Automobile Blog

Declining trade-in values are a direct result of being able to purchase a new General Motors, Ford or Chrysler vehicle at the same low price the automakers charge their employees. It’s a fact of life in the auto industry that “when new cars are reasonably priced, it puts a damper on used-car prices and trade-in values,” said Jerry Cizek, president of the Chicago Automobile Trade Association. Just not as much as before the automakers went to employee pricing.

But the latest discounts are not the only things weighing on used-car prices. On the plus side, it’s a buyer’s market for used vehicles because you can get them on the cheap. Another plus is that employee-pricing programs have taken the attention off rebates.