Trading in your old car for a shiny new one? With any vehicle, you want to get as much value as you can when you’re trading it in. To help you get the maximum trade-in return for your car, we’ve compiled a list of some helpful (and simple) trade-in tips.
What decreases the value of your car?
Before getting into what you can do to maximize your car’s trade-in value, it’s important to first know what can decrease its value. The more obvious areas that can cause value decreases are major damage incidents, vehicle age, and mileage. Outside of that, other areas that can decrease a vehicle’s value that don’t normally appear on vehicle history reports are things like odors, such as smoke or pet smells, along with the general condition of your car – like wear and tear of seats, or even scratches and cracks in the car’s interior.
Tips on getting your vehicle ready for a trade-in
Tip 1: Know your car’s value
Before you start to prep your car for a trade, you should first dig into some research to give you a baseline idea of what your car is worth.
Our free Value Range tool can provide you with a starting point when trying to determine how much your car might be worth. All you have to do is enter some information about your automobile, such as year, make, model, and odometer reading. It will then provide you with three value ranges for what you could expect if you’re trading-in, buying, or selling.
Unlike other car valuation tools that typically only look at asking prices of similar vehicles when providing you with a value, our Value Range tool goes a step further by looking at what other similar vehicles in your area have actually sold for. It’s an easy way to start your trade-in journey, and will give you an idea of what you might see for your trade-in value.
Tip 2: Make any minor repairs
Even a small ding can make a big dent in the amount you can get for your car. So, before trading it in, repair any minor damage including scratches. Broken taillight? Easy fix. Small scratches? See if they can be buffed out. The closer you can get it to looking perfect, the happier you’ll be with the trade-in value.
Tip 3: Decide if major repairs will be worth the investment
Notice how on tip number 2 we said, “minor repairs”? If your car needs some major work, it may not be worth it to have it done before trading in. Ask a mechanic you trust if making a $2000 repair is going to boost the value of your car by more than $2000. While they may not be able to fully give you a definitive ‘yes’ or ‘no’, weighing the cost versus return is important.
Tip 4: Clean your car
This seems like an obvious one, right? Give your car a good wash, both inside and out. Vacuum the seats and floor mats. Wash windows and headlights. Even give your tires a good clean. The goal: to make your car look as appealing as possible so a dealership can see its value.
Tip 5: Bring your maintenance documents
Being able to demonstrate that you’ve taken good care of your car all these years can go a long way in getting you get top dollar. So, share any documents you have from oil changes, tune-ups, and other maintenance that has been done to keep your car in great shape. If you don’t want to deal with piles of receipts and paperwork, but still want to track your maintenance, our handy Car Care app can help not only with tracking your maintenance, it can also give you a factory recommended maintenance schedule with reminders for your current and future vehicles.
Trading in your vehicle towards a new one should be an exciting opportunity, and hopefully these tips help alleviate some stress, and ultimately get you a greater return for your vehicle.