my 05 is 9 months old at 15,000 miles. I plan to trade her in before the warrantee is up. When is the best time value wise?

 

Well, a couple of observations:

1. The value of your car goes down every day - even a MINI;
2. You tend to put on more miles than "the books" allow (without an "excessive mileage deduction") per year - yours calculated to be about 20,000 miles/year;
3. The "new", "new" MINI should be coming out in about 15 months;
4. When the 2007 model is out, your MINI should have about 40,000 miles on the clock.

Thus, some things to think about:

1. Selling a two year old MINI with 40,000 miles in the middle of a new model introduction may take some time to accomplish;
2. Because of the projected mileage, you may be at a distinct disadvantage in the middle of a new model introduction competing will the other pre-2007 owners selling/trading-in their lower mileage MINIs;
3. You may be able to limit the loss to your trade-in value by selling it no later that about 9 months from now (Feb 06) -- you will have 30,000 miles or fewer on the clock (which, for some buyers/dealers, may be a "preferred mileage limit").

All this is speculative and a matter of opinion. Just my $0.02 -

Theo

 

Lots of factors to play with here. Depreciation is usually steepest in the first three years, so since you want to trade it in before the warrantee is up, you generally want to wait as long as possible (as the depr. curve flattens.) That would say at the four year mark. Then again, if you're thinking of trade-in at 9 months, you may want to do it sooner than that, and you can take the opposite approach and trade in as soon as possible, while it is still 'new' and in the same model and calendar year so you've traveled less distance down the depreciation curve. But the new car depreciates, too.
Other market forces include supply and demand - the longer you wait, the more Coopers on the road/market. Also depends on the success of the newer models. Is the MkI the 'classic' desireable model in year X, or like last year's paper?
The biggest factor is - what do you trade it in for? Will just any car do, or do you need something special (i.e. MkII Cooper.) Then availability of what you want is a bigger factor.

Bottom line (IMO), there is never a 'value' time to trade in a car. You're gonna get screwed. The dealer is providing a service that many people are willing to pay thousands for - moving your old car. For that, they get, uh, thousands. Even when used Coopers were going for more than new, a dealer would still acquire used cars at a significant discount. If you're willing to sell it yourself, you'll get more, but it may not be worth the hassle, and depending where you are, you may be able to pay sales tax on the net transaction, making a trade-in less undesireable.

 

The only "value wise" thing to do with any car is to keep it until it's totally worn out. Hopefully, that would be something in excess of 10 years and 200,000 miles.

Trading a car in to save money is a losing proposition. On the other hand, if you just want a new car I'd wait and see what the reception is of the 07 models. It's possible your car could become worth more when folks find out the new 07 MINI has a French motor.

 

Actually my last 2 cars (mine & my wifes) we kept for 11 & 12 years with each hitting 200,000miles. My reason for trading in the mini so soon is a fear of the cost of ownership. At $300 a tire, $1100 for a windshield, $200 an oil change and a limited number of people who can work on bmw/minis I think it would be cost effective to get a new mini every year 1/2 to 2 yrs.

 

Great tires from the Tire Rack for around $100. Independent shop should be able to replace the windshield for around $300....but if you have the common $100 deductible comprehesive insurance it'll only cost you $100. Do the oil change yourself for about $30.

It is true that so far the MINI has held it's resale value very well, so you might take less of a beating by trading every 1.5 to 2 years, but it will be a beating still. Even getting an extended warranty, which I never do, would be a lot cheaper than frequent trades.

There is only one good reason to frequently trade cars......you want to drive a new car. Nothing wrong with that but don't expect to save money with this approach.

 

2004 MCS with 17100 miles

Picked up: Sept 2003
Traded: March 2005 (to get convertible)
Sticker: 22,495
Trade in: 20,000

I thought this was quite decent. Also I am saving 1,200 in sales tax since in NJ you only pay on the amount not covered by trade in. Convertible cost me approx 30 @ 6% state sales tax.

 

Milage?

 

2002 MCS

Picked up: August 2002
Traded: December 2004 (38,000 Miles) for 05 S
Sticker: $22,300
Trade: $17,500

I had MINI Select on the first one and the trade paid off my loan. I traded to get the color combo I wanted, the improvments of the 05, and a new car with new warrenty. My 02 was hit/repaired 3 times which made the trade lower than normal. I plan on keeping the 05 for longer than 2 years.

 

I supposed the 20k trade I got for my 04 MCS with 17100 miles wasn't that good then???

 

I owned a 2004 MCS (Bought new) from October 2003 until sold early February 2005 (16 months give or take). Car had 17K miles at time of sale.

Fairly lightly equipped car from factory too:

H/K
Front Fogs
MFSW
Manual A/C
ASC+T (No DSC)
No Sunroof
Leatherette
16" Runflats with V-Spokes
OBC

No Premium, sport or cold packages. Chili Red/White, UJ flag, chrome mirror caps and chrome grille. Kept bone stock with zero mechanical mods.

Bought new for $21,300 (Sticker which I still have in my files)
Sold privately for $21,900 cash.

Made $700 on the car!

Bear in mind my experience may differ from yours, but these cars generally have very strong resale values and if someone is willing to pay top dollar for yours, they will.

Factors that aid the sale:

1) Car was factory stock. Unless a buyer is looking for specific mods, most seem to be attracted to "Virgin" cars as they left the assembly line.

2) Pristine condition. My car was a daily driver but I took care of it. Zaino, frequent washing, etc

3) Balance of factory warranty. The car still had over 2 years left in the warranty. THIS WAS A BIG SELLING FACTOR.

4) The warranty plus a neat folder with all dealer service records inspired confidence in the purchase. Car was strictly dealer serviced.

5) Car was never raced or Autocrossed. I have nothing against motorsports, simply is one of those activities I enjoy watching but for financial, personal and safety reasons I rather not get involved.

The new buyer didn't even test drove the car. Money was exchanged, papers/title signed over and keys handed to new owner. This was in less than 24 hours after the interested party responded to the ad.

If you modify your MINI with aftermarket parts and race it, don't expect to get top dollar for it. If you are the type of individual that is going to be trading/selling every 3-4 years, keep your car stock/street for maximum outgoing price. If you want to keep it for ever, then do as you please with it!

Ninja, in your case you may also consider obtaining an extended warranty from a reputable company. I believe there is a dedicated forum here in NAM for that specific purpose. Given your high mileage driving habits, you are not a good candidate for leasing, but if you do want to get your money's worth, try to keep the car for as long as you can.

I do not recommend keeping any present day vehicle without some sort of extended warranty. Today's cars are complex and expensive to repair. Extended warranties are cheap insurance IMHO.

The excellent resale values of the MINI allow owners to do crazy things such as trading a car every year and not losing your shirt while doing it, but it remains to be seen for how many more years the used car market will continue to bear the high MINI resale values. I hope the trend continues for a long time.

 

It was OK for a trade in, but you handed free money to your dealership by not selling it yourself.

My dealer offered me $18.5 for my '04 MCS back In January but I sold the car privately for $21.9. I made $3,400 instantly by selling it privately Why would you want to give your hard earned money to the dealer for free?

Sadly, the "Convenience" of trading in is a very expensive one. This is an area where dealers make most of their profits. Put money in your pocket, not theirs!

 

The only reason I traded in was my savings of 1,200 in sales tax - net effect was trade in was 21,200 - and I paid 22,490 or so for the car (car costing me 800 in 2 years was not bad). Also I was tracking equivalent Cooper S sales on ebay and they were going right at approx 20...

 

Ahhh, OK, then it seems to me you came ahead. Typically, one rarely benefits from a trade-in but it seems your experience was the exception to the rule.