WOW! Resale is awful.

[Maverick909]

i get carfax quotes yearly on my 18 wrangler sport. My recent one was 24K

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[YBABRAT]

For context, one of the reasons I decided to place a factory order was because my dealer's lot stock was comprised of heavily-optioned Rubes and Saharas, with the occasional Willys to be seen. Virtually all were hardtops w/tinted glass. Their inventory was expen$ive from stem to stern.

When I made inquiries, my salesman confirmed my hunch that they configure their orders to match what most folks say they want, and actually purchase.

What he told me was borne out when he offered me a fair deal on a customer refusal JLU. It seems that the husband didn't tell his wife that he had ordered a Sport. When they arrived at the delivery appt. and she discovered the presence of manual locks, mirrors and windows, she refused to co-sign the loan ppwrk. That in turn prevented them from taking possession of the vehicle.

It's the rare used Wrangler that I see that isn't a Sahara or at least a tarted-up Sport S, with price listings to match.

By the time your jeep has made the 10 year mark... the used car market that will be looking at Jeeps will be looking at conveniences. Manual stuff will be a difficult sell to younger buyers wanting fun drives.

Unless you have driven a 2dr Wrangler for a year a 4dr would be like driving a different animal. A 2dr IMO would scare timid drivers by road feel. Most drivers are use to dead feeling cars. Gone are the days when younger drivers got to learn on grandpa's old truck or a basic car with standard stuff. Wranglers are one foot in the past and one foot in today's world of drivers expectations.

As much as I would like a 2dr with sun rider and manual stuff, it is not practical for my daily driving where I live. having all the bells and whistles is what parents want for safety and convenience when buying a used Wrangler for sending off to college. not having advanced safety group features is antquating your jeep and appealing to limited buyer segment as a weekend or fun trip vehical.

I got my Rubicon because bang for the buck. Why pay the same amount of money for a 35,000 on ODO well optioned Sport S and still not have as much as the fully optioned Rubicon with 80K on ODO. I just completed 35K addition without issues and did not have to make any major mods (wheels, tyres, lift... ect) other than add a winch. Many buyers feel safer with what comes factory that meets their requirements than buy a modified by the past owner and unsure of questionable issues that may spring up. Sure jeepers are in the know but it seems Wranglers are niche no matter how you slice it in resale realm. I would never buy a used car or truck that is within 20% of a newer model. Might as well go for new and get a full warrenty.

 

[gato]

I bought my 21 JLU BECAUSE it has manual locks, manual windows, the 5" dump screen, and half a dozen other things that won't break as easy. It does have ac. But only for the wife. I am taking the top off of i get hot

Glad you were able to get the vehicle equipped the way you wanted it. But you are what we call the exception that proves the rule.

Anyway Ideally we would order vehicles from a simple menu and check the things we want. But in practice, automakers need to sell the most popular configurations. It sucks, but it is what it is.

What people think are niceties and complications, become standard features down the road. Progress rarely stops. I don't want a refrigerator that you need to put a block of ice in it every few days, I don't want a girl with too much body hair and I don't want to crank down windows on a 4 door SUV.

 

[AFD]

Do your guys think that loaded with options Jeeps hold their value better than the basic offerings? I see a lot of people mention this when they are disappointed by resale values.

Think it's the opposite. Just for comparison, my '23 lightly-loaded 2-door is spec'd nearly identical to a 2-door '24 Rubicon X trim (painted hardtop, fenders, leather, auto, tow and auto-4WD). With 25k miles, it only brings up a private party KBB value of ~$38k, which is $20k less than what I paid. But if you plug in a 2-door '24 X with most of that extra shit already included, the value jumps to an expected ~$51k, even though I think that trim could've been purchased for a little cheaper than what I paid for my '23.

Was planning on keeping my Wrangler for at least a decade or more anyway (or at least until the 8-year eTorque warranty expires) so hopefully everything levels out over time, but a 35% depreciation within the first 3 years is insanely pathetic imo, at least compared to the last new vehicle I bought and compared to the KBB value of my dad's Sahara JK and compared to everyone on here always claiming how well the Wranglers hold their value. Still wishing I could've just bought a 2-door Sahara.

Guess it is what it is. Live and learn, but something I won't soon forget next time I need to purchase a new vehicle. Slightly funner than lighting a bucket full of hundreds on fire, right?

 

[Spank]

Exactly. People say things like "they want simpler cars", "they don't need power everything", "I prefer manual for my commute to work", etc....but they don't really mean it. Certainly not for a mainstream vehicle.

That's why Jeep stopped offering Wranglers without AC, without power windows and without big screens. They are unsellable. And that is why Slate will be DOA, beyond the few curiosity buyers.

This is the stark contrast I was talking about. Maybe other states were different, but ten years ago in Colorado, you could sell or trade a high-mileage JK with a soft top, manual transmission, missing fenders, fat hail dents all over the hood, black paint revealing every scratch in the universe, and as long as it didn't piss oil, dealerships would pay top dollar for it.

 

[Deleted User 38384]

Long story but will keep it as short as I can.

I have a 2025 Jeep Wrangler 2 Door, Extreme Recon Package. Joose. Sticker was $54k, paid mid 40's. Did a Carvana quote for giggles and then quoted me $23, 200 for it. It has 2500 miles and was bought just 3 months ago. This is CRAZY! This is $31k under sticker and about $20k less than I paid 3 months ago. Is Jeep resale really this bad nowadays? I even had to do a manual estimate and speak with someone at Carvana as it was so new. No damage, no issues, even had it serviced already.

You're never going to get accurate numbers that quickly with that new vehicle. I did the same thing when we got my wife's 2020 Subaru Forester Sport.

We paid $34,000 for it, and a few months after we bought it, I did a Carvana quote, and they quoted us $24,000 for what was basically a brand new Subaru Forester Sport. At 20,000 mi however I did another Carvana quote for the Forester and it actually said it was worth $28,000 at that point in time. Then I did another quote when we hit 50,000 miles and it dropped down to $22,000. I haven't done one since, but we just hit 80,000 miles with it, and it's now 5 years old.

Point being, if you look at those numbers that Carvana gave me over a 50,000 mi. /3 year period, they were all pretty much the same price range. It's not to say your Jeep is worth $23,000, that's just how much they pay you for it.

Do another quote every 10,000 miles, you'll start to see that the price doesn't really change much Even though you're adding mileage to it. It probably won't start dropping in price until it's closer to 100,000 mi or more.

 

[Mr. Nimbus]

AC is not a luxury, but a necessity here, unless you like driving around in a 105 degree car in 100 percent humidity 10 months out of the year. If you take the top off most days, you will suffer. Power windows in the city help a lot scanning in and out of garages and closed lots. That’s like going back to the days before power steering.

Not sure I need a heated steering wheel, parking assist, adaptive cruise control, backup camera, side radar, auto dimming high beams, crappy mats, a Chinese tool kit, overpriced headliner, power seats, automatic climate control, sirius radio, expensive stickers on the outside, navigation, emergency assist, leather seats, led floor lights, led vanity mirror lights, not to mention the off-road mods for many. But everyone has their preferences and needs I guess.

Side Note: Back when KBB was an actual blue book that you looked up your car’s value in, it was still considered highly “optimistic”, but I still tried to use it to argue trade-in money.

 

[BXFXJeep]

UPDATE: I did take it to Carmax (had to see what was happening) and was offered $36500 which is about a 15% decline from what I paid new for this 2 door Joose Xtreme Recon Willys model. Much better.

The reality is OP got a offer for $36,500, CarMax would list the vehicle at +15% which pretty much brings it up to the same price OP paid for this Wrangler, it's also the same ballpark of what other 2dr 2024s are listed for.

OP vehicle didn't lose any value, maybe $1,000-$2,000 for driving it off the showroom floor.

There are deep discounts to be had buying a previous year model. OP sticker was $54k.

If OP is in a jam and need to get rid of the Wrangler, OP will get pretty close to the price paid with a private sale.
--------------------

I've done this same thing with my 2007, 2015, 2018 buying previous MY new off the lot, the discounts are deep.

The 2007 I drove it hard for 8 years, it was mostly paid for by the company I worked for, then I bought it out after the lease, when it came time to sell, I got back 60%, could have gotten more, but I wanted out in a hurry, needed a 4 door after the car seat fiasco.

The 2015, MSRP $39,565, I paid $26,525 inc taxes - blind trade in for the 2018 was $23,760 + tax offset $3,088 = $26,848 - got back all the money.

The 2018, MSRP $58,075, I paid $50,727 inc taxes - blind trade in for the 2021 was 44,000 + tax offset $5,720 = $49,720 - got back all but $1,000

Both these vehicles were daily driven commuters.

The 2021, MSRP $63,070, I paid $61,090, I didn't get much of a discount, because it was exactly what I wanted down to the Gecko paint, I could have bought a similar but different colour, and got a massive discount, but I wanted the Gecko, it was the end of the paint run and didn't want to chance it, there was only 1 other 4xe Gecko in the Province.

I didn't mind paying what I did, because this is hopefully my last Wrangler, or I'll at least keep it for 10+ years, I already got my money worth.

Similar 2021 Sahara 4xe lists for $40,000+, however 2018 Sahara JL lists for around $20,000-$25,000, so if I kept the 2018, it would have also depreciated the same, so it's all a wash.

Here 4xe and non 4xe all list for the same ballpark, there were no government subsidy for the 4xe.

2023+ I think there was a $2,500 government subsidy, but Jeep also jacked up the price by $7,000 that year.

This is all Canadian dollars.

 

[gato]

This is the stark contrast I was talking about. Maybe other states were different, but ten years ago in Colorado, you could sell or trade a high-mileage JK with a soft top, manual transmission, missing fenders, fat hail dents all over the hood, black paint revealing every scratch in the universe, and as long as it didn't piss oil, dealerships would pay top dollar for it.

People buying these beat up used Wranglers you described ten years ago were buying YJs and TJs for a few thousand dollars. Those were impractical weekend toy vehicles to play in the dirt or the rocks or go hunting/fishing, what have you.

People buying used Jeeps now are buying JKs and JLs, ~90% being 4 door and auto, costing tens of thousands of dollars. These are being bought as primary transportation, with an expectation of dependability, comfort and appearance more in line with other SUVs in that price range.

If you stray too much from a good looking, 4 door, auto, with good amenities (screen, stereo, heated seats, etc) they are really hard to sell.

The average Wrangler buyer these days has a completely different set of expectations. Not many ppl will pay $35K+ for a vehicle with crank windows.

 

[4Lo2Yolo]

Is Jeep resale really this bad nowadays?

I traded in my 2020 Rubicon Unlimited 2 months ago. It was a 2.0 Turbo with 31k miles on it, in excellent condition. A jeep dealer gave me 37k for it on a 21 392 with 10k miles. Before selling it I obtained an offer from CarMax, they offered to buy it outright for 27k.

 

[Mr. Nimbus]

It’s tough to truly value a trade-in offer, as they toggle the total price of the new vehicle and the trade-in value to make up for discounts. They’ll just give you more in trade, while holding back on lowering the price of the new vehicle that they would have otherwise discounted more.

A 2024 392 with 18k miles is selling for $74,000 here at a Jeep dealer.

What was the cost of the 2021 392? 2021 392s with around 20k miles selling for about <$55,000 around here. Several are around for sale in this range.

 

[ecomguy]

Used car markets value vehicles either simply as “used cars” which are subject to typical depreciation curves, or “enthusiast vehicles” which are more highly saught after and retain more value. To retain value, a used enthusiast vehicle needs to be stock, good condition, and give something not available in the new market.

 

[4Lo2Yolo]

It’s tough to truly value a trade-in offer, as they toggle the total price of the new vehicle and the trade-in value to make up for discounts. They’ll just give you more in trade, while holding back on lowering the price of the new vehicle that they would have otherwise discounted more.

A 2024 392 with 18k miles is selling for $74,000 here at a Jeep dealer.

What was the cost of the 2021 392? 2021 392s with around 20k miles selling for about <$55,000 around here. Several are around for sale in this range.

I paid 60k for my 392, but it had an AEV 3 inch Dual Sport XP suspension with Bilstein 8100 remote res shocks, and PPF film. It was garage kept, super clean, didn't have a scratch above or below. Had an 899 filter on it and maintenance records showing the oil changed every 3500 miles (3 changes in 10.5k miles). Came with the painted hard top and hard doors installed, never opened soft top and half doors with premium windows in the boxes. Only options it doesn't have is Sky One and the factory winch. Not flexing, just for comparison purposes. I wish it had Sky One.

 

[etoften]

Glad you were able to get the vehicle equipped the way you wanted it. But you are what we call the exception that proves the rule.

Anyway Ideally we would order vehicles from a simple menu and check the things we want. But in practice, automakers need to sell the most popular configurations. It sucks, but it is what it is.

What people think are niceties and complications, become standard features down the road. Progress rarely stops. I don't want a refrigerator that you need to put a block of ice in it every few days, I don't want a girl with too much body hair and I don't want to crank down windows on a 4 door SUV.

Interesting comparison between feminine body hair and crank windows. As a man who started driving and dating when most cars still had crank windows standard, I can assure you there is no correlation. Lol.

100% agree about manufactures and progress. The business i work in users the 80/20 rule. When an option passes the 80% take threshold we make it standard. If an option falls below the 20% take threshold we drop it. That's business. It's sku reduction, inventory reduction, process standardization.... not necessarily progress. See the now standard ESS, water based paints, and 8 speed transmissions. Sometimes there are outside influence causing the tail to wag the dog.

People buying these beat up used Wranglers you described ten years ago were buying YJs and TJs for a few thousand dollars. Those were impractical weekend toy vehicles to play in the dirt or the rocks or go hunting/fishing, what have you.

People buying used Jeeps now are buying JKs and JLs, ~90% being 4 door and auto, costing tens of thousands of dollars. These are being bought as primary transportation, with an expectation of dependability, comfort and appearance more in line with other SUVs in that price range.

If you stray too much from a good looking, 4 door, auto, with good amenities (screen, stereo, heated seats, etc) they are really hard to sell.

The average Wrangler buyer these days has a completely different set of expectations. Not many ppl will pay $35K+ for a vehicle with crank windows.

Agreed about expectations and not many people paying 35k+ for crank windows. Rent a car companies on the other hand love jeeps with crank windows. They get them for a more lower margin and rent them for the same $$$$. Which allowed me to pick mine up for 21k with 30,000 miles on it. My expectation was an enjoyable third vehicle. I got that for thousands less.

Besides, power windows don't do any good when the doors are off or with tube doors. Handy and expensive fidget switch. Lol. Ten years from now when I sell it to buy one more before I retire the difference in cost and ability sell a fifteen year old jeep with or without power windows will be minuscule.

But it's great we live in a place where we can all express opinions openly. At the end of the day they're are no better tires, right choice on engine, or better option for windows crank / power. Every instance is measured by the people that experience in the time it happens.

Cheers.

 

[Twisted10]

Seems it never ended

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