what do dealerships use for trade in amount???

So last month I tried to upgrade and get something else. I did a lot of research. Kelly Blue Book says my truck is worth 28k if traded in to a dealer. I also went a step further and searched like I wanted to buy the same used truck. KBB says I should pay around 30k for the used truck from a dealer.I went to the dealer knowing that much. I was only offered 23k for my truck. OUCH. that was ridiculous. I asked how is that so. the finance guy said "we use nada and typically the west or east coast uses KBB and the south uses mostly black book value but since most banks use Nada thats what we use." I felt it was fishy so I went to do more homework. I felt it was fishy because I had a different dealership use KBB when I had a trade in a few years ago. I told the dealer back then, give me the KBB value because I know he will just add 4k onto my vehicle to make money off of it. and he paid off the vehicle using the kbb value i showed him on paper.

Now Black book says my truck is worth 25k and Nada says almost the same, maybe a few hundred more. I started to wonder if these dealers could use whatever they want? maybe they can all use KBB but depending on how much money they want or the time of the month they will use black book so they won't have to pay the customer so much right?.

I mean I think about it like this. scenario A: dealer gives me 25k, I have to come up with a huge down payment for the equity. dealer sells the truck for 30k or more and makes a crap load of money OR

scenario B: dealer gives me what my truck is really worth according to KBB which is the payoff amount also, Customer like me uses rebates and discounts for a down payment on the newer vehicle. dealer breaks even just about.And I never come out of my pocket.

whats the real deal? any salesman or anyone with experience can help me out?

By the way. I went to a different dealership a week later to see what would happen or if they would offer me more. this is what puzzles me you guys... The 2nd dealership offered me 25k (black book value) which was 2k more than what the previous dealer offered me. I asked the salesman why is his offer different from the last offer i got (not letting him know how much it was). the salesman said "you overpayed and anyone can get a 2014 for under 30k" I said thats not what the sticker prices say on your lot what about the book value?...he then said " we dont use those books anymore these days, I threw them all away, these days we go off auction value as well as other dealers" ..." whatever your truck can sell for at an auction is what we go by, it saves us from overpaying if the used vehicle is never sold"...so my thing is...WHY NOT BITE THE BULLET AND TRY TO GET WHAT YOU CAN FOR THE TRUCK RATHER THAN GETTING AS LITTLE AS YOU CAN???

Most dealers use auction value. It just depends on what they bought and sold at auction in the last couple weeks.

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Dealer can and do calculate trade in values many different ways. When I traded my 2008 Dakota back in February I looked at several sources to gauge the value. The salesman first came back with a value that I knew was way low (at least $2,000 low) and I told him straight out that that number was way off.

He went back to the sales manager and the manager came out and said and said that was the number they got from KBB. I then said that if he was going to stick to that number I was going to have to move on to another dealer. Told him he would have to give me at least $2,000 more to make the deal work and he walked away for a few minutes and came back $2,300 higher. He made some feeble excuse that they put the wrong information in when coming up with the first number.

I also questioned the processing fee they had on the contract and I wouldn't sign the contract until it came off. They took it off.

Moral of the story is very few numbers at the dealer is set in stone. Don't shy away from thanking them for their time then walking out if the numbers make you uncomfortable. The dealer knows that if you are walking out the door they better sweeten the offer quick because if you drive off the lot you probably wont come back.

They know a sold unit at a reduced profit is much better then a no sale.

If at all possible, depending on the loan you have, sell it outright, walk in to purchase with no trade in.

When I was looking at purchasing a ford they asked me how much I wanted for my truck. Kbb said trade in value was 16.5. I told them 19k and they said ok almost immediately. It depends what they plan on doing with it. If they don't want it they'll sell it at auction and low ball you. But my truck was lifted and had appeal to it so I would assume they would keep it and sell on their lot


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I am not the greedy type and with all of the new vehicles I have purchased in the last 25 years my system goes like this, I check the black book value and add what I feel is the appropriate dollar total to that. Keep in mind I tend to trade in at under 12000 miles in general so the vehicles are in top notch condition.

Dealers can give you a number from where ever they feel. Depending on the condition is what our local dealer decides. If its something they wanna sell they use some program on the computer. If they dont really care about the car they ask there wholesaler how much he wants to buy it for.

thanks for all the replies. all the info really helps me... @Csanders1992 I think you are right about what plans they have. My co worker went to the same dealership and traded in his truck. he owed 16k and they gave him 19k so thats why i went there 1st. but I do see now it looks like its more about appeal. As nice as my truck looks I admit the older truck on the lot that was lifted, waxed, and had more accessories just looked outright better. my truck looked more like a grandpa truck next to that one.

@greygoose I will try. I was a little shocked when they said I over paid or you could get a 2014 cheaper. which is why I left that idea of selling private. but I will give it a shot

Try Carmax, some have sold there and made more than trade in value.

The only reason you can get a 14 cheaper is because of rebates and incentives. That doesn't really affect the value of yours.


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@thetank which is why I wanted to trade now. I just reached 12000 miles and the sales lady I last spoke to said if I want to get the highest offer i got which is 25k then I need to try to not put any unnecessary miles on it until I'm ready to trade. or the offer will just decrease . im not the greedy type but I felt like I made the decision on this truck without thinking, I left what I really wanted on the lot and got talked into settling. I wanted to get what I really wanted while Im in my mid 20's and have some extra money that I feel good paying on month to month.

@Csanders1992 i didn't even think of it that way! thanks for the extra ammo lol. thats a VERY good point you made!

The best thing to do at the dealership when they give You an absurd number is WALK OUT! When I bought My 2014 Express the first number the finance guy gave Me for My monthly payment was 690.00! Well, after 1 1/2 months and endless calls from him to me, I got the payment to LESS than half of that. Never ever take the first number that they throw out.
The other famous car salesman trick is when they ask You "how much do You want Your payment to be"...don't ever answer that question with a number! Here's why. If You say " I don't want My payment to be over $500.00" you can GUARANTEE that Your payment will be $500.00...even if they can get it financed for a smaller dollar amount than that.

Dealers will rarely give you what you think your car is worth, lol. KBB is a joke anyways, the values never equate to reality.

@BlueStreak Im glad you said that. you are absolutely right. I recently experienced that. When I tried to upgrade the finance guy said i was looking at almost 18 percent interest. I said you and I both know that is way to high. I proceeded to walk out. I said if those are numbers im working with then I don't need to waste anymore time (thinking that really was the best they could do). he got the manager and held me up for a minute. the finance guy came back and said "we gave you a few hundred more on the trade which helps and got the APR down to 6 percent" ....i almost laughed. I walked out though because I still wasn't comfortable with the deal. I wanted to think on it. They been calling me everyday since

Remember, they aren't there to make friends.....
Know your facts before You shop!

The salesman recently called me and said he would even bring the vehicle to me . I asked him to text me a picture of the paperwork deal. I saw that all they did was play with the numbers. made it look like the truck was paid off. when really they brought down the price of the newer vehicle so low that they added the whole payoff of my current truck. the numbers equaled back to the original sticker price. then I saw where he put some white out on the Vin number of the new vehicle. I never replied back. if they are going to be hiding stuff I don't want to deal with them.

Dealerships are in business to make money. There goal is to profit 4grand off every car traded in. They will use auction values to start with so that they know they won't lose any money. Ideally if the dealer will sell your truck for 29 they are only going to give you 25. They usually start low because why not if they can get it for 22 they sell it for 28 and move it fast and make extra cash. I hate the back and forth with dealers but if your not fighting very hard you know your leaving cash on the table. My advice if you are going to trade it on go to Carmax get there price and use that to fight with the dealers. Stand your ground and say you want this much if not you'll go somewhere else, Carmax usually gives fair prices. Managers know if you walk away your probably not coming back so they will do everything you can to keep you there.