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Buying a Used CJ or Wrangler

63 messages,  Last post on Dec 09, 2011 at 7:33 AM

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What is this discussion about? Jeep Wrangler, Jeep CJ-7, SUV

Messages Page 6 of 7

#50 of 63 Used Wrangler Prices by 6horsestew

Aug 25, 2009 (8:20 pm)

I am looking at purchasing a used Wrangler. This will be my first Jeep. I priced out three used vehicles using the Edmunds pricing tool. In each case the Edmunds retail price was $4K below the price listed by the seller. All three vehicles were listed with Edmunds and the sellers were dealers and not individuals. For example, a 1997 Jeep Wrangler with 140K miles was listed at $9K. Edmunds priced it at a little over $5K. In another instance a 2005 Wrangler with 59K miles is listed for $17K and the Edmunds pricing tool returned a retail price at a little over $12K.
 
Is there anyone on this board that can comment? Are the dealer prices high or is Edmunds low? I'm an experienced negotiator but I don't know too much about Jeeps and need some feedback from folks that are used to dealing in this market.

#51 of 63 Re: Used Wrangler Prices [6horsestew] by pauljon1957

Aug 26, 2009 (4:47 am)

Replying to: 6horsestew (Aug 25, 2009 8:20 pm)
I just bought my first Jeep in MN.. A 2001 Wrangler Sahara, Auto trans. Hardtop only, traler hitch. , 55,00 miles I paid 11,600$ Very clean. ..... Also, test drove a 2002, for 11,500$, 80,000 miles, 2 tops... I looked at a lot of Jeeps on Cragslist and carsoup.com.. good luck!!

#52 of 63 Re: Used Wrangler Prices [6horsestew] by mac24

Aug 26, 2009 (4:55 am)

Replying to: 6horsestew (Aug 25, 2009 8:20 pm)
Edmunds retail price was $4K below the price listed by the seller. All three vehicles were listed with Edmunds and the sellers were dealers and not individuals.
 
Dealers usually have a lot more mark up on a used vehicle compared to a new one.

#53 of 63 Re: Used Wrangler Prices [6horsestew] by 6horsestew

Sep 03, 2009 (6:27 pm)

Replying to: 6horsestew (Aug 25, 2009 8:20 pm)
Thanks to those that responded. I have had three contacts with sellers so far. Two private sellers and one used car dealer. The private sellers were easy to talk to and deal with over the phone. The used car dealer was somewhat difficult. He was very critical of the offer that I made using the Edmunds price. He wanted to talk NADA retail price. The vehicle in question looked great on the AutoTrader site. It had four previous owners. The last owner had an accident report that showed up on car fax as moderate damage. The dealers last comment to me was the Edmunds needed to join the real world. After that I thanked him for his time and ended the call. I'll continue my search. It is just going to take a while before I find what I want at a price that I am willing to pay.

#54 of 63 Re: Used Wrangler Prices [6horsestew] by steve_ HOST

Sep 04, 2009 (12:24 am)

Replying to: 6horsestew (Sep 03, 2009 6:27 pm)
Seems to me that banks and state taxing authorities love NADA because their values are higher. So the banks can justify loaning more money and the states can justify soaking you for more taxes.
 
Just a theory, but I keep seeing comments like yours.

#55 of 63 1999 Wrangler 4.0 Hardtop Standard Shift by corkscrew

Sep 06, 2009 (8:28 am)

The garage a few miles away has this vehicle for sale at 8k.It needs tires and the corner of the rear bumper, right side, needs work. The body and top are in good shape, no rust and it has 75,000 miles. The rear window has a black circle/plug on each side, about one inch diameter. Around these plugs the glass seems to be cracked on the inside. Since it is sunday the garage is closed the vehicle locked so I wonder if the glass is cracked or another problem exists I have never owned a Wrangler and would appreciate any info from Wrangler owners on what type of problems, if any, are common to this year.
  Thanks
Corkscrew

#56 of 63 How To Price Custom Features on a Used Jeep? by 6horsestew

Sep 06, 2009 (5:37 pm)

I found two Jeep wranglers that I am interested in. Both are privately owned. I have an appointment to see each one tomorrow. One is a 2001 with 48K miles on it. The other is a 99 model with almost 100K miles. Coming up with a base price was easy. The problem I'm now faced with is how to price what the user modifications are worth. Both products have expensive mods already installed. For example, both vehicles have a 4" Skyjacker suspension lift. The base price for such a feature purchased new (excluding installation) is about $1800. So, how does one go about assigning value to such a feature? Assuming one is able to determine the current price of custom features what is a reasonable depreciation value to assign to each of those features (e.g. suspension lifts, driveshaft with slip-yoke eliminator, rock sliders, winches, etc.) that a seller has added to his/her Jeep? I'm thinking I should discount the features by 35%-50%. Anybody on the board have any ideas on this? Thanks for your help.

#57 of 63 Re: How To Price Custom Features on a Used Jeep? [6horsestew] by mac24

Sep 07, 2009 (6:20 am)

Replying to: 6horsestew (Sep 06, 2009 5:37 pm)
The problem I'm now faced with is how to price what the user modifications are worth.
 
That's easy, $0 or less. It's only if the particular mods are of particular value to you that you might want to consider paying a premium for them.
No other buyer is going to consider them an asset, so it will make the vehicle less attractive to them and therefore worth less than if they weren't installed.
 
The things that will hurt resale value the least are those accessories that are easily removed, i.e. lights, interior doo-dads that haven't required drilling or cutting holes, side steps, etc.
What hurts most are things that can not be returned to original because either the original parts have been thrown away, or because things have actually been cut off or welded on, for example aftermarket bumpers or a suspension lift (and personally I would run, not walk, away from a 4" Skyjacker lift).
 
The general exceptions to this rule are factory options. Anything available that was factory fitted adds to the value. A specific exception on Wranglers and a few others would be a winch, if professionally fitted. It would add a little less than it could be sold for if removed from the vehicle.
 
The Jeep that's worth the most among others of similar age and mileage, is the one that's closest to looking just as it did when it left the factory complete with every available option.
 
Once major alterations are made it's becomes a custom vehicle, and its value is now a matter of negotiation between the seller and the very limited number of buyers now available to him.

#58 of 63 Re: How To Price Custom Features on a Used Jeep? [mac24] by 6horsestew

Sep 07, 2009 (6:39 am)

Replying to: mac24 (Sep 07, 2009 6:20 am)
mac24 - Thanks for that very detailed well reasoned response. It is very helpful.
 
BTW - what in you opinion is the problem with the Skyjacker lifts? There are a lot of jeeps in the North Alabama area that are fitted with this modification. I would like to get your take on why they are/might be problematic.

#59 of 63 Re: How To Price Custom Features on a Used Jeep? [6horsestew] by steve_ HOST

Sep 07, 2009 (9:20 am)

Replying to: 6horsestew (Sep 07, 2009 6:39 am)
The other thing that Mac hinted at is that the hardcore off-road crowd is more likely to add a lot of mods to their Jeep. That's great if you plan to do a lot of off-roading, but if you already off-road, you know that it can be hard on the equipment.
 
30 years ago when I owned an unmodified CJ-5 and went on a few weekend trail rides, the following Monday I would see several club members at the dealer getting parts or using the club discount to fix stuff they broke in the woods over the weekend.
 
I forget what I broke - ruined a shock or something.
 
If I was in the market for another Wrangler, I'd want one that looked as stock as possible.

Messages Page 6 of 7

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