Buying "Up" -- 2017 TRD Sport DCLB to 2018 for $????

First of all, I'm looking for responses from those who are generally favorable to or own a 2018 with Safety Sense. For those of you who don't like Safety Sense, no need to respond with your Safety Sense criticisms, as I've heard those already. You can try to talk me out of my interest in Safety Sense and I'll listen to and respect your opinions, but that's really not what I'm looking for in this thread.

Bought my Sport new in 3/17 and it now has just over 13K on the odometer; admittedly, I might have waited for the '18's, but didn't have the foresight to do that. It's an AT with the Premium & Tech package and all I've added to it are Husky mats, a bed mat, center console organizer, and mud flaps. The truck works flawlessly and I've not experienced any of the more common issues described on TW, except perhaps a windshield replacement as a result of crack from a rock hit. It is in excellent condition, in and out.

I like my 17's existing safety features -- BSM, Cross Traffic Alert, etc. and keep them 'on' all the time. But I'm intrigued with the Safety Sense features and might be willing to spend a few dollars to get them. I've had a couple of experiences recently when I've locked up the brakes on sudden stops and I don't think I would object to a gentle reminder that I'm leaving my lane (I signal lane changes about 95% of the time).

I'm 68, retired, financially comfortable, physically active, and have been driving for 52 years with only one accident for which I was at fault. My vision and reflexes are age-appropriate good and I believe I make good driving decisions / judgments.

What I'm wondering is what I might have to spend to move from my '17 to a comparable '18. I don't want to waste my time negotiating with dealers to see what I might have to pay for an '18. I'm simply looking for your best guess as to what it might cost for me to move from my '17 Sport to a comparable '18. So your responses should include a dollar figure.

Thanks for your replies to my hypothetical query.

 

If you sell it privately, you would be losing about 2-3k on the vehicle's value without mentioning that you paid about 2.5k? In taxes.

That's 5K and you would have to pay taxes on the new vehicle as well so it could easily add up to 6-7k unless your state has a law that makes you pay the difference between the value of your purchase and trade in.

That's the only way that I would consider a trade in.

If trade it in and you get no taxes break then it could be a couple k more.

 

It's the only way to get a real answer. You can do it via email. Simply bomb the 25 closest dealers with your specs, ask for a cash and carry price.

As a far as guessing goes, KBB and Edmunds are just as good as we are. Research your existing truck, private party and trade value. Research your new truck, like you were a cash buyer.

Here's my prediction. It will cost a lot more than all the 'Tacoma's hold their value great' fans will claim. Especially if you do a dealer trade w/o some prior leg work.

Good luck.

 

I would test drive a Tacoma with the features to make sure you want them.

I personally hate the new safety features in cars. The beeping drives me insane and actually IMO makes things less safe because it alerts you to something you already are aware of or something irrelevent so it makes you stop when you don’t need to and delays you having an appropriate response.

The steering assist I think is downright dangerous. I’ve used it in a Subaru Outback and I was driving down the highway coming up to a construction zone where cars were diverted off to the shoulder. Well I start driving with the new lane but the car picks up the paint lines and tries to keep me on the old road. Well you don’t usually drive with white knuckles on the wheel so while the steering wheel moves very subtly it’s scary because you aren’t expecting it.

Test drive the truck first before assuming you will like it.

According to KBB you’ll probably lose $10k on the deal between loss of value and taxes. I’m assuming you have an SR5 Double Cab Short Bed. I don’t know what an AT is.

 

I should have mentioned that I would sell private party, unless the tax savings on a trade-in (WA state deducts the trade-in amount from the taxable amount) more than offset what I would get from a private party sale.

To PackCon: My truck is a TRD Sport, double cab, long bed (DCLB) with an automatic transmission (AT). I appreciate your concern about steering assist; I don't think I would like that. However, I don't believe Safety Sense takes its lane monitoring to that level.

Yeah, I tend to underestimate the transaction costs (tax, title, dealer prep, delivery, etc.) when noodling these things around in my head. If I actually were to put together a deal to 'buy up' by a year, I would probably be shocked at the amount of those transaction costs. And knowing how tight-fisted I am, I doubt I would pull the trigger.

So maybe this hypothetical has quickly reached its logical conclusion.

 

Maybe your 'buy up' should be transacted totally private party. If you're financially comfortable.... wait and pounce on an '18 that comes up private party. Once you have that under your belt, sell the '17 at leisure. Perhaps you could contact the local Carmax and equivalents and tell them what you're wanting to do. They could keep an eye out for what you're looking for. Or, the dealers for that matter. I'm sure there's the occasional buyer that trades up to a Tundra pretty quickly. Though, this is a really short window since '18s have only been out for a few months. And lastly, if you have a good relationship with your dealer/sales, let them know you are interested in a dealer/demo/executive 18 with certain specs.

I've had two incidents with my TSS so far:

1) I wasn't paying enough attention and it alerted me via audio that I needed to be on the brakes. It was correct.
2) I was paying enough attention and the traffic ahead was starting to back up; lots of tail lights coming on. I was waiting for TSS adaptive cruise to pick up on it, hovering over the brake pedal just in case. I eventually chickened out and hit the brakes myself.

So there you go; n=2, specificity = 50%, sensitivity = 50%

 

If you are financially comfortable who cares what it costs? Life is short man.

 

I have bought a few cars from individuals who were frustrated when they knew the 'real deal' on the trade in they had. They had negotiated a cash deal, then brought the trade to the table, so they knew what they were 'really' getting. They were very nice examples, so I paid probably $400-500 over their trade allowance + the tax offset they would have had had they traded at that number. Made them whole + compared to a trade in, put me in a nice vehicle for well under private party cost.

All that to say that as a seller, you can pick a price and add back the tax delta to your selling price. That whole 'look at the taxes you save', while true, is just another way for the dealer to roll you over the barrel on your trade.

You are correct. In the Toyota liineup the full framed vehicles don't have that (yet) only the unibody models do. I think it has to do with electronic assisted power steering vs hydraulic

Most folks do.

Noodle the entire TCO and then decide. It's ok to spend your money. Just know how much it will be and determine if that's worth it to you.

 

Agree with the concept.

In my case, I just have other things I'd rather spend my money on while I'm mobile and healthy. So for example, my 5 lug does what I want, so I'll spend more time traveling instead of upgrading my truck.

OTOH, if I had a pile of loot that wouldn't even notice $45k missing, I sure wouldn't be spending it on a Tacoma. I'd be ordering up a poor mans super car, having an LSx Miata built to my specs by the good folks at Flyin Miata.

 

Complicated question for sure, so your answer has to be...and your statement as to not wanting to negotiate...pretty much makes this a "keep your 17 and have fun."

I feel it boils down to what you want vs. the financials only...I don't see a way to avoid the "drive it off the lot depreciation" with a dealer. If you find the diamond in the rough aftermarket sale (private) it's going to have something "not quite right" if the price matches. (Flood car, engine swap...something). The advice above about shopping around naturally holds, but sometimes dealers actually prefer a big loan over cash, betting on interest kick-backs, so if you can write the deal for the credit to get their better price and pay it off before the first payment if the paperwork has no penalty for payoff you can find a few %. Again though, if you don't want to research and negotiate I'm not seeing a glory deal being thrown at you short of some rich kid wanting your '17 for more than book value because he's stoned.

 

Good counsel, all of it. Thanks to all of you.

Agree with Clearwater Bill that there are other things I would rather spend my money on, like travel or a new hunting dog.

Driving an almost new, $40K+ vehicle and lamenting that it doesn't have the latest farkles is definitely a 1st World problem.

 

This is the first year of the safety sense. Wait a couple years for them to iron the bugs out. You have an absolutely great truck already.

 

I had a 2017 TRD Sport and now have a 2018 TRD Sport and only lost about $2500 - so basically this is what it cost me to drive my 2017 for a year.
I was able to sell my 2017 for above high blue book value (only took two days to sell on craigslist) and I purchased my 2018 for under invoice (went back to same dealer I got my 2017 and they remembered me and gave me a better deal).

I suggest you just place your 2017 on craigslist just to see what kind of offer you get. Then go to the dealer you purchased your 2017 from and see how much they will sell you a 2018 (they will probably give you a better deal since you are a repeat customer). Now you will know how much of difference you will have to pay for a 2018.

 

I thought you could deduct the private sale price of your current vehicle from its replacement cost in terms of taxes, as long as it was done in a certain time frame? Am I wrong? I suppose it depends on state laws...

 

I think that u should sell it private party to maximize your value. For the person that said finding an ‘18 being sold by a private party would b a shady deal (flood, engine trouble, etc.) that cannot always b the case. Sounds cool, but plenty of people buy things and change their mind so they want to do like u r trying to do and get the best selling price.

What I think is the problem is that u seem to b very excited about the new safety features and they r not “guaranteed” to keep u safe or alive for that matter. The features probably work great, but u r the driver and I think I trust myself more than a safety feature. Not saying they aren’t quicker to read the than a person but I wouldn’t bet my life or my family’s life on it either. I hope whatever do or whatever u buy that u enjoy it and stay safe.

 

Since majority have already brought up the issue with the decrease value/loss of money, I’ll talk about why I decided to go to 18 instead of 17.

People keep saying about the beeping are normally those that don’t use turn signals. Mine has not beeped at me except one time when I tried to change lane on the highway without usin my turn signal. On top of that the lane departure warning system don’t turn on until you hit a certain mph (45 I think). So there goes majority of what people complain about. I love the dynamic cruise control since I travel a lot, it literally handles the brake and gas for you and all you have to do is steer. Basically just get up to whatever speed limit you want. When a car gets in front of you, it’ll slowdown automatically keeping the safe distance you choose (between 1-3 car lengths), and then when the car in front either moves or speeds up, it’ll go back to the speed limit you set.

 

TSS isn't going anywhere. If it were me, I'd wait a few years for the refresh and see what real changes they make to the Tacoma.

 

Since you asked about trade prices, and not the performance or need of TSS, I'll share my 2016 to 2017 upgrade $$$. Not exactly your scenario, but still newish 3rd gen to new 3rd gen.

Identical TRDOR w/ tech +JBL. '16 stickered for 38,500. '17 stickered for ~39,500. The '17 did gain the power sliding rear glass. I had 12,500 miles on the '16. I traded because a deer ran into me @ 350 miles and the repair job wasn't to my liking (Paint didn't match, even after redoing it).

OTD trade (including any fees and 3% taxes in NC) was $5,500. You may be able to do better, but I didn't have a lot of leverage with the repainted truck...

 

I bought my TRD in October. I couldn’t stand the constant gear hunting so I attempted to trade it with the same dealer in November. My MSRP was $41,000 +. They offered me $31,000 on trade. I kept it and glad I did.

We bought a 2018 Honda CRV in December with all the new safety technology. I like everything it does but it takes some getting use to. We went to Denver and I set the cruise at 84. In the open areas of Kansas I looked down and was doing 77 because it adjusted the speed for the ONLY car in front. It adjusted so smoothly I didn’t realize it for about a mile. So I learned I needed to pay attention to actual speed.

My biggest problem is thinking and waiting for the TRD to adjust speed and possibly brake like the CRV. I rarely use the cruise control in the TRD. I am 65 and considered trading for a 2018 identical TRD yesterday only with leather while getting the oil changed at a different dealer. In the end I knew I couldn’t justify the cost difference.

 

This is a great tool to use as well: National Automotive Dealers Association.

http://www.nada.com/