Who buys used cars at these prices?

[hensleya1]

I think $23,000 is more than I've spent on all my cars in my entire lifetime. I've owned like 15 cars. And every one of them ran and drove when I sold them, except for one I pulled the motor out and sold as a clean roller.

TL/DR: haggling on Craigslist is more fun than dealing with a used car lot and you can get a much better deal.

[longneckone]

Originally Posted by k374

it is sitting there depreciating on their lot... I offered $20k and they looked at me like I was crazy, so I would think they would at least NEGOTIATE rather than saying absolutely no negotiation! Well, I told them I am not pulling numbers from my ass, I have done a fair market value eval as well and that is where I am getting my # from. They said my research is not right so I offered a printout from Edmunds TMV, they refused to even hear it.

There are plenty of other cars and dealers out there. I would move on.

[RipCityBassWorks]

Unlucky for the dealers, stupid people tend to not be able to afford expensive cars unless their wealthy parents are buying....

[jaypee]

Originally Posted by k374

I really don't care about what the market says a used car should be. I go by the price of the new one at that moment (all rebates and specials included). If I can get a new car for marginally more, with the full warranty, zero miles, knowing that nobody else has driven it harshly why in the world would I ever consider buying a used one? To me it makes zero logical sense. A lot of the time new car prices get discounted and the "researched" market value does not have time to take all that into account.

I'm not sure what the big deal is ... dealer gives the 2-yo car a 15% discount from new and you think it should be 25%. If you think it's overpriced then go find a cheaper one ... Edmunds (or KBB or NADA) doesn't sell cars. One possible reason why they didn't bother to negotiate could be because they don't consider you a serious buyer.

[GeoffD]

Originally Posted by prospectheightsresident

That's insane, but is precisely why I avoided used car dealers when shopping for my first vehicle . . . they weren't discounting prices enough to what my research said they should (not even close).

The used car dealerships are waiting for that sub-prime buyer to walk in the door. They get the commission on the 14% car loan and all that markup on the car. Bolt on the GPS tracker & remote ignition disabler and off you go. 6 months later, the tow truck goes out and brings it back to the lot where it is cleaned up and sold to the next sub-prime buyer. You are clearly the wrong demographic.

[trryan5]

A year ago I went car shopping because my 13-year-old Taurus was on its last legs. At first I assumed I should get a used car because, well, I can't afford a new one, right? But then after shopping around, I was shocked at what used cars go for these days. Unless the car is more than eight years old, you'll pay through the nose. There was one Subaru wagon at Carmax that I wrote down all the details about trim, went and looked it up on Edmunds, and found out they were asking more than the MSRP when the car was new!

I came close to buying a used Kia Soul with 50,000 miles on it, but then went to the new car lot and negotiated a brand new one with better options for only about $3,000 more. Factor in the better APR on a new car, and buying the used one would have been downright stupid.

All I can figure is there are tons of people out there who just assume they're too poor to buy new and don't even consider it, and the used car dealers know this and are taking advantage of it.