Choosing between two '07 Denali...need help

[RJ19]

I'm down to two Denalis. Both 2007 with same options. Both have one owner carfax and were (mostly) serviced at GMC dealerships. Both are being purchased at dealerships (Lexus and Honda). One has 107k miles for $20k and the other has 134k for $16500. The one with more miles is very clean inside but seats are a bit stiff. They look great (no cracks) just a bit rough and I think conditioning will bring them back.

Thoughts?

 

[08HoeCD]

If you are asking which one to go with, it depends on two (2) factors:

1. You must determine, via negotiating, how much you can work price in your favor on one or both vehicles.
2. You must decide if the final, negotiated price makes one vehicle more attractive to you than the other relative to mileage.

 

[adventurenali92]

I always go with the option with lower miles. But like @ubervic said above, determine which one will give you the most wiggle room to negotiate on price.

 

[agupta3224]

I agree. Mileage first. Then as ubervic said,negotiate. And if you are not in a hurry research more. You might be able to get a better deal if you look at autotrader etc. In my experience, autotrader and Cars.com are the best online shopping tools. If you can determine, try to find how long it has been sitting at the dealership. I would look at the KBB trade in value and use that as a starting point. The longer it is sitting there the more motivated the dealer is.

My own example, In 2010 I was able to find a 2009 Yukon XL SLT (leather DVD etc) with only 9500 miles for 30K. I researched for 3 months. I found it in Utah and I am in Los Angeles. Negotiated over the phone, flew to Salt Lake the next day and drove iot back home. My cost of acquistion was about $400, including flight and gas. It was a CA SUV in Utah, 2WD and was sitting on the lot for 6 months. And yes it has a clean title. Comprable ones in LA were about 42K to 45K at the time.

Just my thought.

 

[adventurenali92]

@agupta3224 , spot on! I used cars.com to find my Denali as well. Took me about 4 months but I found what I wanted and cars.com is the way to go!

 

[Meccanoble]

Looks like a good 25k mile difference which is about a year's worth of driving? Mileage doesnt matter too much to me with these cars if they drive well. Like others have said, its all about the negotiating but assuming neither budges, you are looking at 3k price difference. I would look at the one that has the better value based off your standard kbb type of sites. Other then that, you are buying a used car with descent mileage. There is always a risk. For the 3k difference, you can prepare for any issue besides a blown motor which is hopefully unlikely with these cars. I think you are good either way. My experience with cars is that you will be more dissappointed with the Denali that pops up a week from now with less miles for a cheaper price LOL.

If you already have plans for the car and that 3k difference is out of pocket, I rather save that and customize the car the way you want with the savings. I dont think you will be upset at 200k that you didnt take the car with less miles because you would only be at 175k. If taken care of, these cars can be very reliable, thats what I hear.

 

[agupta3224]

@agupta3224 , spot on! I used cars.com to find my Denali as well. Took me about 4 months but I found what I wanted and cars.com is the way to go!

That is a beautiful looking truck.

 

[adventurenali92]

That is a beautiful looking truck.

Thank you!

 

[Meccanoble]

I am a big fan of cargurus.com

 

[08HoeCD]

I like cars.com for its relatively large volume of vehicles within any given search criteria.

I like cargurus.com for its ability to display comparable values for any given vehicle. While this feature is not perfect---there are many vehicle attributes that may not be presented accurately online---it does give you some idea of which vehicle's asking price is a relatively good deal vs a fair deal vs a bad deal.