Was I Taken For A Ride?

[Tim d]

There's an old saying: if you buy a car from a friend, he will no longer be your friend. That being said, I just want to make sure my "friend" didn't pull a fast one on me at the time of sale. I always hated buying a car anywhere, my entire life, because I enter the dealership just knowing I will be lied to (and believe me, I caught more than one salesman lying in the past). Anyway, I just purchased a 2025 Maverick base model, the one that looks like a white fleet style vehicle, the esthetics of which, believe it or not, I actually prefer. The sticker was about $29,500 and it was so new it wasn't listed in inventory. No frills.

It started this way: the night before, at a friend's house, the "pitch" was "Oh yeah, I can get you a Maverick for about $22,000.-$25,000 You trading in your truck (a 2020 Dodge Ram Warlock with 41,800 miles, great condition)?" he asked. I said yes. He did a quick lookup on his phone and said, "Oh! We can give you about $28 $29 k for your truck!" Swell, I was on my way for a new car purchase.

Next morning, oh how the story had changed! "I was wrong about your truck, sorry. I accidentally looked up a much more expensive version of your truck and thought it was your model." Uhhhh huh. Okay, I looked past that. Then, when I saw the sticker, it was $29,500. So I asked "I thought you quoted 22 to 25!" He replied, "I just found out we're not discounting these!" Okayyyyyyyy. So, he put the deal on the table: my trade in plus 7K. I countered with my trade in plus 5k. He counter offered my trade in with 6K. I took it. So, I drove off the lot with a 2025 Maverick that cost me sticker price with 6K cash down and 23,500 for my 2020 Ram.

QUESTION: Is this guy my friend? (He said they gave me the "deal" on my trade in).

I could be wrong,but I think your trade in was worth more that the maverick was new. He should have given you the maverick plus some cash when he took your ram.

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[TheRealEman]

I understand your concern, but my advice would be simply enjoy your new vehicle. In 3 months, a few thousand dollars won't matter.

 

[Red Eyes - Wide Shut]

You almost always loose money when you trade in a good vehicle. You should have negotiated a price before the trade. Once done then bring up the trade. I'd always sell a car before trading in. Unless it is junk.

 

[Ponyprez]

I am beginning to think I didn't get a bad deal nor a good deal. Just an "ok" deal. Should I have not hoped for my friend doing the best deal for me in the first place?

What's the old saying, something like if they let you leave the lot, you didn't get a good deal? I think your assessment of "I got an Okay deal is probably about right. It all boils down to how you feel about it after all is said and done. My son was a car salesman for many years and we bought a few vehicles from him, some were smooth and some open to debate. My wifes deal on a 18k miles Tacoma P.U. was a bit daunting but that was the sales manager and a mis-advertised price that I just happened to find and they made me prove it by bringing in the ad. (Glad I printed it at the time as it was no longer online) The second went really easy as I bought it before it was even at the dealership, cash down payment and no trade in. This was on a new Subaru Forester and it took longer to be delivery prepped than time spent in the finance office. Buying my new 2023 Maverick was very disappointing and I should have walked away but after waiting for months I accepted the dealer screwing me over and trying to hide the A.D.M. in the paperwork, resulting in me never buying from my towns only Ford dealer. In the long run it was alright as prices went up considerably on 24's.

 

[jaybird]

There's an old saying: if you buy a car from a friend, he will no longer be your friend. That being said, I just want to make sure my "friend" didn't pull a fast one on me at the time of sale. I always hated buying a car anywhere, my entire life, because I enter the dealership just knowing I will be lied to (and believe me, I caught more than one salesman lying in the past). Anyway, I just purchased a 2025 Maverick base model, the one that looks like a white fleet style vehicle, the esthetics of which, believe it or not, I actually prefer. The sticker was about $29,500 and it was so new it wasn't listed in inventory. No frills.

It started this way: the night before, at a friend's house, the "pitch" was "Oh yeah, I can get you a Maverick for about $22,000.-$25,000 You trading in your truck (a 2020 Dodge Ram Warlock with 41,800 miles, great condition)?" he asked. I said yes. He did a quick lookup on his phone and said, "Oh! We can give you about $28 $29 k for your truck!" Swell, I was on my way for a new car purchase.

Next morning, oh how the story had changed! "I was wrong about your truck, sorry. I accidentally looked up a much more expensive version of your truck and thought it was your model." Uhhhh huh. Okay, I looked past that. Then, when I saw the sticker, it was $29,500. So I asked "I thought you quoted 22 to 25!" He replied, "I just found out we're not discounting these!" Okayyyyyyyy. So, he put the deal on the table: my trade in plus 7K. I countered with my trade in plus 5k. He counter offered my trade in with 6K. I took it. So, I drove off the lot with a 2025 Maverick that cost me sticker price with 6K cash down and 23,500 for my 2020 Ram.

QUESTION: Is this guy my friend? (He said they gave me the "deal" on my trade in).

So with a trade always start with what carvana will give you for a trade there price is usally good and then you have a starting point. Even Mavericks are getting discounts now not much but not sticker either.

 

[bgctcowboy628]

Should have checked with another dealer to get a 2nd quote on your Dodge's actual value

Without that, it's tough to say how good or bad the deal is.

PS: your "friend" should've been able to get you SOME discount. I got a pretty good discount off mine even though I special-ordered it in prime season when nobody else was giving ANY discounts whatsoever. There's always a bit of leeway in the pricing

I have often found that the "walk away" method works quite well. If shenanigans are going on and you walk away you will probably get a phone call with a better deal, while you shop around you might find a better deal anyway. I never plan to buy when I car shop and I make them sell me the car if you follow what mean

 

[Tim d]

Per KBB private sale 23k average, trade in 21k average.

For the mav? And the ram should have booked close to 30k

 

[Tim d]

No the RAM. Easily looked up. Based on not knowing option content average value would be the reference.
https://www.kbb.com/ram/1500-classi...vehicleid=448551&subintent=sell&entry=defymmt

I used kbb, which showed a value of 33- 37 k. Did you put in the low miles?

 

[Tim d]

Nope, just the base values. 33 to 37? Would you pay that for a RAM 6 cylinder? I wouldn't.

Thought it had a hemi

 

[Tim d]

Hey, that thing gotta HEMI? no.

The " friend" will put it on the lot for 40k. He was definitely taken advantage of.new hemi rams are 90k now.

 

[notfast]

What I don’t like about your, ‘deal’

$29,500 for a base XL,
$$4,000 more for an XLT
My Loaded Lariat was $36,000

These numbers mean nothing but trade in value and used value will fall faster on an XL than more loaded models.
Your ok but getting out of that XL, we’ll just be ready to get Gob smacked.

IMO it depends on when you sell. The older a car gets, the proportionally less the luxury model is valued over the base model. This is partly because used cars also have mileage and condition as factors, whereas new cars are all close to 0 mileage and in literal new condition.

Buyers of new cars tend to pick and choose exactly what they want (or as close as they are willing to compromise), whereas buyers of used cars tend to have a price ceiling and maybe one or two must-have features in mind, but otherwise they want the best balance of mileage, condition, and features for the price.

All that to say, if a buyer just wants "a" Maverick or "a" small truck in general and even the base model checks all the boxes, for the same price, they will gravitate toward the XL with lower mileage and in better shape than a Lariat with higher mileage whose interior looks like it was scratched up by dogs.

If we go by MSRP, an XL AWD 4k tow hybrid is $34,295 and a Lariat AWD 4k tow hybrid is $41,575, a difference of about 21% more for the Lariat. With the figures you mentioned, the price difference is about 22% more for the Lariat.

On the retail front, at CarMax right now there is a 2022 Ford Maverick Lariat hybrid with 20k miles for $30k, and a 2022 Maverick XL hybrid with 18k miles for $27k, a price difference of about 11% more for the Lariat.

Then there's also the alternate use of the money to consider. Yes, your Lariat was "only" $6,500 more for an XL, but what else could you do with the money if the XL checked all the boxes? $6500 buys enough gas to drive an EcoBoost Maverick more than 50,000 miles at the current national average gas price of $3.20/gal.

You almost always loose money when you trade in a good vehicle. You should have negotiated a price before the trade. Once done then bring up the trade. I'd always sell a car before trading in. Unless it is junk.

Same. I've gotten better deals just selling a car to one dealer and buying a car from a different dealer. To me, trading in is purely for the convenience.

 

[BLUEOVALRACER]

Thought it had a hemi

Post 15 he said 6 cylinder.

 

[Butterscotch]

There's an old saying: if you buy a car from a friend, he will no longer be your friend. That being said, I just want to make sure my "friend" didn't pull a fast one on me at the time of sale. I always hated buying a car anywhere, my entire life, because I enter the dealership just knowing I will be lied to (and believe me, I caught more than one salesman lying in the past). Anyway, I just purchased a 2025 Maverick base model, the one that looks like a white fleet style vehicle, the esthetics of which, believe it or not, I actually prefer. The sticker was about $29,500 and it was so new it wasn't listed in inventory. No frills.

It started this way: the night before, at a friend's house, the "pitch" was "Oh yeah, I can get you a Maverick for about $22,000.-$25,000 You trading in your truck (a 2020 Dodge Ram Warlock with 41,800 miles, great condition)?" he asked. I said yes. He did a quick lookup on his phone and said, "Oh! We can give you about $28 $29 k for your truck!" Swell, I was on my way for a new car purchase.

Next morning, oh how the story had changed! "I was wrong about your truck, sorry. I accidentally looked up a much more expensive version of your truck and thought it was your model." Uhhhh huh. Okay, I looked past that. Then, when I saw the sticker, it was $29,500. So I asked "I thought you quoted 22 to 25!" He replied, "I just found out we're not discounting these!" Okayyyyyyyy. So, he put the deal on the table: my trade in plus 7K. I countered with my trade in plus 5k. He counter offered my trade in with 6K. I took it. So, I drove off the lot with a 2025 Maverick that cost me sticker price with 6K cash down and 23,500 for my 2020 Ram.

QUESTION: Is this guy my friend? (He said they gave me the "deal" on my trade in).

Nope.
Did you enter your RAM details on the CARMax website ? Also, the 2026 models will be on the dealer lots in mid November leaving the dealership with excess inventory and taken off the selection list for distribution.

So the big question is...Did you want it or need it ? The base model in North Carolina I could have found it for close to 3K off sticker.

Had two dealers offer me 19K for 2019 Edge ST with 20K miles. I sold to CARMax for 24k.

I depends on how you look at it. I hate dealerships too. Especially he large ones who think you have no options - such as Crossroads Ford in North Carolina.

Enjoy it while you have it - You have lots of room for add ons

 

[James K]

There's an old saying: if you buy a car from a friend, he will no longer be your friend. That being said, I just want to make sure my "friend" didn't pull a fast one on me at the time of sale. I always hated buying a car anywhere, my entire life, because I enter the dealership just knowing I will be lied to (and believe me, I caught more than one salesman lying in the past). Anyway, I just purchased a 2025 Maverick base model, the one that looks like a white fleet style vehicle, the esthetics of which, believe it or not, I actually prefer. The sticker was about $29,500 and it was so new it wasn't listed in inventory. No frills.

It started this way: the night before, at a friend's house, the "pitch" was "Oh yeah, I can get you a Maverick for about $22,000.-$25,000 You trading in your truck (a 2020 Dodge Ram Warlock with 41,800 miles, great condition)?" he asked. I said yes. He did a quick lookup on his phone and said, "Oh! We can give you about $28 $29 k for your truck!" Swell, I was on my way for a new car purchase.

Next morning, oh how the story had changed! "I was wrong about your truck, sorry. I accidentally looked up a much more expensive version of your truck and thought it was your model." Uhhhh huh. Okay, I looked past that. Then, when I saw the sticker, it was $29,500. So I asked "I thought you quoted 22 to 25!" He replied, "I just found out we're not discounting these!" Okayyyyyyyy. So, he put the deal on the table: my trade in plus 7K. I countered with my trade in plus 5k. He counter offered my trade in with 6K. I took it. So, I drove off the lot with a 2025 Maverick that cost me sticker price with 6K cash down and 23,500 for my 2020 Ram.

QUESTION: Is this guy my friend? (He said they gave me the "deal" on my trade in).

I'll bet he wanted to give you the original deal as he's probably seen it done but the manager wouldn't do it. You see only managers can give that kind of deal and the salesman's friends? Well, your trust of your friend is what they pay him for in the paycheck, they're hired just for taken advantage of friends. I'll be amazed if in 2 years your friend is selling cars at that dealer or even selling cars.

 

[WJOHNM]

I have a friend and neighbor we have been friends since childhood were in our 70s now, I get a new vehicle every 3/4 years and he knows it, he has asked to buy one that I sell/trade in because he knows how I treat my vehicles, I only drive 5k a year so my vehicles have 15/20k miles and always get top dollar, I do my first oil change at 2k and 4/5k after that I rotate tires every other oil change or once a year, they never need any kind of services because of the low mileage. My vehicles look like new when I sell them, I have never sold him a vehicle, we have been friends for 60 years and want to keep it that way.
My last Maverick was 3 years old had 15,500 miles and was perfect had 3/4 coats of wax on it 22 XLT FX4 with every package, I don't think I ever floored that vehicle maybe once or twice getting on parkway to clean it out. When he sees a new vehicle in my driveway he's mad at me for a day or two and that's it life goes on he knows why I won't sell him one of my cars/ trucks and his wife agrees with me, I sold that Maverick to CarMax for 6k more than dealer offered. He keeps vehicles 10/15 years, you know something is going to go bad in that time especially a turbo vehicle, I tell him to buy a Toyota, Honda, Subaru even a Mazda non turbo vehicle. I can tell you this after working for a dealer for almost 40 years a sales manager would run your grandmother over for a DEAL especially at the end of a bad month, [BTW I didn't work in sales] when I buy a vehicle, I start mid-month and make no less than 3 trips to dealer asking stupid questions then they know am a buyer than go in the last few days of the month to get the best price, if you have a trade always check online the value you save money on taxes if you sell to dealer but in most cases they try to steal it from you and make more off you when they wholesale it, same goes for financing they always make a few points off you could be a lot. Sorry, this is so long I got carried away.

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