When is it considered a good time to trade in?

[tomato]

Does anybody have any data, opinions or advice on when is the best time to trade in or sell a used car like the Yaris? Is it 1 year? 2 years? 5 years? Depending on mileage? Combination of mileage and years?

I know cars depreciate the most during the first couple of years but then after that, is the depreciation rate about the same for each passing year?

I saw that Tom (YarisOwnersDad) was telling us in his thread that he took a bit of a beating when he traded in his Cobalt because it was 'too soon after purchase'. So I'm wondering when would it have been the "right time" to trade in to get most of the value out of the used car?

I have a Yaris 2007 LB 2 dr, w/ about 56K miles. I purchased the car used, a couple of months ago at a dealership, in excellent condition inside out (minus little paint chips). I drive very little these days (probably 3K to 5K miles a year), because I live in an urban environment, and I try to take public transportation a lot and only use my Yaris just for errands and to get out of town on the WE's. So I guess the depreciation on my car would come from time passed rather than mileage (although the car already has a few miles on her).

I guess I'm wondering how long I should keep this Yaris.


I know there are a lot of variables that affect the value or used cars and stuff, but I'd love to hear all your ideas, opinions and data, if you have it, or trade-in stories.

Thank you.