At Friendly Ford of Hamilton, trading in your current vehicle is easy! If you’re a driver in the Hamilton, Madison, or Morrisville, New York, area, you can let our team come up with an accurate buy-back price that works for you.
If you’re wondering how our dealership values your trade, keep reading below! We’ll go into the three different ways our team can calculate this number. We’ll also share some pre-appraisal tips with you along the way. Let’s get into it.
Did you know you can calculate your vehicle’s trade-in value by using our Value My Trade tool? This easy-to-use application allows drivers to input vehicle information—year, make, model, mileage, and more—and afterward, you’ll be given a ballpark estimate of your vehicle’s worth.
While this tool is more for your own personal research, our team has also used this tool to give our clients a quick real-time market estimate while they’re at our finance center.
Typically, our Ford dealership values your trade through a professional appraisal. An appraisal is essentially a thorough inspection of your vehicle to check its overall condition. You must schedule an appraisal weeks to months in advance, especially if you’re planning to arrange a new lease deal or scoping out our inventory for a new ride.
One of the main aspects the appraiser will look at is its operation. They’ll test drive your vehicle to make sure the handling and the engine are working optimally. Generally, if your vehicle shows no signs of reduced performance, this will put it in good shape for a generous trade-in value.
The appraiser will also check the aesthetic condition and functionality of your vehicle. This includes checking for wear and tear of the tires, exterior, upholstery, floors, and more. They’ll even check to make sure the infotainment, heating/AC, sunroof, and more work properly—functioning features can increase your vehicle’s worth!
Before your vehicle’s appraisal, you’ll want to make sure your vehicle looks as pristine as possible. A vehicle that functions well and looks well-maintained will ultimately be given a higher asking price than one that needs some TLC (tender loving care).
If your vehicle is behind on its maintenance schedule, you should consider bringing your ride into our service center to have any necessary repairs or maintenance completed.
Typically, our dealership will use our appraisal process to value your trade. This thorough inspection helps our team calculate the most accurate price possible. However, our team may also check local used car markets to see how much your vehicle has been selling for.
Usually, they’ll conduct this additional research and apply it to their own assessment with the Value My Trade tool and the in-person appraisal.
At Friendly Ford of Hamilton, we want our Hamilton, Madison, and Morrisville, NY, customers to feel confident in their vehicle’s given trade-in value. That’s why we offer three different ways of calculating this offer.
When you’re ready to trade in your car, contact us to set up your vehicle’s appraisal!
