealership... they're gonna try and get as much money out of u as they can. u need to negotiate the numbers with them. don't feel bad about the number they usually always start at a vehicles cost. it's probably what they would get from an auction or something.

 

And keep in mind, for about the past 5 years or so they have consistently offered about $3K less than KBB/NADA reflect. And they seem to stick to it pretty hard as well, especially on anything 3+ years old with more than 36K miles.

With all the people who do 1,2 & 3 years leases, the used-car market has become flooded with new, low-mileage, still-under-warranty used cars. In fact, with the explosion of consumer education about actual dealer invoice pricing, the used-car market is where most dealerships make the majority of their money. We can all walk in and get a good deal on a new car because we know what it costs them. At the same time, we're usually more willing to get pummeled on our trade-in just to get into that new car.

The only real value that the KBB/NADA resources offer now is fair market values for selling the car yourself to another private party. And I seem to recall reading that car-sales industry has been trying to get KBB & NADA to adjust their values accordingly.

And of course you could get a better offer on your trade. They were just trying to as much as they could where they could. Afterall, you drove up in a 2yr old (max) G talking about trading it in. You gotta be a sucka, right?

 

Dude - you also hurt yourself by going about it the wrong way.

1) Never talk trade in till AFTER you do pricing on the car you want
2) Never talk monthly payments, ever
3) Don't waste time with the moronic sales guy who won't let you spend time driving, and I mean DRIVING, a car that is MADE to be driven hard and fast. Why else do people by WRX STIs? Their looks? It's like saying the Evo is better looking then the Lexus GS. Idiotic. If the guy is putting conditions on the test drive then I tell him to a) get lost and let me talk to a manager, b) remind him there are 4 other dealerships w/i 10 miles and it's a Saturday afternoon with nothing much else to do.

As for the actual $$$ amount - $23 is low. Obviously depends on your packages, etc. KBB is rarely ever used for these guys. They typically go by a wholesale handbook which, as was stated, typically sticks to $3K below private party sales price. Check out Edmunds, its a bit more realistic.
Good luck man!

 

edmunds said $29,100 and KBB (trade in value) said $29,000..... my car is a little over a year and a half old (19 months) and is in beautiful condition.... im glad that im not actually trading it in.... what kind of BS is that though that they dont offer test drives? Who's gonna buy a car without getting to drive it first? Its not like someone is going to buy an STI cause it has a lot of luxury to it... or because it looks good (like someone said above)

 

actually i bought my first car(04' mercedes c230K sedan) without test driving it. to think about it, it was kinda dumb but it was my first car and u guys should know how it is the 1st car thing (you would buy anything). it worked out fine and now i have both.

 

couple of things..

What color is your car?
IP and other "less desirable" colors go for about 23 - 24K at auction.

and I paid 29K (with dest) for the STi. It's a great car, btw.

 

ip is a less desirable? hrmm so many ppl have them

 

COMPARED TO BLACK AND SILVER IT IS.

 

the car is black and looks like a car that someone would buy NEW. People ask me all the time if its a new car (obviously they dont know g35's havent had brembos and some things have changed since 04) but still they think it looks like a new car when its clean. I wasnt too worried about it since i wasnt actually trading in the car (i'll have my G for another 3 and a half years at least since its financed over 5 years).... and maybe longer than that if its still driving well after 50-60k miles which im sure it will be.

 

Why would anyone go through this much trouble if they "claim" they will never trade for a Subaru. It kinda seems counterintuitive! If all you really wanted was a test drive, simply call in advance and see if they would allow it! You can't say the stealership was playing unfairly when you were too!

 

Actually they make the majority of their money off service in about a 5:1 ratio. That is why all the shadey types have moved into the "service advisor" position at luxury dealerships.

 

the subaru dealership is right across the freeway from the infiniti dealership i was just at and i had to pass it to get home. I couldnt trade in my car (i dont own it my father does), and i actually was looking at the STI when i got the G35, but did not even ask my father about it because I knew he would not go for it.... my dad has always been a porsche man, we've owned a couple of benz's, and suburbans/gmc yukon xl, but my dad wouldnt buy a car like the subaru (if that makes any sense). Much less would he let me trade in a car that i just got a year and a half ago to get a lesser quality/less luxury oriented vehicle. He actually told me once when i was about 6-7 years old and playing with my Toy vette (which he knew was my favorite car), that he would pay the difference if i ever had the money for a vette and buy me a faster porsche. haha hopefully someday i will be able to hold him to that

 

I hope he's got another $70K laying around cause the turbo 911 is the cheapest porsche faster than the C6
EDIT: OR BETTER YET! Save up for the Z06 and he'll have to buy you the Carrera GT

 

Sorry, but you missed one! The C6 would have some serious issues with the 911 GT2. For real!!!