Hey guys, I've been in the market for an IS300 manual transmission for over half a year now. I've searched in many different forums, AutoTempest, dealerships, etc., and I've found prices for manual transmissions are all over the place. It doesn't matter what the condition, location, or the miles are, they do not have a pattern or a common theme. I've seen a 240,000 miles manual transmission car for $4,400 with a single owner, and I've seen a crappy condition manual transmission car for $8,900 with 3 owners, no maintenance records and 180,000 miles. Another example, I've seen two identical manual transmission cars with similar mileage, one with 165,000 miles, another with 175,000, and they are priced $10,000 and $7,500 respectively.
On the other hand, the price theme for automatics are very consistent all across the board, aside from the outliers with very low miles and very high miles (i.e. under 120,000 miles and above 210,000). The condition of these cars fluctuate the pricing by around $1,000, give or take. I've never seen an automatic that is priced over $6,500 for a mileage between 150,000 miles to 210,000.
I've done research on Edmunds, KBB, CarGurus, and TrueCar and their pricing for these manual used cars aren't consistent with what's really selling in the market for the manual transmission (yes, I selected the manual transmission option) right now. So really, I'm asking you guys, the experts and longtime members who's been here for many years, what is really the price I should be paying for a used manual transmission car?
Since there are a lot of variables in play, let's make assumptions for a starting point. Assume the car I'm looking at has 175,000 miles, somewhat comprehensive maintenance records, clean title, second car owner, good tire tread, nice clutch life left, fair exterior and interior condition (small dings and small scratches below the front and rear bumper, minor sticky dash issue, leather seat creases), clear coat wear on plastic parts (on side mirrors and spoiler), no clear coat wear on metal parts, used synthetic oil and 91 octane gas for all its life, no rusts, no check engine light issues, and no oil leaks. What is the price I should be paying for this car? Feel free to change variables in this senario (like more miles, salvage title, ripped seats, full maintenance records, etc.) and then tell me the pricing you would pay for that car in your custom senario.
On the other hand, the price theme for automatics are very consistent all across the board, aside from the outliers with very low miles and very high miles (i.e. under 120,000 miles and above 210,000). The condition of these cars fluctuate the pricing by around $1,000, give or take. I've never seen an automatic that is priced over $6,500 for a mileage between 150,000 miles to 210,000.
I've done research on Edmunds, KBB, CarGurus, and TrueCar and their pricing for these manual used cars aren't consistent with what's really selling in the market for the manual transmission (yes, I selected the manual transmission option) right now. So really, I'm asking you guys, the experts and longtime members who's been here for many years, what is really the price I should be paying for a used manual transmission car?
Since there are a lot of variables in play, let's make assumptions for a starting point. Assume the car I'm looking at has 175,000 miles, somewhat comprehensive maintenance records, clean title, second car owner, good tire tread, nice clutch life left, fair exterior and interior condition (small dings and small scratches below the front and rear bumper, minor sticky dash issue, leather seat creases), clear coat wear on plastic parts (on side mirrors and spoiler), no clear coat wear on metal parts, used synthetic oil and 91 octane gas for all its life, no rusts, no check engine light issues, and no oil leaks. What is the price I should be paying for this car? Feel free to change variables in this senario (like more miles, salvage title, ripped seats, full maintenance records, etc.) and then tell me the pricing you would pay for that car in your custom senario.