“We’ll deliver it 200 miles to you for free”

“Someone will fall in love with your 2008 Avalon”

In June 2019, my 2008 Toyota Avalon was 11 years old with over 147,000 miles. I had owned it 10 years and was ready to replace it. It had the smoothest ride of any car I had ever driven and wanted to find something similar. However, I was now 60 years old and wanted an SUV since it would be easier for me to get in and out of. I didn’t even know if a smooth riding SUV existed.

I test drove several new SUV’s, including the Toyota RAV 4 (no CD player), Highlander (smooth ride but poor cargo space), Honda CR-V (bumpy ride), Passport (V6 but bumpy ride and delayed acceleration) and Pilot (V6 but poor cargo space). Then I tried a 2018 Acura RDX. It had a smooth ride, V6, CD player, good acceleration and cargo space. I did some research on the RDX. The FWD base model had the best mileage (and I didn’t need AWD). The 2019 model (recently came out) had multiple major changes: radar added, 10 speed transmission (vs 6 speed), bluetooth sound system (no CD player) and had very poor reviews vs the 2018. The new 2018 RDX’s were either no longer available or priced too high for what I wanted to pay.

So I decided that I wanted a used, Front Wheel Drive base model 2018 RDX with less than 10,000 miles. This would be my first “Luxury” vehicle. I decided that, at this time in my life, I’m entitled to such a car, albeit it a base trim version! The challenge now was to find one. Fortunately, I wasn’t in a hurry and my current car was still very good.

I monitored prices for awhile. The original list for this model was $36,995. Low mileage, private party prices should be about $31 – $33k. That would be my goal. Some with 6-10k miles were listed for $34k+. Two for sale on 6/19 (in OK and IL) with 5600 miles for $30k and 7800 miles for $28k were both gone on 6/27. Another one in Houston for sale on 6/23 with 6700 miles for $30k was gone on 6/27. The low mileage, well priced, base model 2018 RDX’s appeared to be selling quickly.

On 6/23, I found one relatively close by in Wichita, KS with 5600 miles. On 6/27, I talked to the Operations Manager and he answered some of my questions about premium fuel (recommended but not needed), a carfax report, maintenance history, etc. It was white, FWD base model with 5600 miles listed for $31,998. It was a lease vehicle in Wichita (starting May 2018) and had been for sale since 6/1/19, originally listed for $33,998. The previous owner entered the lease a year ago and shortly afterward, he wife passed away. He kept the car for a year along with another car until he traded them both in on a new one. The manager also said that they had “best price, negotiation free dealer pricing” and that no one is paid commissions. I bought from a no-negotiation dealer before (Enterprise) and was ok with it if the price is in the range I’m looking for. This one was. I told them I’d come by on Monday, July 1 to look at it.

I looked at and test drove the car on July 1. I discovered that the base model did not have a full sized spare tire. It only had a tire repair kit. This surprised me for a Luxury vehicle. Apparently this is the first model year that Acura did this (I bought a full sized spare later). Also, it had a push button start and fob, which I was suspicious of when the fob battery goes low. They said that the fob will still work even when the battery is dead. As an auditor, I follow the “believe but validate” philosophy. I said, “Oh I want to see that. Let’s take the battery out of the fob and then go start the car.” They took the battery out and we touched the fob to the start button while pushing it and it started.

I decided to proceed with the purchase for $31,998. I still tried to see what else I could get in discounts. I asked if I could pay $10k on my credit card. They allowed me to pay with $5k on credit card. This earned me a $100 rebate from my bank. I told them I would have to arrange for my wife and I to return sometime to pick it up.

During our phone calls after that, they volunteered at some point to drive the car to Kansas City, fill it with gas and deliver it to our house. I was surprised. They said, yes that’s no problem, since it’s not an adjustment to the sales price. They would deliver it and rent a car to return to Wichita. I agreed and that saved me about $200 in travel costs and about 6 hours of time for my wife and I.

So then I had my 2008 Avalon that wasn’t really practical to trade-in long distance anyway. My son asked about the Avalon. We told him, “We’ve given you two vehicles and that’s the max. We’re going to sell this one.”

I had a couple friends who I thought might be interested in buying it. I offered it for trade-in value. The tires were nearly bald, so I replaced them first with 70k warranty tires for $600. One friend had told me a couple years earlier to let him know when I wanted to sell it, cause he said it would make a good kid college car. He ended up not needing it at the time I was ready to sell. Another friend test drove it for a week, considering to buy it. She decided that the tinted front windows were too dark for night (backing up, etc.) and decided against it. I didn’t want to sell to an unknown individual since that’s too complicated and risky. I started my research on selling to dealers in the area.

The Avalon was in good condition except for a recall on the high beam headlight assembly that wasn’t a symptom until after the warranty period expired. A fix would cost $2,000, otherwise the high beams didn’t work. Trade in values ranged from $3,000 for fair condition to $3,800 for good condition. Then also was the recently added new tires for $600. Thus, my “mindset” for a sale price was $4400.

I found three local dealers who buy used cars, including Olathe Dodge Chrysler and Car Max. I didn’t want to sell to a Toyota dealer since they might check the recall history on this vehicle. My first stop was Olathe Dodge Chrysler. I knew from their website that their used car department had competitive prices and high turnover of used cars. The director took it on a test drive and liked it. He asked what I wanted for it. After explaining the trade in values that I researched and the tires I added, I told him $4400. He said “Someone is going to fall in love with this car. I’ll pay you that for it.” I said, “The other two dealers are going to be disappointed not to be able to see this car.” He said, “The other dealers wouldn’t step up to the plate like I did.”

During paperwork preparation the assistant clerk kept saying, “The car is worth $3000 but he paid much more!” I suppose they’re used to paying only fair value for used cars. I said, “The range is $3000 to $3800.” I was happy to get my check on the spot for $4400 and went on my way.

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