3amigos

With the most recent recall, coupled with the fact that my car is a ding and dent magnet - I have considered trading her off...

I went to the local Dodge dealership - they offered me $9900. I went to the Saturn dealership a few months ago and they offered me $10,500. I bought the car for $22,495 in November of 2007.

Doesn't that seem like a quick drop in resale? Needless to say - I'm keeping the car and fixing the dings.

*Also - due to the fact that the car is a manual transmission (albeit a fully loaded LT2 Premiere Edition) they said that they would have a hard time selling it...
Chris

pg318

Manuals don't sell well - they did for a brief spell when gas was over $4 and the extra mileage was all anyone focussed on, that was when Geo Metros were selling for $5k. My manual stood on the lot for a year before I paid $13500 for it new in November 2007. I don't think they made any money on that one.

rob-cyn

I paid $15,900 for mine, also in Nov. 2007 and mine is an automatic and trade-in around here is the same as they offered you. I also will be keeping mine, I figure that I will spend a few bucks on some mods and drive the wheels off it as it has no resale value.

hyperv6

Don't know if you have noticed but the car market is flat but then again how could you miss it LOL!

Today you can buy a new model for the price of what a year old used to cost. The market is flooded with new and used cars and all car prices are down with no one is buying regardless of the model.

I have seen new base HHR's advertised so cheap anymore that they are killer bargins. I also have seen good used LT1-LT2 with low mileage and fully loaded Auto included selling for $12K.

To be honest compared to some cars the price on the used HHR's is better than many other cars. The Grand Prix GT and some other GM cars that were sold to rental companies fleets have flooded the market and left many at bargin prices. I even have seen many V6 Chargers under $10K for the same reason.

In fact I have seen many H3 Hummers with low mileage new for around $23K-24K and used $18K-20K. That is a steal on a $35K vehicle.

It is going to take time for the new car market to recover and even longer for the used market.

As for yout manual tranny. Dealers can sell a Automatic to anyone but today few people can drive manuals let alone ever drove one. The market sees about 7% of all cars with a manual tranny and the number decreases every year.

Even in the HHR SS only 30% in 08 were sold as 5 speeds.

Lets face it people are too busy on the phone, eating, in heavy traffic or just never learned to drive a manual.

I don't know the condition of your HHR but if you have many dents and Dings the dealer will also deduct for them as they will either have to fix them or send the car to auction if it is not worth the money to remove the dents for resale.

I would say your car outside the dings can't be too bad since it is not that old and unless you wanted a SS your better keeping what you have. Your not going to upgrade much with out taking a hit.

Take it to a paintless dent removal and have them fit the dings. If you can detail it to remove any of the paint marks or see a detailer and they will make it like new.

Right now is the best ime ever to by a new car as long as you do not owe much or anything on your present car. If you have to sell or trade and you owe much it is tough right now.

I think you would be best to do the paintless dent removal and keep driving the HHR. The dent men do great work and it would be a lot cheaper.

twistrman

if you ever do think about getting rid of it, you want to trade me your headlights? I really want the darker premiere edition lights...

Plus if you really were going to get rid of it trade in is the worst way possible to sell it. Just sell it yourself. I have only done a trade on one vehicle and I had to do it for speed and there were a few things wrong with it, and i paid trading it in, barely got back what I had put into in repairs in the previous 6 months.

pg318

That's the brand that has suffered the worst of all, 2 years to go from really cool to most hated (saw that in a survey recently). H2's lousy mileage is the killer, H3 isn't that bad, but gets tarred with the same brush.

VictorySpark08

As stated above, right now its cheaper to fix it and drive it. Unless your willing to take a huge loss.

What were you looking at?

hhrcrafty

Was the recall really that big of a deal? Gee, a piece of plastic in the glove box and some plastic padding in the headliner. Big whoopty-freakin'-do.

It's not worth trading a car you're either waaay upside-down on or taking a bath with the value. Nobody's getting good resale these days because the new car values have tanked for everyone. This is what we've given ourselves with massive rebates and low interest rates for seven years. That stuff just gets taken right out of the residual value of the car.

Iceman

I was just at the dealership this week to get my wife a HHR (she loves the one I drive) and for a 06 LT2 the wouldnt go less than $12,000 - 40,000 miles they say they marked it down from 14,950...The sounds of to me is the will be happy to give you 10,500 for it and resale it for about $15,000-$17,000...

solman98

You take a hit on any car on trade in a year or so old. Looks like to kinda payed on the high end new from prices I've seen in the past.

For the manual, I have one also, but I have no plans to get rid of it. Last I looked, I don't even think you can get a manual in an LT anymore, only the LS or SS. I prefer manuals, and my next will also be a manual (what ever that will be down the road). If you want to get somesomething else, private sell. You might be suprised. Others also look for manuals, but can't find them on lots either.

I remember a story here a while back of some kids that "tried" to steal a car. They got maybe a block, then ditched the car. It was a manual and they couldn't drive it......