car buying tips

[angwill]

Anyone have any tips on making a fair deal on a new car and trading in an old one? Even if you can direct me to a good website. I am just worried about the salesman scaming me and would like to know their tricks. I know selling my old car outright is best so I will consider that. What kind of tricks should I be aware of? I know about not taking the add on insurance and warranty but anything other than that.

Thanks so much,
Ang

 

[Hedy]

Car buying tips.com is a site I've seen recommended.
Do your homework-know what other dealerships are offering (rebates, inventives). Edmunds.com can get you an average price, as well as notify you of any rebates or incentives.

 

[allysmom1218]

I bought a new Honda CRV about 1 1/2 years ago. When I went to the dealers in my area, neither of them wanted to come off the sticker price (which was $24,300.) and they weren't very willing to give me alot for my trade ins (I traded in an 04 Mustang and an 02 Mountaineer), so I got on the internet and found other dealers that were about an hour to an hour and a half drive from my house. Well the dealer I found offered me more for my trade ins and also came off the sticker price to $22,000. I was more than willing to drive the extra to get a better deal, but I thought I would call back one of the dealers that I tried to deal with first and see if they would match the new deal I was offered. Well at first the dealer said no but 10 minutes later they called me back and told me to come in and they would do the same exact deal that I was offered from the dealer that was further away. So I guess the whole moral to this very long story (sorry for that) is don't take the first deal offered, with the help of the internet in this time of modern help, make sure to use it!!!!! My DH says that I am a B***h when it comes do dealing with salesman, esp. car salesman. I always work the deals, he just usually sits there.

Good luck on the car search, I think buying a new car and having to go through the whole sales deal is at the top of the list next to giving birth!

 

[moniot]

Check out NADA and Kelley Blue book on line. You can enter the vehicle info and find out the trade in value, the dealer sale value and private sale value. That way you will know what to expect for prices.

My DH printed off the amounts when he went to trade in a vehicle.

It will at least give you an advantage. Then don't be afraid to say no and walk away.

Many dealers have online sites with their inventory listed. You can do some shopping at home and check things out before you go.

 

[KT27]

Its not the salesman that will take advantage its the finance dept. Go to a credit union or bank and obtain financing BERORE you set foot in the dealership. The Finance Dept always can find a way to tack on hidden fees & warranties. I haggled on my new SUV till I almost made the salesman cry. Then when they came down to what I wanted I still walked. Went back after they came down a little bit more. They went to send me to finance and I handed them my check. They thought since I would be financing with them they could make it up in the end. I got a great deal. This all happened while my hubby is in Iraq, he was shocked at the deal I got. They saw a woman walking in the building & assumed that I would be easy to take advantage of. What they didn't know is I have been in the car dealership business as a service manager for over 6+ years up until last year. Don't be afraid to walk out...there is always another dealer.

 

[christinadei]

www.kbb.com check out your car's trade in value and resell value. Don't take less than trade in. Also, you can get the dealer's invoice price for the car, they will usually go down to that amount. They get all sorts of kickbacks, so don't let them tell you they won't be making money that way!

 

[PrincessButtercup]

NEVER tell the salesman what you want your final payment to be. That won't get you the best deal b/c they can add in other stuff that you may not realize. Always negotiate the total price first.

 

[Frantasmic]

www.edmunds.com is a good site to start with as well.

 

[twinklebug]

• Obtain financing before you step foot in the door.
• Know the dealer's cost on the car you want to buy & figure in a small commission
• Don't be afraid to walk away if they're not cooperating or eating your time hoping you'll break down
• A great offer will still be there a day later. Good sales places will allow you to put down a refundable $100 to think about it. Do not put down more.
• Get your best deal without mention of a trade. If you want to see what they'll offer you for your vehicle, do this after all else is said and done. Most often you'll do better selling on your own unless they're offering a push/pull/tow deal and you have a lump of metal with wheels

Above all, be relaxed and have fun with it!

 

[disneysteve]

1. Research the dealer cost of the car you are interested in before you go. You can do that at edmunds.com. You always want to be negotiating up from invoice, not down from sticker price.

2. Never tell the salesman that you have a trade in until you have negotiated the price of the new car and have it in writing.

3. Know the resale value of your trade in from kbb.com.

4. Arrange financing before you go to the dealer. You can still finance through them if they will match the interest rate you find outside. Check you local paper and bankrate.com.

5. Don't buy any extended warranties.

6. Never mention how much you want to spend or how much you want your monthly payments to be.

My best advice for buying a new car is DON'T. Buy a good used car instead. New cars depreciate up to 30% in the first 2 years. Let someone else pay for that rapid loss in value and buy it when it is 1-2 years old.

 

[hopemax]

We bought used, but what helped for us, is that we looked at several dealers internet specials. We were looking for a certified pre-owned Honda Civic. Printed off the details for the ones were interested in. Went to the first place, and really liked the car. This one was almost identical to another from another dealer (different color) but the other dealer was $1300 cheaper. The salesperson took my print out to the finance people, they verified the other car was available and matched their price. Their internet price was already less than the edmunds/blue book prices, so we didn't try to haggle anymore. We've had it almost 3 years now, and it's been great.

 

[disneysteve]

We bought used, but what helped for us, is that we looked at several dealers internet specials.

Good tip. We also searched the internet before buying our last car (Toyota Sienna). I found one we liked, called the dealer to verify that it was still in stock and went over to buy it. When we got there, he quoted us a price. I told him it was online for $2,000 less and he dropped the price right away and we negotiated from there. Had we not looked online first, we would have been negotiating from a higher starting point.

 

[SuzanneSLO]

Rremember: the interent and e-mail is your firend!

We just bought a 2007 Honda Accord and had the best shopping experience for a car, ever. We got a price from carsdirect.com ($4000 below MSRP) and a Costco quote from our local dealer ($1000 below MSRP).

We looked online through the honda.com site for dealers in our general area that had inventory shown online. We found 2 that dealers that had the car we wanted and e-mailed them for price quote. One of them responded with a price $5500 below MSRP for the remaining car of that make and model he had in stock or $5000 below if he had to dealer trade for a different color. He did a dealer trade that day (it was the last day of the month for the dealer to earn some kind of manufacturer's incentive) and we confirmed by phoen and e-mail that we wanted to purchase.

Faxed him a brief credit app and our dirver's licenses. We drove down to pick up the car 3 days later and were out of the dealership after about an hour between doing the paperwork, handing them the check and getting the walk through on the car.

It was so painless, and I felt like we got such a good deal, that I am actually looking forward to buying our next car!

Best of luck -- Suzanne

 

[disneymomto5]

NEVER, NEVER, NEVER say you like, or love the car you've just test drove!

 

[FoodLover]

Rremember: the interent and e-mail is your firend!

We just bought a 2007 Honda Accord and had the best shopping experience for a car, ever. We got a price from carsdirect.com ($4000 below MSRP) and a Costco quote from our local dealer ($1000 below MSRP). ... It was so painless, and I felt like we got such a good deal, that I am actually looking forward to buying our next car!

I second this. The Internet and e-mail are definitely your friends when it comes to buying a new car!

First, find out what the actual dealer's invoice price is for the exact model and options you want. This is easy to find online and will be much lower than the sticker price/MSRP.

You want to pay as little over the dealer invoice as possible. The dealer's profit is the amount over invoice, plus a "dealer holdback" of 2-3%, which comes from the manufacturer, plus any dealer incentives or rebates. Make sure the dealer makes only a reasonable profit on you!

Arrange any financing BEFORE you buy the car, ideally through a credit union. (Credit unions usually offer the lowest interest.)

For our last new car, we ended up buying through carsdirect.com. We paid only $200 over invoice and the buying process was completely painless. We were in and out of the dealership in an hour and there were no attempts to sell us extended warranties, "undercoating" or other junk.

Like Suzanne, I am actually looking forward to buying my next car, instead of dreading it. The Internet is really making it much easier to be an informed consumer.

Mary
MouseSavers.com

 

[angwill]

You really are all the best. I am so glad I asked all the questions I did because I got the perfect answers. I have copied and pasted them all into word so I can print them out and go over all the great tips I got. I am no longer afraid of the salesman. I will go in confident I will get the best deal and will walk away if I don't.

Thank you all so much,
Ang

 

[ExPirateShopGirl]

I second this. The Internet and e-mail are definitely your friends when it comes to buying a new car!

First, find out what the actual dealer's invoice price is for the exact model and options you want. This is easy to find online and will be much lower than the sticker price/MSRP.

You want to pay as little over the dealer invoice as possible. The dealer's profit is the amount over invoice, plus a "dealer holdback" of 2-3%, which comes from the manufacturer, plus any dealer incentives or rebates. Make sure the dealer makes only a reasonable profit on you!

Arrange any financing BEFORE you buy the car, ideally through a credit union. (Credit unions usually offer the lowest interest.)

For our last new car, we ended up buying through carsdirect.com. We paid only $200 over invoice and the buying process was completely painless. We were in and out of the dealership in an hour and there were no attempts to sell us extended warranties, "undercoating" or other junk.

Like Suzanne, I am actually looking forward to buying my next car, instead of dreading it. The Internet is really making it much easier to be an informed consumer.

Mary
MouseSavers.com

Ditto! You really do NOT have to place yourself at the mercy of the dealership! I recently bought a new Honda CR-V after researching many crossovers, smalls SUVs, etc. Unfortunately, this model is flying off lots at MSRP and no model-specific financing deals to be had. I couldn't get below MSRP on CarsDirect, either, and CarsDirect always has the best deals. I ended up getting mine through the Costco buying program, which is based on invoice plus a markup. Like carsdirect, you'll get fleet pricing on extras.

Get your loan first. Also, price out what your current car is selling for used from dealers and private parties to get a much more accurate idea of what they will offer you in trade, especially if your car is a gas guzzler. Generally, they will offer you low trade-in blue book value.

Good luck!

 

[bnorm27]

A few people said it, but it bears repeating. You, as the consumer, hold the ultimate power when buying a car. One of the best things you can do is to walk away. If you don't like the deal you are getting, get out of there. Another tip.....go at the end of the month. If it has been a slow month, dealers will generally be more willing to make a deal to meet the monthly target of units sold.
Most people know what they want when they get to the dealer. Go armed with your information from KBB and Edmunds. If they say they cannot match the price, tell them to have a nice day!

Getting your own financing is good, but in some cases, if the dealer is running special finance deals, banks, and CU's cannot touch those rates!

 

[disneysteve]

Getting your own financing is good, but in some cases, if the dealer is running special finance deals, banks, and CU's cannot touch those rates!

True. I have always financed my puchase through the dealer, but before going to the dealer, I researched rates on my own so I went in knowing the best deal I could get. Each time, the dealer matched or beat that deal. They are almost always willing to work with you because they make the bulk of their money on the financing, not on the sale of the vehicle.

 

[angwill]

Hi everyone, I just wanted to say thank you again for all the great advise and let you all know that I bought my 07 Corolla almost a month ago and I love, love, love it. Totally different car but a big step up from my Kia Sportage. Even my husband who does not like sedans loves driving it. I never realized my Kia had no padding in the seats and now no more sciatic pain when I drive the Corolla. We got the color we wanted with the options we wanted. By shopping around at different dealers as advised here and searching online to see what deals we could get we saved $1500 between the price on the new car and the trade in amount just with the two lowest priced dealers. I had to drive 1 1/2 hours but for $1500 that was no problem. I even shopped around for financing and had it all set up at a lower rate through a local bank before I found the car. This is all thanks to everyone here. You are all the greatest people. To think I can not only get great deals on Disney vacations here. lol

Oh yeah, we ended up buying from Carmax Toyota in Kenosha WI if anyone is looking in this area. I was surprised to find them selling new cars and nobody could beat their prices when I compaired all the options and prices from 5 other local dealers.

Angela