Certified Pre-Owned vs Used Cars

Buying a used car is an excellent financial decision, as used cars come at a lower price point than new ones. This is because cars lose a good chunk of their value within the first few years of ownership, making them more affordable for the second owner. This loss of value is called depreciation. Most commonly, most cars lose about 20% of their original value in the first year of ownership, with 9% lost just on the drive home from the lot. After three years, a new car can depreciate by about 40%. After the first three years, however, the depreciation rate slows down to approximately 10% each year. As the vehicle's second owner, its remaining value is stretched out throughout the course of your ownership. With used cars being more affordable than new ones, this gives you the opportunity to get one with more features. Take the Grand Cherokee, for example. If your budget only allows an entry-level Laredo trim, you could get a higher trim level like the Limited or Overland for less than the brand-new Laredo. In short, buying used offers you more features, a slower depreciation rate, and more affordability. 

A certified pre-owned (CPO) vehicle is one that meets stringent requirements and passes a thorough multi-point inspection to ensure its quality. Let's say you're shopping for a used Ram 1500. Ram requires that, in order to even be considered for the CPO program, it must have fewer than 75,000 miles and be less than five years old. The requirements also state that it must possess a clean title and be free from frame damage. Once this is verified, the vehicle is put through a multi-point inspection in which a factory-trained technician will go through the vehicle from top to bottom, ensuring like-new quality and operation of all components. During the reconditioning phase, any wear-and-tear repairs are made, maintenance services are brought up to date, and the vehicle will be thoroughly detailed. Essentially, a certified pre-owned vehicle ensures like-new quality with a used car price tag. 

There is a reason companies require a vehicle to be under a certain age and mileage to become certified. The brands we sell here at Rouen Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram, for example, require their CPO cars to be under 75,000 miles and less than five years old. This is because all new Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, and Ram vehicles come with a seven-year/100,000-mile powertrain limited warranty, which covers the replacement of more than 5,000 mechanical components with a $0 deductible. Therefore, when you purchase a CPO car, you enjoy a minimum of two years or 25,000 miles of this new vehicle warranty. Additionally, all CPO cars from these brands are automatically enrolled in 24/7 roadside assistance, which covers convenient services like towing, fuel delivery up to two gallons, spare tire service, lockout service, jump starts, and more. Certified pre-owned vehicles also come with a CarFax vehicle history report, showing you any DMV-reported accidents, vehicle usage, service history, and more. 

Here at Rouen Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram, we believe that all drivers in the Toledo area should have access to a reliable vehicle, no matter their budget. That is why we have dozens of high-quality pre-owned and certified pre-owned vehicles in our used inventory, ready for you to choose from. Head over to our website's used inventory page to shop our wide range of used and certified pre-owned cars. If you have questions about our used inventory or would like to schedule an appointment for a test drive, please use the contact form below to reach our sales team. we look forward to working with you!