Used Car prices are higher than new car prices WTH! (San Diego: for sale, leasing)

[hitman619]

I went Car shopping for a used car for my youngest son, Starts SDSU next week.
0- $6000 range. Most cars for sale are complete junk and in need to be fixed, just to drive them normally.
6K to 15k Range. Most of these cars are very high miles and are usually are, at the end of their lives.
15k to 25K Range. Most cars still have high miles and our over priced. I f you do find one, when dig deeper or check the carfax you find out that's it's been in Multiple accidents.

[elnina]

So what used cars prices were higher than new cars?
You forgot to mention those...

These cars are most likely in such high demand relative to their supply that some buyers will pay a premium for a used version just to get their hands on the car.

[joosoon]

I made a search, $0-6k on autotrader in SD, all makes/models pre-2006 and only private sellers. There were a few that deserved a deeper look, if that helps. I guess it depends on what you're looking for and what you consider too many miles. I personally wouldn't rule out things over 150k depending on what it is. There's also plenty of vehicles I'd run away from brand new off the showroom floor. That's just the nature of cars. eta: Buying used, two biggest things are clear title and <30 day smog cert. And I wouldn't buy anything in the lower price range you're shopping, at a used dealership, if you even could. JMO.


And fwiw, SD has always had a slight premium attached to the used market. Stuff was always cheaper in OC/LA/Riverside. I remember this even as a kid. Growing up, a beater was in the $300-500 range but it was a running car. My buddies and I would scour the pennysaver or the autotrader every Thursday for these things. That was about the bare minimum a car would go for and since we weren't even going to insure them (before it was the law), we didn't want anything too pretty anyway. Of course a lot has changed in the modern world and covid didn't help the situation. People are still hanging onto clunkers because new cars are ridiculously expensive and dealers still are demanding sticker or more for some stuff. That was unheard of once upon a time.


Good luck in your quest.

[1AngryTaxPayer]

Originally Posted by hitman619

I went Car shopping for a used car for my youngest son, Starts SDSU next week.
0- $6000 range. Most cars for sale are complete junk and in need to be fixed, just to drive them normally.
6K to 15k Range. Most of these cars are very high miles and are usually are, at the end of their lives.
15k to 25K Range. Most cars still have high miles and our over priced. I f you do find one, when dig deeper or check the carfax you find out that's it's been in Multiple accidents.

Dang, I just sold an Xterra with 80 thousand for 5 grand. It was cherry. Older car but like new inside and out. It was a garage queen.

[Ruth4Truth]

OP, where did you go car shopping? Did you check the want ads, to see what was available from private parties? That's usually where the deals are. And "high mileage", as soneone else mentioned, is not a deal-breaker, if the car in question is a Toyota or Honda. 150K miles will last years, a decade or more, depending on how much distance driving you do, how well you take care of it, etc. Most private sellers will let you take the car to your mechanic to get checked out before you buy. Or if you have any friends who are mechanics, you can bring the mechanic to the car.

All that said, I don't know anything about the used car market in San Diego, and whatever peculiarities there may be there (higher prices, or whatever). A couple of years ago, though, during Covid, one of our C-D regular posters found someone a nice used Toyota in the Bay Area for a very reasonable price. It was old, but had lower mileage than the proverbial 150K, and looked to be well-maintained. You never know what's out there 'til you look, but it helps to know where to look. And sometimes, it takes persistence.

[malcorub16]

FB Marketplace. My nephew bought a sweet 2011 Mercedes for 6K last year while he was in SD. High mileage but its been running like a champ for many months.

Best thing for families to do is to not trade in your vehicles for newer ones if yours kids are tweenagers... save it for them. 4-5 years flies by in the grand scheme of things.

[JoeSanDiegoHomes]

Yep, they are up 50 percent compared to prepandemic.
Demand got altered with the chip shortage. Manufacturers only had so many chips ... So they focused on the higher value cars, thus driving up new cars prices and forcing people to the used car market.

[Axxlrod]

Used Teslas are the best buy right now, especially the Model 3. Elon recently dropped the prices of the new cars bigly, so the bottom fell out of the used Tesla market.

Can get a used Model 3 for $25k now which is a good especially after figuring in the savings from not paying for gasoline.

[Losfrisco]

Originally Posted by hitman619

I went Car shopping for a used car for my youngest son, Starts SDSU next week.
0- $6000 range. Most cars for sale are complete junk and in need to be fixed, just to drive them normally.
6K to 15k Range. Most of these cars are very high miles and are usually are, at the end of their lives.
15k to 25K Range. Most cars still have high miles and our over priced. I f you do find one, when dig deeper or check the carfax you find out that's it's been in Multiple accidents.

If you haven't expanded you our search radius outside of San Diego I recommend doing that. I recently bought a car with 53K miles and clean history for about 10K in south L.A.

I was having the exact same experience, not that I think I got a great deal but I think I saved a few thousand by not buying around here

[crone]

Originally Posted by Axxlrod

Used Teslas are the best buy right now, especially the Model 3. Elon recently dropped the prices of the new cars bigly, so the bottom fell out of the used Tesla market.

Can get a used Model 3 for $25k now which is a good especially after figuring in the savings from not paying for gasoline.

A relative has been looking for a hybrid or EV for months. Shopping is more difficult due to Manchin inserting something about buying American to get $7500 REBATE. The foreign makers now have a lease for a few months, then the car is used. They are dropping prices or playing games with prices to counter the buy AMERICAN. It's hard enough buying a car with the games dealers play with their add ons. Now learning what's up with the leasing makes the process more time consuming.