Need help with selling 2010 Prius

This caught my eye today in our local paper

2010 Toyota Prius Used Cars for Sale in Syracuse Central NY - syracuse.com

$18,900 with 20,581 on the clock

 

Check out local listings to see what they are selling for in you area - check craigslist, ebay, the paper etc. Remember that a dealer is going to resell the car so your best bet is a private sale.

 

But the car you linked doesn't have a moonroof. It doesn't have the navigation system, nor leather interior. This may well be a package II Prius, which you could (back when I bought mine) for $22,000. The package IV with a moonroof sold for about $30,000.

Apples and Oranges.

Rocketman - are you selling it private party or trading it in to a dealer? Do you absolutely NEED to sell it?

 

I posted the car to give you a benchmark. It has much less miles on it and is selling at the dealer for about 80% of the original price. Your car has more options but will soon be out of warranty on the power-train and is out of the basic warranty. I would anticipate 70% to 75% of your original price. Seems like your $23k might be a bit high but in the ball park.

 

GLWS.....fully loaded car but mileage is a bit high for the year which will be the biggest harbinger

 

Just take some photos and sell it on here! The folks around priuschat tend to be both fair and knowledgeable...

Just be sure to list the colors (interior and exterior), history (any accidents?), maintenance records (how/when oil changed?), and list the VIN so people can CarFax it. Then sit back, answer any questions, and get ready for a smooth sale!

 

The value of your Prius will inch up as gasoline prices rise. If you aren't desperate don't be in a hurry to sell. Stating that it is a IV Solar with remote start will help the Prius savvy more than listing all the options & standard features (but list them for other buyers).

Why is the SUV needed? Does it haul/tow more stuff than the Prius? Does it carry more people? If money is tight I would want to reduce operating & maintenance costs.

 

As I've posted many times, KBB tends to be on the high side and Edmunds tends to be on the low side. I'd also try Nada.

Dig around thru ads on Craigslist and Autotrader.com as reference, keeping in mind that dealers will always be selling for more than private parties.

You can also try bringing it to a few Toyota dealers to see what they'll give you for it and see if the value they give is worth it vs. going thru the trouble of selling it yourself.

I sold my former 350Z to a Nissan dealer that gave me a surprisingly high amount vs. what I was trying to advertise for on CL (and getting little response) and what a used car dealer and another Nissan dealer were offering. A friend of mine was offered only ~$700 for her old Honda Accord by a Toyota dealer as a trade when buying her '11 Prius. I suggested she take it to the Honda dealer next door and they offered $1500, which she was happy with. She didn't want to sell it herself (troublesome, safety, time consuming, etc.)

Agree w/all of the above.

 

The 'loaded' part of a 'loaded car' takes a much bigger hit on resale than the base. That is just the way it is. "Fair" price is a useless term in this context. Seller tries to get the most they can, buyer tries to spend the least possible. Supply and demand negotiates the end price. As for the dealer only offering to buy the car at wholesale pricing as if the car had no options -- that is BS, because the auction pricing DOES increase with options. Just not anywhere close to what the options cost the new car buyer.

That said, $22k sounds to me like a very competitive offer.

 

You were clear rocketman1321, I meant that your offer to sale at $22k sounds to me like it will get interest. Good Luck!

 

I just priced your car on kbb trade in at 18-19k and gather that no dealer will give you 19k or more unless your car is in demand. hell, you can get 20 or 21k if gas prices went up to $4/gal but as of today an offer between 18 & 19k is what you will get from a dealer. then again, if you are buying a car that sells AT or 2-3% less than MSRP, say a Volvo S60, you might get 19-20k from the dealer since they are already making some profit on selling you the new car. on the other hand, if you are buying a heavily discounted car like a nissan maxima, there's simply no incentive for the dealer to buy your car at the higher end of tradein values.

I was in a similar situation in 2009 when I traded in my 2007 prius II with 60k on the odo for a paltry $11,000. my loss was 9k which made it the most expensive loss I made in my never ending car changing lifestyle. I learnt a big lesson back then and since then always sold my car privately. put it on ebay & craigslist at a starting price you have in mind (higher end of the trade in will be an easy sale)

funny thing was 2 weeks after i traded in the prius, reports of toyota brake failure started popping all over the internet and i never knew what happened to the old faithful prius. yeah, 60k miles and i did nothing except oil change & tire rotation. life was good back then lol....

 

That seems very reasonable till you get to the miles.
Those are high miles for a 2010.

Most folks are not aware that the 2010's actually made their debut in late May and early June, 2009. I'm not certain when you bought your 2010 but if it was summertime 2009, that will work in your defense against anyone claiming mileage is REALLY high. It's still pretty darn high for a 2010 vehicle, and I can say that after selling my 2007 with 160K on it after 5 years of ownership.

Your buyers are looking at just 5K more warranty thru the factory on just the major items. Your bumper to bumper was off about 20K ago. If you offer the warranty as transferrable, the next owner will only get 45K out of it before it's worthless too..

Your buyer will need to be someone who drives very little now, as they will need the car's value to balance out over time, and someone who wants all the perks and will see a $22,000 pricetag as being reasonable against the $30,500- $32000 a brand new one costs. I might add that incidentals like remote start are really worthless unless the next buyer cares about it. You could add $2500 wheels and tout their value but unless they have value to the next buyer, they are not worth anywhere near what YOU paid.

That person is out there. It might take time to find them or for them to find you.

By the way, the KBB guides and Edmunds TMV's are all good and well till you try and sell your car (LOL) and you find they are not accurate for the entire country. Not gospel. They are totallly subject to the market in your area and what's going on with the new cars that are like yours! The value of your car is directly tied to the new car deals and sales.

Di

 

I also want to add that back in 2010, when I was selling these new, a 36 month lease residual for a SUNROOF/NAV package IV at 36K miles (after three years) was approx $20K when the cars first made their debut.

That same identical IV sunroof / nav 2011 car right now, three years from now as a 2011 in 2014 will be worth $16001 at residual. The only difference between your car and the new 2011 may be Safety Connect and the USB port. If you have an early 2010, it has neither.

Use that info as a perspective. Your mileage is very high BUT your car is a year younger. Time doesn't really age a car much if it's not driven. Miles age a car.

 

Not to detract from Diannes very diplomatic and honest post, I find that dealers and psuedo-dealers will offer about 1/2 retail so they can sell it at full retail or BETTER. That is one problem. The second is: although people are buying new cars, the person doing this is rather comfortably well off. The average low earning Amerian feels lucky to have a job but is definitely not in the market for a car, even a used car. So until the labor market improves, most people cannot afford a different car. To echo what Dianne said, just be patient and wait for the right person, he/she is out there. I am going thru the same thing you are. :cheer2::cheer2:

 

I just want to point out one thing that no one seems mentioned:

New 2011 model still has financial incentive (I checked 1 week ago, 1.9% for 60 month). Not many people has $20K+ cash on hand for an expensive used car, even if it is a good price. This factor may put another $2000 pressure on the price.

The good news is: You only need one good buyer!

So I suggest don't quit finding HIM. I bet there is a good chance a Priuschat reader will buy at a slightly higher than average price, because they value Prius higher than average car shoppers.

Don't be too aggressive when HE appears one day. Do your best to get the deal done!

Good luck!