# Today's used car prices are high? Can you give an example? **URL:** \ **Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\ **Created:** [April 3, 2012, 7:13am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/todays-used-car-prices-are-high-can-you-give-an-example/71737 "2012-04-03T07:13:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![UsedEconobox\_2\_UsedBMW](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/8491ac/32.png) [@UsedEconobox\_2\_UsedBMW](https://community.cartalk.com/u/UsedEconobox_2_UsedBMW)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 7:13am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/todays-used-car-prices-are-high-can-you-give-an-example/71737/1 "2012-04-03T07:13:12Z")
In 2007, I paid $5800 for a 1999 Camry with 70k miles. 8 years old 70k miles. $5900. Today, that translates to a 2004 Camry with 70k miles. How much would this car cost? I keep hearing that used car prices are now so high, but I guess I need some sort of basis to compare. ---
**Author:** ![mark9207](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71c47a/32.png) [@mark9207](https://community.cartalk.com/u/mark9207)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 8:10am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/todays-used-car-prices-are-high-can-you-give-an-example/71737/2 "2012-04-03T08:10:00Z")
I have heard that, for some models, a vehicle that is one or two years old may sell for almost as much, if not more than, a brand new car, same make and model. I have also observed that, in my neck of the woods, econoboxes are priced quite high in the used car market, sometimes outrageously so, especially if they have a Honda or Toyota emblem on the hood. It’s not at all unusual around here to find someone selling a rusted 1994 Accord with a quarter million miles on it for three grand, and actually getting it. Domestic full size pickup trucks are priced pretty low, on the other hand. I just picked up a rust free '98 Ford F-150 Super Cab for $900. ---
**Author:** ![oldtimer-11](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/e79b87/32.png) [@oldtimer-11](https://community.cartalk.com/u/oldtimer-11)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 8:50am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/todays-used-car-prices-are-high-can-you-give-an-example/71737/3 "2012-04-03T08:50:35Z")
Yes , used car prices are very high, I had a 2004 PT Cruiser in nice shape that got totaled last November. The insurance company paid me more than 50% of what I paid for it brand new. That is more than I could have sold it for 3 years ago. ---
**Author:** ![UsedEconobox\_2\_UsedBMW](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/8491ac/32.png) [@UsedEconobox\_2\_UsedBMW](https://community.cartalk.com/u/UsedEconobox_2_UsedBMW)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 10:20am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/todays-used-car-prices-are-high-can-you-give-an-example/71737/4 "2012-04-03T10:20:50Z")
I am hoping for more specific examples of how a particular car sells for more than it would have a few years ago. It makes no sense that a used car would sell for MORE than it’s new equivalent. New cars also come with 0% financing. Who would pay more for used? ---
**Author:** ![galant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/77aa72/32.png) [@galant](https://community.cartalk.com/u/galant)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 11:52am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/todays-used-car-prices-are-high-can-you-give-an-example/71737/5 "2012-04-03T11:52:19Z")
A well maintained 2004 Camry LE with 70K miles, sells over $10K here in CA. ---
**Author:** ![GSragtop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/7c8e57/32.png) [@GSragtop](https://community.cartalk.com/u/GSragtop)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 6:39pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/todays-used-car-prices-are-high-can-you-give-an-example/71737/6 "2012-04-03T18:39:19Z")
That car (assumeing 4-cyl) according to Manheim Market Reports (dealer auction report, real cars being sold at auction to real dealers) is going to sell for $7500-$8500… So as Galant says $10k sounds about right on a dealers lot. Why is this?? Three reasons come to mind 1. Econommy- People HAVE to get to work, and with the economy being down people are buying used more then new… 70K is no longer “high” mileage 2. Leases- When the economy took a dive so did leases… The result is you have less 3 year old cars hitting the used car market, thus driving up the demand for the older cars and therefore the prices. Along those same lines are the fact that rental/fleet companys are keeping there cars longer then they used to. This once again means less late model cars on the market. 3. Cash For Clunkers- I still belive we are feeling the sting from this program (which was a great idea at the time), it took out almost 700,000 under $5000 cars, and the market has not recovered. ---
**Author:** ![Rod-Knox](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a183cd/32.png) [@Rod-Knox](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Rod-Knox)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 7:13pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/todays-used-car-prices-are-high-can-you-give-an-example/71737/7 "2012-04-03T19:13:32Z")
With the ads for new cars offering all manner of rebates, discounts, free scheduled maintenance , doubling factory warranties and easy credit at ZERO interest I am amazed that late model used cars are so high. The interest and finance charges on a used car would seem to increase its total cost above a similar new car. ---
**Author:** ![UsedEconobox\_2\_UsedBMW](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/8491ac/32.png) [@UsedEconobox\_2\_UsedBMW](https://community.cartalk.com/u/UsedEconobox_2_UsedBMW)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 8:07pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/todays-used-car-prices-are-high-can-you-give-an-example/71737/8 "2012-04-03T20:07:02Z")
**_A well maintained 2004 Camry LE with 70K miles, sells over $10K here in CA._** Galant, I spot checked a few ads in my area. Average asking price for a 2004 with 70k would be in the ballpark of $8900. So, figure $8500. Wow, they have gone up in price. But, I recall I got a good deal at $5900. Fair market was more like $6500. So, $6500 is now $8500. Offsetting that, you are getting 2004 technology vs. 1999 technology. That’s not nearly as outrageous as people claim. ---
**Author:** ![UsedEconobox\_2\_UsedBMW](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/8491ac/32.png) [@UsedEconobox\_2\_UsedBMW](https://community.cartalk.com/u/UsedEconobox_2_UsedBMW)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 8:09pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/todays-used-car-prices-are-high-can-you-give-an-example/71737/9 "2012-04-03T20:09:02Z")
Rod Knox, Exactly. I know many people who can’t afford paying $8000 in cash for a used car. So, what do they do? They lease a brand new one for $200/mo. Everyone’s got $200/mo. ---
**Author:** ![GSragtop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/7c8e57/32.png) [@GSragtop](https://community.cartalk.com/u/GSragtop)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2012, 1:47am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/todays-used-car-prices-are-high-can-you-give-an-example/71737/10 "2012-04-04T01:47:49Z")
Forgot one- Scrap mettal prices at all time high… When I started scrapping cars, I was getting between $150-$200 for them, now your talking $500+$100 just for the cat+$10-!5 PER aluminum wheel… There goes all the sub $1000 cars… ---
**Author:** ![UsedEconobox\_2\_UsedBMW](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/8491ac/32.png) [@UsedEconobox\_2\_UsedBMW](https://community.cartalk.com/u/UsedEconobox_2_UsedBMW)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2012, 4:06am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/todays-used-car-prices-are-high-can-you-give-an-example/71737/11 "2012-04-04T04:06:31Z")
GSragtop, that’s odd. I heard sheet metal prices have crashed since 2008, b/c of no demand. ---
**Author:** ![cigroller](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c68b51/32.png) [@cigroller](https://community.cartalk.com/u/cigroller)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2012, 4:26am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/todays-used-car-prices-are-high-can-you-give-an-example/71737/12 "2012-04-04T04:26:57Z")
I can’t tell what the question is. ---
**Author:** ![GSragtop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/7c8e57/32.png) [@GSragtop](https://community.cartalk.com/u/GSragtop)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2012, 7:44am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/todays-used-car-prices-are-high-can-you-give-an-example/71737/13 "2012-04-04T07:44:10Z")
Nope, its at an all time high. Lots of demand in china. It dipped for a while but it’s back up now. It used to be as a scraper you would get the car for free. Now you have to pay for the honor of towing away someones junk ---
**Author:** ![Caddyman](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/caddyman/32/23_2.png) [@Caddyman](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Caddyman)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2012, 5:23am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/todays-used-car-prices-are-high-can-you-give-an-example/71737/14 "2012-04-05T05:23:49Z")
When the credit market collapsed in June 2008, car sales and leases came to a standstill…It stayed that way for 2 years…There are very few 2009, 2010 models available…Cash for clunkers got rid of all the beaters, leaving a used car vacuum…Today, consumers are willing to pay astounding prices for what people like me consider to be road oilers… ---
**Author:** ![UsedEconobox\_2\_UsedBMW](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/8491ac/32.png) [@UsedEconobox\_2\_UsedBMW](https://community.cartalk.com/u/UsedEconobox_2_UsedBMW)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2012, 11:01pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/todays-used-car-prices-are-high-can-you-give-an-example/71737/15 "2012-04-09T23:01:56Z")
With used Japanese cars higher than normal, this might be a good time for otherwise frugal drivers to finally upgrade to a used luxury car. If you know an honest indep. mechanic or can do some basic work yourself, you can really score a deal and a half. eg: Used BMW? You can barely give them away. By far, the best bang for your buck, if you can allocate money for future repairs. $7000 gets you a very nice BMW vs. a Honda of the same year. ---
**Author:** ![GSragtop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/7c8e57/32.png) [@GSragtop](https://community.cartalk.com/u/GSragtop)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2012, 11:31pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/todays-used-car-prices-are-high-can-you-give-an-example/71737/16 "2012-04-09T23:31:46Z")
On what planet can you get a nice BMW for $7000?? I just sold (last week in fact) a 2005 325i with 115,000 for just over $10,000… I cant imagine nice being much less than that ---
**Author:** ![galant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/77aa72/32.png) [@galant](https://community.cartalk.com/u/galant)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2012, 6:54am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/todays-used-car-prices-are-high-can-you-give-an-example/71737/17 "2012-04-10T06:54:41Z")
@gsragtop; agreed, at over $10K, I will still take my 05 Camry with 78K miles and drive it around. ---
**Author:** ![eraser1998](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/6de8d8/32.png) [@eraser1998](https://community.cartalk.com/u/eraser1998)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2012, 5:13pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/todays-used-car-prices-are-high-can-you-give-an-example/71737/18 "2012-04-10T17:13:44Z")
Here’s an example: In September 2010 I bought a brand new Mazda6 i Sport for $17,800 plus ttl. It had about 30 miles on the odometer from various test drives. At the same time, CarMax and Hertz (both nonnegotiable) wanted $18,200 OR MORE for a 2009 Mazda6 i Sport with 30-35,000 miles on the odometer. That’s right - the (over) 1 year old car with a fair number of miles was selling for prices HIGHER than what you would pay for a brand new (but otherwise identical) car. ---
**Author:** ![UsedEconobox\_2\_UsedBMW](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/8491ac/32.png) [@UsedEconobox\_2\_UsedBMW](https://community.cartalk.com/u/UsedEconobox_2_UsedBMW)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2012, 2:25am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/todays-used-car-prices-are-high-can-you-give-an-example/71737/19 "2012-04-11T02:25:31Z")
GS, here’s one for $5100. 2001 with 140k. For $7k, you could find lower miles. ---
**Author:** ![GSragtop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/7c8e57/32.png) [@GSragtop](https://community.cartalk.com/u/GSragtop)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2012, 1:11am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/todays-used-car-prices-are-high-can-you-give-an-example/71737/20 "2012-04-12T01:11:01Z")
Found this on [Autonew.com](http://Autonew.com) today, which is a trade publication. Thought it fit well with this thread. ![](http://static-cl1.vanilladev.com/cartalk.vanillaforums.com/uploads/FileUpload/f1/88ac0a79d0ee61204c63ea5113f060.pdf)