As Jalopnik’s resident car buying expert and a professional car shopper, I get emails. Lots of emails. I’ve picked a few of your questions and will try to help out. This week we are discussing the resale value on the new Bronco and whether or not those “monitor” devices for insurance companies actually save you money.
First up, could the projected resale value of the Ford Bronco be good for a quick flip?
Hi Tom, can you give any advice with your Crystal ball and tell me if it’s maybe a good idea or terrible idea… I’m signed up for a wild track race red bronco and am wondering if you think it would be possible or how much money I might lose on buying a new Ford Bronco only to sell it in under a year with only and keep it under 5,000 miles.. I know I can’t swallow $1000 car payments for 6 years but I can afford to lose maybe 5 grand… are these going to be so hot like Jeep gladiators that they hold their value even after they’ve had one owner…
I own a 93 land cruiser and would love to just have something new for a while and then go back to my tried and true cheap truck.
As you said this is all speculative, but here is how I see it: Broncos aren’t going to be production limited. So after the first year, there will be more, and more after that. They will probably hold value fairly well, perhaps in line with Wranglers and 4Runners, but the thing to remember is that once the hype dies down you will be able to find these at a discount.
Let’s say you buy one for $45,000 then a year passes and you want to sell it, whoever is in the market for a new one is likely going to be able to buy that $45,000 Bronco for close $40,000 (or maybe less). So for you to sell your Bronco you would need to undercut the sale price on the new one by a significant enough margin to make it work for that used buyer. Perhaps you put yours online for $37,000 – $38,000, which is a potential $7,000 – $8,000 loss. But wait, you paid tax and fees on that $45,000 car which, depending on where you live, could have pushed your initial price upwards of $50,000 all in. Now you have a car with a $50,000 total cost that maybe you can sell for $37,000. That is a $13,000 loss in one year. Relatively speaking that’s still pretty good compared to most models, but these Broncos aren’t likely to follow the same trends as limited production cars like Dodge Demons where folks are getting full price or more in the second-hand market.
Next, do those insurance monitor plans really save you money?
We don’t drive all that much but when we do it’s mostly in the city. Do you think having one of those driver monitor things from the insurance company would save me money?
These driver monitor programs for insurance companies have been around for a while, and the pitch they give is that you give up some privacy in return for potential savings on your policy. According to the New York Times the jury is still out as to whether or not drivers see significant savings while also revealing that consistent hard braking is one of the metrics that companies use to measure “risk.”
From the NYT story – “The way the programs analyze data can lead to faulty conclusions. For example, the software considers hard braking a negative and counts it against the driver’s record, even when the stop is the result of an urgent situation, such as a ball in the street or a stoplight.”
So if you are a city driver and encounter a lot of stop-and-go traffic, you are likely going to be harder on your brakes than someone who lives in the suburbs and drives mostly on the highway.
Got a car buying conundrum that you need some assistance with? Email me at tom.mcparland@jalopnik.com!
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