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The Dealer Wants My Avalanche

majorv

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So, the dealer called me the other day wanting to buy back my 2012 Avalanche.  They were very persistant and kept trying to tell me that they could replace it with a new vehicle with 'comparable features'.  I got tired of telling the lady that I'm not interested...that it's perfect for what I use it for, and told her that I doubt that GM currently has anything with the Avy's features - especially the midgate!  Geez, I finally just cut her off and said I'm not selling.    I don't know if they were just trying to sell another new vehicle or if there is that much demand for used Avalanches.  Anyone else had this happen?
 
majorv said:
So, the dealer called me the other day wanting to buy back my 2012 Avalanche.  They were very persistant and kept trying to tell me that they could replace it with a new vehicle with 'comparable features'.  I got tired of telling the lady that I'm not interested...that it's perfect for what I use it for, and told her that I doubt that GM currently has anything with the Avy's features - especially the midgate!  Geez, I finally just cut her off and said I'm not selling.    I don't know if they were just trying to sell another new vehicle or if there is that much demand for used Avalanches.  Anyone else had this happen?

I'm betting they have a buyer who wants one in a bad way. Avalanches don't stay on any lot for long, and when I was looking the good deals were disappearing fast. The overpriced or poor shape trucks stay on for a long time though.

It's amazing how many people have no idea what an avalanche is though...
 
I got the same thing just last week. I called, they asked me to send them pictures, the VIN and the mileage, which I did. They called me back and offered me $18400. Which would be a good offer for a stock 08 LT with 103000 mi. To look over their inventory and see if there was anything a would be interested in.
They have a 2011 LT with 77000 mi. That I would take on my trade. For $24400, which I thought was fair.
I then called told him that I would need about 2 weeks to change the wheels,hood, bumper, headlights, fog lights, springs, shocks, sway bars and links, brakes, tail lights, exhaust, interior trim and door trim, gauge cluster, pull the system out and put the stock stuff back in, and remove the second alt., battery and reconfigure the electrical back to a stock charging system. (Basically get it back as close to stock as possible)
He replies with "Our offer was for your vehicle in its current condition"
So I said "that's fine. I'll trade you straight up then. My 08 in its current condition for the stock 11"
He said that that was absurd. I then told him an $18400 offer for a $17500 vehicle with what would be an estimated $10k in parts and labor into it was absurd.
Needless to say, I still have my 08 in the driveway.
 
I have been getting a letter from each dealership in town (the dodge one I bought it from and the GM one that did all the warranty work) for the last 6 months or so. It usually says something about in desperate need of avalanches and they are willing to pay %110 book value for it then offering a free oil change if we work out a deal or not... I would use those free oil changes but I don't trust the dealerships here as far as I could throw their building.
 
Calicak89 said:
I got the same thing just last week. I called, they asked me to send them pictures, the VIN and the mileage, which I did. They called me back and offered me $18400. Which would be a good offer for a stock 08 LT with 103000 mi. To look over their inventory and see if there was anything a would be interested in.
They have a 2011 LT with 77000 mi. That I would take on my trade. For $24400, which I thought was fair.
I then called told him that I would need about 2 weeks to change the wheels,hood, bumper, headlights, fog lights, springs, shocks, sway bars and links, brakes, tail lights, exhaust, interior trim and door trim, gauge cluster, pull the system out and put the stock stuff back in, and remove the second alt., battery and reconfigure the electrical back to a stock charging system. (Basically get it back as close to stock as possible)
He replies with "Our offer was for your vehicle in its current condition"
So I said "that's fine. I'll trade you straight up then. My 08 in its current condition for the stock 11"
He said that that was absurd. I then told him an $18400 offer for a $17500 vehicle with what would be an estimated $10k in parts and labor into it was absurd.
Needless to say, I still have my 08 in the driveway.

Respectfully, I never expect to get any of the money put into modifications out of my vehicle. In fact, when talking about newer vehicles it's harder to sell a modified vehicle than a stock vehicle in this area. I don't know about prices in your area, but judging from what I know about prices here it seems like they're offering decent money for it either stock or modified.

I don't know if you clarified beforehand that you were putting it back to stock, but if you called them to inquire, and then you sent pictures of the truck in modified condition without saying you were turning it back to stock, I don't understand why that's their fault. But maybe I'm reading that wrong and that's not what happened.

Did you check blue book value for your truck in your area?
 
In my experience it's not so much the exact vehicle that the dealerships are looking for, it's that the vehicle fits their plan for an inventory of used vehicles.
It's like they want any vehicle that is 2 to 4 years old with X amount of miles on it. That way it is still attractive to a new buyer, may also be covered under an extended warranty etc. The dealerships want to lure you on the lot to buy a new vehicle (they are hoping you are tired of your vehicle) and that you will believe their hype that your old vehicle is valuable.
All in all it's a win -win for the dealership.....profit from selling you new, profit from low trade in price, and profit on sale of your old vehicle to new owner.
I get calls and mail offers frequently from my dealer and others wanting not only the AV but our Impalas...It has slowed down since the vehicles have aged ..Salesman asked recently when we were going to buy a new Chevy and I told him I bought one....surprised him when I showed up in my 1947 Chevy street rod! (It is our newest purchased vehicle.)

As far as getting money for any modifications you make on a vehicle they usually say you get at best 10 cents on the dollar so you would do best to return to stock before trading in a vehicle. If selling it yourself you may sell it quicker but still not get what you paid for it.
My street rod is an example that is repeated every day in the car market. The "stock car"  may be worth $12,000 in good but not mint condition, You could spend $100,000 modernizing and improving things, yet when you sell it.....it  sells in mod shape for $40,000- $50,000.
 
05snopro440 said:
Respectfully, I never expect to get any of the money put into modifications out of my vehicle.

Did you check blue book value for your truck in your area?

I do not expect to recoup the $$ that I have into it, but I would also not list it for sale in its current state. If I were to sell. I would remove any mods that I could and then list at a reasonable price.
The book on it is $17560.  As I said, Their offer was more than what I would expect if it were a stock AV. But no where near where I would consider selling it for with all the modifications that have been done. Even at 35%, which I think is a reasonable return of the mods, I'd be looking at somewhere north of $20k.
They sent me a letter, knowing either from a previous sale, or the DMV that I own a 2008 AV. I'm certain that they didn't know the extent of the modifications , but I didn't approach the dealer, they contacted me, so I figured I'd see what they had to offer.
 
The chevy dealer here in Murfreesboro has been sending me letters for a couple of years asking for my 2003 avalanche.  I traded it in Dec 2013 for my 2013 avy at a different dealer, but still continue to get the letter about every 3 months.  They just want me to look at thei new stuff.  To bad no new avys anymore.  They do have 4 used ones in -stock  2005. 2008, 2012 and a 2013.
 
We got a call 2 weeks ago from the new manager at the dealer we bought our Avy from.  The former manager was a good friend of mine.  They wanted to know if we were still happy with it and if we were interested in any of the new vehicles etc...  Said they knew we were cool with the former manager but also a current salesman.  I told the guy we would let them know if we needed anything.  0% chance I ever buy another vehicle from that particular dealership.  I will always buy from my buddy that was the manager there and is now the manager at a different GMC/Chevy dealer.
 
It may also depend on where you are and the demand for certain vehicles.  Trucks are very popular in the South, you know  (y).  I've had friends see my Avy and tell me they'd like to get one (not realizing that 2013 was the last year).  This was last year when most of the 2013's were already sold.  One friend said he was having a heck of a time finding an Avy 2500.  He wanted the Avy features plus the ability to pull heavier loads.

I haven't looked at blue book price on mine, but it's a late model 2012 that I got in July 2013.  I have no desire to sell it.  My kids just grin when we're walking away from my Avalanche and I have to turn around to admire it. I don't think I've been more satisfied with a vehicle since my '69 Camaro. :) 
 
With 170k on mine, I giggle when they call me hoping for a high offer from them so I can hunt down a 2013 BDE AV  (y).


What was the last year the 6.0L was offered in the AV?
 
I started receiving the calls back in early November while my Avalanche was in the shop to replace the heater core. They knew the miles & service history. They were persistent through late January.

I still cannot envision a replacement yet.
 
They started this when my 2011 was 2 years old. All scam. Good for dealer and bad for you. They promised me lower payment for new vehicle. In the end, they had my truck on the lift for inspection and were drilling me on vehicle. They wanted me to buy the "general Mangers' demo for $69K. I bought my 2011 to my perfect specifications for $37K factory ordered. What's wrong with them. Do the math. I went in because of the 2013 was the last year. I said I would order the 2013 in Dec 2012 no questions, they couldn't do it and said Factory order process was closed.
Told them get my truck off the lift, and told them they wasted my time. I told them I wanted what they promised me! I walked, won't be going back. The  service guy's have been great, Sale dudes are crooks.
 
I purchased a 2013 Black Diamond for 48k fully loaded with a 7 year bumper to bumper insurance coverage.
The dealer has called and sent letters multiple times offering both a replacement Tahoe 2015 or outright purchase.
I asked what the reason for the constant requests. They told me Chevy made a huge mistake in dropping the Avalanche and a lot of people are looking. I told them when they get to a Tahoe LTZ full 4wd to call me. I doubt they will because that truck is 65k. but who knows maybe. If they do offer then it tells me to hold onto the Avalanche and  wait for it to get to 100k. I have 7800 on it and really only drive it on weekends.

I also told them the price would have to include the DEEZEE I added for the tailgate. :laugh:
 
My girlfriend gets letters for her 2013 Silverado about every 60 days. She almost went for a 2014 for $30 more per month but then the service guys messed up by charging her $75 for an oil change that was shown on a poster as on special for $29...

When she asked about it they told her that her truck required synthetic and needed an extra quart. Note that the "sale" sign just said $29 for all vehicles...

And they washed & vacuumed her truck too... Although there was dry dust/dirt covering the floor of the bed and the floors had stuff that a vacuum should have easily gotten picked up...

Needless to say she still has her 2013 and a few free oil changes... She bought her truck from them originally. They also apparently track how much she owes on the truck because they keep offering her just over what she owes on it but offer her a new truck at full price of course... Last time she was offered $22,000 for her truck and similar trucks with more mileage are listing  for $29,000 - $32,000 in my area.. She bought her truck for new for $32,000..  I told her if she really wanted to trade up she would be better off selling her truck and buying a new one.

Rodney
 
I see a lot of dealer bashing on the Internet but I've come to the conclusion that most people (me included) have unrealistic expectations about how much their used vehicle is worth to someone else. Dealers make more money selling used vehicles than new ones, that is how they stay in business (actually the service department is how they stay in business). Yes maybe you can get a few thousand more selling it privately, but that is a hassle some people don't think is worth the extra money. I tried to sell privately once and it took months, a lot of non-committal lookie loos, in the end it wasn't worth it and I sold it to Carmax.

redheadedrod said:
Last time she was offered $22,000 for her truck and similar trucks with more mileage are listing  for $29,000 - $32,000 in my area.. She bought her truck for new for $32,000..  I told her if she really wanted to trade up she would be better off selling her truck and buying a new one.

If those listings are dealer listings then you need to realize that those dealers are including certified used warranties that a private seller can't offer. You can decline the certified used warranty and get a lower price.

I don't often hear stories about people getting great deals from new car dealerships and that's probably because no one ever thinks they are getting a great deal.
 
The only car we own that seems to be "wanted" or "needed" by these car dealers is the only one that has ever been through a dealer's service department or was purchased from a dealer's lot.

Our 2006 CTS went in for a factory recall several years ago and ever since then the dealers seem to "want" or "need" this car.

Why the heck they would "want" or "need" a 2006 Cadillac CTS is beyond me.

All of my other vehicles have been serviced at my local independent mechanic and were bought from individuals or from smaller car lots.

No one seems to "want" or "need" any of those.

I guess if you aren't in their database, they don't "want" or "need" your car for anything.
 
It gets kinda irritating... I get them more and more often now. I wish I could get removed from their mailing.
 
This happened to my uncle with his Silverado. They took his 2013 and handed him keys to a 2015. We can guess at it all day but who knows what dealers are really up to
 
The listings were from all sorts of different sources. And realistically anyone can get a warranty for a new vehicle. I got a warranty with my 2003 truck when I bought it like 4 years ago. Because it had 185,000 miles on it They offered it as part of the deal but I could have purchased the same insurance myself for $800. As long as the vehicle was less than 10 years old and had less than 200,000 miles it qualified. I ended up having about $2000 worth of work done to the truck before the warranty ran out.

But anyhow, even without the warranty it isn't hard to sell a 4x4 truck in my area. Especially one with a back seat...  We live next to the lake shore of lake michigan and in the winter we get hammered with snow. There were quite a few days I don't know if I would have made it to work without my avy.. So yea... it is not unreasonable to believe she could get much more for her truck than the dealer was willing to give her. 

Rodney

 
redheadedrod said:
But anyhow, even without the warranty it isn't hard to sell a 4x4 truck in my area. Especially one with a back seat...  We live next to the lake shore of lake michigan and in the winter we get hammered with snow. There were quite a few days I don't know if I would have made it to work without my avy.. So yea... it is not unreasonable to believe she could get much more for her truck than the dealer was willing to give her. 

Rodney

(y)
 
I get calls all the time, I take my truck there for oil changes so they know the mods and the shape its in.  Easy to say no when they don't have a replacement for me.  No matter how sweet the deal is, unless its an Avy, I wont be buying anything for a long time
 
Have never heard from any dealer about my 02 Z71, they would most likely as i just turned 79000 miles here in Pa. if you tell your insurance co. that you only drive 50 miles a day after they checked milage i saved 400.00 off my next bill.   
 
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