Toyota Is Expanding Its Certified Used Business. Here’s Why.
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Toyota Is Expanding Its Certified Used Business. Here’s Why.

Toyota Motor North America is a new-car firm. So why ought to it care in regards to the gross sales of used vehicles? 

Because, once you delve into the main points, you quickly uncover that these two sectors of the retail automotive enterprise are inextricably linked—to the good thing about Toyota, its sellers, and their prospects. 

That’s why Toyota has lengthy supported and promoted a strong licensed used program. And it’s why Toyota not too long ago expanded that program to incorporate autos as much as 10 mannequin years previous with between 60,000-125,000 miles on their odometers. 

Silver Certified goes past the present Gold Certified eligibility parameters of as much as six mannequin years and 85,000 miles. The transfer might assist increase Toyota Certified’s present gross sales of greater than 370,000 autos per yr. 

“That’s a lot,” mentioned Ron Cooney, Toyota Certified Used Vehicles (TCUV) gross sales operations supervisor. “Based on Motor Intelligence’s evaluation, if Toyota Certified was a brand new automobile model, it will be ranked 13 th out of the 48 makes available in the market. 

“But it’s also small when you step back and look at the bigger picture. According to figures compiled by Edmunds, some 6 million used Toyotas are sold every year. Yet our year-end financial statement shows that our dealers only sold 790,540 in 2023. So, there is a tremendous opportunity for growth here.” 

In some methods, Toyota’s stellar status for high quality, sturdiness and reliability works in opposition to it on this entrance. Customers know that nearly any well-maintained Toyota is an effective wager when shopping for used, whether or not it’s being bought by an unbiased vendor or personal occasion. But now, with Silver Certified, there much more motive buy a used Toyota from a Toyota vendor. 

Why? Three phrases: peace of thoughts. A Silver Certified Toyota comes with: 

  •  A restricted powertrain guarantee for 12 months/12,000 miles 
  • 24-hour roadside help for 12 months/12,000 miles 
  • A 136-point minimal high quality assurance inspection 
  • A free CARFAX® Vehicle History Report 
  • The choice of together with a trade-in to facilitate the transaction 
  • The choice of financing the deal by way of Toyota Financial Services 
  • Trouble-free dealing with of the transaction, together with DMV paperwork

The choice of financing the deal by way of Toyota Financial Services 

Trouble-free dealing with of the transaction, together with DMV paperwork 

Further, the powertrain guarantee and roadside help are transferable to the subsequent proprietor for free of charge if the automobile is resold earlier than the 12 month/12,000 mile expiration, thus boosting its resale worth. And the guarantee is honored at over 1,400 Toyota sellers within the continental U.S. and Canada. 

“We’re not the first automaker to certify its older vehicles, but we studied what our competitors were offering and made sure we got it right,” Cooney mentioned. “Some of them limit the warranty to three months. Others only offer it on some vehicles. Some don’t include CARFAX. It can get very confusing for the customer. We made sure our vehicles were covered for a full year, which is a big selling point to customers who aren’t used to getting any kind of warranty on an older/higher-mileage vehicle unless they pay extra for it.” 

Cooney mentioned Toyota’s sellers are supportive of this new stage of certification. Because of it, they’re extra possible to absorb an older Toyota in commerce. That issues when you think about that the majority new-car gross sales contain some form of trade-in automobile. Also, primarily based on preliminary suggestions from sellers, Cooney mentioned they’re promoting Silver Certified Toyotas quicker than non-certified used autos—contributing to their backside line. 

“I can see used Toyotas sitting in a dealer’s inventory for 30 or 60 days,” Cooney mentioned. “Then we launched Silver Certified. And the dealers who have taken advantage of this program have sold those cars more quickly.” 

Meanwhile, if these prospects do want repairs below guarantee, they’re much extra more likely to convey their autos again to their Toyota sellers. That generates even increased model loyalty. 

The internet impact is that the TCUV program helps increase automobile resale values (a key metric on the subject of Toyota’s leasing enterprise) and—maybe most significantly—proprietor retention. 

“We want to sell each of our vehicles at least four times: new, Gold Certified, Silver Certified and used,” Cooney mentioned. “We want to keep that car, and the customer, in our family for as long as possible. Ultimately, that’s what this is all about.”