I am not looking to sell our 07 TCH but I was looking at the Blue Book Values and was a bit surprised to see a lower amount than I expected. Do you have any comments about how a TCH holds it resale value?

Are their other factors that are affecting the price?

Thanks for any comments!


Bill

 

Resale values are, at best, just guesses, since the ratings services only see offerings, but not necessarily actual sales. I imagine they'll see a bunch of cars offered at a price and then average it and then take probably 10% off and use that as the posted level. It's impossible to know what the true resale value is.
I imagine used hybrids are like new hybrids, in that, when gas is expensive everyone wants one, but when gas is cheap, sales dry up. With the decline in the price of gas, hybrid sales have plummeted at a far greater rate than the gas equivalent. It stands to reason that if the demand for new cars are down, the same decrease in demand exists for the resale market. As prices stay low, the 'break even' is pushed out to 5 - 7 years, if not longer. At certain prices, one might never recoup the premium. Few could rationalize paying thousands extra for savings that might never accrue (would you buy a $40,000 Volt???)
Throw in the great unknown (what happens when the batteries get old) and there's probably a lot of buyer reluctance out there. While Prius' have a bit of gray hair, few TCHs, if any, have crossed the 100,000 mile mark. Does anyone know how well these will hold up as they age? Everyone knows you can easily enjoy 150,000 miles (and more) on a gas Camry, but can the same be said for the hybrid? I'd have no problem buying a 5 year old gas Camry, but I doubt I'd buy a 5 year old hybrid. Would you? This uncertainty has got to have a big impact on resale values.
Final point is the price of new cars. With the economy hurting, new cars are being sold with tremendous markdowns. Buying a new car has never been cheaper (relatively speaking), so that's got to put pressure on the resale market.
So, to summarize, with so many people out of work or struggling financially, and with competition from new cars getting cheaper all the time, who is going to pay an enormous premium to buy a used car that might not last as long (nor hold its value as well) as a gas equivalent?

 

Haroldo,
That all makes perfect sense considering the current economic environment. We may be doing better than we think considering the other alternatives.
The resale prices do seem to be a guess! I see so few TCHs for sale, one or two per major city.
I have no concerns about the car holding up! The Prius has paved the way in solving engineering problems for the TCH. I know Toyota had shipped several Canadian Prius taxis to Japan that had over 500K miles on them. They dismantled them to learn more about how they held up. A true test of hard driving!
We have not had one single problem or issue from day one! Our warranty is about to expire and we did not have a single warranty issue! I am not concerned about the car holding up!
I think your right about the economic environment causing the value issues. We should also add-in the tax break into the equation as well! Now that the price of gas has proven it can hit $5 a gallon, I would think people would still consider a Hybrid!

Bill

 

What were you expecting? 30k?

I checked kbb.com and compared a 40k mile 2007 TCH vs an XLE 4cyl.

For my zip (60004) I got:

TCH XLE

Retail $21,410 $19,275
Private party $17,910 $16,025

About a $2k difference.

The TCH was only about $1k more than the XLE new. So if anything it seems to hold it's value a bit better than the "normal" Camry...


PS. How does one do "tabs" so that I can make columns line up???

 

A year ago gas was spiking, a few offerings popped up at KBB, etc. offering their TCH's for a higher cost than purchase. I guess some people saw that and started to look at these cars like Van Gogh's, a family heirloom that will only appreciate in value. (just like my Topps Rookie cards)

 

Anyone in this forum that might have any regrets of selling or trading your 2007 TCH for the new 2010 Subaru Outback?

 

I have to wonder about some of the resale value sites...

If you are bored, go to kbb.com, and find the used price of a 2009 Honda Fit Sport with 8800 miles. Then look at the price for a new one (2010 model).

EDIT: I'll save you the trouble - it is $2000 more than the current new model?!?

But anyway, I just put my 2007 up for sale 2 days ago (craigslist, the market section on this site, and on my corporate intranet). Got a few first emails, but no one has come to look yet. The weather here is a blizzard warning though, so hopefully the interest picks up.

I am also in negotiation with a dealer - and waiting for a counter offer.

 

Don't know if this helps your case but I sold my HCH I in the middle of the worst part of our economic downturn and still managed to get over book value. Just had to wait for the right buyer. The hybrid value does hold up and pays dividends when selling.

 

It has been great to be part of this forum. I just traded in (12-30-09) my 2007 TCH with NAV (50,866 miles) for the awesome 2010 4Runner LTD with NAV with no regrets. I was able to get KBB trade in value for my 2007 TCH and invoice for the 2010 4Runner (which made the transition easy). I also noticed in KBB that now in 2010 the trade in value for the 2007 TCH has dropped by almost another $1000. Take care and Happy New Year!

 

HI

I noticed the price of gas is climbing again. Soon enough it will be the right thing to own a TCH. If we have a shortage of Hybrids, we could see a rise in values in the blub book. We don't have plans to sell. Still a great car at 37K miles for a 2007.


Bill