New(used) Car Tips

Mazda.Mark

Mazda.Mark

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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
 
Hey Mark,

OK, here's a few tips to ponder

  1. Do your homework BEFORE you talk to a salesman
  2. Know both the average wholesale and retail numbers
  3. Look at the mileage
  4. If the salesman asks what you'd like to pay for the car tell him $1.00
  5. If the salesman asks what's your maximum monthly payment to be tell him as low as possible, do not give him real numbers.
  6. Ask for a CarFax report
 
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!
 
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!
 
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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
 
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.
 
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.
 
$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.
 
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
 
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.
 
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?
 
Trumbo_S10 said:
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.
Click to expand...

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.
 
Like to be 07 and up for interest rate purposes

Under 60k tops mileage
 
A few tips from a guy that buys cars about twice a year....

1. Find the guy in your family/friends circle that flips cars and take them along.
2. You can easily tell when a car salesman is lieing, his lips are moving.
3. Don't ever fall in love with a single car, there are always better, cleaner and cheaper looking ones out there.
4. Always shop for the cleanest, most well taken care of car. Bluebook between trashed and mint is not that far apart. Fixing the car up is always a losing game.
5. Don't use CarFax to confirm the car is accident free, it cannot do that. CarFax is only effective at weeding out the really crappy cars. A friend with a paint guage or a body shop can usually tell if a car has accident damage.
6. Cast a wide net, driving to another city will cost you a few hours for a car you'll have for years.
7. Stay away from unaffiliated used car lots. New car dealers keep the cleanest trades for themselves or trade with another new car dealer. Crappy cars get sent to auction and end up at these car lots.
8. Don't buy a car without getting the maintenance history. The dealer or the seller should be willing to provide this, if not, find one that will.
9. Check for subtleties like replacement parts. Off brand filters? Cheap tires? If so, chances are the owner didn't care about the car.
10. Take a LONG test drive. Drive it in varying conditions, perferably on roads you know. Drive the car next to a building or concrete divider to listen for funny noises.
11. Always get a trusted mechanice to inspect the car after you leave a deposit.

Don't get fixated on price of a used car, concentrate on overall value. Its not a great price if the car is a POS.
 
Y2KSVT said:
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?
Click to expand...


Right I am open to many options. But I am a little picky per-say.

Cars I have liked:

Ford Fusion
Subaru Legacy
Ford Five Hundred
Dodge Nitro
Dodge Charger
Mazdas/Nissans
Torrent (okay)

I like sporty packages. I am a guy's guy so old Libertys are out yuck! (sorry Liberty owners)

Cars I do not like:

No V8's
Not big fan Jeeps, but will look at a good deal
Equinox not had great ratings
Hyundai/Kia (Looks alone, great warranty, but hate looks)
 
If you just went this week, and today is the 8th, that is probably your answer of why they didn't go down very much. If you can wait until the last day of the month, they will go down much more. If you know anyone who work in sales, they will all tell you that there are deals to be had when they only need one more (or however many more) sale to reach a benchmark, sales goal, etc., and it's the last day..
But since you can always go in on the last day, use the rest of the info people have given you, and decide on the fair value of the car. Yes, dealers can mark up a used car $2k-$4k, but they all don't always have that much room. Sometimes they have a lot of money invested in it just to get it on the lot. Sometimes, it's a desirable car, and they know someone else will eventually be in to buy it for more money. That's why your research on value, and also on comparable cars for sale in the area will help.
Keep in mind they most likely bought car at auction somewhere near the "average wholesale" range. They have some money into it above that. And also, don't forget, people are not buying as many new cars right now, so used car values have gone up sharply. If you're trading in, they are actually paying more for trade-ins now also...
 
Trumbo_S10 said:
What offer you think is faie here:

I'm thinking 14k out door?
Click to expand...

Keep telling yourself; The car salesman is not my friend.

Sticker is $14,990, I would begin offering $12,250. Unless this car is one of those that's priced to sell, no haggling they're planning on negotiating a lower price. That is of course as long as you're not going in and offering sticker.

Look over the car with a fine tooth comb. Point out anything that will work in your favor.

If a used car lists for $14,990, I want to leave paying no more than I have to and $13,000 would be tops.
 
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