Yeah, I couldn't believe the first handful of posts I saw on this thread. One of the things that drew me to the Z is how well it holds its value compared to most other cars.

 

You have to realize though, a car is only worth as much as someone is willing to pay. I'd be willing to bet you would have a harder time getting $28.3k for it today than you think. Reason I say this is b/c If I am looking for a touring, and the difference between new and used is only 700 bucks, you bet I will get it brand new!...mainly b/c I know it hasnt been treated bad and also b/c I could get a better interest rate so my payments would actually be lower on the new one.

I'd possibly buy one like your used for $25k-$26k to make it worth my while.

 

I agree, because I never stated that the private-party resale values put out by kbb, et al are realistic....My primary point is that our cars hold their value significantly better than the overwhelming majority of vehicles on the market today. It's all relative. In any event, to think, for even a second, that they (z's) lose value more than expected is ludacris.

 

Retail to retail. If you sell your retail purchased car to a wholesale outfit aka dealer your gonna have a major loss.
If you sell you car to another retail buyer you'll do much better. You just have to remember you'll lose all of that sale tax money you put into the car as well.

As much as I would like a '06 350Z. I figure I would lose about $6K selling retail to retail after two years of use or $8K if I sold it to a dealer. In a dealers case you trade across and do not have to pay the taxes again on the whole amount if you work it out right.

That can be a benefit. For 2K do you want to deal with selling it yourself?

Do I want to sell my car (lose $6-8K)to get rear LED tail lights, the newer wheels, or head lights. Heck no I can use that to buy a SC or something.

 

trade in values are also affected by area. for a point of reference i sold my touring 03 mt in march (trade in) for 22k. it had 32000 miles on it at the time. it also depends on your skill at negotiating and how much the dealer wants to make a deal. they initially offered me only 19k.

 

Nissan is definitely competitive in holding resale value, especially to domestic vehicles. I went with a friend when he was buying an '05 honda accord last week. They had a comparison of several different passenger cars and depreciation values. The accord was on top, while holding around 65% of original price after 5 years. (That's great!) The nissan maxima was in second place with around 55%. On down the list come the American cars with the chevy malibu at the bottom. This car is worth 25%! I really don't see how people can purchase these cars and honestly think to themselves that they are getting the best value!?

 

yea while the 350z may not be the best, most cars lose about 50% of their value in the first 3 years and I don't see many base 03's going for $13k right now so the Z isn't doing THAT bad.

Also most cars lose most of their value in the first 3 years then the depreciation slows down a lot... especially sports cars. I bet my trade in right now would be about 18k before haggling (7k less than what I paid for the car used a year ago) but I wouldn't be surprised if the trade in is 12k 2 years from now b/c I expect the depreciation to slow down.

 

It was surprising to me when I saw the KBB price for the Z. But, KBB and Edmunds have only had prices out on the '05 for about a month. NADA still doesn't have any.

I'm selling my '05 Enthusiast. I'm asking $26,500. Will I get it? Time will tell. But for those of you saying there is only $700 difference betweeen new and used I have to disagree. Its going to depend on where you live but I will most likely sell my car to someone from GA where I live. The difference between buying a new '05 or '06 if you can get it around invoice will still be $2k - $3k difference once you add tax, title, dealer doc fee, etc.

I've been keeping an eye on Autotrader in my area and I think my car is priced right to sell. Remember also, not everyone knows everything about these cars like we do. They go to the dealer and see $30k for a new Enthusiast and think that is what they will pay. So that is like $32,500 OTD in their mind. $26,500 seems like a lot better deal for a car with only 7500 miles and in perfect condition.

This can be debated all day but it comes down the buyer. When someone calls or comes to look at my car and tells me KKB says X. I'll say fine, let me know where you see one for sale for that price and go buy that one. Because they won't find one in my area for that price.

Good luck to all.

BigMike

 

When I was first looking for a Z I checked the used cars available. I found the resale price so high I decided to buy new. It just didn't make sense to me to pay high 20's for a used vehicle when 1-2K more would get me a new vehicle.


It ain't a race unless they see your taillights!!

 

Well that person is smoking the pipe because 26,700 is about the market price of a new 06 Enthusiast.

 

Used 03 Enthusiast
New 06 Ethusiast

New 06 Enthusiast will probably go for 26,000 around the Northeast. To make buying a used car worthwhile, I'd pay 19,000 MAXIMUM for a used 03 Enthusiast. Otherwise, I'd just buy an new 06.

 

Depreciation not only depends on the volume of production every year after, but also on the competition. The reason the 350Z used value will drop faster than expected is because the market is simply saturated with cars in the same segment.

S2000, Evo, STi, GTO, Mustang GT, Lexus IS, BMW 3,....just to name a few

Granted, not all those are exactly a 2 door coupe like the Z, but there is some cross-shopping between those cars.

 

Since when does anyone purchase a car for appreciation? All cars depreciate. The Z's value has held up well compared to many other cars in some articles I have read.

 

I was just offered 22k for trade in on my 04 touring on a new truck.

 

I'm not gonna worry about it. Cos the minute u decide to buy a new car you know you're in for the worst investment. But it's worth spending $$$ on my Z than waste it on my biatches.

 

That statement is WRONG! Try to find a used Ford GT at msrp, or any low production cars.... Those things appreciate more than twice the rate your Z is depreciating

 

My 04 Zr....$32,000 ;-)

 

If you come to a forum for a particular car, expect its members to overrate the value of the vehicle. No one wants to believe their car is worth less than they actually think. Who would want to acknowledge and accept the fact that their car depreciates as much as it is supposed to?

The 350z like any car, has an extremely fast rate of depreciation. Market saturation and overproduction are two main factors that contribute to the fast rate of depreciation.

 

Last week I had a Nissan dealer offer me $29,200 for my '04 Touring Roadster w/navigation. I've got 26,000 miles on it. I was thinking of trading it in towards an '05 (in a different color). I was surprised that they'd offer me that much for it...but then, they were probably just going to jack up the price of the '05. Either way, a dealer will make their profit.

 

wtf?....That's not the case here.