Has anyone here tried to trade their G6 and found that it is worth nearly nothing? I went to trade a 2006 V6 which stickered at $22,600. I had 9k miles on it and 3 dealers offered $12,000-13,000 and one said $15,000.

The weird thing is.....a 2005 with the same options and mileage is worth at least $15,000 according to KBB and NADA. I would be curious to hear what 2005 owners are getting on their trades.

FYI - I was looking to trade up to a GTP.

Yep, that's American cars for ya.

Mike

I've talked with 5 dealerships, the most I've been offered was $16500 for a 2005 G6 GT with 7000 miles on it. The lowest offer was $15000. This red tag sale and all the rebates are killing those of us that already own a G6. My sticker price was $27500. I had also heard somewhere that GM was lowering the price on the G6 in 2006. Could be a rumor though. From what I've read from other posts, you just got to get to the right dealership, which I have not found in Tennessee. :rolleyes:

I could be wrong, but I don't think the trade-in deficit stops at the G.

Actually, I know it doesn't. When I traded for the G in August I got beat by a couple thousand by what "the books" say I should've gotten.

Like someone else posted - with car makers dropping the prices, whether it be red-tag, employee pricing, whatever, trades values fall as well.

Offered between 15 and 17K at various times/places. Most recently was 15,500.00.

Buyout is 20K now..so I have a long ways to go.

Well, with this Red Tag sale going on, a brand new G6 V6 with nothing but standard options goes for 17,561 in comparison to the 20,000 something they wanted without rebates or incentives.

Might have to bite the bullet on this one a little bit, sadly.

Granted I only paid $19,495 + tax for the V6 model with side airbags, remotestart, abs/tc, and spoiler as options. I still think it should be worth more than $15,000 after 5 months.

your average joe that doesn't get GMS pricing would be tickeled to pick up a slightly used car at $18,000 when the new one stickers at 22K+.

My dealer told me that 60% of their customers qualify for GMS. That leaves 40% that have to pay sticker and they tell me they can't move slightly used cars that are $4000 under MSRP before taxes.

Oh well.....like you all have said...that red tag F's everything up :mad:

$19,495 + tax for the V6 model with side airbags, remotestart, abs/tc, and spoiler as options.

Try
$24,000 + tax for the V6 Model with Remote start.

That trade in value hurts everyone..just not equally. :(

$19,495 + tax for the V6 model with side airbags, remotestart, abs/tc, and spoiler as options.

Try
$24,000 + tax for the V6 Model with Remote start.

That trade in value hurts everyone..just not equally. :(

:eek: You could have bought a base GTP at that price!
I feel your pain :mad:

unfortunately a car loses value as soon as you sign the papers. The reasoning is you have use of the car for a certain lenght of time. My friends 05 acura (37500 plus tax) can be traded for 29000 (blue book) which means dealer about 27000 or so. My 05 GT with 5555 miles on it I got 18000 for a trade for a 06 GTP. you never come out even or make money-the deal is --how much are you wiling to lose to et a newer car!!

Well, why not just sell the car to someone for a price closer to what you're looking for? I could do this if I wanted to, even on a Smartbuy.

Mike

The trouble is I have to con someone into giving me at least enough to dig out from under the negative equity. That amount would be for a used car with miles at a price close to what they could buy a brand new one for off the lot. Not an easy feat. :(

true.

Mike

The issue is the deals that are out there. I picked up a leftover 05 G6 GT that stickered for about $25,500 for $16,700 brand new ($19,500 for the car-$800 GM card rebate points-$2000 Special finance offer I got in the mail from GMAC). The finance offer was for GM to make the first two payments up to $1000 each. How it played out was I took a 12 month loan for $12000. I got the first statement and GM deducted the $2000 from it. I then sent a check for the balance (I did have $38 in interest for the first month.

I picked up my car the day after thanksgiving. A local dealer is now offering the identical 05 GT for $18,995 which is below cost to move it.

The sticker on my '06 GTP sedan was $29,855. I bought it in September. I desperately wanted a Charger or Mustang, so I went to 4 different dealerships, and the highest anyone would go on the trade was $18,000. So, in less than three months (and only 2,500 miles) the car lost nearly $12,000 in value. Some places were only offering me $15K on the trade. Granted, I payed about $4,000 less than sticker, but thats still adds up to almost a 40% loss of value in a few short months.

Luckily I owe $13,700, so I'm not upside down. I just thought I'd be farther in the black than I am.

Abysmal.

Yeah everyone talks about how much you lose when you drive off a new vehicle off the lot..but its nowhere near what we have lost.

guys-you have to figure how much you paid out of pocket-not what you paid for car-that only applies if you paid cash - i got 18000 for the 05 g6 gt with a high interest loan - i got the 06 g6 gtp with the red tag sale - taking my downpayment-each loan payment -less trade an loan rate of 3.9% i will lose about 1500 total at end of new loan--but i got a 06 gtp

Yeah everyone talks about how much you lose when you drive off a new vehicle off the lot..but its nowhere near what we have lost.


AMEN!! :)

The sticker on my '06 GTP sedan was $29,855. I bought it in September. I desperately wanted a Charger or Mustang, so I went to 4 different dealerships, and the highest anyone would go on the trade was $18,000. So, in less than three months (and only 2,500 miles) the car lost nearly $12,000 in value. Some places were only offering me $15K on the trade. Granted, I payed about $4,000 less than sticker, but thats still adds up to almost a 40% loss of value in a few short months.

Luckily I owe $13,700, so I'm not upside down. I just thought I'd be farther in the black than I am.

Abysmal.


You can pretty much expect to lose 35-40% of your hard earned money just for the opportunity of "owning" a G6 for less than 6mo. Even if you bought it and never drove it off the lot....they don't want that sucker back.

I would be interested to see what an insurance co. would pay if the car were totaled shortly after purchase. My guess is that you would get just enough back to buy a cobalt or something similar.

You can pretty much expect to lose 35-40% of your hard earned money just for the opportunity of "owning" a G6 for less than 6mo. Even if you bought it and never drove it off the lot....they don't want that sucker back.

I would be interested to see what an insurance co. would pay if the car were totaled shortly after purchase. My guess is that you would get just enough back to buy a cobalt or something similar.

Thats why gap insurance is almost a must on any car today unless you have a significant down payment.

Exactly!

Thats why gap insurance is almost a must on any car today unless you have a significant down payment.

Not all gap insurnace will pay off what you owe. Some only pay 25% over what the car is valued at. So say your car was worth $12,000 and you owed $16,000 they would only give you $15,000. I know thats how mine works but its never been a concern since I don't owe a lot.

Not all gap insurnace will pay off what you owe. Some only pay 25% over what the car is valued at. So say your car was worth $12,000 and you owed $16,000 they would only give you $15,000. I know thats how mine works but its never been a concern since I don't owe a lot.
the way i understand gap insurance is they pay the difference between what the insurance company gives you and the price of car--thats the way it was explained to me (GMAC Gap)

They're giving you wholesale pure and simple. Why does a dealer want back a practically brand new car.

Here's what's going to happen. You trade in your 06 and it's used. Someone has to finance that as a used car. The % in interest paid on a used car 99% of the time is higher than what is paid on a new car.

So I as a customer go into the dealer, and see a used 06 and a new 06. The salesment tells me I can get the new 06 cheaper than the used one. I'm buying the new one!

You guys gotta think :)

They're giving you wholesale pure and simple. Why does a dealer want back a practically brand new car.

Here's what's going to happen. You trade in your 06 and it's used. Someone has to finance that as a used car. The % in interest paid on a used car 99% of the time is higher than what is paid on a new car.

So I as a customer go into the dealer, and see a used 06 and a new 06. The salesment tells me I can get the new 06 cheaper than the used one. I'm buying the new one!

You guys gotta think :)

I guess it all depends on the buyers credit. I usually can get used car rates the same as new car rates. These days thats around 4.8%.

So I as a customer go into the dealer, and see a used 06 and a new 06. The salesment tells me I can get the new 06 cheaper than the used one. I'm buying the new one!

This has been my complaint the whole time. We can't get anything for our G6 trade's b/c they're selling the leftover 05's and 06's so cheap. Oh if I could turn back time! :rolleyes:

This has been my complaint the whole time. We can't get anything for our G6 trade's b/c they're selling the leftover 05's and 06's so cheap. Oh if I could turn back time! :rolleyes:

That is how I bought my 2004 Bonneville. Purchased it on Jan 2005 and paid $21,000 for it with chrome wheels, leather and 63 miles. MSRP was $30,000 or so. Taking a beating on the G6 though :mad:

The G6's reasle doesn't seem to be much worse than any other midsize FWD American sedan. You just have to drive them until they die to get your money's worth.

yesterday i experienced first hand what you guys have been talking about.

went on-line and found an '06 GTP that i liked at another dealership, not the one i purchased my GT from. i contacted them by email to see if the car was still there before driving 20 miles.

the internet sales person told me it was and asked if i had a trade. i described my car and told him what i wanted for it. he told me thats great because they really need USED G6's and are willing to pay for them. so he told me to come on by and he was sure we could work out a deal.

so, later that same day after driving 20 miles, i arrived at the dealership. the person i had been dealing with on-line had taken rest of the day off, so i was 'handed off' to another sales person. she told me that the car i had described had been sold a few days ago, which really pissed me off. she said that they would try to locate me a similiar vehicle at another dealership and dealer-trade for it. so i calmed down and said 'lets go for it'. then they appraised my GT. YEA, RIGHT!!!

they came back with only wanting to give me $15,500 for my GT that listed for over $28K just a few months ago. when i told her i needed much more than that, she said 'why would we put $20K in your USED G6 when i can sell a BRAND NEW G6 GT for the same price?

exactly my point.......thanks, GM!!!! seems that once again you have not only found a way to 'screw us' when we BUY your cars but also 'screw us' AFTER THE SALE as well!!! :frown: (hummmm, i should have bought the Accord as i had intended to)

they came back with only wanting to give me $15,500 for my GT that listed for over $28K just a few months ago. when i told her i needed much more than that, she said 'why would we put $20K in your USED G6 when i can sell a BRAND NEW G6 GT for the same price?


I was told the same thing when I traded. I argued and argued, then my husband took over. :rolleyes:

Just curious... has anyone tried to go trade in their honda a few months after buying it new? I'm quite sure you will see that the loss in value is pretty darn close to that of the G6.
You guys make it sound like the G6 is the only car in the world that loses value after you buy it brand new.

I had some extra time on my hands at work, so I did a comparison at kbb to see the actual difference in the Accord and G6. I made everything equal on both cars and marked both in good condition (which we know the dealers don't take that into consideration) and here's what I came up with:

2005 Honda Accord LX sedan - 10,000 miles = $17,750
2005 Pontiac G6 GT sedan - 10,000 miles = $15,595

$2155 difference - turns into $20-$40 difference in payment
Doesn't seem like that big of a difference until you put it into a payment method.

I may be wrong, but I think the complaint is not that the car has lost value, but the fact that it has lost so much value. It's not that big of a loss for those people that got a G6 during Red Tag or now, but for those of us that jumped on the G6 bandwagon in late 2004 and early 2005 got screwed. :o

just wait..heard GM is going to be knocking off up to 2500.00 off of 80% of its new vehicles starting soon. You 06 owners are going to feel the pain a bit too it looks like.

yesterday i experienced first hand what you guys have been talking about.

went on-line and found an '06 GTP that i liked at another dealership, not the one i purchased my GT from. i contacted them by email to see if the car was still there before driving 20 miles.

the internet sales person told me it was and asked if i had a trade. i described my car and told him what i wanted for it. he told me thats great because they really need USED G6's and are willing to pay for them. so he told me to come on by and he was sure we could work out a deal.

so, later that same day after driving 20 miles, i arrived at the dealership. the person i had been dealing with on-line had taken rest of the day off, so i was 'handed off' to another sales person. she told me that the car i had described had been sold a few days ago, which really pissed me off. she said that they would try to locate me a similiar vehicle at another dealership and dealer-trade for it. so i calmed down and said 'lets go for it'. then they appraised my GT. YEA, RIGHT!!!

they came back with only wanting to give me $15,500 for my GT that listed for over $28K just a few months ago. when i told her i needed much more than that, she said 'why would we put $20K in your USED G6 when i can sell a BRAND NEW G6 GT for the same price?

exactly my point.......thanks, GM!!!! seems that once again you have not only found a way to 'screw us' when we BUY your cars but also 'screw us' AFTER THE SALE as well!!! :frown: (hummmm, i should have bought the Accord as i had intended to)


Of course they want your used car. For a very good reason. They make much more on the sale of a used car than a new. I could get into all the numbers but suffice it to say the profit is nearly doubled. Plus if they're selling you a new car they're making money there too.

For the record it's not "GM's" fault. It's going to happen with any brand. You spend the 1st year of payments paying the value that's lost driving it off the lot.

The average car decreases 20% in value the second you drive it off the lot. If you finance it for 5 years, you spend the 1st year paying that 20% loss.

Oh, and if you want to blame anyone, blame the dealership, they're the ones trying to make money. All the tie they really have to GM is CSI ratings and ability to sell the brand. GM also pays them for warranty repair. Much like cell phone stores operate independantly and are not "Corporate Locations" car dealerships are the same way. It's basically for lack of a better term a franchise.

2005 Pontiac G6 GT sedan - 10,000 miles = $15,595


Take that GT to a dealer and watch that price fall to around $13,000 maybe less. Most dealers wont even entertain the KBB values.

I went to Joseph Pontiac which is probably the largest Pontiac dealer in michigan and they told me my 2006 G6 was worth $12,000 - 13,000 with only 9000 miles on it. According to the dealer they can't unload them used.
I can tell you for sure that if I went to the dealer and found a 2006 G6 V6 used with 9000 miles for say $16,500 I would be all over it. Less tax to pay and smaller loan.....sign me up.

Take that GT to a dealer and watch that price fall to around $13,000 maybe less. Most dealers wont even entertain the KBB values.

I went to Joseph Pontiac which is probably the largest Pontiac dealer in michigan and they told me my 2006 G6 was worth $12,000 - 13,000 with only 9000 miles on it. According to the dealer they can't unload them used.
I can tell you for sure that if I went to the dealer and found a 2006 G6 V6 used with 9000 miles for say $16,500 I would be all over it. Less tax to pay and smaller loan.....sign me up.

Already have. After spending 8 hours at a dealership this past Saturday we finally made a deal, but not without me getting mad and my husband having to take over. They started out offereing me $12,000, then they took the rebates off the car I was looking at and offered me $14,000, I think my husband finally agreed after they offered $16,000, mine only had 8,000 miles on it and it was a GT. :mad:

I've been told they sell for about $19,000 brand new, but I have yet to see it. I was also told by a smaller dealership that they could only offer $14,000 because the had to go with the surrounding, very small town. So, I went to Nashville (MUCH LARGER TOWN) and well you can see what happened above, still tried to cheat me. I realize they have to make money, but I was at a dealership that sells by volume, so I didn't expect to have to hang out there for 8 hours. Oh well, it all worked out and I'm much happier now. :rolleyes:

http://cgi.josephautogroup.com/listdb.html?showrecord=354
Cheapest GT I've seen in a 2006 model. A 2005 GT might be going around $19,000 just to get it off the lot.

Early G6 buyers lost over 30% the first year.. its hard to explain those numbers to someone. If you can I am all ears.

Early G6 buyers lost over 30% the first year.. its hard to explain those numbers to someone. If you can I am all ears.

Early G6 buyers are not the only ones. I just purchased mine June 28th 2005 and as of December 2005 the most I could get was $15,000 on trade which is about a 27% loss. :eek:

Ouch... I tried to trade in July and was offered 15,000... that was 35% less in ~ 8 months. :( We almost need a support group for this... lol

Why did you all buy the car if you planned on selling it after just a year? If you want to get rid of a car quickly the last thing you do is buy it!

It wasn't planned to dump the car this soon.. its current track record and performance are unacceptable to me. Most people can come up with a few thousand dollars to pull themselves out of a car they don't like... but who can cough up 5+ ? I literally need a minimum of 3 grand just to get into something else (but I will end up with a bigger car payment as a result). I apologize but I feel extremely burned here.. if the car isn't worth more than 15 grand with a few thousand miles on it..why did they charge me 23K + ?

Why did you all buy the car if you planned on selling it after just a year? If you want to get rid of a car quickly the last thing you do is buy it!

I was going to upgrade to a GTP after hearing about all the powersteering issues. I bought two cars from my local dealer this year and refered someone to my sales rep that bought a car and they wanted me to bend over and poke me in the rear when it came to trade value. I guess it didnt' help that I screwed the used car manager out of $500 on my first purchase :cool:

I was told the same thing when I traded. I argued and argued, then my husband took over. :rolleyes:

so, did he carry a big baseball bat with him or what? :eek:

Why did you all buy the car if you planned on selling it after just a year? If you want to get rid of a car quickly the last thing you do is buy it!

i'm with some of the others....i certainly didn't PLAN to be trading so soon, its just with all the EPS issues, i decided i would rather have the GTP. but i guess i'll just keep my GT until i either pay it off or it kills me, which ever comes first!!! :eek:

just wait..heard GM is going to be knocking off up to 2500.00 off of 80% of its new vehicles starting soon. You 06 owners are going to feel the pain a bit too it looks like.

Wonder if they will drop the incentives once the price drop starts.
Guess it doesn't really matter to me anymore....I'm going to be holding on to my G6 for a while. Just bought a plasma screen and leather recliner for my wife. :D

haha.. yeah looks like the incentives are going bye bye. :( Not really much hope for me since the loan value will probably drop as well. Not much room for people like me to wiggle out.

so, did he carry a big baseball bat with him or what? :eek:

We actual worked with the Internet Manager and the Salesperson b/c the Salesperson was new. Internet Manager was a pain in the, well you know. He was very rude and my husband is a pretty big guy and sold cars in his younger days, so he was able to carry on with the Internet Manager better than I was. As for the Salesperson, he was awesome!! He was an older man that had served in the Vietnam War and had also served in Iraq, so therefore he didn't have to work, he was doing it b/c he wanted to. So there was no chance he was going to tear us apart. At one point while they were working numbers the Salesperson told the IM he was real close to getting spanked b/c he was about his sons age. :D We ended up with an OK deal with my negative equity, plus a gas card, an extra alarm system, an extra warranty (Non-Limited - will fix wear and tear up to 56,000 miles), some special cleaning products, free ding repair for 3 years, and a gift certificate to Cracker Barrel. The extra warranty and the food pleased my husband. :D
And a new friend, Everette, the salesperson. :)

Apologies if someone already mentioned this, but I have had good luck taking cars to CarMax to sell. If you just want to get rid of the car, they might be your best bet. Or use the CarMax offer as leverage at whatever dealership you go to.

And it's not just American cars that suffer big value drops. My '05 Lexus IS wagon dropped almost 5 grand within 9 months and 3 thousand miles, and that's not counting that I got the car for 4k less than sticker. Plus the problem is the G6 is an affordable FWD 4 or 6 cylinder coupe/sedan. Kinda hard to give a lot of trade in value to a type of car that the market is saturated with.

Plus the problem is the G6 is an affordable FWD 4 or 6 cylinder coupe/sedan. Kinda hard to give a lot of trade in value to a type of car that the market is saturated with.
Exactly!

My local dealer is blowing out their last 05 G6GT for $18,995. It is identical to the car I bought the day after thanksgiving including the Fusion Orange color.

I purchased my car for $19,500 but I also had a promotion coupon from GMAC that entitled me to having my first two payments paid by GMAC up to $1000 each (2K total). I took out a twelve month loan for $12,000. When my first statement arrived GMAC immediately credited me $2000. I sent GMAC a check for the balance which was $10038 (There a small interest charge for the short time I had the loan). With this discount and $800 in GM credit card points I paid $16,700 for a new car that stickered for over $25,500. I figure there is no way I will get burned on this car at trade time.

My local dealer is blowing out their last 05 G6GT for $18,995. It is identical to the car I bought the day after thanksgiving including the Fusion Orange color.

I purchased my car for $19,500 but I also had a promotion coupon from GMAC that entitled me to having my first two payments paid by GMAC up to $1000 each (2K total). I took out a twelve month loan for $12,000. When my first statement arrived GMAC immediately credited me $2000. I sent GMAC a check for the balance which was $10038 (There a small interest charge for the short time I had the loan). With this discount and $800 in GM credit card points I paid $16,700 for a new car that stickered for over $25,500. I figure there is no way I will get burned on this car at trade time.

Sounds like you did well!! :)

yeah he did... thats awesome.

It looks like GM lowered the sticker price of the G6, but they also lowered the rebate to $500. It looks to me like the net cost is about the same.

A GTP coupe for under 23 grand is pretty apealing.

A GTP coupe for under 23 grand is pretty apealing.

Mine was under 23 grand. It was more like 16,800(18" wheels,xm, sun roof, better stereo,power adjustable pedals, side air bags) . If you are wondering how so cheap the answer is a dealer auction. I like to revive semi-old threads. once i revived a thread that was 2 years old on a forum and i had posted on when it was active.

All I got for mine was $14,954.00 and that was with everything I added to it. At first the dealer wanted to give trade in value which was $12k.

All I got for mine was $14,954.00 and that was with everything I added to it. At first the dealer wanted to give trade in value which was $12k.
I thought you said you got 17k for it when you traded it in for the aztek you didn't get the same deal for the boniville? but yeah i still love my g6 and doubt i will sell it in the near future.

I thought you said you got 17k for it when you traded it in for the aztek you didn't get the same deal for the boniville? but yeah i still love my g6 and doubt i will sell it in the near future.

Different dealers. I was all ready to buy the Aztek from a Nissan dealer, then drove by a Chevy dealer and saw the Bonneville. It was a local trade, the previous owner lives 5 minutes down the road. It was on the lot for less than 24 hours before I bought it, and I'm glad I did, supercharged Bonneville's and Grand Prix's don't last long at dealerships around here. Yes, they gave my $2k less than the other dealer for my trade, but it was worth it. The salesman told me that I was the 4th person in the last month to trade in a basicly brand new G6. Their not reselling them either. They send them straight to rental car fleets or a huge auction house in Pennsylvania.

I have noticed that Joseph Pontiac in MI has three 2006 G6 GTP coupes on the lot with less than 5000 miles and they are listed at $19,900. I guess they are so ugly people are trading them in early :p

Funny thing is, they have a 2006 G6 V6 sedan with 16,875 miles for $18,900.
Here they are if you're interested.

EDIT: they changed the links...disregard below!

(Red) 2006 G6 GTP Coupe - 4815 miles $19,900 (http://cgi.josephautogroup.com/listdb.html?showrecord=564&used=yes&biglot=yes)

(Green) 2006 G6 GTP Coupe - 3856 miles $19,900 (http://cgi.josephautogroup.com/listdb.html?showrecord=567&used=yes&biglot=yes)

(Black) 2006 G6 GTP Coupe - 3549 miles $19,900 (http://cgi.josephautogroup.com/listdb.html?showrecord=568&used=yes&biglot=yes)

(Silver) 2006 G6 V6 Sedan - 16,875 miles $18,900 (http://cgi.josephautogroup.com/listdb.html?showrecord=515&used=yes&biglot=yes)

FYI:
After read this thread, I contacted a local guy in Austin TX to see what kind of trade in value my '06 G6 GT could bring in right now. I had no idea G6s were dropping so rapidly in value. This was what he had to say:

"We made several calls on your Pontiac and the dealers were telling me $13-$15k and they really didn't want the car. We also own a used car dealership and I can generally get more money for trades because we try to retail out of them to maximize the value we can give our customers. My used car manager appraised your trade anywhere from $16,500 to $17,500... "

Good lord...I just bought it 8 months ago and it's already down to $13-15K? I know cars aren't investments but I honestly didn't expect the value to drop so rapidly. It looks like it's going to be quite some time before I'm right side up in my payments again.

And I thought I got a good deal...psshhh. :P

I bought this car in Feb., MSRP was $28,700, I paid $26k, and the payoff on my loan right now is $22K. I went to a dealership looking to trade in the car and they offered me $18K. I was absolutely floored. I'm still looking for another dealer to give me what I want for the car, which if I'm lucky would be the payoff amount on my loan. Right now Im looking for a Mazda3, the car I was gonna buy before some mystic force turned me towards the G6.

The G6 has already had three trips to the dealer, one for a ground wire that wasn't connected properly to the tranny, causing stalling and start-up issues. I've also been to the dealer twice regarding a pesky check engine light. They keep telling me that my gas cap isn't making a good seal thus emitting vapors into the air... and yes, I am screwing the cap on properly ;)

And speaking of gas, my MPG is awful, I'm filling up every four days. With these gas prices it's not fun, another reason I'm leaning towards a 4-banger. This in part is my own stupidity, I knew I wouldn't be getting that great of MPG, just didn't think it would be this bad.

I'm not trying to knock the G6, I know every car has problems. It's just very frustrating considering I purchased this vehicle in Feb. 2006. I don't want what's going on now to be just the tip of the iceburg.

Strikes me as odd, despite prices, why anyone would seek to trade in a car that is barely broken in!
Everybody should know the huge depreciation anywhere in the first year of ownership (and believe me that applies to EVERY brand!!) Hell, I traded in a loaded 1970 Olds 442 in 1971 and got only $2000.00 for a list price of $5,200.00 in 1970!
Moral drive the thing, enjoy it and after three or four years go sell/trade/lease another car. That way you will have no dose of sticker price shock.
GTP driver

Strikes me as odd, despite prices, why anyone would seek to trade in a car that is barely broken in!
Everybody should know the huge depreciation anywhere in the first year of ownership (and believe me that applies to EVERY brand!!) Hell, I traded in a loaded 1970 Olds 442 in 1971 and got only $2000.00 for a list price of $5,200.00 in 1970!
Moral drive the thing, enjoy it and after three or four years go sell/trade/lease another car. That way you will have no dose of sticker price shock.
GTP driver

I researched trade in values on other 2006 vehicles and found the G6 to be the worst BY FAR. I realize there is depreciation with every car, but $10K in a four months is absolutely ludicrous. In my mind, they are basically saying the car isn't worth anything close to the $28K MSRP that they had on the 2006 GTP models.

As far as why I want to trade it in... basically, I thought I was buying the right car, and I didn't. My bad, I messed up. I should have done more research perhaps, or made sure I was buying the right vehicle. But it doesn't hide the fact that $10K in depreciation over 4 months is a flat out joke.

^ You are also trying to sell it to a dealer, thats the best way to get the least amount of money out of a car. Sell it privately, I bet you could get another 2 grand out of it.

Most domestic cars don't flare well in trade-in values to begin with. Furthermore, aggressive new car pricing and marketing by the manufacturer erode the trade-in value even more.
A typical new car will depreciate around 15% - 30% in the first year. The shorter the time you own the car, the higher the depreciation. Buyers are also suspicious why someone would want to get rid of a practically brand new car in such a short time.
In your case, the amount the dealer offered you is ridiculous (as usual). I would sell it myself privately and can expect to get a few thousands more.

I didn't realize we were talking such a high rate of depreciation on G6's. I'm glad that (a) mine has so far been an excellent buy and (b) that my lease has four more years to run. Having to deal with those kinds of reductions would be too much of a shock. Who knows what the car will be worth in four years but thank goodness that on a lease I don't really have to worry.
GTPdriver

Yikes, a 30% loss in four months is depressing as hell. I wonder if it's as bad for low-end G6s. Has anyone tried to trade in a Value Leader? How'd you do?

Yikes, a 30% loss in four months is depressing as hell. I wonder if it's as bad for low-end G6s. Has anyone tried to trade in a Value Leader? How'd you do?

Last fall after I had my 2006 V6 (ABS/TC, spoiler, side airbags, power pedals) for about 3 months and 9000 miles on it I got a trade value of $15,000 from the dealer I purchased it from and $12-13,000 from another dealer 20 miles away.
I paid roughly $19,500 before tax.
I did a KBB on my car the other day which now has 20,000 miles on it and its still worth $14,875 on trade-in listed in excellent cond.

So as you can see....thats close to a 25%

Depreciation is always the worst in the first few years. It's bad with all cars.

I won a Corvette a few years back on a game show. I was already leasing a Grand Am and I don't drive stick... Anyway, I tried to sell that thing and the best offer I got was $37,500 from a dealer for a car that was stickered at $51,000. And worst of all, I never even drove it off the lot. It had 20 miles on it and was transferred from dealer to dealer on a flatbed.

So once you sign the papers, price drops, regardless!

I don't plan on buying a new G6 until mine is paid off. I plan to have it paid off by mid 2009 and will be saving up to buy a new one probably around 2011. I love my GT Coupe and plan on buying the same thing for my next car.

Maybe gm is just goin down the shitter like everyone always said that they would. Or maybe because they lost like 39 billion just last week! I dont know just speculating!!:eek:

IF it depreciates - Lease! I just got my 08 GXP Sedan - $29,500 sticker for 3 years at $353/mo. with no money down! - I would lose more than the payments total if I bought it and then traded it in 3 years from now. Unless the dealer discount the MSRP 15% or more it isn't worth buying outright! IMO

I tried to trade my 06 G6 around july and was getting barely $11k. Needless to say I just kept the car. At the time it had around 25k miles, which is average. And mind you I do have a 4 cylinder, but it's better on gas and with the way gas prices are you would think people would jump on it. I also have it fully loaded including the remote start and adjustable pedals. I tried to sell it outright myself and had it advertised for at least 6 months with no bites. I was asking anywhere from $14,500 to $15,500 which I thought was a great price compared to others that were being sold on the same website/area.

I had some free time tonight and felt like checking out the forum to see how others are doing with the model that replaced my old car. Although I do not own a G6, this thread in particular really was enough to get me to sign up and chime in to post. I have felt the pain you now all feel.

I recently traded in my 99 Grand Am that I purchased new, for a new vehicle. I'll get to that in a minute, but before my purchase, I'd been checking out the possibility of purchasing another new Pontiac, and I simply couldn't pull the trigger again. Don't get me wrong...I love the feel of Pontiac and most other American cars. They styling, the handling, the fairly modest power. I loved my Grand Am. Two things kept me from buying another Domestic, Pontiac, G5 or 6....

One: I had a lot of issues with the GA. This post would literally be 3 pages long if I listed all of the problems I had with it. Generally speaking, for those who don't know; rotors, windows, Lower intake manifold gasket leaks, mystery suspension noises, and wheel hubs to name a few reoccurring issues that GM never wanted to address to it's loyal customers. I'd be willing to bet that some of you that now own G6's, did own a GA at one time. But I loved it and I still miss it despite the new vehicle. Maybe I just got a bad one. Either way, it lasted me 9 years and 172,xxx miles, but at a premium because........

Two: I couldn't get rid of it. I was always upside down on it (which is part of only putting 2k down when new). I couldn't pay more on the loan because I was spending money in expensive repairs even with a 75k extended warranty. Much of this had to do with signing on the dotted line for a smartbuy, but even after the paying off the balloon, the car was worth nothing until I totaled it. I actually got much more for the car from the insurance company than the car was worth. But I couldn't get rid of it, so I bought it back from the salvage yard and repaired it.

In the end, I got $50 bucks for it when I traded it in 3 weeks ago. Much of the poor rating it had was due to bad luck with people hitting it and not carrying full coverage on it. Even without body damage, I may have been able to sell it for under 1k. Simply put, no one really wants a domestic car with more than 100,000 miles on it. Heck, from the stuff I've read in this thread, no one wants one with even 25k on it.

So, getting back on track. I felt the pain that most all of you are feeling. I wasn't ever going to be able to just be upside down a few grand if I traded it in on a new vehicle, so I just kept it and dealt with repairs the best I could. Finally, after the LIM leaking again, a badly slipping tranny, broken motor mounts again, horrible suspension noise....blah blah blah...I traded it in on an 08 civic ex coupe. After 9 years, I got tired of fixing one thing, only to have 2 other things break. Nothing lasts forever.

I crossed over to the dark side. The car is nice, but I still miss the GA. Bad times make for memorable times. Lots of people bought the civic ex and wanted an SI...so they traded in and lost about 2-3k on the deal, but even the SI's are having problems that Honda has not addressed, so it's not just GM. I'm all about fuel mileage now and I really wanted a manual tranny. And although I'll be paying the first year to catch up to the losses I took by driving the new car off the lot, I know that it won't lose 30-40% of it's value in the first 2-3 years or less. That's why I didn't purchase another domestic vehicle...or more descriptively...nothing from Detroit's big three. But MAN i am drooling over the G6 GTP Street Edition and G8. After my first 6 vehicles being GM, my 7th has ushered me into a new era. I sacrificed Pontiac Styling and familiarity for reliability with value.

I bow to all of you who were able to stomach massive losses in value (no thanks to GM), but know that most of you had no idea of what you would come to find when trying to unload your vehicles. I couldn't do it again and wimped out by running for higher ground. :beer:

My G6 is a little over a year old and it had already depreciated 30%. Then again depreciation is always the worst in the first year. When I got rid of the Alero after owning it for 5 years, it had depreciated 70%. Like your Grand Am, my Alero had a lot of problems. In fact, they are the same problems as everyone else so these must be well known issues that GM refuse to acknowledge nor fix. The car was a money pit but I still love it. That is why I bought another GM car. The G6 also seems to be much better engineered than the Grand Am/Alero. Still I have some issues with it and I certainly know that these cars depreciate like a rock and can't hold their value in the used car market.

Buying a new car is a major decision for me. I have to drive and live with it for about 5 years so it is most important that I get something I like. After shopping around I still like GM best. Imports just don't appeal to me. That's not saying they are not good cars because I think they are just as good and in many ways even better than the domestics. But I am willing to accept something that's of lesser quality and prepared to take a financial loss when it's time to sell in order to get the car that appeals to me and I enjoy driving. It's an emotional decision rather than a financial one.

If you love cars and the G6 or the G8 is what you want, why deprive yourself just to save a few dollars? The money you save will not make up for the regret you get when you see someone driving a G6 on the road.

The other side is: someone's loss is someone else's gain. You can pick up a 3-year old used G6 for around half price.

Although I do agree that trade in value is lower on domestic vehicles compared to imports, it isn't always as much as some people think. I am lucky because I get to lease a vehicle as a company car so the trade in portion doesn't come into play,

In December I got my 08 G6 GXP sedan with the street edition package which replace an 05 Altima 3.5SL. The Altima, after 3 years had a residual value for lease purposes of $18K on an MSRP of $29,820. My G6 for comparison purposes has a residual of $17K on a MSRP of $29,525. While the residual is only a grand lower, the monthly lease payment for the Pontiac is $30/month less than the Altima.

Now, I know the money factors, lease incentives, etc. also play into the price, the bottom line is that with NO MONEY DOWN, the pontiac will "cost" the company almost a grand less over the next 3 years so it is a win win and I can turn it in unless I want to buy it at the end.

(PS: The salesman did say that if I want to buy it after the lease ends, I should turn it in and GM would let them sell it to me for less than the residual value since the lease is not in my name.)

While I don't have long term experience with the G6 yet, it is more enjoyable than the Altima and looks better too! (IMO)

I owned a GA GT back in the late 90's and didn't start to have problems with it until it neared 80K miles and then went through 2 transmissions in the span of 25K miles. My daughter was driving it then and after the second transmission we traded ti for an 05 pontiac sunfire which she still has and has had no problems with.

Another daughter bought an 06 G6 last year with 28K miles on it for $14,200, (my best guess it stickered for about $23K new), and has not had any problems during the 7 months she has had the car. The dealer sold it as a certified vehicle so it qualified for the 5 yr. 100K powertrain warranty.

Overall, I believe a domestic doesn't necessarily cost more than an import unless we are talking 100K mile durability and personally I get tired of driving the same vehicle for more than 3 years. Just my 2 cents worth. :)

It's nice to see others talk about why they made the decisions they did when it came to a vehicle....since it's no small decision. I'm a curious person so by nature, I like to hear why others did what they did and by what means. It's cool to see others chime in here.

Well, not many of us buy cars as an investment. They are guaranteed to lose money...new or used. The GA was the longest I ever held onto a car, so I give it that much credit. I also drove that car and beat the heck out of it, but was sadly disappointed when stupid stuff...things that are on every car, just kept breaking. I'm not so much concerned with drastic loss of value so much as I am with inconvenience to make repairs on a car that isn't that old. This time around, wanted to have a car that perhaps will retain a little bit better value in 2-5 years if I choose to go get something else. I stayed in the GA because in reality, it was paid off and 2-3k a year in repairs seemed more logical than 4-5k a year in car payments, except I couldn't keep up with all the repairs and time needed to have them fixed. If I keep the civic more than 100,000 miles, I am comforted by the fact that I can hit 200,000 miles relatively easily. I tried hard to get my GA to hit that mark. I'm not sure that many 99-2005 GA's hit that mark.

I can find a lot of cars in the 30k range that I'd love to own and competition is tight, but down in the 15-22k range, things were a little less clear to me as far as what I wanted. I just knew that I didn't want to have a lot of issues with a car made by a manufacturer that didn't seem to care. I also knew that I wanted many of the options that the GA had. I was going to buy a 5 year old accord, but even those were just as much money as buying a brand new civic. By the time I paid off the accord, it wouldn't be worth much either. Personally, I don't think I would be 100% satisfied with anything in my price range.

I'm not knocking the G6 or G5 in any way, but I couldn't get over the exterior styling. Heck, I'm not completely sold on the external styling of the civic coupe and the sedan is worse, but they're growing on me. Domestic cars seemed to have more of a homey feeling in the interiors and imports seemed to ditch that for a clean, universal look. That clean universal look kept imports from having to reinvent the wheel whenever they redesigned. I think that's where domestics are both nice (because they keep things fresh) but also is a downside (they redesign the wheel and are unable to get it just right so that it just works without problems...ie..windows, latches, gaskets)

The car that I really want is out of my price range for the time being (tsx or TL typeS, even a G8) and when it comes to spending so much money on cars these days, I felt that I needed to set aside any biases and go with what made sense, not with what my emotions told me to do. I also had to go with what had the most bang for the buck with minimal risk. Believe me, being a GM owner my entire life up until this point really kept me from accepting a ricer into my life. I'm still surprised at the quality of the civic these days. They aren't your typical ricers of yesteryear driven by teenagers. I like how I have 8 airbags now, when in the GA, the airbags never went off even after 4 accidents. Kinda funny how I feel safer in a smaller car.

Despite it's flaws and trouble, I miss the GA. I would've kept it except it was on it's last legs. Nothing like doing 4000rpm in first gear in Drive and only moving 5mph. I'm happy to see that many of you are enjoying your G6's. It seems that GM's quality is on the up and up and would be excited to purchase another pontiac later on down the line once they get back on track.

Thanks for the explanation of your buying decison. The bottom line with any car purchase is whether you are happy with your car! :beer:

Thanks for the explanation of your buying decison. The bottom line with any car purchase is whether you are happy with your car! :beer:

I guess the dilemna is you can be happy either emotionally or financially.
I can buy a Yaris which only sips fuel and my wallet will be very happy but I don't enjoy driving it. Or I can buy a Corvette which will bring a smile to my face every time I drive it but will cost me major dollars just to keep it on the road.

I'll take the corvette! :3stooges:

Just an update on another import value. A friend of mine had a loaded "03" Lexus GS300, - edmunds listed trade value at approx. $13K. He took it to carmax and they gave him a value of $9K.

He was looking to buy a used lincoln towncar and one of the local ford dealers said they would give him $6500 in trade! Just goes to show that "trade value" is a relative term.

Bottom line isn't the value they say it's worth but what is the bottom line cost to buy the new car. IE - I don't care how much they say my trade will be worth, only what the difference will cost me. As was stated in a previous post, you will almost always get more selling your car yourself rather than trading but do you want to hassle with it? The dealer will be happy to give you a high trade value if he is not discounting the price of the new car!

Is the glass half full or half empty?

Bottom line isn't the value they say it's worth but what is the bottom line cost to buy the new car. IE - I don't care how much they say my trade will be worth, only what the difference will cost me. As was stated in a previous post, you will almost always get more selling your car yourself rather than trading but do you want to hassle with it? The dealer will be happy to give you a high trade value if he is not discounting the price of the new car!

That's exactly right. The dealer only consider the difference you will pay between the new car's selling price and your old car's trade-in value. If they give you a high trade-in value, there will be little or no discount on the new car's selling price. If you give you a low trade-in, they can offer a better discount on the new car.

Trade-in value is roughly the retail market price of your used car minus reconditioning and selling cost, minus dealer's profit. So you will always get more money if you sell your car privately (if you don't mind the hassle).