New(used) Car Tips

[Mazda.Mark]

What are some tips/tricks you guys have for buying a new car?

What say to dealer?

I have 15k to apply out the door.

Thanks fellas!!!

Mark

[BobbyG]

Hey Mark,

OK, here's a few tips to ponder


Do your homework BEFORE you talk to a salesman
Know both the average wholesale and retail numbers
Look at the mileage
If the salesman asks what you'd like to pay for the car tell him $1.00
If the salesman asks what's your maximum monthly payment to be tell him as low as possible, do not give him real numbers.
Ask for a CarFax report

[Y2KSVT]

Don't get excited about any vehicle you look at. They know you'll pay full price. Also, don't answer any questions about what you want your monthly payment to be (if you plan to finance anything above the $15k). If you do, they'll effectively extend your loan enough to drop your payment without dropping the price of the vehicle. Don't let them know you have $15k to spend unless there's a car on the lot in the ~$17k range and you need them to come down enough to make the price + tax, fit your budget.

Don't be afraid to throw out a number you're comfortable paying. If you find a car for $15k and you've gone through the test drive, don't hesitate to low ball the dealer. Throw out an offer of $11,500 and let them try to work you up. If you're uncomforatable, tell them you'll be on your way.

If you have a trade, don't let them know it right away. They'll use your trade in to negotiate the price they sell you the new car for. They might give you a great deal on your trade in, but won't budge on the new car. Be reasonable and make sure you get what you need out of the trade. Remember, they need to make money off of you, but they don't need to rake you through the coals.

Make them show you a car fax. It might not show you everything, but it could be useful. Also, make sure you know what the vehicle is worth before buying. If you're just browsing and you find a car, go home and do some research before buying. Does that car have problems you can deal with? Is it worth what the dealer is asking?

Use flaws in the vehicle to your advantage. They don't need to know you're a detailer, and you can take the car home and remove all those swirls and scratches. What they should know is that you're not willing to pay what they want because of them.

Good luck!

[dtuna42]

1) Research to find the value range, such as kbb.com (just one example of many).
2) As stated, do Carfax- it's not necessarily all-inclusive, but more info is better than less info
3) Don't screw around with the salesman. Don't begrudge that they are just trying to make a living. Find a fair price that you're willing to pay, that you think allows them to make a fair amount of profit without scalping you, let them know this, and then make the deal quickly or walk away.

I've found that if you're fair but firm, you can get what you want. If you're not taking up a lot of time going back and forth and hemming and hawing, the dealer has the option of making less money on your single deal, but having more time to move on to the next sale. Most are happy making money on volume versus spending hours with one sale and potentially missing on other deals.
The longer you are there, the more they want to make from you, and more they probably will make. Way too much for me to type in one post about this.. So just try to get in, make the deal, and get out. If you walk away, they will call you back. Trust me on this!

[Mazda.Mark]

Gentlemen - Great posts and very timely!

I have been researching for 3 months and pulling carfaxes, so I am on board. But, I admit at the time of sale in person I lack the killer instinct. I saw a car for 15,300 sticker 07 nitro slt. Offered 15k out the door, dealer says he will pay title and transit tag, but the price is 15,200 + taxes! What a joke took 100 off.

How much car you think I can get for 15k out the door sticker wise? 16k, 17k?

Just want to be fair and not look like I'm ripping them off, but I don't want to be talked into a lesser vehicle either.

Thanks again ladies and gents-

mark

[Mazda.Mark]

Also got referred to a guy from a friend asked what I planned on spending and I said 15k out the door this time thinking he will work with me since my friend has bought every car from him. He says immediately well that is a 14k car plus taxes so I will check.

So I am not planning on much. I checked his inventory and cars at 14k and under not that great. But a few at 16-17 are nice. We will see I guess.

[alko]

I learned alot by going to edmunds.com (sorry if name dropping is against forum rules). There is so much information on buying new and used cars on that site.

What you really want to look for is what the average price people are paying for the type of car you want to buy. Edmunds has a tool that shows you what the true market value of the car is in your area.

For used cars, dealers make anywhere from 2k-4k more than what the car was bought for, so keep this in mind. I traded an 08 Accord EX for my 2010 TSX w/Tech. I was bored one day at work and googled the VIN on the Accord and saw that the dealer marked my car up $3k more than what they gave me for trade.

My best advise is to do your homework and be patient. People have their own experience and advise to give, but you need to do your homework as it pertains to you and your situation.

If at any time you're sitting in the dealership and you feel nervous or you don't like the words that are coming out of the salesman's mouth...WALK AWAY! You should never feel pressured or feel like you need a dictionary to understand what the salesman/woman is saying.

To answer your question about how much car you can get...If you had 15k and the car you want is $1,500 more, you still should have no problem getting the vehicle.

Also, for new cars, make sure you check to see what the dealer incentives are from the manufacturer. This is what the dealer gets back from the manufacturer for selling their car, but also translate as what you can use when negotiating the price (so if you know that a dealer is getting back $2k from the manufacturer, this just dropped the price of your car).

I shopped for my Acura TSX for 5 months...ended up getting the car 5k less than MSRP (which no one should ever pay the MSRP). True Market Value for my car was about $1,300 under than what others were paying. A guy here at work got the same car, 2010 TSX w/Tech and paid MORE than what I paid for mine...he got his car in July of THIS YEAR.

[Y2KSVT]

$100 off? No chance I would have stayed, either. I bought a used Lincoln LS several years back from a Ford/Lincoln dealership. They were asking $12,800.00 and I ended up with it for $12,000.00 out the door. It ended up being $1,800.00 off their asking price. I think this is relevant since you're looking in a somewhat similar price range.

You'll also need to take into consideration the amount of time the vehicle has spent on the lot. If it just arrived, they'll take their chances that someone else will bite. If it's been sitting there for a month, they probably want it gone and will be willing to negotiate. Also, you need to realize that 4x4 vehicles are going to start selling like hotcakes, going into the colder months.

If you find a car you really want, try to work out a deal that is contingent upon you having the car checked out by a third party (unless you're mechanically inclined). If you're willing to pay to have a car checked out elsewhere, the dealer knows you want the car bad, which is why you should make your final offer contingent on the car coming back with a clear bill of health from the 3rd party garage.

[BobbyG]

Find the car you like and research the wholesale and retail prices. You want to stay as close to the wholesale number as you can.

Son if you're going to buy a car from a dealer you have two options....Pay sticker or learn how to play their game to win....

Example

Retail - $19,742.00

Dealer - $17,156.00

My wife won't even go with me to but a car anymore....Remember, they've created this ritual long ago. When asked what the worst part about car buying is most will say dealing with the salesman and dealerships

[Mazda.Mark]

Alko - thanks for the tip for edmonds.

I was completely suprised that the dealer didnt budge. He said his margin was too low. lol its been on the lot for 60 days!!!

If any are bored im looking for a 4x4/awd car or suv in the indy or ft. wayne area in Indiana. anyone have a good dealer or love searching for cars pm me!!

I really want a Subaru Legacy but they aren't around my area.

Thanks for the help everyone.

[Mazda.Mark]

Bobby- where do you find the wholesale?

[Y2KSVT]

Sounds like you're open to makes and models. Do you have a mileage requirement you want to stay within? How old will you go?

[BobbyG]

Bobby- where do you find the wholesale?

Poke around with these and you be able to see what things actually go for.

New Car Prices, Used Car Values, New Car Reviews & Car Buying Guides - NADAguides.com Official Site (http://www.nadaguides.com/)

Edmonton Car Dealers - New and Used Cars for Sale - Edmonton Car Dealerships (http://alberta.autohunter.ca/car_dealers/edmonton_car_dealers.lasso)

http://www.vehix.com/used-cars/used-car-values

Google

Car pricing sites - Google Search (http://www.google.com/search?q=Car+pricing+sites&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a)

[Setec Astronomy]

How much car you think I can get for 15k out the door sticker wise? 16k, 17k?

Just want to be fair and not look like I'm ripping them off, but I don't want to be talked into a lesser vehicle either.

There's no pat answer for that, the margin is going to depend on the vehicle, what the demand is for it, etc. and also the dealer's situation that day/month/year. Don't worry, they will always being the ones ripping you off, you will never get anything less than a fair deal from them. No matter what the online invoice price is or what they tell you they paid for the car--they always paid less than that.

When I bought my first new car, I went in with my Edmund's book in-hand (yeah, it used to be a book that you had to buy, not a website), and I insisted on talking to the sales manager. He said "well, I see you have done your research" and he offered me a price $250 over invoice. I asked how he could possibly make any money for that and he told me they don't pay invoice price, they are a "volume" dealer and get a discount, which is paid back to them monthly. Bear in mind, this was a little dealer, not a highway dealer, so imagine the discount the "real" volume dealers get. This jibes with what other people always told me about being shown an "actual" invoice to convince people the dealer was giving them a great deal...except the dealer didn't actually pay that much. (we used to have a member on MOL who worked at a dealer and would tell us all the skinny, too).

It's not clear to me whether you are really shopping for a new car...or whether that '07 was a leftover. One of the things you definitely want to avoid is paying ridiculous amounts for things like pinstriping, door edge molding, etc. I was on the back lot of a Hyundai dealer a few weeks ago, and they already had added $800 to the sticker for that--AND IT WASN'T EVEN DONE YET. Oh, yeah, they had also added a $2K "availiablity charge" to the half dozen cars of this model on the back lot, too. So tell them you don't want the pinstripes (they are usually just cheap tape), they will usually have some cars that haven't been done yet (even though they will tell you they don't), and if they really don't, tell them ur not paying for it and you'll wait until they have some new cars in--they will likely take the charge off and leave the stripes on. Same goes for the BS security numbers on the glass--the only ones that are worth anything are the VIN, and I wouldn't pay for that either.

All that being said, I HATE buying cars and I have probably had less cars than I would have if I didn't loathe the process so much.

[Mazda.Mark]

Like to be 07 and up for interest rate purposes

Under 60k tops mileage