Who buys these used Tacoma's?

Vehicles are so much cheaper in the U.S.
I was looking at 2010 at the time, DC LB trd sport just like I wanted and the dealership had a $28000 sticker on it, wasn't having it. Ended up with my 06 same setup but talked them down to $16,000 taxes in

 

I asked myself the same question when I was in the market. I got so fed up looking for the right used taco and a used taco in the mileage I wanted are practically priced just a hair below a new taco that was why I decided to get my 13 taco.

 

Yea I've had a few tacomas. But I never lost money in them. I can't imagine owning a ford or jeep. Buy new for 35k and sell 5 years later for 19k.

That's the great thing about tacomas. If circumstances come up and you gotta sell, no biggie you might loose a few hundred bucks.

When my wife had the twins I had to get her a more suitable SUV, my taco was paid for and she essentially going to be working for several months. So I sold the taco for what I had into it and got her a pilot. No money lost.

 

I'd been looking for a manual tacoma for almost 3 months and could find one, finally almost settled on a new sr5 double cab for 28k. held off another few weeks and found a 2008 v6 2wd manual access with 73k miles on it for 17k out the door with a warranty.

One of the main selling points for me was the resale because I was upside down in a BMW I had and never wanted to repeat that.

 

This is the reason. Tacomas in the used market, especially auctions, are generally exported. It's a lot easier to export a used vehicle than a new one.

This props up the values, as they can pay a premium here, and still make money abroad.

 

Here is something to think about. A lot of people don't have the best credit ratings and can't get financing for a new Tacoma. Dealers can then sell them a 2 year old Tacoma with 20k on the clock for $29500. Because of their credit rating they get a higher interest rate and wind up paying more for used than new. Kind of a scam.

 

I was in the same boat as everyone else. I was looking for cheaper, thats why I got a base model pre-runner. The 2011 tacoma that I was looking at was only about $1000 less than the new 13' tacoma I ended up with. Its not really a hard decision to make at that point. It feels good knowing that it will always hold value though.

 

After having worked at a dealership, I think its a testament to lack of buyer remorse. The only reasons we say a 30k and under tacoma come in was the lack of power or poor towing characteristics or backseat room. This may be partially a result of demographics related to new car sales in OK, but I would say of trade-ins under 90k 70% of ours were DC V6 Prerunners. In four years I saw maybe 3 DCLB 4x4s and 2 6sp 4x4 DCSBs, I don't know that I ever saw a AC 4 cylinder 5spd 4x4 come back on trade.

Dealer overhead cost to certify Toyotas is massive. Thats why these vehicles are so high, IMHO prohibit-ably high. I think given the opportunity, most Toyota dealers wouldn't certify Tacomas.

Edit:
For example I took my truck in after a year and 30k to have it appraised. They offered me 26,000, fair market value on a trade. It probably costs them 2800 to 3500 to certify if they don't find anything wrong. That means for a perfect truck, they own it for $28,800 to $29,500. I only paid $30,500 new. That makes it a mini ($50-$100 minimum commission for selling a car) for the salesman.

 

Tundra and Tacoma come out of same plant. They are focussing on Tundras new body right now. Tacomas are literally scarce right now. That is why the price is so high. Give it 6 months. (Salesman's reasoning last week)

 

Febuary-March is typically the slowest time of the year for used auto sales... ie best time to buy used.

 

I was in the same position for months! Shopping for a low mile newer Tacoma reasonable price is exhausting. I finally came across a used 13 on craigslist. Had 5k on it. The guy needed out of the payment. Which worked out well for me. I bought for 29.5. I just test drove and did numbers with the dealership a week prior for the same exact truck, I couldn't get them any lower than 33.5. I was ready to buy new though. All the numbers pointed that way.

 

Here is a lot of the skinny: For one, the Tacoma is a high demand vehicle. High demand=higher sales price, but when it comes to NEW trucks, there are limits with the competition that you have to deal with. Could they price the Tacoma at $45k? Sure. Would the SELL many of them? Probably not. Prices are set on new vehicles based on many factors. High demand, resale of used models, competition (face it, the only real production trucks like the Tacoma right now is it, and the Frontier) and marginal profit ratio.

Margin profit ratio is a HUGE factor in setting price, and is almost a guessing game based on history, and surveys. For instance, you are going to sell widgets. The market for widgets is high right now, so you plan to price them at $5000 each. However the market surveys show that only 500,000 units will sell at that price. BUT, if you price it at $4500 units, the surveys show that you will increase sales to 600,000 units. This increases your profit. So for a new Tacoma, that is how prices are set.

Used car and truck markets are an entirely new world there. High demand in that case means that they have to give more for a trade in to get the customer to trade in their Tacoma. Then after trade in the truck gets inspected, required repairs made, as well as any additional issues take care of depending on the car lot. Then the price is based on, again, what people are willing to pay. A few good points were made with this area because on average, it is easier to get a used vehicle with less-than-optimal credit than for them to get a brand new vehicle. also on average the insurance rates on an older vehicle are less than a brand new one.

Now on to individual sales choices. Why buy a used one for so little less than a new one? Many people who have been in the industry call it the Monday/Friday car. Yeah, it is funny, and it is not exactly a science, but the long haul shows true. The old saying was not to buy a car built on a Monday, because people are still hung over or thinking about the past weekend. Don't buy one built on Friday, because the workers are busy thinking about the upcoming weekend, and how they are going to spend their paycheck. What does this REALLY mean though? It means that really, regardless of WHEN it was built, most major defects in a vehicle will be vetted out within the first 2 years of it being on the road. Sure, warranty covers the repairs if an engine or transmission blow, but you still are out the time and inconvenience. If you buy one that has already seen it's 2 years and 40-50k miles, then for a Toyota, that vehicle should easily last 200k+ without the need of a major repair. I would sure love to have a brand new car or truck. It would be cool to have only 10 or 15 miles on the odometer, BUT, I only buy used, and usually about 2-3 years old.

Mind if I ask where you got your numbers for certifying a Toyota? I used to work in dealerships as well, and if there was nothing wrong with the vehicle, we never had to pay anywhere NEAR $2800-3500 to get it certified. The filing fees were less than $500.

 

Exports... There tons of Tacomas in Europe. Customs are lower on used vehicle.(different bracket). Hence global demand for usd Tacomas. But they only sold in NA.

 

I went through the same thing.

Mine was $31,980 brand new 2013.

2012 double with 21k miles was $27,499
2010 double with 45k was $25,499
2008 access with 50k was $20,499


New was the way to go

 

In the grand scheme of things, it's not that much money.
I'd rather buy new, and did, and have the peace of mind knowing the truck was not abused before I owned it, oil was changed regularly, and have the factory warranty. Not to mention it was a PITA to find a doublecab 4x4 TRD in Pyrite Mica.
Plus, you get the new car smell!
Well worth it IMO.

 

I got a great deal on mine. Bought a loaded 2010 sr5 dcsb earlier this year with 42k on it. One owner and it had been service religiously at the dealership it was purchased from every 3k miles. I had been looking for over a year and had almost decided on getting a new one for the money. Had to drive about 250 miles to get it, but I only paid 20k. The dealership it had been traded to had a weekly special and it was part of that. I jumped on it when I found it. I've already been offered 23k for it from a friend.

 

That's why they are still for sale. Just look at the classifieds on this site. Filled with trucks with crazy asking prices, which is why most just stay for sale. 06's for $20k. 08's for 22k. You'd be hard pressed to find a used 4x4 on this site listed for under $20k. The realistically priced trucks sell all the time on CL. They only last about a week. Unless you're selling a highly custom setup or novelty/collector vehicle, if it's listed for more then a couple weeks, you're probably asking too much.

I think those guys selling them for high prices could of paid too much as well. Some people are getting these trucks for 29K, fully decked out. Others are paying almost 5-7 grand more for the same truck b/c they walked in and said I'll take it without negotiating.
I've seen used DCSB OR 4x4s 2012's selling for $25k, when some people are asking that for their 08-10's.

There is a false "retaining value" on these trucks. You go to a dealership and they are asking $36 for a truck. But, as many have done, you can get it for around $30. Through my bank I believe I got quotes for under $30 for a DCSB TRD-OR 4x4. So, if $36 is the supposed asking price, then a one year old used one should book at what, $30-31. So you have a guy that over paid for a truck, now selling it a year later. He lists it at about a $5k lose for him, thinking that's a good price. Then you get the guys that bought their truck $30, and go to sell it. They book it at $30, and think, "Shit, these trucks sure do hold their value!".

Outcome being they both probably get around $28 for their truck. Guy who bought it for $36, thinks tacomas suck and they don't hold their value. Guy who bought it for $30 thinks tacomas are great and hold their value. Hence where this rumor comes from. Tacomas only hold their value if you didn't pay advertised price.

It's almost like someone purposely created this false value, so rational people will buy a new truck instead.

 

Those numbers are rough, we were large and had a separate department that handled certification and reconditioning, so we paid the certification and inspection as a lump sump to a different department with its own overhead. For $2800 I was covering filing, certification inspection, oil change (min), potentially other fluids, detail, PDR (outside contractor), touch up exterior (outside contractor), and interior touch up (outside contractor).

For a truck under 30k miles yes it it can be much cheaper.

Tacomas tend to sit outside, in Oklahoma that means some light hail comes with the territory, even on really good vehicles. Door dings, rock chips, that scratch you pocket knife leaves on the center console, things most people don't notice but the contractors find them (or don't but charge you anyway).

My point is all this adds up on a vehicle that has been driven.

 

Not that it directly applies to your situation but my $.02 is this. Not everyone likes to have a car payment or can afford a brand new truck. I have had 12 different vehicles in the last 9 years and everyone of them have been paid for with cash (with the exception of one which I paid off within 2 months). If I can't buy a vehicles with cash, generally I won't buy it. Around December of last year I realized that I needed a truck again and had been wanting a Tacoma for a while so I started my search. I had $20K cash to spend and there is no way I was taking a loan for $10k to buy new. I bought my 08 DCSB TRD off road for $17.8k in Feb and put the rest of the cash towards parts. I have easily put $4,500-5,000 into the truck already and that would not have been possible if I had a car loan.

... Everyone has their own opinion, options and priorities when it comes to purchasing.

 

It beats me. After my military and college grad rebates I actually paid less for my new 14 than some used 12s similarly equipped on the lot.