ClubCJ - The CJ Lancer Club

Hey guys I'm looking to purchase a new Ralliart. I purchased an Activ in July last year and it's just clicked over 10,000kms. Perfect condition inside and out. How much could I expect on a trade-in against a Ralliart?

The dealer will probably give you around $15-17k for your car. Check redbook.com.au.

Did you get the car checked out?

I'd be interested to trade in and get a more optioned car if the trade in was high, but it looks like the Activ only fetches around $15k now. That's a $10k loss in less than a year, so it's better to keep it and save up that extra $10k.

A trade in is affected in a couple of ways.

How much room there is to move in the car you are buying. If they have a car that they have had dealer incentives on to offload etc they may be able to give you a better trade in price.

How much they can sell your car for. Your car being newer and low kms, they will want to probably put it straight on their used car lot. Now being a 2nd hand car, they will need to sell it lower than a new one. They would probably put it on the lot for about 17-18k so expect to take about 3k off and that is your trade.

The one thing you have going is that it is an Activ and they were fairly well sought after so this may boost the trade in value a bit.

My 2.5 yr old ES with 150,000kms on it got me $10k This was lowered, with leather interior and tint etc. I was lucky with that price, a wholesaler took a liking to it, and they were keen to sell me a new car.

That is another thing. A dealer that is more desperate to move cars will often give you a bit more to get you to sign up.

The best way to work when you are trading a car is with a changeover figure. See the dealer, tell them what options you want, and they will give you the amount on top of your trade you will need to add in. Shop around and get your changeover figures, and it is much easier to compare deals then.

Have you considered a private sale? You're much more likely to get a good price.