Car salesman and TikToker Russ (@russflipswhips) may be one of the first dealership workers with a unique conundrum. He already has a used 2025 Lincoln Aviator for sale on his hands—with only 447 miles on the dash.
Russ explains why the family traded this high-tech whip in after just one week of driving. His viral clip on the topic garnered over 170,000 views and clocked in a slew of comments
“I had a customer trade in a 2025 Aviator after driving it for one week and the reason why will actually really surprise you,” he starts.
He explains how the customer came in last week, wanting “all the technology,” including self-driving. However, the reason they traded it in shocked Russ.
@russflipswhips If you want a uses 2025 hmu 🤣 #carsales #cardealership #carsalesman #carbuyingtips ♬ original sound – RussFlipsWhips
“So this car was $79,000 brand new,” he continues. “It has the massage seats, it has the nice backseat with the center consoles. It’s the right color interior and it only has 447 miles on it.”
According to Russ, the customer realized after one week that the Benz’s technology was “really, really tough for them to use.”
Too much technology
Russ says the customer ended up asking for a 2024 Aviator instead.
“We don’t need this tech. We just want a car we can get in and you know hook up our phone and put the climate controls on,” Russ recalls the customer telling him.
So Russ says they traded them out of the ’25 and put them in a ’24, which they were already familiar with having driven one before.
“Now I have a 2025 Lincoln Aviator with 447 miles that I need to sell,” Russ says. “So we’re gonna sell this car for 10 grand off MSRP. Sixty-nine-nine through the end of the month only. Or we’ll just put it in our loaner fleet cause that’s probably where we’re gonna put this thing anyways.”
He continues, “But if you guys want a crazy deal on a 2025 Aviator, it’s right here. Fully loaded.”
TikTokers weigh in
One viewer couldn’t believe that the family was so quick to give up the car. “I wonder if this is the first Used 2025 Lincoln aviator in the world,” they commented.
Others thought that the amount the salesperson was slashing off MSRP wasn’t enough. “Only 10k off MSRP for a 1 owner used is nuts,” they penned.
However someone else chimed in that they thought this wasn’t that much money off: “That’s a lot off for a week old vehicle with 400 miles,” they wrote.
Another user shared, “Used car market is shot right now because manufactures are now caught up to demand. so no, 15-20k off MSRP is more realistic.”
Used car prices falling
According to Car Edge, the used car market is currently favoring buyers heavily. This is due to a surplus of models steadily piling up. More inventory ultimately means more cars available for customers.
So while car dealerships held the upper hand during the chip shortage, charging buyers exorbitant amounts, the tides have now turned. Consumers have found themselves on the giving end of a reckoning of sorts. This means the commenter may be right when it comes to knocking even more off the 2025 Aviator’s MSRP.
The outlet states that while used car prices are indeed falling, this doesn’t mean that interest rates for loans are improving. “Unfortunately, high interest rates…keep buyers away, with the average used car loan rate remaining north of 14% APR,” it stated.
Is new or used the way to go?
Several pieces have said used car price inventories are piling up. It would then make sense for consumers to try and purchase a used car. However, Cars.com says that new vehicles in 2024 are a smart buy.
“Data show[s] 2024 could shape up to be a buyer’s market provided you’re looking to buy new,” they wrote. “New-car inventory increased by 36% year over year, with inventory levels close to what they were in February 2021 before pandemic shortages really started to hit.”
But some brands get more love than others, according to the website. Those that end up staying on a lot longer could probably be sold for a better bargain. The site pens: “Vehicles are sitting at dealerships longer—an average of 65 days, up 41% from the same time a year prior—and as that happens, dealers are more eager to move them off the lot.”
Toyotas, Hondas, Subarus, Kias, and Hyundais are typically selling more than other car brands. Chrysler whips, according to Cars.com, end up staying on the website for up to 125 days on average. The site also indicated that now is a great time to purchase a new EV.
The Daily Dot has reached out to Russ and Lincoln via email for further comment.
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