Trade-In Experiences?

[RollerCoast]

What has everyone experienced recently with trade-ins? With the growth of websites like CarMax and Carvana and even local dealerships begging for inventory, I’ve never felt more overwhelmed with options for getting rid of my old car. Obviously pricing is a large component, but ease and convenience is pretty big too.

Is Rivian competitive in pricing? Convenient? Do they make it as easy as local dealerships and handle all the paperwork? I’m looking for good and bad experiences from those who’ve been through it already. Thanks!

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[doit82]

Carvana gave us twice what rivian was offering for our 2014 Nissan Rouge. Was accurate with the description and they had a check cut and handed to us when we met them to drop it off. Extremely easy. Just do not save on the taxes because not trading in, but more than worth it.

 

[Rousie13]

Trading in with Rivian was literally one of the easiest trade ins for my wife’s ‘22 Volvo XC40 Recharge. Their offer was slightly lower than Carvana, but after the tax savings were factored in, the. We came out a few thousand ahead of Carvana.

I put the information in online and they gave me an offer within 1-2 days. I accepted the offer and had to provide payoff information to them since there was a small loan still on the vehicle. The Rivian delivery rep didn’t even hardly look at our Volvo before he drove away.

I think the Volvo loan go over paid, so I’m waiting to get the check back from that, but thats not a big deal.

 

[Taycanfrank]

It'll really depend on what car you have.

If it's a luxury brand, you should really shop dealerships as they're hungry for inventory.

Otherwise Carvana and the company Rivian uses are good options.

I've yet to have a good experience at Carmax, always feels scammy to me

 

[RivvedUp]

We also traded in a 2022 Volvo XC40 Recharge. I had trouble getting estimates from any of the online tools because of a "lack of purchase data," so I ended up going with Rivian's offer. The tax savings and the convenience were both factors. Of course we probably could have done better on the price with some more effort.

 

[COdogman]

There are lots of options now for sure. I’ve been trying to pay attention to every thread on this topic so I’m ready when the call finally comes. It sounds like it really depends on what vehicle you are trading in and also where you live. Below is a list with most of the options I have seen mentioned here:
Rivian trade in: Many say their offer is low, but depending on your local tax situation it still might be worth considering.
Local dealers
Carvana
Carmax
Vroom
Driveway
private sale

 

[electruck]

If you read through the existing threads on this topic, you will find that experiences vary. Best advice is to evaluate multiple options before making a decision. Also keep in mind the potential sales tax implications of trading (which will vary based on location).

 

[PDXR1T]

I traded in my 2021 Model 3 to Rivian. They were close enough to the highest bidder, Driveway and it was worth the convenience to have them take away my car after they dropped off my Rivian. Carmax was about the same as Rivian for me. Driveway has been consistently the highest when I inquire about selling my cars, however I've heard they can sometimes take a while.

My trade-in experience with Rivian was simple. They verified that the car existed, was close to the mileage I claimed and then they took it away after signing the necessary paperwork.

 

[shrink]

There was a good discussion in this thread:

https://www.rivianforums.com/forum/threads/driveway-trade-in-review.7148/

@COdogman summed:

Local dealers
Private sale
Carmax
Carvana
Vroom
Driveway
GivemetheVIN
Rivian trade in

Add Algo to that.

I just sold a 2012 Signature Tesla Model S with only 38,000 miles in anticipation of my in transit R1T.

- Rivian Trade-In - $26,500 (essentially ~$29,000 with sales tax offset)
- Carvana - $27,785
- Vroom - $28,000
- J&J Autohaus (via the Findmyelectric sponsor here; their other vendors never replied to my inquiry. They are apparently not buying older model Teslas) - $30,000
- GivemetheVIN - $31,000 (and then asked for chance to beat highest offer after I rejected initial offer)
- Algo - $32,000
- Driveway - never received an offer. I submitted docs and photos but they wanted the paper title. AZ only issued an electronic title and by the time the paper title arrived, I had a private buyer lined up.

Sold privately via the Tesla Motor Clubs forum for $36,000 - and I think someone would have paid a a little more for it through a dealer, so I’m happy it went directly to a new owner. He flew in from the East Coast and drove it back using the free unlimited Supercharging that comes with that car. Good for him!

We’re down to 1 car for now. I hope my R1T is delivered soon.

 

[formula22]

get as many quotes as you can. In our situation we received $4k more by going to a local dealer than Rivian or other online sites

 

[CommodoreAmiga]

Rivian low-balled my Volvo. Ended up selling to CarMax.

 

[RollerCoast]

I’m trading in a 17’ Yukon Denali in the Midwest with 30k miles on it. CarMax and Carvana are within $300 of each other. So I’ll start poking around for more offers. Thanks everyone!!

 

[madgrey]

I used Vroom twice, in November 2021 and April 2022. In both cases, they beat Carmax and Carvana on price. I didn't check with anyone else. My first experience with Vroom was a nightmare, but I'll save you the details because the second experience was seamless.

For the Rivian purchase, I'm going to sell my 2019 Ram 1500 Limited. This time, Vroom's price was lowest and Carvana was the highest. With the tax offset, Carvana still beats Rivian by around $800.

I'm not sure what I'm going to do yet. I've never worked with Carvana and I live out in the sticks which complicates the pickup process. I may go with Rivian on this.

 

[VenturaLuke]

I just got a value from Rivian on my 17 tacoma trd and i feel like its sort of low. I am going to go get it appraised at Carmax this week. I do owe a few thosand on it - does anyone know, with carmax or carvana/vroom/driveway do they pay you and pay off your loan or do you have to wait for payment? I traded in a vehicle a few years ago and the dealer didn't send me a check for my portion until after they received the title from the lender. Took several weeks and I'm hoping to avoid that since I want to use the cash for down payment. Thanks!

 

[jemkewl]

Rivian's offer multiplied by 1.5 was still shy of Carvana's offer for my BMW 550xi GT. Carmax was a few hundred shy of Carmax. For ease and money, I went with Carvana. Was about a 5 minute in person drop off after doing the online documentation. I was expecting Rivian's offer to be lower, but not THAT low.

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