Car buying?

[HeatherC]

So we are needing to get not one, but two new cars. One car the engine seized and is completely shot. The other is a 2011 which needs an additional 2-3000 in repairs after just put in $1000. So not fun.

My question is how do you guys buy cars? Do you negotiate in person or online?

After visiting a couple dealers to test drive, we are already sick of the process and in no mood to play the stupid games they make you play when you are in person. So today I called the one dealer and told them to text me their best price by the end of the day. No extended warranties or add ones. I told them whichever dealer gets back to me first with the lowest price is who I am buying from.

I hate car shopping.

 

[leahgoogle]

We just went through this a couple weeks ago for my son. DH handles most of it in person. He's good at playing the game. Sometimes he will e-mail a dealer to get a feel for what deal they will give, but ends up negotiating the final price in person. He does a LOT of research beforehand though. He's not a fan of the process, but he is good at it.

 

[BrianL]

It can be frustrating. Your experience will vary by dealer. I had a very good experience at my local Subaru dealer last year, who basically sold me the car at MSRP. We didn't really have to talk about it. I know that's not the "deal of the century" or anything, but it was fair for the car, unlike Toyota who wanted to sell me a car with a $27K MSRP for like $40K. "Why?" I asked. "Because that's how much they cost if you want one." So, whatever. Subaru tossed in a free roof rack and I was happy with the deal. Not all Subaruu dealers may be the same though (and not all Toyota dealers either), so you know. Good luck!

 

[china mom]

The current best way to buy a car is to figure ot what you want and what you want to pay for it and then reach out to your dealer's Internet Sales Department.

I have followed the advice in this website to help me in the past

https://www.edmunds.com/

 

[irlandaise]

My question is how do you guys buy cars? Do you negotiate in person or online?

I bought my most recent car online, with just a couple of back-and-forth messages to reach the final price. I was in an easier situation than you, though, because I didn't need a test drive. (I already owned a Subaru Legacy Wagon and knew that the Outback was the evolution of that vehicle.) If you've now completed all the test drives you need--and it sound like you have--then your "text me your best price" idea should work out fine. Let us know!

 

[EACarlson]

The largest dealership in my area makes it a point of "no haggling" the price on the car is the price you pay. I bought a 5 year old minivan in September with 45k miles for 3k under Blue Book that way. I like that better than trying to negotiate and going back and forth with different levels of employees.

 

[OneOftheB's]

When I bought my car a few years ago, when I landed on a car and trim package I wanted, I had Costco give me their price (our Credit Union has a similar service as does BJs wholesale and I'm sure other groups). Then I contacted other local dealers asking for the "drive out price" for the specific car I wanted, via email. I did not step into the dealership I bought from until I went to test drive the particular car and sign the paperwork. The dealership I ended up buying from beat the Costco price by about $1800 and the car actually had a couple more options than the Costco dealer's car. I used Costco's pricing as the price to beat.

Good luck and don't hesitate to walk away if the dealer starts playing around with numbers.

 

[DisneyHardin]

We bought a car about a year ago and it was a fairly painless process. With new cars, there isn't a ton of negotiation room these days at dealerships. We were able to negotiate some with our trade in and "add ons" and I feel like we got the best deal that we could have gotten at the time. I didn't really shop around - there are 3 Honda dealerships near me. The one closest to my house, I went there and they were remodeling and I couldn't even figure out where the office/showroom was, so I left and never even looked at a car. The second was where we had bought our previous Honda. I even had an appointment with the same salesman we had used before, but when I got there, he acted like he was too busy for me, so I looked around a little bit and left. The third was much more welcoming and the salesman acted like he actually wanted to make a sale, so we ended up buying from them.

 

[dizneegirl]

We bought our last two cars online, then picked them up at the showroom. No sales people. No haggling. What you see is what you get/pay.

 

[Dan Murphy]

If a Costco member, try their car buying program.

https://www.costcoauto.com/

 

[Southernmiss]

We bought 2 used in 2020 from Carmax. No haggle policy. Was a fair price and because of Covid, no salesman on the test drive. Easy and painless.

We bought 1 brand new in 2022. New cars were still scarce and another buyer waited in the showroom to see if we were buying the car. Again full price because dealers could get full price easy.

Really, we preferred these experiences.
.

 

[Dan Murphy]

Truecar is pretty good also, to get a 'feel' for the market.

https://www.truecar.com/

 

[tvguy]

The current best way to buy a car is to figure ot what you want and what you want to pay for it and then reach out to your dealer's Internet Sales Department.

I have followed the advice in this website to help me in the past

https://www.edmunds.com/

I tried that. The car mysteriously disappeared in the 15 minutes it took to get to the dealer. The car buying process sucks without question, but there is less game playing when you are there, sitting in the car you want to buy, and not having a salesman tell you "we don't know where that car is, how about this one". Of course, in the end it did work out because I was negotiating on a used car, and was able to get a lower price on a brand new vehicle of the same brand and model.

 

[SpaceMan5]

We bought 2 new cars within the last 10 months and I can agree with so many that it is not a fun process.

Biggest thing for me, do your research on the car and options. Look at the manufacturers website and then at the local dealers to compare costs.

Don't be afraid to walk away if you don't feel something isn't right.

 

[irlandaise]

When I bought my car a few years ago, when I landed on a car and trim package I wanted, I had Costco give me their price (our Credit Union has a similar service as does BJs wholesale and I'm sure other groups).

You bring up a good point: credit union member should check for car-buying programs through those organizations.