One of the easiest ways to offset the purchase of a new or used vehicle is to trade in your current vehicle. And it’s much less of a hassle than trying to sell it on your own! Whitten Brothers Automotive will buy your vehicle, and you can use that money to decrease the down payment or monthly payments when you finance or lease. If you’re planning to sell your car to a dealership, be sure to avoid these four vehicle trade-in mistakes.
These are the four vehicle trade in mistakes we see most often. Knowing what to avoid will make the car-buying process quicker and smoother for you!
Once you’ve decided to trade in your current car, truck, SUV, or van, it’s helpful to know what it’s worth before visiting one of our showrooms.
You can find out the trade-in value of your vehicle for free using our online trade-in vehicle calculator. Knowing the fair market value can give you confidence as you begin the car-buying process.
To find out your vehicle trade-in value, you’ll need either the vehicle identification number (VIN) or the year, make, model, trim level, mileage, and condition of the vehicle.
You want to present a good-looking vehicle when you’re selling your car to a dealership. A dirty vehicle, both inside and out, doesn’t make the best first impression, and it could affect the offer made for it.
One of the factors that we use to determine the value of your vehicle is the condition of the bodywork. Dirt and grime can hide potential imperfections and make it harder to see the quality of the paint and exterior.
A quick car wash makes your vehicle presentable. It’s also helpful to remove all clutter from the interior, clean the windows inside, and vacuum the seats and floors. If there are any stains on the seats, you may want to use a stain remover to remedy those as well.
While you shouldn’t spend a lot of money completing costly repairs, having minor maintenance done can help increase the resale value of your vehicle.
While doing anything to maintain your current vehicle isn’t necessary, you could do small tasks like changing out windshield wipers, getting an oil change, or filling up the wiper fluid.
When selling your car to a dealership, you need to bring all of the relevant paperwork for the trade-in vehicle. With this, we won’t be able to complete this part of the car-buying process.
To complete your vehicle trade in, you’ll need the vehicle title to show proof of ownership, up-to-date vehicle registration, and the vehicle’s service records. If you’re still paying off a loan, bring your account number and contact information for your current loan lender. If you have it, you can bring the vehicle history report as well.
Trading in a vehicle at a dealership is quicker and easier than selling your car yourself. You don’t have to worry about posting an ad, scheduling test drives with potential buyers, and transferring the title. Selling yourself can also take time.
At Whitten Brothers, everything happens in one place, and our Sales Advocates will walk you through the entire process. We also accept vehicles that haven’t yet been paid off and have negative equity.
Negative equity means that you’re still paying off your current car loan and that the vehicle is worth less than the balance you still owe on it. Wondering if we accept a trade-in vehicle with negative equity? We do! There are a few options for this scenario.
After you account for the trade-in vehicle price, you can make up the difference you still need to pay, or you can transfer the current amount you still owe to your new loan. You could also finish paying off your current loan before selling your vehicle to a dealership and buying a new one.
When you’re ready to finance or lease a vehicle in Richmond or Ashland, VA, Whitten Brothers Automotive is here to help! We’ll buy your trade-in vehicle and help you find the right new or used vehicle for your needs and our budget. With Whitten Brothers, you get transparent upfront pricing for both your vehicle trade-in value and the car you purchase. Contact us to learn more!