So, the other day I went to my local dealer to check out the 370z. Unfortunately they didn't have any manuals in stock, so no test drive for me. But still curious, I asked how much they'd give me for my Maxima (09 Superblack S w/ 3200 miles). MSRP on the car was like $30,500 or so when I got (Mid Nov). So I expected about a 20% drop, figured that would be reasonable. They came back with $20k. You guys think thats super lowball, or are they on the money?

 

30k MSRP what did you pay? 20k sounds low...but then again dealers are thinking resale and they want to make some off it. I'm sure if you go to a couple different dealers and make them compete for it it would get better?

 

I leased, but the Net Cap cost on the lease was like ~$25,000.

 

Dealers are out to make a profit no matter what way the car moving through the dealership. If you sell a car to them, they will devalue the vehicle and send it out on to the lot to make money.

Selling to a dealer is always a loss in my personal opinion. If you want any reasonable value for your Maxima ... try a sale privately, but you will lose a good chunk of change ... new vehicles depreciate the most in their first year ... from what I have seen ... approximately 25 to 35% depending on the vehicle make model and type, as well as economic conditions.

 

then they also should lower the price of the 370z, if you trade it in.

 

You may have overpaid for your Maxima 'S'.

I think they are basing the price on what they now get for the 'S'. Many high-volume Atlanta area dealers have been selling the 'S' new for around five months for prices between $23,990 and $24,990. Based on that, I would not expect them to offer much over $20,000 for as 'S' with 3200 miles, because they probably wouldn't be able to get much over $22,000 for it.

But if your deal on a new 370Z depended on getting a little more for your Maxima, I bet they could find a way to up the ante on your Maxima another thousand or two. But not over $22,000 unless you are overpaying for the 370Z (which is a very very fine car, by the way).

 

Craigslist....sell...buy 370z......

 

Thats why I never buy new cars. I buy em 3 years later when the first guy lost all the depreciation. Of course, I accept not to drive new models. I dont really care.

 

Sounds like a smart move if you can get a great warranty to go with it. Otherwise it could be hit or miss.

 

for me, quite honestly, life is too short to worry about depreciation. I want to drive worry free and enjoy the time I have in a vehicle. I spend almost 3 hours a day in a car and to me it's a waste of my life to sit there and not be able to enjoy myself. I love cars and I love driving ... I've done my worrying, my engine rebuilding and my Bondo patching. Time to just drive .

All though I can respect the other points, a good used vehicle with a couple years under it will still be solid and reliable ... money just doesn't have the same meaning to me as other people.

 

Not a bad strategy, but you've got to hope the first owner(s) didn't abuse the car. Of course, with modern quality control practices, cars like the Maxima are built to extremely high standards and the Quality lasts!

 

You can save quite a chunk of change on used/certified cars...I personally like them new, but the financial benefit of a good well taken care of used car is a reality. It can save you a bundle.

 

The beancounter in me knows that buying a good used car is a great idea. You can go through life being a Second Hand Rose and save major bucks.

I fired the beancounter years ago. I buy new. But I hold for a long time.

 

Yeah, both things are ok, economy needs people who buy new cars. I prefer to work less and travel more, and still drive a luxury car.

 

I got a pretty good lease deal on my 2010 SV with the tech package, msrp just shy of 38k; were I got screwed on was the buyout at the end of the lease; the business manager def overinflated an almost 23k buyout price; no way in hell this thing is going to cost 23k after 3 years with the nav system in it because not only do Nissan's not hold there value as well as Toyotas and Hondas but nav systems bring the resale value down even further

Even if I make all my payments on time, have no problems with the car, and really love it, there is no way I can afford to buy it out at the end of the lease, it would costs me thousands over msrp; guess at the end of the this lease Nissan will lose another customer!

 

I picked up the 09 "S"d as well, with everything but wing and paid just shy of 30k which included taxes, tags and such. Out of curiosity I decided to Kelly it not too long and with about 15k miles, great condition and such; they gave me a price of about 26k or so.

The dealer is low balling you hard core, of course as others have said they are trying to make a profit. But the big #'s you need to look at if you decide to trade in, Amt Owed vs. the Value of the vehicle. Obviously, you want to owe less than that value.

Anyways, GL with whatever you decide to do.

 

1. They are trying to make a profit

2. Its a Nissan aka the Chevrolet of Japenese brands

 

Dealers always low ball. My 03 Z71 Silverado I had, fully loaded. Still retailed for around 16500. The dealer offered me 10000. Sold it on my own for 15500 and then I got my Maxima. Sell your car first and then get the other one.

 

I couldn't agree more!

 

Over on the Z boards, 6speed manual guys are regretting their purchase, the 7speed auto is that good, if you have not driven one please do, it's just an amazing trans

 

Indeed it is great, I'm just curious to why the original poster did not get a 370 instead of the Max if that is what he wanted to save the headache??

 

Dealers are like pawn shops,they love to see how pressed you are like your a crack head or something. Sell it on your own or better to keep it in these economic times!

 

He apparently loves drama, post #3 the OP states that he leased the car, last time I checked, your pretty much stuck with the car until the end of the lease, he's worried about losing money and he leased, you only lease cause your not concerned about the car in anyway, imagine if he leased a 7 series, he would be crying about how he lost 50% of his value with 3000 on the odo.

Enough with the dealer bashing, dealers take the risk of selling the car for more or less, it's a business, it sucks and people ***** about it, that is all people do is *****, nothing will every change, in business long as you make more happy customers then sad customers all is good

 

As I posted on this thread last spring, many dealers (especially around Atlanta) are selling new base S Maximas for prices under $25K (and have been doing so for over a year now). They certainly are not going to pay much more than $20K if that base S is offered in trade-in nine or ten months later. From a purely business view, that would not make sense. Dealers have very high overheads, so if the dealer cannot make a reasonable profit on each transaction, he won't stay in business.

 

My sticker was 35,xxx and bluebook for my mileage (very low) is 28750. Dealer was close to that if I was trading for a new car.\

Funny I'm considering 370Z or the Jeep SRT8.

 

Jeep SRT8? Wow! About as different from the Maxima as one can go. Top-heavy, poor slalom times, poor reliability, poor MPG, etc, etc. But if you are going to be off-roading or pulling a trailer or going camping, or driving in mud or snow, or such, the Jeep has it all over the Maxima.

 

The SRT8 is as close to a sports car as you can get behind the wheel of an SUV, the SRT8 Grand Cherokee is compared to the likes of the high end import SUV's X5/X6, ML, Cayenne, FX

It does not off road, and does not pull trailers, gas mileage is not great and it runs on premium, so far they have bullet proof reliability

 

I traded in my 09 Maxima SV with Premium Pkg last October. I leased it since August'08 at a very high monthly rent of $595 (incl. tax and everything) after a downpayment of $1369 (incl. TTL, excess wear and tear protection, security deposit). I drove it for 15 months and about 15k miles. The MSRP was about $37k.

When I traded it, my payoff was $30k. The dealer gave me $28k and I got back $1k from the security deposit and remaining of the excess wear and tear protection. Took a hit of $1k but got rid of that incredibly high monthly payment. My Max was in pristine condition with not a single scratch anywhere. The dealer would give it a wash and put it up for sale.

The dealer initially listed the Max in their website for sale at $31k. I was keeping a close watch. They kept on decreasing the price gradually; around the middle of December they listed it for $28,480. When I checked last week, the listing was not there any more.

Trading in my Max, I got an 09 Altima 2.5SL fully loaded except navi. MSRP was $27.4k, got it for $23.3k ($26.7k OTD) @ 0% apr for 60 months. I could have opted for $1250 cashback instead of 0% apr, but decided in favor of the apr since the $1k hit from my trade would be factored in the 0% for 60 months.

 

It's a Jeep. Give it a short period of time and that statement will wane just like Chrysler stock.

 

That is an incredibly high payment. It must feel great to get out from under that that type of monthly beating.

I drove a 2009 Altima 2.5 for a couple of weeks while my Max was in for warranty work. That car is no Maxima, but it is a very nice ride. Quiet, smooth, and surprising get up and go for a 4cyl. I think it would be amazing with the 3.5L

 

You are right. The Altima is nice, gets good gas mileage and is a nice size sedan -- not too big, not too small. I do not miss the 290hp of my Maxima since the Altima 4cyl has enough get up and go for day to day driving. But I do miss the overall quality. The leather in my Max was more supple, trunk and hood covers were lighter, etc. Then again, it is a difference of almost $10k in the MSRP of the two cars. So I can't really complain. Overall, I am happy with what I got.

Having owned two Maxes, I still love them and so visit this forum whenever I get time.

 

SRT8 300C, Chargers and Grand Cherokees have already proven themselves to go 100k problem free miles, what else can you ask for with a car creating that much power, except for gas mileage woes, they put a smile on your face every time

 

Yeah I realize that Nissan is probably a better quality car. The other option for me is the 370Z all loaded up. However, I don't love the way it looks, so its going to really depend on the test drive.

 

I went to see the Jeep (they wanted a 1000 dollar deposit to test drive it) but overall it's a solid car. My only concern is the price, sticker loaded is 49,250 and the dealers would come down to 42 with rebates, but thats still a LOT of money for a car that is high maintenance, premium fuel at 11 MPG, etc...I'm sure insurance isn't cheap neither is car tax. It's more the PRICE of the SRT8 that has me researching and wanting to be SURE.

I either keep the Maxima for another year or two, get a 370Z or an SRT8 Jeep this month...that's the decision. Going to see what incentives come out this month. It's tough to give up the Max, its SUCH a SWEET car.

 

I haven't owned those vehicles, so can't say first hand. But Consumer Reports, which collects detailed info on problems from over a hundred thousand drivers, has the Grand Cherokee (the SRT8 is a Grand Cherokee) with an overall reliability rating of 'much worse than average' (their lowest rating) for 4 of the last 6 years, and 'worse than average' the other 2 years.

Dodge/Chrysler products have tied with GM products as the lowest reliability product line the last two years. Ford used to be down there with those two, but has markedly improved reliability in recent years.

Of course one particular SRT8 might go 100K with no problems; but the odds of that happening are considerably lower for the SRT8 than for most vehicles.

 

Great points. quality wise the Nissan is SOLID...no doubt about it.

 

Does make you wonder where CR gets some of their info. (yes I've subscribed for a few decades now and have answered the surveys.) My 99 300M had close to 250K Miles when it broke a timing belt I should have replaced 150K miles earlier. My brides 03 Jeep Grand Cherokee is getting ready to hit the 100K Mile mark and we only replaced the brakes, tires, battery, and windshields so far....All normal wear and tear as far as I am concerned.

I've actually had more "infant mortality" problems with my Max than I ever did with the Chrysler products and had they not insisted on making their vehicles look like Peterbuilts, I may have stayed with them instead of going for the much more elegant looking Max.

 

I have been a loyal subscriber to CU since I returned from my last spiel in Korea in 1960, and often take issue with their test results. For instance, they totally blew their testing and evaluation of the '09 Maxima. But their reliability results are not of CU's personal opinion or making. The CU auto surveys returned from readers are read into the computer, and it simply adds everything up and spits out the results.

There are legendary cases of a car that was rated as very unreliable, that probably left thousands of poor drivers stranded beside the road, yet one particular example of that miserable car might go 300K with no problems. For instance, you have had Maxima problems, but, in over 25 years of driving Maximas, I have had very few problems, and absolutely not a whisper of a problem from my '00 SE, no problems from my '04 SL after one early 'fix-all' trip to my dealer, and so far, not a whisper of trouble from my '09.

By comparison, in 30 years of driving American makes ('49 thru '78), I learned to carry duct tape, bailing wire, tools, etc, at all times, because it was always one problem after another.

Every comprehensive reliability survey I have seen in recent years (actually, for many years) shows Dodge/Chrysler and GM products have been generally very unreliable, as compared with most manufacturer's products. Ford finally turned things around, and Dodge/Chrysler MUST take steps to do the same, else they will have trouble surviving.

 

Could not have said it better myself. I run a shop and we make our living off Chrysler, Ford, and GM.

 

I am also one that has had problems with Chrysler products. Many years ago I bought a new Challenger and when I sold it I swore I would never own another Chrysler product. Well, lo and behold, I succumbed once again and bought another Chrysler product and when I got rid of it I swore once again to never, never again buy another one. I feel almost the same way about General Motors products and it would be very hard to convince me to buy another one. I have had better luck with Ford products and feel they offer some quality vehicles. That said I will stick with Nissan's as I have had nothing but good luck with them.