Buying New Car/Best Bargaining Chip

Do your homework. Know what the MSRP and invoices are and what and how they are packaged and the package pricing. Then more homework, see what others are paying for the same vehicle/options to the best of your ability. Truecar.com and Edmunds.com are good places to start for this. End of the month is good as stated. Internet shopping and what I did on my wife's Accord. Talked up a deal from one dealer (didn't like them anyway) and then used that to negotiate over the phone with another. At first they just matched the deal from the first. I asked them what advantage buying from them gave me? Couldn't give me a good answer so I said well I might call you back. About 20 minutes later they called me back and beat the first by a grand. This was the end of the year though. Good luck!

 

Seems like everyone has a great handle on the whole process. I would recommend that you research the cost of the vehicle at Edmunds.com or Kelly Blue Book (kbb.com) or any other reliable source that will tell you the cost, not the manufactuer's suggested retail. Also, keep in mind that the price you find might be different than the sticker, depending on when the car was manufactured/delivered and any later price increases. Do your homework. Y(u decide how much over invoice is fair for you and the dealer. They will not take a loss, but you can skin the deal pretty close. The new CRV, well it is #1 and the dealers prolly don't have to discount it too much, if at all.......but with some research, I'm sure you can find a great deal.

Next, if you have a trade, figure out a price that works for you...do you want to get more by selling it privately, or are you willing to let the dealer grease it up a bit and slowly insert the catheter? Don't mix one transaction with another. I might try one dealership to establish a trade-in value, remember edmunds or kelly blue book can assist and the old bullshit of it is "only a guide" works both ways, for you and them.
Most poeple don't come into a dealerhip having done their homework.

Next, check their financing, Honda, Toyota, etc., might very well have better incentives than your local bank or credit union. You decide. Yes, the dealers make money on the financing, (most of the time) if you decide to go that way....my experience cash is king..... Whether you write the check or if you bring a bank check. As has been siad never tell then what you can pay...they can fashion a loan wich is a bad deal for you but has the payment you can live with....("lipstick on a pig"!) Some states do not let the dealer steer you toward thier financing. The F&I guy will try to jerk you around with add-ons, aftermarket, incentinves, specials, etc., Negoiate a deal, if they can't honor it, they dont respect you, or your time, they shouldn't get your money......you hold the cards.

Remember, you are not there to make friends, this is strictly business, you need to keep the psychological advantage to your side...DO NOT get emotionally involved in the purchase (even though it is exciting)....color options, etc., know what you want and know what you are willing to pay, period. He is not your friend, he (she) is there to help you part with your money.....that is how he (she) gets paid/keeps thier job.

Most dealerships don't let the salesman make the final decision, it will be the sales manager who has that power...if you don't like him forget it and say good bye. Also, if it is important to you put it in writing (on the offer sheet and the final contract.) No "he said" bullshit later on.. Not so sure about first of the month, stuff, I have always prefered to shop toward the middle to the end of the month.....when they are hungry and looking to meet sales goals, whether internal or through the Mfg's incentives...remember it is all a metric for them based upon numbers/customer satisfaction cars sold/financed/delivered. Also, if you are comfortable, you migh twant someone to neogtiate for you, this way you don't get sucked in the the friendly small talk. You answer the questions that you have, not the questions he wants you to answer, "would you buy today?" how "will you pay?", "do you have a trade?" If you are compelled to answer give him opened responses, such as "depends" "not sure" yada, yada, yada.
Honda would be my #1 suggestion, it has been redesigned so, it will cost a bit more, but it is bullet proof and #1 for a reason. If the vehicle costs less to start, it will be worth less later on down the road. Doin't be afraid to cast the net a bit farther and wider......the overwhelming majority of buyers deal with the local dealership...the number show that.....you might do better a bit father out....they will all servicve the warranty work...unless the local is giving you a free loaner for purchasing there, look in a wider radar range.
Oh, and as for extended warranties, if it is backed by the MFG, then maybe, and the price, too is negotiable....it is not unreasonable to expect a 30% discount on extended warranties (are they freely transferable or do you get money back (prorated) if you sell the car earlier than the expiration date?). I would check waht they cover and waht they exclude and what you are required to do and or how you document the maintenence. Be very leary of an extened warranty from some company you never heard of....they could be based out of the Cayman ISlands and when push comes to shove and you need to make a claim, they are gone with your funds and you are left holding the empty bag with a bill in your hand.

Nice guys don't win and pigs get slaughtered...keep that in mind.

So, have "fun" and good luck......lol. I'd be interested to hear how this turns out. I've done this too many times and always found what I was looking for on my terms.

 

You should be able to get that GMC for half price considering how hideous it is.

 

If you're looking at a small SUV, I highly suggest you look into the Ford Escapes. My dad has owned 2 and both were very reliable. Other than regular maintenance he didn't have any problems. The prices are competitive and are pretty good on gas. My sister and her husband rented a Terrain when they went to Illinois. The thing had 200 miles on it and broke down when they got onto the interstate. Also take note that GM products turn into rattle traps. The Hondas are very reliable but are too damn ugly IMO. I liked the 97-06 CRV's but the newer style not so much

What about a Subaru Forester, Hyundai Santa Fe/Tucson, Jeep Liberty, or Nissan Xterra?

 

I'm still a few months out from purchasing. I'm a member of a CR-V forum already. I'M DEFINITELY DOING MY HOMEWORK!

 

Yea, I plan ahead....

 

Smart thinking with becoming a member of the CRV forums. Since the redesign just came out you should get some good feedback regarding a possible purchase.

 

If your referring to me and my finances.... I'm pretty stable with goals and decisions

 

That's how I became a TW member, was researching pricing on my Taco and found TW about a month before I bought. I can't really say it helped on price but did help me to learn the options.

 

If I have a car that could be used as a trade in do I just leave that all out of the deal and sell it outright?

 

You could trade it in but negotiate the purchase price of the new car before even talking about trade in. The value of your trade in is based on different factors but KBB trade in value is a good gauge of what a dealer would be willing to give you. At this point you can determine if it is worth it to you to trade your car in or sell it private party.

 

Edmunds.com is also good at determining trade in. Not sure if you have a CarMax dealership near you, but they buy "trade ins" they will give you a offer in writing that is good for 30 days, might help you in negotiating a price.


If you need the trade in to help lower your OTD price, than trade it in. If you have the time to sell it outright, you will get more money for it ($1k-$2k more). That just takes time and effort. You can always take that money and put it towards your loan.

 

My wife has on '09 Rav4 and has had ZERO problems. Not sure where you heard otherwise about them.

 

I rofl'd

Smart dude...

Is that the square suv? And people said my old xB looked bad...

Yes on the subaru! No on the other crap!

 

Well, in my head I am trying to formulate a good email from the things I have assessed. When I got my truck I was just like "I'm paying full cash, what's your price". With this situatuion I have assessed.

*Don't know if the loan will be through the dealership or my local bank/credit union

*There is a possibility for a trade in

*When the time comes to buy the car there will be a substantial amount of cash put down on it no matter where the loan goes through
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SUBJECT: I'm Ready To Buy A Honda Today

Honda Dealership,

I am ready to buy a car today and I'm interested in your Honda EX-L with Nav in any color but green. The exterior colors I would most prefer though are ***,***, and *** with an interior color of ***. I have preapproval from my local bank so I can pay you full cash for the final price of the car or I could choose to finance through you instead with a down payment of greater than 50%. I have an excellent credit score as well. I give you the option to finance through you cause I understand there is a possibilty it may benefit you personally. Just let me know the best price you can offer me for this car as well as the interior and exterior colors. Additionally, I will also be purchasing an extended warranty. I am interested in all of your offerings of 75,000 miles and up with bumper-to-bumper coverage. Please provide me with the details of your extended warranty plans. I can bring the full payment in cash today.

Thanks,
Jeremy
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I will send this same email out to 10-20 dealerships in the area and bounce their best price offered off of one another

and after a price is agreed upon just throw in that I can do a trade? and if they say no just sell it outright.... sound good?

**** I know I may be putting way too much thought into this but else can you do when you gotta wait a few months Heck, I'll probably have my plan down to a science by the time purchasing time rolls around.

 

Just go to the manufacturers' websites of the vehicles you want. Build the vehicle with the options you want and at the end most of the websites will ask if you want to get a quote from dealers.

 

There are no fancy options with the EX-L with Nav so its pretty straight forward and I prefer to just send it in traditional email.

 

Why the extended warranty? Their cars are pretty bullet-proof.

 

For the little bit of added extra insurance.

 

That's okay, but keep in mind that your new vehicle comes with a 3-year warranty. They sell you this 5-year extended warranty for only $1,500 (example), and it sounds great for a 5 year warranty, but in reality it is only for 2 years since the first 3-years are covered by the manufacturers waranty.
Sometimes you can keep the money and wait until the manufacturer's warranty expire and then buy a 5-year extended warranty for about the same price. I got caught with this on my first truck.

I also paid full sticker for it because I did not know that I could negotiate on a car price.