You wont believe this...my friend has an 05 RL. thinking about trading it in for an 06 GS...went in and they offered him 37K for it! Its got 10K miles on it. bough it march of 05. carbon gray with black interior..simply immacualte and pristine condition - not a dent scracth, nick anywhere...u can still smell the leather new! i couldnt believe they offered only that. makes you wonder the resale value of this car - and its not even one yr old..im guessing you could buy it at the dealership brand new for like 41k? or something?

its an aweosme car - i think. overall the RL i have to admit is a superb value for money at 40K dollars for its amenities, style, design, technology, appeal, performance, and refinement.

just my two cents

 

We just had a thread exactly like this, and it ended up being locked. And here's the reason why your buddy's less-than-a-year-old RL got offered for $37k:
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...8&postcount=47

 

If he got offered 37K to trade it in tell him to not think twice about it, that is a lot more than the car is worth. Obviously the price collapse of the new ones hasn't caught up with the trade in prices yet.

 

I dont think that's a fair statement. Acura RL has a lot to offer at 41K for brandnew and it's probably the best value leader in the market segment. Nothing comes even close to RL at the 40K price range. stripped 525i with some 210hps? GS300 w/o option with 240 something hps motor? None. Sure it's a bit over price at 50K but not at 41K.


anyhow, I am sorry to hear that your friend lost ~10k within less than a year. i would just keep the car if i were offered 37K and i will probably take RL over GS300, but 2007 GS350 will be a different story.

 

I really would not rather open up the old thread and restate all the arguments. This has nothing to do with what the RL offers. If I can walk down to my local Acura dealer and buy a brand new, unregistered RL for 41K, I would not consider for a moment saving 3 or 4K on a used, registered vehicle. And neither would any dealer I am aware of once they know what the new ones are going for. This is economics, not auto tastes. If a dealer pays 37K for one on a trade in, he is probably thinking he can turn it around for 42K or something in that neighborhood at the least, and he won't be able to.

That is the entire comment and it has neither nothing to do with how superior a vehicle the RL is or the state of any competition. I stand by my previous post, if the guy wants out of the RL, 37K is a great trade in price. If he is underwater on his loan that is another. If he doesn't like the hit he is taking on a trade in the only advice to give him is to never, ever trade in a vehicle that is six months old, you are going to take a beating. Let's please not debate this with exceptions being the rule. It doesn't matter if any given person somewhere in the history of time actually came out well on this. Over 99% of people will take a beating doing this on cars. Regardless of brand.

 

I dont think it is the resale value but the dealer undercutting him a bit. I went in late 2004 to see what they would take my 2004 RX330 that I bought in April 2003 as a trade in. I paid over $40K for that car and they offered my $24K. Now, I had more than 10K miles since it already had 16 months of use, but still only $24K.

 

That's the rub here. This thread could be about any make or model--somebody trading in a current model year car is going to take a bath on resale.

 

Geez it is nice to have somebody get it.

I would expect 60% on a same model year car would not be unheard of. That initial depreciation is a killer. So that 24K that was offered on the RX in the same year would be just about the same figures for that six month old RL. Getting offered 37K is a great deal for trade in. Take it before somebody wakes up. And that breathtaking immediate depreciation does slow up. But this is maybe one of the biggest reasons to go bimmer. Their hit is a lot less than most and they hold their values well. You can have a dog car. But at least you can get out of it reasonably.

The effect of this on customers was also mentioned in the previous appropriately locked thread. When a manufacturer, for whatever reason, offers a twenty or twenty five percent discount on a reasonable new gen car, the awful hit that happens in resale will really torque off a lot of customers who bought their wondercar at near the original list. It does not make any difference how good the car is. Cars have such awful depreciation that you cannot in anyway call them investments. And if you are using appreciating dollars to buy a depreciating asset, life is cruel. But to have the mfr reach out and clobber you extra hard with a big discount. Well, a lot of people will not forget no matter what that mfr comes out with in the future. That is not meant to portent doom for Acura so lighten up Acurafanatics. I am just saying that any mfr who does that to customers may not have those customers next time around.

 

Well, I've known people who traded for new luxury cars every year simply because they WANTED one, not because their old car was worn out or because they NEEDED one. One woman ( from my church ) I've known for years....a retired Army General ( they don't make chump change) loves Cadillac DeVilles, and simply wanted the latest new COLOR every year. At last count she's had 41 of them. Gets a new one like clockwork every September......so often that I don't even bother inspecting or test-driving them for her beforehand anymore like I do for most people. She is responsible with her money, pays all of her bills, gives time and money generously to the Lord and charities, and her attitude is, even with the considrable amount of money she has left over even AFTER all these these things is...." you might as well spend it on something nice...you can't take it with you." Well...she loves Caddys.....if she can afford it (and apparantly she CAN ), hey, more power to her. I tried to convert her to the Lexus LS430 but no dice.

So...back to this new RL........the topic. Same with this guy. If he wants a new Acura frequently, can afford it while living responsibly, doesn't mind taking a bath every year on the depreciation, and provides for his wife and kids.....why not?

 

The Acura dealers I have been to in Alabama and Delaware are not selling RLs that low. They were still priced around 46-47K so I don't think it is everywhere where you can get a RL for around 41 or 42. At those prices the car is a steal. I would say the low price the dealer offered is more the dealer trying to rip him off then the dealer offering a fair price for the RL. Most people I know who have taken their cars to dealers to sell have come away dissapointed with what the dealer offers for the car. You would pretty much have the same experience with any make and model of vehicles unless maybe the vehicle had a huge demand and they were easily selling with markups.

 

My experience has been that the better you know the salesperson and the dealership, the better you have treated them, and the more customers you have referred to them, the better they treat YOU at deal time...and the more money they are likely to offer you for your trade ( providing it isn't junk, of course ). And it's also a nice way to get free tickets to auto shows....usually they WANT you to go. In short, it pays to make friends in the auto buisness.

 

I think this is just a perfect example, thanks CK6Speed. He paid over $40K for an RX330 in April 2003 and in late 2004 he got offered 24K. I don't know if he paid MSRP so I am not sure what the exact percentage loss from the MSRP is, but I would guess he was offered somewhere around 50 to 60%. Even if the RL was going everywhere for 50K, 37K would srtill be a pretty good price to get offered on trade in which is lower than you will get selling it yourself.

As for trading every year, whatever floats your boat. But you have to put any notion of having your ownership experience be economically sound out of your mind. If driving that new Caddy every year is worth it to you and you can afford it, go for it. I still think the offer of $37K was a good offer for the trade in. Get that new GS. If he gets rid of the GS in six months he will take a financial beating on it too. But if it's what he wants.....

 

I knew you take a hit in the first year or two, but I really didn't think it was that much I usually keep my cars for 3-5 years anyway. Needless to say I still have the RX330 and plan on keeping it for a while. At the time if they gave me a decent price we might have a 2nd gen GS430. Anyway, it is just amazing that the hit you take trade in especially the first year or two. I guess that is why they say don't trade your car in unless you just need to get rid of it fast.

 

I don't want to beat a dead horse here but to tell you the truth, and realizing the guy first mentioned probably paid less for his RL than list, the 37K offer from the dealer was very good. I mean we are talking over 70% of the MSRP and that is doing pretty good.

I keep my cars longer than you but I think I draw the line at 7 years, you start having parts problems. I have a 2k1 GS430 with 50,000 miles and I am in no hurry to change. Maybe if I enjoyed the car buying experience more I could go more often and the price on the RL caused me to have a serious talk with the trophy wife but we just have too much going on to do anything. But getting rid of a car after six months would only enter my mind if I discovered I had a real lemon. And with Lexus the odds don't favor that at all.

 

I tried to dump my GS430 with 10K on it after 8 months of ownership and was offered $37K. That's a car with a sticker of $54K that is 8 months old.

The point is twofold (make that three fold)
1. Luxury cars depreciate fast in their first year
2. Dealers often don't want a one year old car. New GS's could be had for $48K-$50K at the time, this was a BMW dealer and they are going to have to wholesale it - So he wanted to make a buck, the wholesaler wanted to make a buck and the Lexus dealer it would end up at would want to make a buck. Unfortunately that's a lot of bucks and someone has to pay for it.

Autospies had people being offered $50K for brand new Cayenne Turbo three months after they bought it.
Thus the third point is that new models take time to establish their residuals and without a proven residual track record on the new RL, dealers are not going to take a chance.