Is Anderson Honda insane?

[cjsmith]

Anderson Honda's web page claims to sell a new 2006 Civic Hybrid for $22,700. (MSRP, anyway.)

Check out their used inventory while you're there. Used 2005 Civic Hybrids with thirty thousand miles on them are mostly going for...
wait for it...
$22,988.

What's wrong with this picture?

(And no, not all of those used ones have the coveted yellow stickers.)

Comments

[allanh.livejournal.com]

Randy sez: "Used cars are somewhat like houses; they sell for whatever the market will bear. There's a shortage of used Civic Hybrids, so the price is around the cost of a new one. If you CALL Anderson, there's a good chance they'll take your money and tell you that they'll call you in 2 to 4 months when your name comes up on the waiting list."

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

What waiting list? Anderson has bunches of these on the lot. PILES of them.

A Craigslist search shows 22 2005 used Civic hybrids (well, one of them is a car loan and one of them seems to be a coupe) and with the exception of Anderson's, all of them are at least below the 2006 MSRP.

I really wonder what is up.

[allanh.livejournal.com]

"Perhaps the new ones aren't as well equipped as the old ones ... or the new ones are all weird colors."

Or perhaps Anderson is just mentally ill.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Dunno. The new ones have thirty thousand fewer miles on them. I think I'll go for mentally ill!

[therobbergirl.livejournal.com]

This is why I hate buying used cars. I have no idea what's going on, but I see this all the time. I'm interested in replacing my Beetle with a Matrix. I'm interested in saving some money. But hell, the prices for used Matrixes are sometimes even higher than the prices for new ones! What the hell? I don't understand used car pricing.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

It would make sense if I could look at all the used hybrids in the Bay Area and see a yellow sticker surcharge. That's the only thing that would seem sane to me; those stickers are gone, so buying a used hybrid rather than a new one is the only way to get them. But Anderson is selling cars without them for more than new.

While Anderson's prices are highest, and they're the only ones pricing the used ones higher than new, *all* the dealers around here with used Civic hybrids (2005) have them for $20K to $21K. Right now there is no real drive-off-the-lot cost. Perhaps that is due to limited availability of the new ones. That makes sense to me too.

(Too bad Anderson is the only dealer who has a used hybrid with stickers.)

I found one in the East Bay for $19,5 from an individual seller. I might just go take that one. "Dealer certified" isn't worth over $3K on a car that's still under its original warranty!

[oddhack.livejournal.com]

I think the new and used operations are largely separated. And there may be a lot more negotiating room with the used vehicles.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I think you're right. I doubt they'll come down a whole lot on the used hybrids, but as I think I've finally decided to get a non-hybrid I guess I won't worry too much about how to haggle for the used ones!