jimxo

Found this old thread, where is the resale value now that the car is discontinued.

m3nv

Your problem is the market for the car. The M3 held its value better bc theres more demand for M3 since it appeals to a broader market (15-50 yrs old) as opposed to the SC (40-60 yrs old). With more demand will be higher prices.

BTW Ive had both an 03 SC430 and 3 different E46 M3's and they've all been reliable. The E46 M3 is pretty much bullet proof as well as the SC430. The SC is just cheaper to fix iif/when something goes wrong.

PHXSC

Edmunds has an 02 at $15,800.
That's a significant hit in a year. I was thinking seasonal, but this thread was started in January of last year.
I don't think discontinuation has any impact, as there are too many out there.

Think of it this way, though. If you'd bought a 2010 model, when you drove it off the lot you'd have lost at least $22k in value. You're waaaay ahead relative to that.

askhao

I don't see how you would have expected the SC430 to hold its value better than the M3. If you compare previous models.. sc300/sc400 to e30 or e36 m3's, the first gen sc's are going for significantly less than original msrp as compared to the m3's. If anything, m3's hold its value quite well. As you can see, good condition e30 m3's are actually going up in price rather than depressing.

KaiserSea1

This is why I am so confused by members recommending late models to newbees, true these are bad days. My $23,000 SC would fetch 19K 18 months later. My warranty costs $600 a year. Cost of ownership 265$ a month. If I sell when the warranty quits in 2014 I estimate the car will be worth at least 11k. That brings my cost of ownership below $200 a month. Civic prices for a Lexus convertible, no regrets. It is really hard to lose a lot of money on a car that has changed so little in a decade when you buy the early years.

The price I paid for my Ls two and a half years ago, and more recently our CTS-V are still below eBay sales.

As for my "cheap" car, an 07 rav4 I sold in 09. The cost per month is higher than all three luxury cars combined. I will never buy new again.

nwcn98

A crazy thought...

I hate to say this but I see the car increasing in value as the youth look to turn the SC430 into the 93-98 Supras of the 2010s. Once the price point drops to allow a few to buy and mod them and the buzz builds up, the value would increase if either supply drops or people start to get more for their cars.

Crazy, but look at the Supra cycle over the last 17 years and you may see some similarities...

jimxo

I think the new IS convertible will prevent that, plus the IS offers more rear seating room. Better styling, handling and performance.

redliner8

iTrader: (1)

I didn't realize the IS is going convertible, very cool, I just checked it out. The SC price will depreciate just like any other car, but at a slower rate. I agree younger buyers will be more interested as the price goes down and help keep the demand high. I bought the SC for the luxury, styling (purely opinion), and it's a hardtop. The only other car I saw besides the SC for under $25k was the Mercedes SLK, and I think Lexus had the edge.

gentouru

I tried out IS C 350 and did not like it. I can barely see the back with my rear-view mirror and the interior quality is not like SC430! As of now, if you want a good hardtop from lexus, i think SC430 is the only way to go and it is limited.

grabber2

Agree, try it on the showroom and the interior material are inferior then SC. I don't like it at all..........

redliner8

iTrader: (1)

It looks like it's full of a lot of extra technology and features. That doesn't make up for it? I just noticed, is that a shark fin antenna above the front windshield? And another antenna in the back? Very strange. The SC and now the IS C seem to have horrible looking antennas...why cant lexus make nice antennas for their convertibles lol

KaiserSea1

The IS to me looks like an inexpensive car not very pleasing to the eye. I often mistake them for corollas on the road. But hey opinions vary. I always thought luxury brands intentionally make the bottom of the line a little ugly so they don't cannibalize sales of the premium cars. The BMW 1 series looks worse to me than the IS. They make an M version that is a super performer like the ISF, but what a mug I always wonder when IS fans post a comparison with an SC if they are serious or well you know...

nwcn98

Way too much plastic for my taste - SC430 is the top shelf unit.

Poqman

I looked at Edmunds for re-sale value of the SC430 thinking that price was set by demand. I was surprised when I plotted the results. It appears that the price is a linear depreciation. There is one depreciation value for cars 3 years old and newer and another for cars 4 years and older. Surely, the value should start to level off soon or the 2002 model will be depreciated to $0 in 5 years.

redliner8

iTrader: (1)

Nice graphic, I'm surprised there isn't a bigger price jump from 2004-2005, since that's when they starting making some changes.

From the chart, it seems like depreciation is 50% about every 4 years.