MT cars almost always sell for less money than Auto cars, and take much longer to sell usually. This is just b/c for the general public, everyone wants an auto. over 90% of new cars over the last decade of so have been autos

 

Generally that is true. However, manual tranmissions can be in high demand in certain areas where tracking a car is common. For instance here in North Carolina we have a lot of close tracks like VIR. There are about 4 different people in my neighborhood who track their cars at VIR. All of them are manual transmissions. I was surprised when I sold my manual transmission 330i. I sold it to Carmax but they had sold it to someone else before we had even closed the deal! I agree though that in most areas an automatic should make the car easier to sell.

 

KBB is only a guide... it's not going to tell you the true value of your vehicle. Like anything, the value is what someone is willing to pay.

As trey's wife stated, the best way to determine the true value of you G is to look at local ads like Auto Trader or your newspaper classifieds.

Also, it's pointless to keep throwing specific dollar amounts out there because it will vary depending on where you live. Someone in the mid west isn’t going to pay what I can get in So Cal.

Compared to many other vehicles, out cars hold value pretty well. That's pretty hard to dispute.

 

I bought a used 05 6mt base Sedan for $25,895 with 4100 on it from a Honda Dealership...
I have many friends in the used car business and I can say that most of the times Kbb.com is high on the prices..
I have been in dealerships when the customer was told a price and they come back with " kbb.com says it is worth $1500 more".. and the dealer says " well get them to buy it, it is worth $1500 less than that to us........

 

Hmmm....interesting thread here, maybe I can add my 2cents?

Like several have already stated, KBB is simply a "guide". They are not the absolute word on what a car is worth.

What really determines what a car is worth is what someone is willing to pay for it.

Regarding trade-in value...KBB "trade in" or "low book" is what dealers 1st look at...then, figure in the possible reconditioning & other little costs here and there to bring that car to resale condition. Unless your car is some classic or extremely hard to find piece, don't expect to get "KBB trade in" value.

And by the way, NO car is in "excellent" condition except a NEW car...this is from a dealer's perspective. So, keep that in mind next time you walk into a dealership & demand they give you "KBB retail" on your trade, while offering them $500 below invoice on the new car.

Dealers aren't out to rip your head off...but they ARE trying to make a profit. Nothing wrong w/ that, right? Make realistic offers & I think you'll find most dealers will happily accept.

Hey...WAIT A MINUTE...why all the talk about G35 resale value anyways?! Who doesn't want their G anymore?! ^-^ I Looooove mine!!

 

First off, when determining your car's value, NEVER use KBB. That publication is financed by the automotive sellers union. Remember that. Those prices reflect low trade-in and high retail. It all works in the dealerships favor. NADA is the book you need to go by. NADA is usually a bit too high and KBB a bit to low. The car's real value lies somewhere inbetween.

Secondly, the prices of cars are reflective of the region. The Northeast typically has much lower resale values because there are more people therefore more cars available. The cars are also typically more banged up thanks to poor roads, tight parking, and generally bad driving. In the Midwest, you can typically get 10-15% more for the same car.

And third, color and tranny. It's pretty clear that when you look through the classifieds, the G's that don't sell well are the ones with odd colors like the burgundy, bright blue, and green. No one really wants those colors. White, black, and silver typically sell the best. As for trannies, it's all dependant on the buyer. Technically manual trannies sell for less, though some cars are different. I know that very few people wanted my black modded 96 Maxima 5MT, but I was patient and waited. I found a younger guy that was willing to pay more for the much faster and rare 5MT Maxima. Only 8% of the 95-99 Maximas sold were 5MTs. I'm pretty sure the 6MT G35 sedan is the same way. It's harder to find buyers, but you'll typically get the price you want if you're patient.

 

As stated before, the dollar amount is relative to where you live... I have attached ads from local paper and Car Max... I will also post 3 from Auto Trader. These are all in the OC/LA area (So Cal). the avg price of an '04 with 15K-25K miles is about $32K (range from 28+ to 33+).

If you are getting the same car for 5-10K less, it’s because you live in an area where car prices are cheaper. So when posting the value of Gs take this into consideration.

 

3 from Auto Trader

 

When I was pricing cars, I generally look at edmunds, kbb, and nada. Hope you can buy for less than the high of the 3, and sell for better than the low of the 3

 

That's the way you do it.

 

Dave is right....KBB is for ......well never mind, it's useless. Accurate info. is avail. from Galves and N.A.D.A. The reason that so many buy into the KBB crap is because it's free. The real deal info. requires subscription, and it's not cheap. Galves comes out WEEKLY and is comprised of what each Brand/Vehicle is bringing at the regional dealer auctions. These numbers are basically what is used when appraising your car as a trade and establishing the resale value as well. N.A.D.A. works much the same, but includes loan values (wholesale) and average 'regional' resale as well. JBX

 

I disagree with this. I have sold 3 cars now. 2 Private Party for KBB Private Party value(98 Prelude and 99 Accord Coupe V6) and 1 to Carmax for $1000 over KBB trade-in(02 BMW 330i Sedan). I had Carmax appraise all three cars and every single time they said that the cars were in perfect condition and they quoted KBB “Excellent Condition” trade-in value for all three vehicles except the 330i which they gave me the $1000 over KBB. I had the 330i for 2 years and it was in precisely the same condition that it was in two years before when I bought it used from Carmax. If you take care of your car and you make sure that it is never in a position to get a door ding then you too can get it rated as excellent condition. I bet when my lease is up in 3 years on my G35 it will still be in excellent condition also.

Oh yea the reason we are concerned with resale value is that when the all new 07’s come out next year we might be looking to trade our 05’s in. Us 05 owners will be in the exact same position that the 04 owners are in now. We really love our cars but we always want something better and if the rumors are true the 07s will be much better.

 

Talk about the pot calling the kettle black....

I'm not sure where you live, but in most places it is very difficult for a private party to reach a private party value - regardless of their sales skills.

Maybe if you waited 5 or 6 months with the car for sale you might find a moron to pay private party.

I sure wouldn't pay anywhere near that much.

KBB inflates these numbers and the dealer numbers too so they can support their customers (who are the used car dealers primarily).

Get a clue.

 

Yea I noticed that LuXXXz hasn’t responded in awhile? Guess he is all talk with no substance. He reminds me a lot of the guy from Anchorman whose best comebacks are “Making loud noises”, “I don’t know what I am yelling about”, and “My IQ is 60”. A lot of people had valid reasons to dislike my post about the 04 vs 05 cars. They expressed why they didn’t like the post and why I was wrong. LuXXXz thought that was a green light to start spurting out expletives and wild statements of things he knew nothing about.

LuXXXz, I am still waiting for an answer about whether you purchased that G or not. Did you ever buy a G at all?