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Vehicle Trade-in Checklist

Vehicle Trade-in Checklist

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Value Your Trade
Get Pre-Approved

Congratulations! You just made the exciting decision to trade in your vehicle.

At The Ford Store Morgan Hill, we’re here to help drivers in the Morgan Hill, San Jose, and Gilroy, CA, areas with every step of the trade-in process. Get started right now from home, and when you’re ready, stop by our dealership!

It’s Time to Trade in. Now What?

People trade in for all sorts of reasons. Perhaps you’ve gotten a new job, and a longer commute calls for a fuel-sipping sedan, for instance. Maybe your family’s growing, and it’s time to trade in that 2-seater for a spacious SUV. Regardless of your motivations, the trade-in process is fast and simple. Just follow this trade-in checklist:

#1: Find your trade-in value.

You can use our online Value Your Trade tool to get an estimate in seconds. Simply enter your vehicle’s make, model, year, and trim level into the calculator, and voila! It’s that easy.

#2: Boost your car’s trade-in value.

You can increase your chances of getting a higher offer during the in-person inspection by deep cleaning your car and taking care of any minor repairs.

Man wiping down interior of car car key fob sitting on desk

#3: Come to our dealership!

Working off the estimate you have for your trade-in vehicle, we’ll inspect your car and provide a firm offer. If it works for you, great! If it’s not quite what you had in mind, there are no obligations and there is no pressure.

When you come to the dealership, make sure to bring:

  • Vehicle title and registration
  • All keys, owner’s manuals, and anything else that came with the car
  • Maintenance history
  • Driver’s license and proof of insurance

#4: Drive home happy!

Finally, it’s time to enjoy your new (or new-to-you) car! You’ll be especially happy to hear that even after the trade-in process, we’re still here for you. We offer a state-of-the-art service center on site, and rotating specials make it convenient to choose us for your car’s regularly scheduled maintenance.

Things Not to Do

You know the phrase: Luck favors the prepared—and it’s true. It’s hard to over-prepare for things in life.

However, when you’re preparing to trade in your vehicle to a dealership, there are a few things you want to make sure you don’t do as part of your planning.

Not cleaning your car. Perhaps you didn’t use your current ride much, and its interior is still very clean. However, making sure your vehicle is fresh-smelling and sparkling is one of the easiest ways to boost the value of your trade-in, so forfeiting that opportunity means forgoing a higher payout.

Over-fixing your vehicle. Taking care of minor repairs is essential. Make sure to set a budget for those incidentals, however, so you don’t pay more into the vehicle than you can get back for it.

Losing track of your maintenance history. Hold on to maintenance records and present them with the vehicle when it’s time to trade it in. Buyers have to reference these to know the condition of the car, so leaving them behind can mean a lower offer to compensate for the unknown.

At the end of the day, as long as you keep your car and records in order, you should be all set!

Exchanging keys for cash for a trade in

What Are You Waiting for? Trade in and Upgrade Today!

Isn’t it about time you buckled up behind the wheel of something new and exciting? The experts at The Ford Store Morgan Hill are here to help drivers in the Morgan Hill, San Jose, and Gilroy, California, areas make those dreams a reality.

Get the process started online today! We look forward to working with you.

Still have some questions? Don’t hesitate to contact us!

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May not represent actual vehicle. (Options, colors, trim and body style may vary)

Although every reasonable effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained on this site, absolute accuracy cannot be guaranteed. This site, and all information and materials appearing on it, are presented to the user "as is" without warranty of any kind, either express or implied. All vehicles are subject to prior sale. Price does not include applicable government fees and taxes, finance charges, electronic filing charges, and emission testing charges. ‡Vehicles shown at different locations are not currently in our inventory (Not in Stock) but can be made available to you at our location within a reasonable date from the time of your request, not to exceed one week.

All advertised prices exclude government fees and taxes, any finance charges, $85 document processing charge, $30 electronic filling charge, and any emissions testing charge. Standard exclusions apply. Residency restrictions apply. Although every reasonable effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained on this site, absolute accuracy cannot be guaranteed. This site, and all information and materials appearing on it, are presented to the user “as is” without warranty of any kind, either express or implied. All vehicles are subject to prior sale. Photos are for illustration purposes only. Contact us for more details.

There is no cooling off period unless you obtain a contract cancellation option. California law does not provide for a “cooling off” or other cancellation period for vehicle lease or purchase contracts. Therefore you cannot later cancel such a contract simply because you change your mind, decide the vehicle costs too much, or you wish you had acquired a different vehicle. After you sign a motor vehicle purchase or lease contract it may only be cancelled with the agreement of the seller or lessor or for legal cause such as fraud. However, California law does require a seller to offer a 2-day contract cancellation option on used vehicles with a purchase price of less than $40,000 subject to certain statutory conditions. This contract cancellation option requirement doesn’t apply to the sale of a recreational vehicle, a motorcycle, or an off-highway motor vehicle subject to identification under California Law. See the vehicle contract cancellation option agreement for details.