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Is This Really Stupid? Trade-in Question

E

edk

GUEST
Hi everyone.

I recentely just took my 2002 chevy TB in for a 4x4 computer problem and to get the master cylinder replaced. while there i was looking over the selection of AVYs

Well I feel in love again. I have wanted an AVY since there were announced, but when it came time to buy money and my wife's dislike for the AVY swayed me toward what I thought was a more practical car -- the trailblazer.

Well after having the TB for 6 months I cant forget about the AVY and I now realize that as far as cargo and space goes the AVY is just fine, in fact better for me and my lifestyle (mountain bike racer, rock climber, and moutainer). It will fit my two kids, my wife, all our gear and has a roof rack for my cargo carrier! plus its just plain bigger and better.

So here I sit looking at taking a hit on the almost new TB and almost $200 more monthly payment.

BUT..... I want this truck! its a long way to break even on the TB and my best bet at recouping the dollars is now or soon.

How stupid am I? would anyone else consider this?

I am not pathetic enough to need to the support of strangers, but it is always nice to hear objective opinions relative to your own subjective evaluation.

thanks all!
 
Stupidity is continuing to follow a course of action you know to be wrong. The trailblazer doesn't do it for you, the AVY does, so do the deal.

I speak from experience as someone who bought and '02 Subaru WRX and traded it in the same year when I realized the AVY better met my needs.

Go For it! :B:
 
Go to a dealer you like on a Friday, see the sales manager. Tell her/him that you are seriously considering trading up to the AV but have some questions about it fitting into your lifestyle and needs. Also mention that your wife needs a non-pressured chance to drive it. See if you can borrow an AV for the weekend.

Nothing speaks more about the AV than actually putting it through the paces.

Personally, I would go with the bench seat to give you the most options to play with.

Buying the AV was the second best decision I have ever made (getting married to my wife was the best).
 
Nothing says you can't try to sell the TB instead of trading it.

Get what you want or you'll never be satisfied.
 
I say go for it - if your wife has driven the TB and she drives the AV - she will push you to trade. We looked at the TB and next to the AV it just felt cheap somehow. :cautious: GET that AV ;)
 
My advice: Think about your long term priorities and compare your needs to these priorities. Twenty years ago I bought a car, which I promptly traded in only 32 days later for another. The loss at the time (my cash down + vehicle depreciation) was about $4K. At the time I was OK with this because I was only looking at my very short term priorities.

However, the result was that I was that much deeper in debt and paying interest. If I had been a little more patient, simple investing could have turned that money into anywhere from $30K to $200K or more today; this is despite the recent rundown in the stock market. I have kids now, and I could really use $200K.

Of course, I could use $200K even if I didn't have kids -- I'd be that much closer to retirement and playing with my AV full time :)

I think it's about balance. If you have the money to spare, your priorites stay intact, and the TB really is so bad, then go for it.
 
4K into 200$ in twenty years, BeAVertonFAN please give me your market tips!!! :eek:

4,000 over 20 years with 10% compound interest would amount to a little less than $27,000. To turn 4K in 200K in twenty years you would have to have an annual return of 21.6%. That would be a great rate of return! (y)

But I know your intent on your advice to EDK is well intended.
 
This is totally a choice based on your financial situation. If you can afford the Av then get it, you will not regret it. But be prepared to take a big hit on your trade. We are currently shopping for a TrailBlazer for my wife. Averag price is about 5k off sticker. We are trading in a '99 Blazer with an nada value of 15k and the best trade we can get is 10k !!! Vultures!

Good luck with your decision.

-Mark
 
nh_mark said:
But be prepared to take a big hit on your trade. ?We are currently shopping for a TrailBlazer for my wife. ?Averag price is about 5k off sticker. ?We are trading in a '99 Blazer with an nada value of 15k and the best trade we can get is 10k !!! ?Vultures!

Well, there you go. Mark buy's EDK's TrailBlazer somewhere between trade and new and Mark sells his '99 Blazer outright.

Everyone's happy! :D
Right? :cautious:
 
Well if you want the AV, and time is not of the essence, put an ad for the TB in the Auto Trader tomorrow.

In the mean time decide EXACTLY what AV you want and what goodies you want on it.

Then go shopping. Hit every big Chevy dealer within a 50 mile radius. (Use the internet as well as shoe leather.)

Do NOT mention the TB and do NOT make a commitment until you have seen at least five dealers.

By that time you should know what your TB "retails" for, and what dealer will give you the best AV deal.

If you're patient you should be able to cut a terrific deal.

Keep us posted, edk.
 
I say go for it. You will never regret buying an AV. Once your wife drives it a little she will be the one to say,"I am glad we traded" Just my opinion.
Tractman
 
My wife was laughing at me & my son oogling over the Av. She was so dead set against it. But We went on and on, badgering her of all the features, and Mods, and.... After 1 1/2 months of that, she takes a test drive and tried her DAMNDEST NOT to like it. she promptly says, oh go buy the dam thing already, and get it over with! Zoooom!! Now whenever we take a trip to the city or Wamart whatever, She's in the driver seat before I make it out the door. She SAYS she wants a Tracker, or something, but I know better! :rolleyes:
You only live once pal. Figure out a way to do it, or it will be eating you up inside.
DvD
 
edk ....

I know exactly what you are going through .... I had the same problem ....

Wife and I had purchased a 2002 s-10 4x4 crew cab after trading in our leased Silverado .... after the 2nd baby arrived this past August we realized just how bad a space issue we had with the s-10 ....

Of course all I wanted was the Avalanche ... she wanted the Trailblazer .... Her dad was trying to talk us into a Minivan (HELL NO!) .... we where tossing around the idea a 2003 Silverado ... 2003 Trailblazer or a 2002 Av. ... yes a 2002 av .... well for once I was smart and waited .... and waited ... and waited .... and tried my damnest to sell my s-10 out right ..... was not going to happen ... I had the truck listed in the local paper for a month and got two whole calls on it .....

finally after all the new deal came out in December ... it became a no brainer .... and a little convincing of the wife had to help .... we priced out a '03 Trailblazer, an '03 Silverado, and an '03 Avalance .... the blazer was $70 more a month than the Av. ... the Silverado was $40 more than the Av. ... well I'm bet you can guess what we bought .....

I have a 2003 4x4 Av. with the Driver convinence package and running boards .... picked it up Dec 23, 2002 .... what a christmas present :love:.... I highly recommend the driver convinence package as it has a lot to offer for a small fee. ;D

and for those of you questioning the payment .... My father-in-law works for GM so I get the GMS price ..... the Av. is offering 17% off the sticker for GMS where the Blazer was around 9% (I think) .....

 
I would certainly be tempted to ditch the TB and get the Av. But you need to think this through from a personal financial aspect. I now own a Grand Am for which I owe more than I can get from selling it. That happened because I shot myself in the foot with the previous car by jumping on a deal before I should have. Now I'm paying the price. I want to trade in the GA for a new car, but since I owe so much I will have to go even farther in the hole for car payments. So it can have a snowball effect.

Too many people these days are declaring personal bankruptcies and getting lousy credit ratings for not paying bills. Next to a house, your car will likely be the most expensive payment you make.

Fortunately I waited until my minivan was well paid off before I traded it in on the Av. I had long since written off the depreciation on the van, and saved money in the mean time. Plus, the finance rates and rebates made it a great deal, so I jumped on it. But that was about 8 months after I decided I wanted the Av!

Like others have said - first try selling the TB privately. It is still under warranty so you don't have to worry about whether the new owner has problems or not.

If you decide to go for the Av, you certainly won't regret driving the Av, as long as you don't go into the poor house in the process! (y)
 
Buying the AV was the second best decision I have ever made (getting married to my wife was the best).

Hey Kevin, your wife reads the boards, doesn't she?
It's either that or you want something, like a new toy.
LOL J/K

Manny
 
Johnny_D said:
4K into 200$ in twenty years, BeAVertonFAN please give me your market tips!!! ?:eek:

4,000 over 20 years with 10% compound interest would amount to a little less than $27,000. ?To turn 4K in 200K in twenty years you would have to have an annual return of 21.6%. ?That would be a great rate of return! ?(y)

But I know your intent on your advice to EDK is well intended.

The basis for my numbers is based on investing is a house. It happens that I was living is some real estate markets just before they got hot. In hindsight, a house I should have bought in Saratoga Springs, NY (instead of the car) gained $100K in equity over the course of six years house while I was renting. If I had that equity to reinvest in a house here in the Portland area when I moved here seven years ago, the houses I could have bought then have gone up anywhere from $80-$120K in value. As it is, I was only able to buy a house here four years ago, just before the market started to cool, and the rate of appreciation started to tail off.

If I had kept my eye on my long term goal (to be able to retire at 55), instead of my short term desire (to have a cool car), I'd be a heck of a lot closer to my long term goal now.

Of course, just my two pennies
 
I was in the same boat, we bought our 2002 TB and thought it was a great tow rig for our needs. Then we inherited a 2001 Cadillac Catera and along with our F150 figured it didn't make sense to have three cars. I went to the dealer, worked with the same folks that I bought the TrailBlazer from. Told them that I was very interested in the Av but only if I didn't take a major hit on the TB. Since we had good rebates then, and now and got very good deals on both as well as a 4 year finance package the hit wasn't bad at all. Considering the interest rate on the TB and now the AV the hit will be around $1,000 overall. Do your math, do your home work on kbb.com, endmunds.com and nada.com before you go in. If the TB has the right features you may be okay. Its all supply and demand though.

My wife really liked the TB, frankly I never liked driving it that much. But one drive in the AV and she fell in love with it too. But she still likes sporting around in the Catera (whew!)
 
STUPIDITY!!!!! You kidding me. I traded in my 99' Tahoe that has pretty much equal power, storage, room, comfort, ect, ect. Not only that....the tahoe was paid for. The bottom line was I wanted the AV!!!! I loved the look, and still do for that matter. My girlfriend hated the thing. She thought it was unappealing, and she really liked the tahoe. Then she got close to the AV, and got in it. I think your wife would change her mind. Hey, your sepnding a lot of money whether it be the TB, or the AV. You might as well really liike what you drive. At least this way everytime an AV passes you....you don't get jealous. FLIP SIDE!!!!!!

You have a wife and two kids!!!!! I don't know what kind of money you make a year. You gotta take that int consideration. I'm taking a hit to the pocketbook with the AV, but I would'nt trade that. Gas is going to be more.....payments are more.....don't forget about insurance...thats more too. Lets not forget about all the Mods yur gonna want to add on ;). Those can be costly. It's a tough decision, and I wish you the best. Bottom line is I love my Avalanche, and I'm willing to bet 99.999999999% of the 5000 people on tis board love their AV as well. Drive what you love, love what you drive.

$0.02

 
Okay, go for the AV, but buy low mileage used. Sell your TB out-right!

If you buy new, even with incentives, you take the depreciation hit, plus the used car market is flooded so you take twice the hit on your trade.

Your freindly CFO and Av nut! ;D
 
Edk, My advice is SELL THE TRAILBLAZER WHILE YOU STILL CAN! The GMC version is the Envoy. My wife has an Envoy that we loving call the "ShopQueen". The dealership is it's "Home". Our home is it's home away from home. It's been recalled 4 times, the Avalanche none.
Buy the Avalanche, you won't be sorry.
Durwin
 
MacMan mentioned buying your AV used with low miliage. You also might want to look into buying a dealer demo. I bought mine "NEW". It was dealer demo with 4500 miles on it. It's got everything you could imagine on it. Red Z-71. They discounted it $4500 off the sticker. I'm not sure what used AVs are going for, but it's worth a look. I was looking at a Black North Face that was used, but I could'nt get the 0% on it, so my payments ended up actually being lower. Not by much, but every penny counts. Just another option to consider.
 
EDK, I don't know what area you are in, but check and see if you have any Carmax's in your area. I have known them to give several thousand more than a dealer on a trade-in. They inspect the vehicle, test drive it and then give you a price. At that point I've known some dealers to get competitive, however unlikely. You can sell it out right to Carmax take a much smaller hit and then return to the dealer to buy you AVALACHNE. Good Luck! :B:
 
BeAVertonFAN said:
My advice: ?
However, the result was that I was that much deeper in debt and paying interest. ?If I had been a little more patient, simple investing could have turned that money into anywhere from $30K to $200K or more today; this is despite the recent rundown in the stock market. ?I have kids now, and I could really use $200K.

And then again you could have lost your A#@$ in the stock market, as have most, and ended up with little or nothing to show for the sacrifice you made not owning what you wanted. Had you made the purchase you would at least still have the vehicle. Oh, and what if you were to have died before you got to enjoy that 200k or got a divorce and your sole mate gets 50% of that, what then? I say live to enjoy life, you only get one chance at it.
 
vmi2000 said:
EDK, I don't know what area you are in, but check and see if you have any Carmax's in your area. ?I have known them to give several thousand more than a dealer on a trade-in. ?They inspect the vehicle, test drive it and then give you a price. At that point I've known some dealers to get competitive, however unlikely. ?You can sell it out right to Carmax take a much smaller hit and then return to the dealer to buy you AVALACHNE. ?Good Luck! :B:

Carmax gave me almost $2K more for my Durango than my Chevy dealership offered me on a trade in. It was my sales person who suggested I try them and he said they would probably give me $1000.00 more than they could. Worth checking into if there is one in your area.
 
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