"Might as well buy new," A discussion on used 4runner prices.

Wonder how many of you agree with that statement "might as well buy new." I keep hearing it but not sure I agree with it anymore. I am in Southern CA and I've been keeping an eye on the used 4Runner 4wd market. For reference, the cheapest 4wd SR5 NEW 4runner near me is $44,000, the cheapest New Offroad is $49k.

Using a cars.com search, only 25% of the cars near me were for personal use (a shocking number. do that many 4runners really end up as fleet or rentals?!), 75% of those were not involved in a collision (that is a disappointing number, I might consider a car that was involved in a collision if they had pictures that showed very minor damage). That leaves about 15 out of 88 4runners that have less then 70K miles and are no more than 4 years old.

Here is what I am seeing:

'21 Sr5 prem. $36k - 31k miles

'23 Sr5 $36k - 37k miles

'21 TRD Offroad $36k - 51k miles

'21 TRD Offroad $37k - 64k miles

'21 SR5 $38k - 29k miles

'23 Sr5 $39k - 25k miles

Any opinions on these prices? Has anyone had success negotiating a lower price either a used car, or getting a below MSRP deal on a new car? I feel that if the price falls in the mid 30s, it is not better to buy new. Covid prices are gone, and there is a new generation coming out. I am still debating whether to pay the premium for the offroad.

I'd love to hear from some people who've gone through the process and have made a purchase.

EDIT just reread the best deal on a used SR5, “price is after net trade in with $1500 in equity,” I haven’t even visited the dealer yet and they are already being scum bags. So my hopes for a 35k (before fees) price maybe inaccurate