Donate an SUV after the family stopped needing the space

Where donated SUVs come from

Families whose children grew up and moved out. The third row has not been used in five years and the payment or the repair bill finally tips the decision.

Owners facing a repair that exceeds the value. A transmission on a two-hundred-thousand-mile SUV costs more than the vehicle is worth, and that is the most common single reason we receive one.

Estates and people relocating. A second vehicle that has to go on a deadline is a very common donation.

Driven or towed, whichever is cheaper

A running registered SUV gets driven. One that does not gets towed. Either way Giving Center arranges and covers it, and towing an SUV is inexpensive enough that the math works on non-runners nearly everywhere.

Tell us whether it starts, rolls, steers and stops, and whether it is on flat tires. An SUV sitting in a back yard on four flats needs a wrecker with a winch rather than a flatbed with a ramp.

Clear it out. Anything left in the cargo area, the glove box, the console or the door pockets goes with the vehicle. Take the roof crossbars if you are keeping them, and pull the plates if your state requires it.

What decides what an SUV brings

• Mileage against engine and transmission reputation. Buyers know which drivetrains are worth money at two hundred thousand miles and which are not.
• What is actually wrong with it. A known failed transmission lowers the sale sharply. A check engine light for a sensor barely matters. Tell us which you have.
• Rust. On a salt-belt vehicle, frame and rocker rust decides the outcome above mileage and cosmetics.
• Drivetrain. Four-wheel drive or all-wheel drive, and whether the transfer case works, matters in most markets.
• Interior condition. Torn seats, a cracked dash and a sun-faded headliner all come off, but less than people expect.

Makes we accept

Any make. Buyers search by model and drivetrain.

• Domestic: Ford Explorer, Escape, Expedition and Edge, Chevrolet Tahoe, Suburban, Equinox and Traverse, GMC Yukon and Acadia, Jeep Grand Cherokee, Cherokee and Wrangler, Dodge Durango, Buick Enclave, Cadillac Escalade, Lincoln Navigator.
• Import: Toyota 4Runner, Highlander, RAV4 and Sequoia, Honda CR-V and Pilot, Nissan Rogue, Pathfinder and Murano, Subaru Forester and Outback, Hyundai Santa Fe and Tucson, Kia Sorento and Sportage, Mazda CX-5 and CX-9, Mitsubishi Outlander.
• Luxury: BMW X3 and X5, Mercedes-Benz ML and GLE, Audi Q5 and Q7, Lexus RX and GX, Acura MDX, Infiniti QX, Volvo XC90, Land Rover and Range Rover, Porsche Cayenne.

Manufacturer names appear here so you can find your own vehicle. No manufacturer sponsors, endorses or is affiliated with this program.

The paperwork, and what you can deduct

It is a titled vehicle and the title has to transfer. If it is lost, most states have a duplicate process and the state title rules page walks through yours. If there is a loan against it we need the lien release before the vehicle can be transferred.

Giving Center sells the vehicle and your deduction is the gross sale proceeds, reported to you on Form 1098-C. It is not a guide book value, not what a dealer offered on trade and not what similar vehicles are listed for. A running SUV in sound condition commonly lands between $500 and $5,000, where Form 8283 Section A applies and no appraisal is required. A late-model or low-mileage SUV can clear $5,000, where the IRS requires a qualified appraisal at your expense and by your choice.

A high-mileage SUV with a failed transmission and rust often sells under $500. In that band the deduction is the lesser of fair market value or $500 and we send a written acknowledgment instead of a 1098-C. We will tell you which band yours is likely in before anything is scheduled.