How does trading a car in work?

Question

I recently purchased a 2004 Ponitac GTO about a month ago. The car's nice and all, but I don't want to drive it in the winter. I can't afford to have 2 cars. So I'm thinking about trading it in. But here's the catch. If I trade in the car for a lesser value automobile, how does that work? Like would I have two car payments or would the dealship pay part of the current note and the remanding balance be put on the new car note? I hope this isn't confusing.

Answer 1

if you trade in a vehicle for less then you owe, you are still responsible for paying the difference in the vehicle. and if you get a new vehicle, you're responsible for that one too.

out of curiosity, why did you buy a car you're not comfortable driving in the winter?

Answer 2

A trade-in is somewhat helpful if you plan on buying another car but not usually. If you want to get rid of the car, sell it yourself. A trade-in value is not going to be close at all to the blue book value.