Used Cars Are Rare These Days

[pdub]

Read a thing on the MSN home page the other day, about used cars are worth a fortune these days.

The tsumami in Japan stopped production, the rental fleets are downsized due to the economic downturn, and there are no available used cars on the lots. It was a fascinating story.

It was based around somebody who thought they'd go get a decent used car for their teenager for 4 or 5 grand. Well, a 10-year-old-Jeep was sitting there on the lot by itself for about 13K. That's all they had. Sticker shock.

My sidekick at work, his daughter had her car beat to shreds and totalled in the hailstorm in Knoxville a few weeks ago....he went car shopping for her. They had a used (some kind of funny name - Hundai or sometihng?) one for 19K and the new one was 23K. It's supply and demand. Suddenly there are no available used cars.

It makes me want to trade Bubba the Truck and Sassy the Car in for new ones. Maybe, they'll trade even. By all accounts, it'll be close. They may even pay US to trade up.

[Stich496]

they are not rare.. there are tons of them.. new cars are not selling , so they need everyone to "think" used cars are hard to come by. to make more green on them..
around here there is free books 100 pages of nothing but used cars.. , craigs list,ebay
only reason some small cars used are up on selling price is that last gas pump ,bump..
that and some makes still have small inventory of new cars because of japans mess..
the toyota pirus they said the other day is selling for 5-7 grand over sticker because the dealers have more buyers than cars..
looks like greenies are dumber than we thought..
there will always be more used cars than buyers.. or the lots would be empty..
if someone is dumb enough to pay extra because there is only 6 civics in their area, at the moment.. because of
1) grad. gifts
2) the last gas spike
3)japans mess cause'n less parts and cars on lots
4) alot of areas being hit with weather that totalled tons of cars..
and can't wait 6 months for things to get back to normal..
they shouldn't be shocked when their "new to them" car value takes a nosedive in a few months..
shortage of used cars, never happen.. it's all in making you think there is one..

[Silver68RT]

I think it's real. Prices are up for used cars because supply is down. Sales of new cars have been depressed for several years now, leases dried up, cash for clunkers destroyed a huge number of good used cars, sales to rental agencies have been cut back a lot. All that adds up to less good, low-mileage used cars on the market.

Add in a lot of natural disasters, floods, tornadoes, etc. wrecking cars, then the Japan earthquake cutting the supply of new Toyota's, Honda's and Nissan's. Incentives are way down on new cars too. There's no way with all of that going on that the price of used cars isn't going to go up. If the economy was stronger it would be even worse.

I'd hate to be in a position where I'd have to buy a used car this year.

[BOOOGHAR]

ive been looking for a tahoe and a ford flex, I cant touch a nice one for less than 22k and thats 2-3 years old, at one time used cars were automatically HALF thier sticker price 2 years after rolling off the lot. even the auto auctions are getting premium prices for repos

[pdub]

The thing I read said the Blue Book is no longer even a decent reference. 30% over the "excellent" condition is what the buyers buy for even at auction. They're biddng against everybody in the nation. And then they mark it up on the lot. So there it is.

Sassy the Car might get traded for new, but I have my doubts about Bubba the Truck. He's not green. What's the opposite color of green? F-150, not popular with the tunnel-vision tree huggers. Maybe we can get 150 bucks on him toward a Prius. Take a photo of that, me riding to work in that pansy thing, hoping the eco-friendly battery doesn't wear out and die and we have to put that in the dump with all the other horrible pollutants that we discard.

Stude's prediction of "Everything will be okay in Japan in a year" is not quite paying out yet. The earthquake/flood is affecting everything, even in our own country. We are so far away, but not at all removed from it.

[Scott Liggett]

Used Prius's have gone up in price recently around here. People thinking that they can't new ones, or there is a waiting list, so people want used.

[pdub]

The Prius is a fallacy, a farce. A slap in the face. It's an insult.

It's more of a political statement than anything else. And a poor one. "Look what I'M doing for the environment."

Bullshit.

Sorry, I'm supposed to be funny, the comedian... The Prius is not funny. Nope. Not in any way.

Sorry. I'll do better. End of rant. That's over. Enough of that from me.

[bnjny]

If the Prius is a fallacy, then what is the Chevy Volt? Ford Hybrids?

If we are the land of the free, then it is about choice. Rant all you want. I rather have choices, whether I agree with them or not then to stick my head in the sand... To me that is the real BS.

Used car prices have been going up the last three years... It has only come to light due the earthquake in Japan...

BTW, this affects just about anyone who manufactures something. Whether here or anywhere... Switching suppliers is not as easy as people think...

[LORENSWIFE]

There ar plenty of used cars in MY backyard! Whats the problem?
~Gail

[Thumpin455]

There ar plenty of used cars in MY backyard! Whats the problem?
~Gail

You, like me, are not selling them... so its rather irrelevant that we have lots of used cars.

[Grumpy]

I think it depends on what part of the Country you're in, I went to a Dealer Auction here in Illinois a couple of weeks ago looking for a replacement for my Tow Car and I really didn't notice prices being up? I'm sure if you live in a part of our Country where there have been Tornado's, hail dammage or floods then yes, good used cars are going to be at a premium, use the internet and search a Craigslist in some city a couple hundred miles away, it'd probably be well worth the drive!

[1931s/x]

cash for clunkers seemed to have changed the used car market for a little while, but i havent noticed much of a difference in prices. there are tons of used ca rlots around here that are loaded with cars and suvs of all sizes, priices seem to be normal to me. doesnt seem to be any shortage of used cars on craigslsit either.

[Stich496]

there is no shortage.. never will be.. and in a few months there will be 80% of all those vehicles that got thrown around ,back on lots after body shops buy them as repairables..
same thing in the flooded areas.. prices are up.. but thats more because the dealers were giving away new cars to any living thing that walked in the showroom, they aren't now.. when a new cars payment was less than a used one. they had to lower the used cars prices.. now that the new car dealers are not giving the cars away. the used cars are back to where they were.. in the flood areas , if you're the only lot for 50 miles then yes, you can ask more..
the only thing that dried up is the 500.oo to 1500.oo beaters.. as those are worth almost as much as scrap than referb'n for resale

[JOES66FURY]

prices are high out here. everyone thinks their junk is worth high KBB. On the lots around here the prices are down right nuts, but they always have been.

[Stich496]

prices are high out here. everyone thinks their junk is worth high KBB. On the lots around here the prices are down right nuts, but they always have been.

because , the guys like me, vaca in that sun and drag a rustless used car home. with us..