2002 Buick Century Limited V-6 4dr sedan
2002 Buick Century Limited V-6 4dr sedan
A person I know inherited this vehicle - only 9,500 miles. Clean - no significant body damage. Purchase price in July 2002 was $22,312 before rebates. CarMax offered to buy it for $4,500. Said I could have it for $4,500 if I wanted - to use or to sell for a profit. Both Edmunds and KBB seem to say that $4,500 is in the ballpark for a private sale. But looking at CarMax prices I think they would ask no less than $9,995 for this year, model, mileage and condition. From what I see advertised I think this should go for about $7,500-8,000 at private sale. Garaged so tires even may not be all that bad. He just had to buy a new battery. AC works. Any thoughts?
2009 Vibe 1.8L Carbon Gray AT Power Pkg 1/12/092003 Vibe 1.8L Neptune AT Mono Power Pkg 1/27/03 [sold 2/2/09]2007 T&C SWB 7/31/07 "Broke people stay broke by living like they're rich. Rich people stay rich by living like they're broke."
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journeyforce
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Re: 2002 Buick Century Limited V-6 4dr sedan
Are you gonna buy it?
Carmax will screw you on the older stuff and yes they will mark it up to about $9000-$10,000. The market is not good for 10 year old GM cars. 50 years of shoddy workmanship has caused GM used car values to drop. case in point a 2002 150,000 mile Camry will probably fetch more then that Buick. But numbers aside, while the Century is a bland and boring car, it is a reliable workhorse. The only issues they have are bad intake gaskets(GM went cheap and used plastic) but this is fixed easily with the improved GM metal gaskets(finally they decided to use metal ones)
It might be a better buy for your son then that Dodge. It is easy to work on the century. I did a lot of work on the Century, Regal and LeSabre while working at a GM dealership
Plus they sold thousands of that body style from 97-05 so junk yards be full of them for parts
Carmax will screw you on the older stuff and yes they will mark it up to about $9000-$10,000. The market is not good for 10 year old GM cars. 50 years of shoddy workmanship has caused GM used car values to drop. case in point a 2002 150,000 mile Camry will probably fetch more then that Buick. But numbers aside, while the Century is a bland and boring car, it is a reliable workhorse. The only issues they have are bad intake gaskets(GM went cheap and used plastic) but this is fixed easily with the improved GM metal gaskets(finally they decided to use metal ones)
It might be a better buy for your son then that Dodge. It is easy to work on the century. I did a lot of work on the Century, Regal and LeSabre while working at a GM dealership
Plus they sold thousands of that body style from 97-05 so junk yards be full of them for parts
Re: 2002 Buick Century Limited V-6 4dr sedan
The DODGE Caravan is ideal for the work needs of my son so we'll put up with it - latest problem was just the speed sensors on the transmission. $350 plus tow. Thought the tow was a good idea when you don't know if you would damage something by driving it. But yes, I am gonna buy it. I think I can make a profit on it. 9,500 miles! Bought a bank owned property some time ago for $110,500 - had it fixed up big time and sold for $212,000. After expenses I cleared $14,000 before taxes. Bought another one last month to try to do that again. Beats the 1% interest the banks pay. I could lose money - but not much.
2009 Vibe 1.8L Carbon Gray AT Power Pkg 1/12/092003 Vibe 1.8L Neptune AT Mono Power Pkg 1/27/03 [sold 2/2/09]2007 T&C SWB 7/31/07 "Broke people stay broke by living like they're rich. Rich people stay rich by living like they're broke."
Re: 2002 Buick Century Limited V-6 4dr sedan
my dad inherited pretty much the same vehicle(make/model/miles) from a relative a couple years back. he sold it for $2,500, with the car needing only a new battery, 2 tires and a good interior detailing.
'10 Black w/1.8L AutoAir/PW/PL/PM
Re: 2002 Buick Century Limited V-6 4dr sedan
Be sure to get a CarFax or similar vehicle history report on the vehicle before you purchase it.
It also helps reassure the next buyer that it has a clean history.
Some people shy away from a vehicle that has a quick succession of sales and title changes.
Would your friend allow you to act as 'broker' and keep it in his name until the sale to the next buyer?
My mother-in-law owned two Century Limiteds of that era.
She paid about $18000 cash for a brand new 2001 in the fall of 2000.
(Yeah. She 'stole' it! End of the month. Saleman trying to make quota. Dealer is a friend of mine. Etc. Etc.)
She totaled it in a passenger-side collision in December 2005 with 11,348 miles on it. She was uninjured.
Her insurance company paid her $10,000, and she bought a used 2005 National Car rental vehicle with 25,000 miles on it.
She moved to a nursing home in 2010 so we sold the car with 30,000 miles to an acquaintance for $5500, perhaps $500 or so below private-sale prices, but with no 'marketing' necessary.
I'm almost 60, but my impression of Centuries of 1998-2005 era is that they are safe cars, a bit cramped inside, relatively quiet, smooth-riding on smooth pavement, but numb-driving-feel. They appeal primarily to people born before 1940. And 1930. And 1920. (My M-I-L was born in 1918). Buick knew their target audience and matched their expectations perfectly. I don't know what they are buying today, because I don't see many current-model Buicks on the road, driven by people of any age group.
It also helps reassure the next buyer that it has a clean history.
Some people shy away from a vehicle that has a quick succession of sales and title changes.
Would your friend allow you to act as 'broker' and keep it in his name until the sale to the next buyer?
My mother-in-law owned two Century Limiteds of that era.
She paid about $18000 cash for a brand new 2001 in the fall of 2000.
(Yeah. She 'stole' it! End of the month. Saleman trying to make quota. Dealer is a friend of mine. Etc. Etc.)
She totaled it in a passenger-side collision in December 2005 with 11,348 miles on it. She was uninjured.
Her insurance company paid her $10,000, and she bought a used 2005 National Car rental vehicle with 25,000 miles on it.
She moved to a nursing home in 2010 so we sold the car with 30,000 miles to an acquaintance for $5500, perhaps $500 or so below private-sale prices, but with no 'marketing' necessary.
I'm almost 60, but my impression of Centuries of 1998-2005 era is that they are safe cars, a bit cramped inside, relatively quiet, smooth-riding on smooth pavement, but numb-driving-feel. They appeal primarily to people born before 1940. And 1930. And 1920. (My M-I-L was born in 1918). Buick knew their target audience and matched their expectations perfectly. I don't know what they are buying today, because I don't see many current-model Buicks on the road, driven by people of any age group.
My 2003 Vibe Base Auto 2-tone Salsa "SalsaWagon" was built in May 2002. I acquired it in Feb 2004/Traded it in on a 2016 Honda HR-V in Feb 2018.
Re: 2002 Buick Century Limited V-6 4dr sedan
I saw the invoice on the purchase - I think there were about $4,500 in rebates so the actual cost new was a little under $18,000 [plus tax].
The $22,312 on the title was after the dealer discount so the MSRP was more like $23,500. [The title amount is what sales tax was paid on - manufacturer rebates don't reduce the taxable amount, dealer discounts do. Ohio even taxes the doc fee - though in 2002 the doc fee was perhaps $25 - now it is $250]. Amazing that 10 years later you can still buy a pretty nice well equipped and much better quality new car today for that amount of money.
The $22,312 on the title was after the dealer discount so the MSRP was more like $23,500. [The title amount is what sales tax was paid on - manufacturer rebates don't reduce the taxable amount, dealer discounts do. Ohio even taxes the doc fee - though in 2002 the doc fee was perhaps $25 - now it is $250]. Amazing that 10 years later you can still buy a pretty nice well equipped and much better quality new car today for that amount of money.
Last edited by jake75 on Tue Jul 17, 2012 9:29 am, edited 1 time in total.
2009 Vibe 1.8L Carbon Gray AT Power Pkg 1/12/092003 Vibe 1.8L Neptune AT Mono Power Pkg 1/27/03 [sold 2/2/09]2007 T&C SWB 7/31/07 "Broke people stay broke by living like they're rich. Rich people stay rich by living like they're broke."
Re: 2002 Buick Century Limited V-6 4dr sedan
An update - don't have the money yet but I am 99.44% confident I have this sold for $7,500. Took just 3 days after I posted it for sale in a neighborhood forum - 0- ad cost. That's $3,000 over the CarMax purchase offer. For 2003 with 20,000 miles Century Custom (not Limited) CarMax is asking $10,995 in Indianapolis. Factoring in lower miles (10,000) and higher trim level (Limited with leather) I expect CarMax would have asked $10,995 for this 2002. I am happy - Buyer is very happy. Why anyone would pay $10,995 to CarMax for a similar used car instead of buying new is beyond me but apparently they do.
2009 Vibe 1.8L Carbon Gray AT Power Pkg 1/12/092003 Vibe 1.8L Neptune AT Mono Power Pkg 1/27/03 [sold 2/2/09]2007 T&C SWB 7/31/07 "Broke people stay broke by living like they're rich. Rich people stay rich by living like they're broke."