Any advice on buying a car from a dealer??

[cheferson]

Been looking for a new ride. I ve only bought cheaper cars through private sellers. Any advice when buying from a dealer??? How much can i expect to talk them down from the marked price??

Thanks

[chief10]

go online and find the manu. rebates on the vehicle your looking at ..print them out. if your not trading anything in you'll probably be better off unless your car is paid for. if so figure out the kelly blue book value.run the value for trade in and then the retail to the dealer. this way here you'll know how much your car is worth versus what they are giving you. then negotiate. shop around. the manufacturers with rebates sometimes make it easy to change your mind what you originally wanted. for example my wife wanted a minivan. we looked at couple and 2 out 3 dealerships gave us 2-$3000 off sticker. the third gave us $10,000. paid $12,000 for a $22,000 van and traded in a complete sh-box with 200,000 miles on it. shop around it totally sux to deal with but worth it.
p.s. bring asprin or drink heavily when finished.

[spence]

New or used? It makes a big difference...

But here's one tip. Don't trust a thing they say, verify everything down to the penny.

-spence

[cheferson]

Probably new, but rather save some money if i could find something with lower miles and a warranty.

[Fishpart]

My take, you can save almost half by getting a couple of year old used car. Also keep in mind, cars go 200K, not like the 80K an djunk of our parents.

If you manage getting by without a payment, you'll be better off in the long run don't get sucked into the hype of a "better" ride, it takes you to work and fishing..

[fishermanjim]

dealers don't deal,,, they just want there price and thats it,,, i work at one

[BW from AZ]

"But here's one tip. Don't trust a thing they say, verify everything down to the penny." I would add "Get it in writing signed by the salesman and his supervisor" or no deal. If they put the time in a deal they don't like to see it leave. BW

[Wee Hooker]

My rules of thumb:
1) Don't ever fall in love with any one car. If you do, don't let them see it.
2) Do your initial shopping on line/nights/Evenings when you can narrow down what you want.
3) Know EXACTLY what the car is worth ( retail and wholesale) before you haggle/commit.(See 2 above)
4) NEVER tell them what monthly payment you want/can afford. Talk CASH price regardless of financing, trades, rebates etc.
5) Be aware that brand , model and age all have something to do with how much you can haggle on any one car. ( Same goes for trades.
6) If they are still happy with you when you close the deal, you paid too much.

[JohnR]

Originally Posted by Wee Hooker

My rules of thumb:
1) Don't ever fall in love with any one car. If you do, don't let them see it.
2) Do your initial shopping on line/nights/Evenings when you can narrow down what you want.
3) Know EXACTLY what the car is worth ( retail and wholesale) before you haggle/commit.(See 2 above)
4) NEVER tell them what monthly payment you want/can afford. Talk CASH price regardless of financing, trades, rebates etc.
5) Be aware that brand , model and age all have something to do with how much you can haggle on any one car. ( Same goes for trades.
6) If they are still happy with you when you close the deal, you paid too much.

Yep ....

Also tell us what you are thinking about. I worked in the car biz for 10 years, sales, F&I, and service so I know most of the tricks

[cheferson]

Looking at 2006-2007 tacomas. Im lost with either to buy new, spend a lot of money and have reliable truck with warranty and large payments/insurance, or to roll the dice and buy something cheaper with more miles and have smaller or no payment and cheaper insurance. I really want a new base model tacoma, but they seem to be none existant, all have a/c, upgrade rim packages. Would settle for a cheaper pickup, just worried about having to drop $$$ on repairs on a truck with higher mileage shortly after buying it. I have a rental till saturday, so would like to find something before having to waste more money on a rental. Not what i was looking to deal with right after the holidays and getting layed off of work !

[Nebe]

chef tacomas are so reliable and hold their value so well i wouldn't buy a new one- get a toyota certified used tacoma from a dealer thats 5 years old and you will be happy as a clam for around 8 grand. thats what i did. never show interest, talk them down until they say no.. dont look desperate and make them think your 'thinking about a new car' if i remember right i got the guys at tarbox down 2500$$ Dont be afraid to low ball them and walk out- ALso make them think that you are interested in tacomas at other dealerships, they want to outsell other dealerships and will cut deals just to make a sale over a competitor.

[cheferson]

Only problem eben is that both the dealers have no pre-owned tacomas. Cheapest they had was $16k + , only 1 base model, non-extended cab at the local dealers, no used ! I looked for the tacoma near your shop today too . Didnt see any for sale, say one black one one the road near your shop , but didnt see any for sale sighns on it . %$%$%$%$ing pain in the ass !!!

[Nebe]

i think that one on woodruff/robinson sold a few days ago it hanst been there lately-
Theres a reason that they are hard to find.... they last and no one wants to get rid of them.
You checked tarbox in North Kingston???

[gone fishin]

Chef - just remember, if the sales mans lips are moving he is lying!

[cheferson]

Was there today, no used and cheapest they had was $16,800 for 2007 w/ a/c , auto and alloy tires . Newport had one for about the same money with 4k miles. All the rest were extended cab v6, etc

[cheferson]

Dont really want $275 for 72 months , stressed think im gonna polish off the Makers

[Nebe]

life sucks bro... you'll find something.

[cheferson]

Originally Posted by Nebe

life sucks bro... you'll find something.

Yep

[bart]

yo dude i feel ya, been up all night drinkin merlot thinking about how im gonna find a job. stressful times indeed. spring can't come soon enough. hit me up if you wanna do some scouting...

[Backbeach Jake]

The last dealership that I worked for had this philosophy. Everybody is a sucker to be played, everybody. Customers, help, nuns, it didn't matter.

[boot man]

Carbuyingtips.com has an excellent excel spreadsheet I used. Even the dealers were impressed. You basically work off how much profit they want to make off you.

Got a great deal on my Nissan Titan, paid full retail on wife's Toyota Van. The van was exactly what we wanted and the supply of that particular model was scarce at the time, and we needed to make an immediate move. Paid for it.

[Pete_G]

Try to ignore the stress, it's part of buying a vehicle. What should be fun usually isn't...

Good luck finding a 'yota. They're good trucks. The dealers have been a little flaky for me, overall, but with a Tacoma you aren't going to be seeing them much anyway.

Hold out for used if you can, avoid the depreciation. Be sure to shop interest rates too if you're financing, it makes a big difference over the life of the loan. Sometimes used interest rates are so much higher on used vehicles that you can/should even consider new.

[JohnR]

Chef - they are getting large money from those 5 year old 100K mile trucks - $12000 for a 100,000 mile 4 cyl Tacoma is kinda stupid but that is what the market bears...

Regardless of what you get - dealer or private sale - AFTER you agree on a price and AS you are signing a purchase & sales agreement PSA, list on the PSA that the deal is subject to you're bringing the truck to a mechanic for a full checkup, This checkup will probably cost 1 - 1.5 hrs labor - $50-100 depending on the shop, but you'll know if it needs brakes, has a leaking tranny, maybe has been in an accident - etc...

I'll sell you the S-B truck for $17,500 (I'm listing it for $19500 ) http://linesiders.com/index.php?opti...id=20&Itemid=1

which has a factory warranty for another 33K miles

[taJon]

I hate to tell ya, but $275 is a pretty good payment.

If you don't drive a lot, maybe a lease is for you. Just make sure that when the lease comes to terms, you either buy it or trade it for another. most times you can get away with going over on the miles that way. Ford usually has low leases. 06 F150 XLT w tow for 200 a month for me.

[Mr. Sandman]

Didn't know that s-b.com had a vehicle....wow.

I hate paying interest on a depreciating asset. I have been lucky the last few years in that I have been able to get 0%. I tend to wait until the auto buyers are really hurt'n then I walk in and ask for 0% on a new big truck. They normally make it happen. You get a cycle like this every 4 or 5 years or so. 0% is the best way to buy on time...use their money.

Car buyin in 90% of the dealerships suck. The "what will it take for you do drive this away today" sales pitch is the wrong way. IMO the best buyin experience was with a caddie. They were very helpful, very polite, and zero pressure and it was actually fun. All the other dealers I have been to are more concerned about moving the stuff in the lot today!!!!!!! If you want your best deal you need to really get into it with them and argue it down to the last buck, when you are done, your tired, frustrated and generally unhappy.

I would like to see the dealers as we know them today disappear, and buy direct over the internet from the factory, and pay someone to deliver the vehicle to me. For test drives and info they could have a couple regional centers that had demo vehicles but you buy it online. Time to cut-out all this subjective pricing and middleman markup crap once and for all. Same goes for insurance and real estate . (sorry if this offends anyone)
For once I would like to get a vehicle with exactly all the features i want and without the ones I don't want. If you place an order like that with a dealer it will take forever to get it if ever.

[JohnR]

Originally Posted by Mr. Sandman

Didn't know that s-b.com had a vehicle....wow.

Hahahaha - actually - it's my personal truck - I need to get something smaller the wife can drive comfortably so I can take her car to my work more often, and have a 7K tow rating. I love my truck, I just need to do my 80 round trip per day in an economical vehicle (wife's car) and have something suitable for her to drive.

Chef / Tajon - If you are going to use a vehicle as a semi-dedicated "fishing truck" I would lean away from a lease. Leasing is a good option for some people IF you drive very low miles, plan to flip vehicle every few years, and can keep in near immaculate condition.

Chef - If you can get the truck for $300-500 over invoice less the $400 dealer incentive you might be better trying to find a new truck versus a one year old truck. The price difference might not be that huge...

[Carl]

Another good website for car buying is:

http://www.edmunds.com/

It has both new and used advice. It has a section on dealer tricks / do's and don'ts. I have used it for the last two vehicles I purchased. It also has a section that provides "what others are paying" based on zip code.

Wee Hooker is right - if they are still happy with you after the deal you payed too much. I was able to frustrate the salesman to the point where he visibly showed it when I purchased my truck. Even with all that - you still tend to feel 'violated' after the deal.


Like everyone has already said - get everything in writing - one of the forms, don't know which one has a place to write things in. Make sure you write in everything you want. Take the time before you go in to deal and make a list of what you want. The dealers will spin you around and confuse you during the deal. You at least have a fighting chance if you have a list ot refer to. I even wrote that I did not want the dealership sticker on the tailgate (free advertising!)

best of luck

[zacs]

I have gotten fantastic deals on used cars. I don't think I would buy used again. You can get such a better deal on a one year old car that has very low miles. Still plenty of warranty.

[Nebe]

chef stupid question but have you looked at the projo??? if i remember right i saw what your looking for a couple of days ago- shortcab tacoma, 4 cyl, for around 4 g's... its was a 96 i think

[Mugz]

Originally Posted by boot man

Carbuyingtips.com

Wow, great site. Really makes me see the light since I am in the market myself. Only made it through chapter one and I know I'm doomed. Need to do some "fixing" before I take the leap.