Sponsored

Trade-in vs. CarMax vs. Carvana

froggedup

Member
Joined
May 28, 2024
Threads
0
Messages
13
Reaction score
11
Location
Michigan
Vehicles
Mach-E
Country flag
I'd thought about using Carmax or Carvana, but instead listed on Craigs and FB marketplace first. My Model 3 sold in about a week and got several thousand more. But I understand the convenience aspect of the trade-in.
 

txtravwill

Well-known member
First Name
Travis
Joined
Apr 25, 2024
Threads
7
Messages
512
Reaction score
612
Location
Marble Falls, TX
Vehicles
Tesla, BMW, Ford
Country flag
Nice! I guess they’re making money somehow given the model they use. Or burning through investors’ cash, lol.
I believe Carvana provides their own in-house financing so that is where they make most of the $$$ for selling. They sell at decently high prices over what they pay you still, but they also make it very easy for buyers to finance with them.
 

TyPope

Well-known member
First Name
Ty
Joined
Mar 31, 2020
Threads
33
Messages
3,219
Reaction score
4,936
Location
Chesapeake Beach, MD
Vehicles
'23 MYLR, FS Cyberbeast 280xx
Occupation
Current Operations for... an organization
Country flag
Keep in mind that trade-in reduces your sales tax on the new car and $3.5 higher offer from Carvana could end up less advantageous, depending on the sales tax rate. Plus the hassle of selling to third party, extra paperwork, etc. Also, if you read the purchase agreement with Carvana, they could lower the payment after receiving the car if they decide that the car is in worse condition.

In my opinion, $3.5 is not enough to be considered for selling to third party
... or if your state allows you to lower your sales tax with a trade in. Mine doesn't. :(
 

Speedr

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 17, 2023
Threads
15
Messages
658
Reaction score
1,385
Location
Florida
Vehicles
Dual Motor Cybertruck
Country flag
I'd thought about using Carmax or Carvana, but instead listed on Craigs and FB marketplace first. My Model 3 sold in about a week and got several thousand more. But I understand the convenience aspect of the trade-in.
Private sale will always get you the most. But besides the convenience and time savings, there's also the liability part. There are plenty of crazy people out there. And if it blows up the day after they buy it, you'll probably here from them..or worse! Vs. when you sell it to a company, they take all of that blame/interact/liability. When I was younger, it was worth it. Definitely not anymore...
 


OP
OP
NightOwl

NightOwl

Well-known member
First Name
Kevin
Joined
May 4, 2024
Threads
24
Messages
260
Reaction score
275
Location
Georgia
Vehicles
Foundation AWD CyberTruck since 8-Jun-2024
Occupation
Retired
Country flag
BTW, if this is your first EV, I would just go ahead and sell the Volvo. Trust me, once you drive an EV, you will NEVER drive the gas car again!
Lol, good advice I’m sure. My son, who’s had a Model 3 since 2018, loves his.
I’m just wondering about keeping it as a backup. And I hate to take such a hit on it since we’ve only had it a little less than 3 years. (It’s a 2021 XC90 with 60,000 miles on it; I think we drive more than an average amount for retirees.) It’s been a great car. Just not a CyberTruck, lol.
But the hard truth is if it just sits there barely driven from now on, it’ll just depreciate more. And we’ll continue to pay insurance over the years, etc. But it is a sunk cost (paid cash for it so no lien or lease) so there’s that factor as well.
Still deciding but leaning towards selling for these reasons. But to your point, will probably love driving the Tesla so much I’ll never want to drive the Volvo anyway.
 

jf64k

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 12, 2023
Threads
34
Messages
1,230
Reaction score
1,989
Location
Los Angeles
Vehicles
2020 MYLR (Lola), 2024 FS AWD (Deckard 263-54)
Country flag
Private sale will always get you the most. But besides the convenience and time savings, there's also the liability part. There are plenty of crazy people out there. And if it blows up the day after they buy it, you'll probably here from them..or worse! Vs. when you sell it to a company, they take all of that blame/interact/liability. When I was younger, it was worth it. Definitely not anymore...
This.

I'm at a stage in my life where it's just better to pay for a lot of things vs doing them myself.

The $$ hit I take selling to Carvana vs Private Party is me 'paying' Carvana to handle it for me with zero hassle/exposure on my end. Easy-peasy.
 

LexusCyber

Well-known member
First Name
Marius
Joined
Sep 6, 2023
Threads
5
Messages
233
Reaction score
207
Location
Redmond, WA, USA
Vehicles
Lexus LS460 AWD V8
Country flag
@NightOwl, unlike every other dealership/company on the planet, Tesla does NOT want your trade-in. They really want to just sell new cars. They literally take them directly to the Auction, which is why they only give you rough book (wholesale) for your trade. Other car dealerships make most of their money on the sale of used cars from (not New).

I've never traded in a car to Tesla (but bought 5), and I'm in Florida, with 6% sales tax, which means another source buying my trade-in needs to be 6% higher than Tesla...and it always is. KBB has worked well for me in the past as well, since they shoot your car to multiple dealerships that bid on it.

BTW, not saying Tesla is bad for this, just that they don't want to sell anything that isn't a Tesla (plus, it wouldn't look good selling gas cars).

does anyone know which Auction does Tesla take their trade-ins to? mannheim? others? I am curious where all these used cars go to... thank you
 
OP
OP
NightOwl

NightOwl

Well-known member
First Name
Kevin
Joined
May 4, 2024
Threads
24
Messages
260
Reaction score
275
Location
Georgia
Vehicles
Foundation AWD CyberTruck since 8-Jun-2024
Occupation
Retired
Country flag
OP
OP
NightOwl

NightOwl

Well-known member
First Name
Kevin
Joined
May 4, 2024
Threads
24
Messages
260
Reaction score
275
Location
Georgia
Vehicles
Foundation AWD CyberTruck since 8-Jun-2024
Occupation
Retired
Country flag
Private sale will always get you the most. But besides the convenience and time savings, there's also the liability part. There are plenty of crazy people out there. And if it blows up the day after they buy it, you'll probably here from them..or worse! Vs. when you sell it to a company, they take all of that blame/interact/liability. When I was younger, it was worth it. Definitely not anymore...
That’s kind of where we’re at as well. Just easier and less hassle; but definitely comes at a cost.
 


tingmo13

Well-known member
First Name
tashi
Joined
Apr 10, 2024
Threads
0
Messages
532
Reaction score
1,007
Location
Colorado
Vehicles
tesla model Y
Occupation
teacher
Country flag
I sold my 2018 M3 to Carvana-it's smooth. I traded in my 2020MY with Tesla-Tesla will offer the 7 days auction price. I like the convenience of dropping my old Tesla & picking the new one on the same day/time. Moreover, I only have to pay tax on the difference.
 

froggedup

Member
Joined
May 28, 2024
Threads
0
Messages
13
Reaction score
11
Location
Michigan
Vehicles
Mach-E
Country flag
Private sale will always get you the most. But besides the convenience and time savings, there's also the liability part. There are plenty of crazy people out there. And if it blows up the day after they buy it, you'll probably here from them..or worse! Vs. when you sell it to a company, they take all of that blame/interact/liability. When I was younger, it was worth it. Definitely not anymore...
Yea I hear that, it's definitely a risk. You really have to screen the people you deal with when going private sale. My experience wasn't bad in this case. I had a few lowball offers. Then someone came along and took my offer with no negotiation, and they were super nice people. You never know what you're gonna get.
 

Speedr

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 17, 2023
Threads
15
Messages
658
Reaction score
1,385
Location
Florida
Vehicles
Dual Motor Cybertruck
Country flag
Lol, good advice I’m sure. My son, who’s had a Model 3 since 2018, loves his.
I’m just wondering about keeping it as a backup. And I hate to take such a hit on it since we’ve only had it a little less than 3 years. (It’s a 2021 XC90 with 60,000 miles on it; I think we drive more than an average amount for retirees.) It’s been a great car. Just not a CyberTruck, lol.
But the hard truth is if it just sits there barely driven from now on, it’ll just depreciate more. And we’ll continue to pay insurance over the years, etc. But it is a sunk cost (paid cash for it so no lien or lease) so there’s that factor as well.
Still deciding but leaning towards selling for these reasons. But to your point, will probably love driving the Tesla so much I’ll never want to drive the Volvo anyway.
Funny story. When we were leasing our Nissan Leaf back in 2011, we still had 6 months on it, but the range was down to less than 60 miles (Florida with no liquid cooled battery...duh!). We bought a new SUV to replace it (growing family), and I thought, why turn in the lease early, what's the harm of just letting it sit there...I'll drive it occasionally. Well, my wife was late one morning and rushed to back out of the garage...right into the parked Leaf. Yep, had to repair TWO cars (one brand new). Needless to say, as soon as I got it back from being repaired, I turned it in lol.

In seriousness, after we got our first Tesla, we've never gone back. If we ever do drive a non-Telsa (i.e. renting a car...and then getting stuck with something else...thanks Hertz), the same thing always happens. We come out of a restaurant to find the car unlocked and running. I know, first world problems...
 
OP
OP
NightOwl

NightOwl

Well-known member
First Name
Kevin
Joined
May 4, 2024
Threads
24
Messages
260
Reaction score
275
Location
Georgia
Vehicles
Foundation AWD CyberTruck since 8-Jun-2024
Occupation
Retired
Country flag
The
Funny story. When we were leasing our Nissan Leaf back in 2011, we still had 6 months on it, but the range was down to less than 60 miles (Florida with no liquid cooled battery...duh!). We bought a new SUV to replace it (growing family), and I thought, why turn in the lease early, what's the harm of just letting it sit there...I'll drive it occasionally. Well, my wife was late one morning and rushed to back out of the garage...right into the parked Leaf. Yep, had to repair TWO cars (one brand new). Needless to say, as soon as I got it back from being repaired, I turned it in lol.

In seriousness, after we got our first Tesla, we've never gone back. If we ever do drive a non-Telsa (i.e. renting a car...and then getting stuck with something else...thanks Hertz), the same thing always happens. We come out of a restaurant to find the car unlocked and running. I know, first world problems...
? A good point.
 

huckone

Active member
Joined
May 31, 2024
Threads
0
Messages
29
Reaction score
18
Location
MN
Vehicles
CT Foundation
Country flag
I requested quote on my lightning with carvana last week, their response was “we’re stumped”. I haven’t received an offer. Tesla has yet to make an offer as well.
Sponsored

 
 








Top