Should I fix stuff before I trade in my car?

In My Humble Opinion
1

My car is getting a little old, and it’s time to get a new one. I’m thinking I would trade in my old one in the process. It’s got a few issues with it at the moment that are either pretty new or not a big enough problem to bother fixing:

  • passenger side door lock is broken
  • was keyed on the left rear quarter panel
  • needs new front brakes

Is it worth getting any of these fixed before I trade it in?

2

If you are using it as a trade I would not bother. What it costs them to fix it is less than it costs you.

3

I would advise against trading it in. They’ll never give you what it’s worth (even if it’s a complete beater, you can get more on the street). Fixing it is money out of your pocket.

Sell it on the street. You’ll be glad you did. :slight_smile:

4

If it’s a complete POS, sometimes dealers advertize $2000 push, pull or drag it in sales. Otherwise, sell it yourself, and use that money for a down payment. Personally, I’d just fix the brakes, the rest is cosmetic. Let the new owner deal with it.

5

I would sell it “as is” to a private party. Don’t fix it and don’t trade it. Fixing it is throwing money away and trading it in is giving it away.

Car dealers are very sneaky at working the figures to make it look like they are giving you what it is worth or what you could get for it yourself. But actually, they are practicly stealing it from you. Unless you have money to burn and don’t want to be bothered with selling it, avoid the trade game at all costs.

To see what I mean, play this fun, time-wasting game for yourself: Go to a dealer and make a ridiculously low offer on a car. After much back and forth horseshit with notes from the sales manager with smiley faces :smiley: :rolleyes: (why do they do this? do they really think this works?), you will agree on a price. The salespeople will assure you this is the best price they can give you. Then tell them you have a trade (you lied about this when they asked you earlier ;D ) and you expect $X dollars for it (go with a wholesale book value, what a dealer would normally give on trade) and laugh at the back-peddaling cortortions the dealer goes through to somehow justify how the price for the car you want has suddenly gone up dramaticly and they can no longer sell it at the price they just came up with.

Or better yet, don’t.