A wakeup call on trade-in value

[Tommy]

AFAIK, the Rivian offer is "take it or leave it". Tesla doesn't price match, anymore, either.

This is correct. The offer from Rivian for my trade-in was the lowest of all of the other offers I received by several thousand dollars. This surprised me because of the many positive trade in stories I've read on this forum. I was expecting at least a fair deal. When I counter offered with supporting proof of other higher offers, Rivian explained that their offer is non-negotiable. Take it or leave it.

Remember to do the math if you live in a state that offers a tax advantage to trade-in your vehicle directly to the seller. Simply calculate the tax difference between a straight sale vs a trade-in sale. If you can secure an offer that is greater than Rivian's offer + the tax savings, then go for it. If not, take Rivian's lower offer.

I received several offers that covered the spread, so no trade-in for me.

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[TurboTwin]

I just went through selling my 2020 Sierra online with Shift so I guess I can share my experience since people seem curious. i will not be trading anything when my R1S comes in. I only sold my truck since i didn’t “need” it and the market is so high now.

I first started getting quotes from all the online companies in Nov with 24k miles. Vroom was the highest at 58k with everyone else ranging from 45-56k. When I finally decided to sell in March with 26k miles, Vroom was down to 52k and everyone else was around 48-53k. Carmax gave me a offer In person of 43k! Shift ended up offering me 59k. They came and looked at the truck and told me it was in perfect shape to they stuck with the 59k offer. Gave me another $200 for accepting offer right there. Signed a bunch of docs on there iPad and they drove away with my truck. they then take it to there “hub” and have it inspected again. That’s were you can have issues if they find problems. My truck was good to go and I got the money direct deposited into my bank about 4 days after they picked it up.

I have Had a few friends sell with these online companies and these are things to consider. Pricing will change dramatically as time passes. Could be higher or lower. If you don’t accept an offer, they might up the offer after the first one expires. Get offers from all the places and see which is the highest. No reason not too since it is very easy and the offers are usually good for 7 days and 500 more miles. Also, check with your local dealers that buy used cars. Another friend was offered his highest price from a local Ram dealer.

Based on the time frame of delivery after you talk with your guide, there is plenty of time to figure out which route to go if you don’t want to deal with private party sales.

 

[Tanquen]

I just checked Kelley Blue Book and trade-in value is $60k to $66k and direct is only like $2,000 more. If that's correct then I don't know why anybody would sell direct. I am surprised at the amount, I thought it'd be closer to $40k.

Ouch, Vroom says it's only worth $49k to them.

 

[AbhorViolence]

I was told years ago by a car dealer that anything that didn't come with the car from the factory has $0.00 trade in value. Even a full set of 4 winter tires on factory rims make no difference on trade in value. Now, before trading in, I remove anything that is non-damaging and keep it or sell it on ebay or a forum.

Car dealers lie all the time.

 

[NY_Rob]

^ not a lie, that's just how their pricing works. Add something aftermarket, you don't get anything extra for it. I've purchased five new cars since 2012, on trade in- no one offered a dime extra on the trade in for PPF, Spare tire, window tinting, HID headlights, etc.

 

[Russ]

When my turn came to go through the purchase process, RIVIAN offered me $46k for my 2020 Jeep Gladiator Launch Edition (All options ..). At the time KBB listed the Trade-in value at $55-58k. So naturally I assumed RIVIAN was lowballing me and declined their offer.
Today, only a few days later, I went to Carmax to try and get an offer. Well they only offered me $43K. And KBB's own "Cash now offer" came in at only $44K. So RIVIAN was actually being very generous with their offer.
Keep that in mind when your turn comes. Go to Carmax and see what they'll actually give you. KBB numbers are total BS.

I've decided to keep both trucks for now and see if I like the EV life as much as I think I will. In 3 months I'll see what I feel like doing.

To Recap:

RIVIAN offer: $46500
Carmax: $43000
KBB offer: $44000
Carvana: $42899
Vroom: $43201
Car Gurus: $41639
Shift: $46500 (Pending eval appt)
KBB Trade-in value: $58K

I had similar experience.
Tried to get my Navigator to tell me how trade would be evaluated and was assured it would be "very fair" but refused details.
In the end they offered $16,200 for 2011 Superduty Lariat with 86,000 miles that was perfect with new shocks, tires and all services. Wholesaled it the next day for $25,000 cash. Sad not to get the sales tax credit, but cash is cash.

 

[User433]

For what it's worth, Rivian gave me a quote for my 2016 Ford Edge right in the middle of KKB trade-in with EXCELLENT condition. I take very good care of my cars so it wasn't a stretch to claim excellent but I know it would have been a big fight to get EXCELLENT at the dealership and I probably would have had to settle for VERY GOOD. Rivan didn't hassle me one bit. The whole delivery process was pure bliss.

 

[Brandon N]

I had similar experience.
Tried to get my Navigator to tell me how trade would be evaluated and was assured it would be "very fair" but refused details.
In the end they offered $16,200 for 2011 Superduty Lariat with 86,000 miles that was perfect with new shocks, tires and all services. Wholesaled it the next day for $25,000 cash. Sad not to get the sales tax credit, but cash is cash.

At least here in Missouri, you still get the sales tax credit if you buy something within 6 months. You just have to fill out the form yourself instead of having the dealer do it for you. There is no difference in the credit. Your state might have something similar.

 

[godfodder0901]

At least here in Missouri, you still get the sales tax credit if you buy something within 6 months. You just have to fill out the form yourself instead of having the dealer do it for you. There is no difference in the credit. Your state might have something similar.

WA state does not. It must be done at the same time and be a true trade-in.

 

[Fotoshark]

Try shift.com
They are the highest bidders generally

 

[trez63]

Try shift.com
They are the highest bidders generally

You're right about Shift having the highest trade-in value. If you look at my original post I have updated it with the Shift offer. They do require an in person eval and they can update the price ...

 

[JeffD]

Did you try Carvana? Had great values from them in the past.

The important thing to remember is that trading your vehicle to Rivian gives you credit for state sales tax, when you sell to Carmax, Vroom, etc., you don’t get the tax credit towards your Rivian.

 

[CommodoreAmiga]

The important thing to remember is that trading your vehicle to Rivian gives you credit for state sales tax, when you sell to Carmax, Vroom, etc., you don’t get the tax credit towards your Rivian.

Depends on your state.

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