SE_Racer

I am trading in my 2k2 Max SE in 2 months, and was curious what you think I SHOULD get for it as a trade in, as I may try to sell it on my own. It will have approx 5k miles at that time. Options are Moonroof, Auto, Bose CD, Painted Mudguards. Its Grey with grey cloth seats. Sticker price is 28,135.

Thanks.

Y2KMaxGXE-R

iTrader: (4)

go to www.kbb.com (Kelly Blue Book) for the info. I'd say you'd be lucky to get $22K for it.

dmbmaxima2k2

iTrader: (1)

why r u doing this.

Y2KMaxGXE-R

iTrader: (4)

I just check a trade-in for my hubcapie 2k GXE 5 spd w/22k mi...under $14K. I see the only "break-even" point for me is to keep the car 'til it is 6 yrs old and get $7,000 for it. If I won't be ready for a new car, I'll have to keep it till it is 10 years old and under 200k mi. just to get $3500. After that it is as good as a tax write-off

NoHalo

Sad, isn't it? You'd think Maximas would hold there value better. They have great engines, hold up pretty well, and run for ever. But somewhere along the way, somehow, they loose value like some cheap import!

emax02

iTrader: (1)

I think he misses driving a BMW.


Off the top of my head I would guess about $22.5-23.5K for your trade in. It really depends on your location and dealer. Remember that if you get say 23K for your car you will save $1500 on taxes.

Y2KMaxGXE-R

iTrader: (4)

BMWs depreciate too. My step-bro is selling his '01 325 and he'll be hit as well. Earlier I thought that more expensive cars have lower depreciation rate, because the used ones are so damn expensive. But when new, these expensive cars cost much more! So where's the truth about depreciation rates?

Second question, is how do you save on taxes?

jkratzer

Holy Sheit. Why are you trading your 2K2 so early? Just wondering.
I've noticed that Maximas don't seem to hold their value very well during the first two years. I love Maximas but my next one will be used. I'll let someone else take the hit.

dmbmaxima2k2

iTrader: (1)

if you trade in a car they don't tax you on the amount of your trade in on the new vehicle. IE if you trade a 14K vehicle to buy a 25K one you get taxed on 11K. you can save big bucks

MichaelAE

iTrader: (1)

Well, yeah...they depreciate...every retail product other than a Rolex depreciates, but not as fast as Nissan's. BMW is still holding value better than Nissan. As the post-Renault Nissan builds its new reputation, I think we'll see long term resale value increase. See below for your answer to "where's the truth about depreciation rates?" Just pick a source for information. In my case, cars.com and using the base models of each trim level.

1995 BMW 325i Sedan
Retail New: $32,500
Retail Today: $17,500
Depreciation: 46.15%

1995 Nissan Maxima GLE
Retail New: $25,100
Retail Today: $11,000
Depreciation: 56.18%

1995 Honda Accord EX/V6
Retail New: $25,000
Retail Today: $11,600
Depreciation: 53.6%

Y2KMaxGXE-R

iTrader: (4)

[QUOTE]Originally posted by MichaelAE
[B]in my case, cars.com and using the base models of each trim level.

thanks for your post. I think it would be fair to compare cars in the 1st year, first 3, and 1st five. As a rule, your car looses much value when driven off the lot. You quoted rates for 7-year old vehicles, and you'd expect the rates to be that high. But how do you go if someone bought a new car for invoice or even under? That is supposed to bring the depr. rate down too?

MichaelAE

iTrader: (1)

Absolutely not...the depreciation rate has nothing to do with the price you paid for the car.

As far as more accurately representing depreciation, I would have to have a copy of the Kelly Blue Book from each of the seven years to graph it out. For the sake of looking at a short term depreciation, I'll list below the numbers for a 1999 model of the previous vehicles. You'll note the short term depreciation of the Nissan is even more distinct. As much as I'd like to be able to say otherwise, the Nissan does not hold short term value well today. Trading this car within two years is a very poor investment.

1999 BMW 328i Sedan
Retail New: $33,400
Retail Today: $31,400
Depreciation: 5.99%

1999 Nissan Maxima GLE
Retail New: $26,900
Retail Today: $20,300
Depreciation: 24.54%

1999 Honda Accord EX/V6
Retail New: $24,300
Retail Today: $20,800
Depreciation: 14.4%

The 2000 GLE has already lost 16.41%, more than the 1999 models of both the 328 and the Accord. We just don't get the award in this category. Maybe, long term, the 5th gen will prove to beat the reputation...or maybe the 6th gen will be the one.

Y2KMaxGXE-R

iTrader: (4)

I never had any figures, but buying a Maxima I knew that long-term it should do OK. For example, 1990-93 Maxima with 150K+ miles ranges from 3500 to 5500. Accord has very similar pricing.

It very well makes sense to own your Maxima till it is very old.I knew I'd have to keep the car for at least 5 years, so I am not so dissapointed yet

SE_Racer

Thanks all....

I traded in a 1999 M3 for the Max when I had a bad bike accident and lost my leg, I had to sell my stick and get an auto out of necessity. I am trading this is for the new M3 with SMG, the Max is a great car, I just really miss my M, and want it back. I bet I will get offered 20k which sucks, but add 1200 tax savings. I want 22k for it really, or I can sell it private for 23 or so at least. I hope...

Y2KMaxGXE-R

iTrader: (4)

oh I didnt know about that..but in state of MD it is a 5% tax. ok you'll save maybe 500, but loose more by 1) trading in early, 2) not selling on your own.

dmbmaxima2k2

iTrader: (1)

on a 20k car that's a 1K in savings. so take 20K fromthe dealer no hassles or sell it ouright for 21500. is it worth you hassle?

awsker

iTrader: (6)

They do in California. I was looking to trade in my 01 for a 6speed and found out that I'd have to pay tax for the full price of the new car and not the remaining price of the car. I believe it's the same for Nevada.

dmbmaxima2k2

iTrader: (1)

bastards

FastCougar

That is why I will NEVER buy a showroom new car at MSRP. When it comes to buying cars, there are many strategies and which one you go with almost always comes down to how much you want to spend vs. how much you want to pay per month. If you only want a car payment of $300/month for 36 months ... you better have a hefty down payment ready! Your best bet is to always either A, let someone else take the depreciation and buy a car used, or B, put a lot down and finance for a short term. It takes more money up front to do B, but then again, you are not just throwing your money away on longer term financing, that is almost always done at a higher rate of interest.

For example, I had a 99 Mercury Cougar and you want to complain about depreciation! I bought the car off the showroom floor literally, for a mere $20,530 in October of 1999. I sold the car in July of 2001 for $14,750 and I had to take a loss at that price since I financed for 5 years with $0 down, I still owed something like $15,250. However, I had to sell and was willing to take the loss to get rid of the payment because the wife and I needed to start saving for our house's closing cost and 5% down on that. My monthly payments on the car where $417.82/month + insurance, so the $500 loss on the sale was made up the following month when I didn't have to make a car payment

I now drive a 1994 Ford Escort LX Hatchback that cost me $2,200 and I have put about $500 into, so $2700 investment to date (paid cash). That means that compared to my old car payments, I will just about break even on the Escort next month. Not to mention, I have been able to save the extra $417 a month towards the house's closing cost.

This is why I plan on buying my 2002 Maxima in 2004 or 2005 Figure by then they will only be worth $15K-$18K(2004) or $13K-$16K depending on options, and I could care less about leather or a moonroof. I buy cars based on their mechanical state, not what covers the seats.

WoodEar

sorry to hear about the accident.
let's say you actually can get 22k for trade-in(which i doubt), that's prolly from a nissan dealer when you buy another nissan. bmw dealers will no way give you near that much. dealers like that(bmw, benz...) don't really sell your used other brand trade-in, they just move it to nissan dealer owned by the same group(if they have one) at or below wholesale without making a penny. so they won't pay you good price.
btw good choice on smg m3, it's a sick car. i had a m roadster and know how Mpower is addicting.

costcowholesale

iTrader: (12)

had? what happened to your m roadster?

MaineI30

every car depreciates. some more quickly than others. buying a car is not an investment. you will always lose money.

"more expensive" cars do not have lower depreciation rates, but often higher-quality cars do.

MaineI30

right but you're not saving any money! you just paid sales tax on the older vehicle, at a much higher basis.

emax02

iTrader: (1)

Compared to selling the car privately you do save money on taxes with a trade in.

Y2KMaxGXE-R

iTrader: (4)

A car is the largest item in one's life next to a house, therefore, it is an investment. Yes, there's almost never a 'win' situation unless you got a historic car that will only appreciate in value. I disagree with statement that cars with lower build quality will depreciate faster. I think it has more to do with the popularity of the make/model, and the market supply/demand, pricing of the new car and parts, safety, etc.

As an example, take Taurus and Accord. there are Tauruses that give many years of trouble-free service, and there're Accorda owners who complain as hell. When new, they are similarly priced. But why used Taurus ain't worth ****? Only because it is not popular. The world isn't perfect

WoodEar

what r u talking about?

WoodEar

investment is only investment if your purpose is to make a profit and have a reasonable chance. a car is almost guaranteed to lose money, unless you can buy a F550 convertible at msrp and drive it for 3k miles and still sell for a $50k profit, in another words the rare exceptions. so cars are not investemnt, it's a 2nd largest(to most people) expense in life next to house.

WoodEar

well it's more like 30k cuz he wants the m3.
but that's not even the point, his money his decision. the point is when you trade in at dealer, you do save taxes on the trade-in $$$ amount compare to sell in private.

SE_Racer

The dealer I am buying from has a network on the complex of BMW, Lexus, Toyota, Nissan, so they can trade it to their Nissan dealer next door, so I am hoping to get $21k or so for it, if not it gets sold privately and goes as teh down payment.

WoodEar

well i guess we have a very different interpretation of investment. i mean, once i while i spend $300 for dinner at a french restaurant, the benefit is a great meal in a great place, i think it's worth it and will do it again. but i won't consider that investment at all.

investment doesn't have to make money. you could have put money in Enron last year, and lost them all right now, but your intention was to make profit. buying a depreciating item(that you know clearly it's a depreciating item) like a car or tv or any of that sort, is not investment, even thou each item does something for you, car gives you ride, tv you can watch, etc...

Y2KMaxGXE-R

iTrader: (4)

any expenditure of the money to produce a result, obtain service, or purchase smthg is an investment. You spend money to buy food in order to survive..you invest in yourself, not just spend money without purpose.

jkratzer

Correct, an investment does not have to make money. But an investment should have the potential to make money. If I invested in Enron, at least when I made that investment, there was the potential to make money. When you buy a car, there is absolutely no potential to make money because the car is guaranteed to lose value. Therefore, a car is not an investment to me.

WoodEar

i am just saying in general, most ppl won't think car as investment. and i don't need to know exactly what ppl think at the time of investing, if they bought some enron stock last year, i'd like to assume they were thinking the price will go up, i doubt they bought it becasue they believe it shall go down. see what i man? the use of common sense here.
if you consider buying a depreciating item(that you knew from beginning it was gonna depreciate not that you thought it would appreciate but it depreciated against your will) is an investment, that's up to you i guess.

BottleFedMax

Another idea is to come out with Fast n the Furious 2 and make the Maxima the main ride like the Supra in FnF 1 and that way it would make everyone want to go out and buy one and we can inflate our prices over KBB just like the guys that own Supras do after the movie came out.

Y2KMaxGXE-R

iTrader: (4)

100%, increase public awareness

MaineI30

you guys are nuts, WoodEar is exactly right. An "investment" is always done in order to derive income or other financial return. I don't consider it an investment when I pay two bucks to get on the highway.

Sorry, but buying a car is not an "investment."

MichaelAE

iTrader: (1)

I should probably take this to the monkey (haven't been there in a while), but do you think the phrase "an investment of time" is, in itself, a poorly formed phrase?....Or does your comment only refer to a financial investment? I suppose a line could be drawn between "spending time" and "investing time," but it would seem your analysis of the word "investment" would require some return of time as a result of investing time. Or do you dismiss that as merely a colloquial phrase?

After typing, I'm quite sure I should take this to the monkey

Y2KMaxGXE-R

iTrader: (4)

someone please look up the correct definition of "investment". I am sure it is limited to monetary, where you invest for the purpose of profit. Your car is your investment, because it is your "tool" to get you to work, so you can make a living. Copisch?

jkratzer

No

Y2KMaxGXE-R

iTrader: (4)

aw screw you guys. I guess you're driving cars only to show off and get some. My priority is to get where I need to go, a reliable transportation, thats why my car is my investment.