Trading in for 05: The ugly topic of resale value

[SportscarFan]

By the time the 2007 Camaro returns, the base GT should be up on it's game to match wits. I'm waiting til' then.

Thanks for posting that picture, but I hope that GM is kidding. That is about the oddest design for a car that should be easy to design.

The 67 Camaro is a pleasing shape, even if you hate bowties on principle.

That is an insult to their own history. I realize it is an illustration, but hopefully it is significantly off the mark, for their sake. The 05 Mustang runs circles around that design-wise.

 

[nomostang]

I traded my 02 in last month, and indeed got killed on it. had it two years. got $14 for it, owed 19.5. But the difference was I knew I was going to get killed, and selling it privately meant forking over 3500 out of pocket to pay off the note. the market is SOFT on the mustang right now. I would keep your car for another year at least

 

[63_Fairlane]

I would hang in there for at least a year. That will take care of any "bugs" in the system so to speak and allow some time for the aftermarket to build a few parts. Try to pay your loan down and keep the miles off of the car if possible. That should make things a little more in your favor .

 

[yellow5.0cobra]

The market for a used MUSTANG is always going to be there, problem is Ford build 130,000 Mustangs a year, the body style is not "unique" or low numbered. When things are built so many at a time, the cheaper they get.

Even if it is a V8. Of course the V8 will ALWAYS be worth more than a V6... but not by too much.

Also, you traded your 02, but what did you buy instead?

I sold my 2002 GT/AUTOMATIC for $15,300 6 months ago...

Its a shame, but I did buy the car for $7500. =)

 

[Mr. Jack]

That's incredible!!

 

[skywarp]

The market for a used MUSTANG is always going to be there, problem is Ford build 130,000 Mustangs a year, the body style is not "unique" or low numbered. When things are built so many at a time, the cheaper they get.

Even if it is a V8. Of course the V8 will ALWAYS be worth more than a V6... but not by too much.

Also, you traded your 02, but what did you buy instead?

I sold my 2002 GT/AUTOMATIC for $15,300 6 months ago...

Its a shame, but I did buy the car for $7500. =)

Where did you get the car $7500.00?

 

[TrueBlueCajun]

I fortunately have a buyer already for my '02 GT Vert. My wife's old boss has been trying to persuade me to sell my car to him. He has a 16 yr. old daughter and he wants to give his daughter his '00 Mustang V6 and buy my GT Vert from me. I told him I'd have to wait until the new Mustangs come out before I can do this. If I don't like the new Stang, I'm gonna get the '03-'04 Cobra Vert. So I have 6+ more months before I can even start thinking about getting another Stang. If I like the new Stang, I'll have to wait even longer because I want another Vert.

 

[Ron Jeremy]

You are all right about holding on to our current Mustangs. It will be AT LEAST 1 to 1 1/2 years after the first Mustangs show up on the showroom floors (October 2004) and dealer lots before there will be decent rebates on them. I think that by then we will be able to get a better deal for our current 2001-2004 GT's if we want to sell them or trade them in. Right now you can forget about getting a good trade-in deal or selling price for your current 2001-2004 Mustangs.

In my opinion, I think that we will be able to get the same for our Mustang GT's two years from now as what we are getting for them today. I think that most of the value which we lost on our current GT's isn't going to decrease much from what it is right now. So, if you can only get $12,000-$13,000 for your current 2001-2003 Mustang GT's right now, you will probably be able to get close to $12,000 about two years from now when you are ready to trade it in for the new 2006 Mustang GT. Plus, you will get the rebates on the new 2006. I think that this will allow to bring more money in for your current Mustang on sale or trade-in and also substantial savings on purchasing the new 2006 GT because of the rebates that will be offered. Just take a look at what you could get for a 96-98 Mustang GT back 1 to 4 years ago while wanting to trade it in or sell it in order to buy the brand new 2000-2003 Mustang GT. The same scenario will happen with our current 2000-2004 GT's. We will probably be in the same ball park figures as the people who owned the 96-98 GT's that sold or traded them in to buy the 2000-2003 Mustang GT. I hope that you understand what I am trying to say here. Things will not be any different than they were when the current 99 body style Mustang came out and people who owned the previous body style sold or traded-in their Mustangs for the 2000-2003 body style. The only difference is that they waited 1 to 1 1/2 years before making the transition.

 

[Bmoc2326]

I got offered 18k on my stick 2003 Mustang Gt with 12k miles and bolt on mods by Maroone Ford in Florida

 

[Ron Jeremy]

That's a very good trade-in price. You should of taken it.

 

[351CJ]

If you want the sad news you can look up used car prices on nada.com or kbb.com.

I checked my 2001 GT and for some reason there is a real big difference between nada & kbb. I checked a couple of other cars (not Mustangs) and nada & kbb were a lot closer, but NADA was always higher.

Anyway, here is the sorry news I got for my 2001 GT Premium, coupe, perfect conx, 18K miles:

NADA: trade in $13,650. - - - Private sale: $16,125

KBB: trade in $11,925, - - - Private sale: $14,405


I'd guess that reality is closer the the KBB#'s than NADA, but I have found out that many of the dealers quote you KBB #'s when you go to trade in as they are usually lower than NADA. But on the other hand when they're trying to sell you a used car they use the higher NADA #'s.

 

[VOORHEES]

Oh how I pat myself on the back for buying my GT in 1999, since the current '04s look just like it. I have about a year left to pay and I am gonna keep it at least until '08. Then either keep it with the low mileage it will have or sell it out right for a Cobra or whatever the top dog is at that time.
-Jason

 

[new22003]

Cars will always lose a lot of value when a whole new body style comes out. I dont know if I would trade right away for a new 2005 stang. When they first come out dealers will not be offering any discounts as people always rush to buy the new model. First year quality of a new design is also always a problem. they still have bugs to work out.

 

[Ron Jeremy]

The dealers always use KBB. But if you know the dealer well he might give you close to the NADA.

 

[cadde300]

The mustang market in my area is terrible, southern maryland. You can get a leftover 03 GT for 17500-18k brand new. My buddy just bought an 04 mach1 for 24k. He had a 98 GT with a ton of mods, 99 motor, car was gorgeous, yeah they were going to give him 3k trade in on it. He sold it in the area for 6k. The market sucks....its not just on mustangs though, the used car market is not something to be involved in right now.

 

[Ron Jeremy]

$3K for a trade-in for a 98GT is CHEAP! And selling it for $6K is cheap too. It's sad that our Mustangs have depreciated so much in just a few years.

 

[skywarp]

I went to a dealer Saturday looking for Mach 1s. I found I could get book for my car which would break me even between what I owe the bank. And was offered some really incredible deals. If I put no money down on a Mach at 0% apr over five years it came out to $370.00 a month. A Cobra get this was $3000 down $474 a month. At the end I own either car.
Which brings me back to topic. Should I hold out for the 05 or get a current Mach or Cobra. I don't know how the current 99-04 body style will fair when the 05 comes out. I really like both styles but don't want to lose my shirt either.

 

[siege]

I personally say wait until september and see what deal you can get. if there is no $20k v8, I'll be checkin out an 04 gt vert I think (mmm screaming yellow or orange vert....)... some really sweet deals could be made once the 05's hit the lots...

and the fact you can get book for your car at a dealer...wow. and you're not upside down on your loan...lucky you, heh

 

[skywarp]

and the fact you can get book for your car at a dealer...wow. and you're not upside down on your loan...lucky you, heh

Reason being I think is that the car isn't heavily modded. Car is extremely clean with under 12 thousand miles. He knows that he can sell this car and also sell a new one. A win win situation for him. I guess I'm out of the blower game this year.

 

[351CJ]

Which brings me back to topic. Should I hold out for the 05 or get a current Mach or Cobra. I don't know how the current 99-04 body style will fair when the 05 comes out. I really like both styles but don't want to lose my shirt either.

The 2005 will be a much better car in every way over the 99-04 It will have better handling, ride comfort, interior comfort etc. In straight line speed it will probably be just slightly slower than a Mach 1.

But you will not see the kind of deals that are available on 04 Mustangs for several years.

So what to you want, Instant gratification with a great deal on that Mach 1?
Or do you want to wait and pay more $$ for an all around better car?

If you normally keep your cars for a long time (5 or more years) you should wait for an 05. If you get a new car ever 2 or 3 years, then get the Mach 1 now and get a 2007 Mustang. By 2007 you will be able to get great deals on the 2007 Mustangs and any early problems with the cars will be improved.