cwayne

I know you guys will say duh but there was proof tonight.

I dropped by my Toyota/Scion dealer tonight to pick up some parts I ordered. I talked to a buddy of mine, Scion salesman, and a guy tried to trade in his 05 tC and they are only willing to give him $2,500 below bluebook. The car is actually pretty nice. It was white. The guy painted the rims black, painted the center console black, exhaust system, lowered springs, aftermarket fog lights, CAI and aftermarket tail lights. He must have spent alot of money making his car look nice only to take a big hit on trade in / resale. Too bad for him he didn\'t save his stock parts and can\'t scrape off the paint.

He was trading his car in for an FJ.

Chrisb319

iTrader: (1)

I was under the impression that TRD parts did not hurt resale value, I know aftermarket parts like H&R coilover etc do. You know dealerships make alot of money this way. They will grab the car for 2,500 under resale value because of "mods" then they will jack up the price when they go to resell it with the mods. I see it happen at Toyota of Nashua here a few times. They know cars like these with ups are hot but their still insist on giving us below resale value. Stirs me up into a frenzy sometimes.

RodC

Duh. My spoiler knocked about $1,000 off the value of my Echo when I traded it in. The spoiler was clean, color-matched, and professionally installed, but it was not the same as the factory optional spoiler. They knew it was aftermarket, so they started giving me BS about how drilling holes in the trunk makes the car prone to rust, and stuff like that. Obviously they use exactly the same technique to install the factory spoiler, but apparently that didn't matter. They were looking for any excuse to lower the value of my trade. It would probably have been cheaper for me to remove the spoiler and get the trunk filled and repainted.

The dealer also didn't give a crap about my well-documented perfect service record, and they didn't give me any additional value for the first aid kit, owner's manual, floor mats, and so on. I wish I had removed that stuff and sold it on eBay.

Chrisb319

iTrader: (1)

Down 1k for a spoiler that's harsh I would have taken my business elsewhere and given them the bird.

Kinamyen

They do crap like that becuase they say cause of the mods you have installed shrunk the customer base for that car.

I did see a 6 month old used tC sit on a lot with 15k miles on it and got from $17.5K to $15.2K before they sold it. Only mods it had was I/E

RodC

Yeah, I ended up wishing I had just sold the car privately. I got totally raped on the trade-in. There were other mods which I believe added value to the car, but the dealer didn't see it that way. I had the mirrors and ground effects painted to match the body so they no longer looked like cheap grey plastic, but the dealer didn't care. I know I made that car look much better than when I first bought it. I even kept it looking immaculate inside and out, then the dealer gave me some BS about having to knock the value down by an additional $1500 less than KBB to cover the cost of refurbishing. It's true that all dealers are crooks.

Pics for the memories... http://www.amecipizzaandpasta.com/echotint.jpg

Nick06tC

It losses alot of value. I went to buy an EVO, and the mitsubishi guy went out to look at my car while I was with the sales associate. He came up to me and said I dont want to rob you, so I suggest you sell it on ebay, or strip it.

He wouldnt give me a price because he didnt want to offed me. I ended getting him to give me a figure, and I was quoted $15,000 for my ride. Now this was back in 06 with the car less than a year old and 10,000 miles on it. I have more than I was offered in aftermarket alone. ( I know I wont get it back, but I would need atleast $20K to make it worth it)

Atleast he was honest tho.

fast5

I know I tried to sell my SVT focus at carmax with not a lot of miles and they basicly spit in my face and said return it back to stock and they could give me full resale value

jct

fyi and i quote

tCtCtC

i just have to agree

Dakine

Yes Mods including debadging ur car lowers resale value since dealerships think they add "HP" to the engine. haha i also agree with davedavetC

Adrian-the-Red

The words that come out of dealers mouths mean nothing. They will give you the money for the car that you tell them, if they don't, you walk. Another dealer will.

"I know from experience dude." - That Damn Sasquatch

Ishan

It will hurt resale value for a dealership, but not for private sale. so if you're heavily modded.. strip or private sale.

Fact is alot of people won't buy a care if it has a lot of mods.. think about it, how hard would you think someone drives a car if you see they threw on some pipes headers and cold air? Doesn't mean they treat their car any worse then anyone else, but it does give the impression.

AKAvensis

I would NEVER buy a car that has a CAI.. it is proof that it's been driven hard.

Also, I had a factory rear lip spoiler and toyota's holes make my car trunk rust. Thanks jerks.

dave2610

cold blooded

cwayne

All of those mods must have added 300hp and made his Echo station wagon a RWD drifter all of a sudden. We have the god of rice here. No wonder he started to troll. Ricers don\'t like me since I expose them. Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!!!!

cwayne

True. I don\'t think there\'s anyone who mods their car just so they can continue to drive it gently.

Dealers also want to \"certify\" used cars. They want to be able to rip off customers. I have never ever seen a certified used car that has been tampered with.

You also have to see it from the dealer\'s perspectives. Most modded cars are \"modded\" by DIYers, often times ghetto-ish. The guy who painted his dash... the paint might come off or it could scrape off... lots of things could go wrong.

When I bought my first DSM years back, I have seen many of them that have been \"modded\". They weren\'t pretty. Many of them had intake/exhaust... and a coat of oil around the head/block. I was lucky and found a Laser in great condition. The front seats were a mess. That was fixed by replacing them with aftermarkets. I miss my DSM. It was an incredible car. $$$ to maintain, but a lot of fun. Gen I > *

ippskidder

Thank god i'm not considering selling my car. I spent way too much on it already, lol.

PrettyniceB

with mods i guess you might not ever be able to sell it

AKAvensis

whats with all the "\"'s?