We pride ourselves on being quick and easy-to-use for consumers like you by taking the hassle out of selling your car.When it comes to properly appraising an old car and getting classic car values, many insurance companies and classic car collectors rely on the Kelley Blue Book values to help them get a good understanding of how much their classic cars are worth. Our cutting-edge value calculator takes into account the data you provide and the data we have access to in order to provide you with a quote for your vehicle in under 90 seconds. If you want a quick and easy way to figure out the valuation of your vehicle, contact CarBrain! Make use of other car valuation guides, along with various online calculators to get a grasp on what a car of the make and model you’re interested in buying/selling is going for on the market. Having one tool is cool, but having a bunch of them is even better. Ultimately, KBB is a phenomenal tool to utilize, but it’s still just that: a tool. Having clear cut definitions available will help in your negotiation process if you believe the vehicle is priced too highly. They can’t go any higher than the listing, so do your best to find a middle ground you’re both comfortable with.ĭefinitions - Have the condition definitions from KBB on hand when you’re buying from a private seller. Take the listed price and bargain your way on down. KBB’s valuations tend to lean in the favor of dealers (aka retail prices may be listed higher than other sources).

Negotiate - The name of the game is negotiation. In order to maximize KBB and circumvent some of its drawbacks, there are a few things you can do. Workarounds For CustomersĮven with these issues, Kelley Blue Book still serves as an extremely reliable source for vehicle valuation. They also skew lower than KBB more often than not when it comes to wholesale pricing. They utilize National Auto Research’s Black Book or the Manheim Market Report, neither of which is accessible by the public. Mismatched data is also an issue because the majority of dealers don’t use KBB for their wholesale trade-in values. This mindset causes a discrepancy between expectation of their car’s value and the reality of the KBB pricing. The average person believes that the car they are selling or trading in is in better condition and, therefore, worth more than it actually is. The prices listed, therefore, may not truly represent the latest economic environment or trends.Ĭonsumer bias also impacts the values presented. KBB’s accuracy is, first, affected by lag time when accumulating and analyzing data, it is not instantaneous.

Now, while KBB’s platform is considered a trustworthy and reliable source by many, it does not come without its own share of issues. Suggested Retail Value - the asking price most dealers have for a specific used car.Ĭertified Pre-Owned (CPO) Value - dictates how much cars covered by the CPO program are worth. Trade-In Value - the amount you’ll probably get when you trade your car in to a dealer.

Private-Party Value - the amount a buyer will have to pay a private seller for a particular used car. This results yield several different values for used cars: They receive actual used car prices from wholesale auctions, rental fleets, independent and franchised dealers, private party transactions, and lessors on a daily basis.Īfter amassing this pricing data, their proprietary algorithm analyzes it alongside historical trends, the current state of the economy, industry developments, the time of year, and location to zero in on the best value for Kelley Blue Book. In understanding how Kelley Blue Book determines the values on their platform we have to understand where they get their data from. How Kelley Blue Book Determines Their Values While Kelley Blue Book is acknowledged as a trustworthy guide for automotive pricing, can we be sure that they are accurate? Let’s take a dive down into how exactly Kelley Blue Book determines their prices. Kelley Blue Book has become the go-to platform for many people when trying to put a concrete number on their car’s value.

Kelly black book value for cars