Trade in time.
 

I was more than a little surprised to hear that my 2013 FR-S with a 6spd is valued at around 16 - 18k CAD for trade in.

I still owe 18k on it... :cry:

The Dealers all said that they're having a hard time moving the cars and they don't want it sitting on the lot over the winter.

I don't really know what to do now because I need something that's safer on the mountain highways during the winter. Not to mention I can't bring myself to pulverize the poor girl with sand/gravel.

Mountain roads hey? Where you live? These cars are certainly not optimum for winter perhaps you should have thought about that prior to purchase if you can only own one vehicle. That or buy a used but good condition 4 runner for winter months or off roading days.

Buy better snow tires and invest in driving lessons.

yea...

So this is an average winter day on the coquihalla: http://www.sott.net/image/s4/86828/f...halla_snow.jpg


I've been driving for over 15 years in vehicles of all shapes and sizes. It's not that I can't. It's just that it'll be ridiculously hard on the car.

It wasn't something I could anticipate either. I had a job offer come up that was too good to pass and it warrants the commute.

Well if you enjoy the car and this is as you say concern of the winter abuse I suggest looking for a decent winter beater and park the car. That's what I've done anyhow.

You have three major criteria working against you:

Value - new cars depreciate quickly in the first two years then start to slow down. Selling any new car after a year or two will hurt. They sell gap insurance because many people don't put enough money as a down payment on their car and then if it gets wrecked they don't even get enough money to cover their loan.

Timing - this car was hot when it came out, but now everyone that wanted one new got one and there is dealer surplus. It's a niche car, not mainstream.

Location - you're in a locale that is tougher to sell a low rwd sports car. You see how it won't work for your needs any more, and you bought it new. There just isn't a big demand in your area. Not sure about the coming winter - how soon do the roads start to get snowy there?

Throw in the five tiers of used vehicle valuation:
- Certified Preowned
- Dealer
- Private Party
- Trade In
- Auction Value

The dealers rarely offer trade in unless they plan to resell the car on their lot. Sometimes they'll just look up the auction value (that they will get when they take your trade in to auction) and offer you that, or $500 less than that for auction fees/transport/etc. Basically they might offer you $16k trade, but sell it as Certified Pre-owned for $23k.

That looks like a great road for a brz/frs :)

Buy a cheap Subaru Impreza/Forester/Outback and own the winter!! This aslo gives you an excuse to hit up rally cross events. This is what I do every year and so far so good.

Take that $2,000 loss and buy a winter beater and keep the FR-S

The Highway From Hell as they like to call it.....I know that because I watch that one tv show which features Jamie Davis Towing doing all those massive truck wrecks; def does not look like a nice highway in winter time for anyone, regardless what you drive

Can you sell it private party for more?

If not, I would consider a nice AWD/4WD beater option for the winter as well and keep the FR-S for the summer.

I hear you on the rough winters. Been debating trading in the BRZ for a new WRX, but the BRZ is waaaaaaaaaaaay nicer/more fun/cheaper/more economical/faster feeling/tossable. Just can't justify taking a hit for a downgrade. And everything that isn't a sports car truely is a downgrade. Problem is, all sports cars suck in snow compared to "normal" subarus with snow tires, but that's the price you pay to enjoy the warm, dry days I guess.

Edit: I managed to get my BRZ through last winter with a set of Blizzaks, but I bought it towards the end of winter and I don't live in Canada. ymmv

Bad financial planning is bad.