Pandemic Market: Buy or Wait

[NewRam92]

Hey everyone,

I'm new to the forum, but I've been following for a long time. I've been interested in buying a pre-owned 5th gen Ram for over a year now (took a while to convince the fiance). I don't need to buy, but the 2015 Honda Accord could use a refresh.... The plan was to finally buy in Q4 of this year... doing my research I've found that usually the best time to buy is at the end of the year. Checking the usual used car websites daily I found that you could almost always find a used Ram Limited in good condition for $45-47k (Limited, V8, 4x4, Sunroof). I always thought that was a great value for these trucks, and was looking forward to prices on 2019's dropping even more by Q4. Then COVID-19 happened....

Now, used car prices have hit an all-time high and there appears to be a lot of uncertainty on where the new/used car market is headed. Just curious if anyone else is in the same position I'm in. What are your thoughts? Are you taking the wait and see approach? Have you found great incentives to buy now? Curious about the Rebel TRX and 2021 models? Also, anyone who's bought recently, I'd love to hear your thoughts on why. What made you pull the trigger?

Thanks everyone, look forward to hearing from you!

 

[mikeru82]

I think you missed your window. A few weeks ago, dealerships couldn't move used vehicles. I read about some dealerships not taking vehicles in on trade because of that. Now, with the low stock of new vehicles, people are settling for used and dealers almost can't keep enough used cars on the lot. But I think it will change as the country moves towards getting back to normal, and new vehicles make it to dealer lots. I'd hold off for now and just stick to your original plan to look in Q4.

 

[NewRam92]

Thanks Mike, I think that's my plan for now. I would agree that I missed my window. The same used trucks now are $4-5k more than the ones I was looking at back in Feb/Mar. I just can't see myself spending that much more for the same truck, especially since I don't NEED to buy. Of course, that doesn't mean I'm not tempted... looking forward to getting into one of these eventually.

Hopefully you're right and by Q4 we're back to a "normal" market and prices cool down a little. Thanks again for the reply!

 

[Dusty1948]

I was at my dealers' today for service and while waiting I walked the lot. They only had five new DT Rams (5th gen), all Big Horns, and two had yellow sold tags on them. They did have 41 new DS Rams (4th gen) which are now called Ram Classics. All of those were Warlocks with the sheep horn grills.

There was one used DT 4x4 Crew Cab Limited, but that too had a sold tag on it. No Challengers or Chargers at all.

Now if you want a Jeep of any size or configuration, they had over 100 of them.

I think Mike gave some sound advice.

Best regards,
Dusty
2019 Ram 1500 Billet Silver Laramie Quad Cab 2WD, 5.7 Hemi, 8HP75, 3.21 axle, 33 gallon fuel tank, factory dual exhaust, 18” wheels. Build date: 03 June 2018. Now at: 037091 miles.

 

[Moparian]

Yea you definitely want to wait until the end of the year at this point.

 

[UnloosedChewtoy]

That is one of the reasons I bought new last month. I wanted a barely used 2020, or maybe late 2019, but they're very sparse up here the way I wanted them (Longhorn or Limited with a lot of options), and the few they have are only a few thousand less than brand new.

I'd either look for a new one on the lot, or wait. I dismissed the TR/TRX models as most likely going to be too expensive for me (this Limited was bad enough!), although I'm anxious to see how they turn out.

 

[Finn5033]

I leased my truck about 13 months ago, 6 months later my job changed and added 20k miles a year to my commute. So I’ve been trying to figure out the best way of getting out of my truck and into a 3rd gen ecodiesel. So I’ve been watching closely and keeping in contact with my sales guy that I leased from. He told me to wait at least until the 2021’s hit the lot. With the mileage I am racking up I have 6 months until I start going over my lease mileage. At that point I need to decide if I am going to keep my current truck and buy it, or trade out of it if I can find an Ecodiesel I like. So long story short I also am waiting and watching

 

[vdemarco]

This is an interesting Youtube channel that talks about all of this

Your Auto Advocate

First and foremost I am a father who is trying to set an example for my children, or maybe I am a father who is reveling in the examples that my children, Da...

www.youtube.com

They are pretty much saying the same as here.

 

[Dusty1948]

I leased my truck about 13 months ago, 6 months later my job changed and added 20k miles a year to my commute. So I’ve been trying to figure out the best way of getting out of my truck and into a 3rd gen ecodiesel. So I’ve been watching closely and keeping in contact with my sales guy that I leased from. He told me to wait at least until the 2021’s hit the lot. With the mileage I am racking up I have 6 months until I start going over my lease mileage. At that point I need to decide if I am going to keep my current truck and buy it, or trade out of it if I can find an Ecodiesel I like. So long story short I also am waiting and watching

Being creative.

Some years back a friend of mine found himself in the same situation on a vehicle that was in the last least year. His solution was to buy a beater car that passed state inspection for cheap (I think $800). Although he had to put a radiator in it, he claimed it was still cheaper. He ended up getting slightly more than he paid for it as a tax deduction when he was done.

Best regards,
Dusty
2019 Ram 1500 Billet Silver Laramie Quad Cab 2WD, 5.7 Hemi, 8HP75, 3.21 axle, 33 gallon fuel tank, factory dual exhaust, 18” wheels. Build date: 03 June 2018. Now at: 037108 miles.

 

[Finn5033]

Being creative.

Some years back a friend of mine found himself in the same situation on a vehicle that was in the last least year. His solution was to buy a beater car that passed state inspection for cheap (I think $800). Although he had to put a radiator in it, he claimed it was still cheaper. He ended up getting slightly more than he paid for it as a tax deduction when he was done.

Best regards,
Dusty
2019 Ram 1500 Billet Silver Laramie Quad Cab 2WD, 5.7 Hemi, 8HP75, 3.21 axle, 33 gallon fuel tank, factory dual exhaust, 18” wheels. Build date: 03 June 2018. Now at: 037108 miles.

funny you said that, after my job change I bought a 2009 Prius for $2,800 that I drove for the last 7 months. Decided I wanted to drive the truck so just started driving it again. That’s why I have 6 months to decide what to do.

 

[SpeedyV]

Being creative.

Some years back a friend of mine found himself in the same situation on a vehicle that was in the last least year. His solution was to buy a beater car that passed state inspection for cheap (I think $800). Although he had to put a radiator in it, he claimed it was still cheaper. He ended up getting slightly more than he paid for it as a tax deduction when he was done.

Best regards,
Dusty
2019 Ram 1500 Billet Silver Laramie Quad Cab 2WD, 5.7 Hemi, 8HP75, 3.21 axle, 33 gallon fuel tank, factory dual exhaust, 18” wheels. Build date: 03 June 2018. Now at: 037108 miles.

In a similar fashion, I once bought a Corolla from a MINI salesman (privately) for $750, put maybe 30K miles on it while finishing grad school, and then traded it in to the same salesman for $500 (when ordering a Cooper S). That was a reasonable “rental”, even after putting on a tiny set of tires

 

[hoodac78]

I can speak from both sides of the coin here. I sold my previous vehicle for almost the full asking price after two parties got into a bidding war over it. Of course, it was awesome for me because I got what I wanted for my truck. I sold it to a dealership a few hours away and when the drivers came to give me the cheque and pick it up, I overheard them saying that the truck was already spoken for...wasn't even going on the lot. Seems to be a high demand for used trucks.
When I went to purchase my Ram, I was looking for a used 2019 Limited that didn't have a lot of miles on it, and I have to say that there wasn't much out there. I felt really lucky to find the one I got and be happy with the price. I wanted to get a black one again but there were none to be found with the required specs and in the price range I wanted to be in. This truck is silver, but I have to say I really like it. I was also in a bit of a time crunch as I had sold my truck and had some upcoming camping trips in the works where I needed to get that replacement ASAP. Overall though, it worked out pretty well.
I think if you are a bit patient and have the time to look and are not in a pinch, you could eventually find the truck that you are looking for.
Good luck and happy hunting!

 

[UnloosedChewtoy]

I can speak from both sides of the coin here. I sold my previous vehicle for almost the full asking price after two parties got into a bidding war over it. Of course, it was awesome for me because I got what I wanted for my truck. I sold it to a dealership a few hours away and when the drivers came to give me the cheque and pick it up, I overheard them saying that the truck was already spoken for...wasn't even going on the lot. Seems to be a high demand for used trucks.

Yup! My 2014 that I traded for my current 2020 wasn't on the lot less than a week before it was sold.

 

[thetalonguy]

Personally, I’d wait it out as long as possible. Let inventory levels rise, let manufacturers produce, and perhaps over produce, then strike.

I was fully committed in adding to the stable this year, but the situation put me back on the sidelines because I don’t NEED another car, especially working from home.

 

[Ccm12]

I was shopping for a good 4 months before buying last month. Dealers would tell me that used cars were in a high demand because they needed to move inventory through their lot - production of new vehicles had come to a crawl cause of covid so they didn’t have many new to sell and were depending on the used sales.
I ended up selling my Toyota on Craigslist in 24 hours for my asking price and bought a used 19 ram limited from a private party I found on Facebook. I think you can still find some good used deals via private parties as opposed to dealers....but you will be dealing with the headache of transferring titles on a truck that the seller most likely a lien on.....that has been a huge PIA for me and is still not full resolved.

 

[Boston]

I’m waiting until year end...

 

[Finn5033]

I traded in my 19 Hemi that I was leasing last week. I was only 13 months into a lease that I put $0 down on, and got out of it with only $800 in negative equity. The trade values on used trucks are crazy high right now. Got into my 2020 Ecodiesel for about $10,500 off MSRP. I am very happy with the entire deal.

I traded in my 19 Hemi last Tuesday. I’ve been watching the dealer site for it and it hasn’t showed up yet. I texted my salesmen and he said it sold before it even had a chance to hit the lot. They never had to put it on the website.

 

[User_3336]

Dealer in Huntsville was offering $11,000 off on a 2020 BigHorn 4x2 yesterday (well, until EOM).
4500 in dealer discounts and 6500 in rebates.

 

[OldMarine]

as an aside...what you can get for a used truck right now is crazy! Carvana offered me $46,000 for my 2019 LTD, with 26,000 miles...I bought the truck last Feb with 19,000 miles for $44K!!!! I'm not selling, but I checked it out due to another recent thread where the OP was shocked to see what he was offered for his used truck. Definitely a sellers market if you have the right truck.

 

[Horty222]

I'm in the same boat, looking to lease one but waiting for that right deal. Maybe once 2021 hit the dealers.