| laborlitigator |
Let's hear it! I want everyone's input in dealing with the automobile puchase.
My .02: Before you step into the dealership, already have pre-approved financing. |
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| msu79gt82 |
Car salesmen want the buyer to think they are in control, and in some ways they are (they in fact do control the price of the car to a degree). Therefore I suggest that buyers do their homework in advance and KNOW what they are willing to pay and they MUST be willing to walk if the price is above their threshold.
Separate the new car price from the trade-in value and the financing. Handle each of these three as separate deals; new car sale price first, then discuss trade, then work financing. |
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| snatara80324kav |
When I bought my 03 TL, sitting in one dealer's place, I called two other dealers and told all three of them, I am buying the car today and have the money ready. Guess what, each guy was trying to outbid the other for 1 hour and I bought the car form the dealer I visited 1200 below invoice.
Always works. |
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| alienman |
1) Use the internet. I cannot emphasize this enough!!! For what? or two things:
a) to get quotes: I emailed about 10 dealers in my area and started my own mini bidding war by tiering their quotes against each other! This is similar to the fax blast method, however I find email to be much more convenient.
b) understand invoice cost, "true" cost, and market cost. Invoice is self explanatory, "true" would be the real cost to the dealership (includes factory holdbacks), market is what the market currently bears in your specific area for this market.
2) Always always always negotiate from the sale price of the car as a whole, not in monthly payments. They love to try and put 'well how much can you afford monthly' in there. Independent as to whether you lease or buy, negotiate the price of the vehicle in whole. Whenever they discussed discount under MSRP, I've always used '$ above invoice'.
3) Do your homework. Make sure you get what you really want (or need). If you want the extended warranty, get quotes for that. If you want specific accessories, get quotes for that or make sure they throw them into the deal. Compare apples to apples. I had a spreadsheet compiled with all the dealers, their 'lowest' price they offered me, and $ and % above invoice. Because this car was selling at MSRP only 3 months back, I didn't bother bringing up the 'true cost'. Arguably you could use that as well, although specifically for the MDX I think it would be a stretch, at least around here, to get it below invoice.
4) Work with someone you are comfortable with. Sometimes the lowest price isn't always the best price. After you start narrowing down your choice of dealerships, start getting into a little more detail with them on what exactly their offer entails, if you are required to buy their accessories, etc. I got someone to match the price what wanted, but would only offer what was on the lot (meaning it included $1000 in accessories I didn't want).
It took me a duration of 1 week to do this research and get the car we wanted at the price we were happy paying. I'd say 90% was done over the internet, I probably spent 1-2 hours a day. So total time was about 8-10 hours.
This is a great, but lengthy article on the life of a car salesperson. I have a source that told me the Japanese dealership this guy undercovered at was Honda.
http://edmunds.com/advice/buying/ar...62/article.html |
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| ndahbar |
| Yeah, wise advice, to be certain, unfortunately the reality of the situation for such cars like the MDX mean you gotta pay MSRP when the model year just comes out (certainly in New England that's for sure! Not one person was able to get the car for under MSRP during the timeframe I got mine, including people from other forums I've visited not just this one). |
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| nwaring |
Don't buy a vehicle that is in high demand and short supply like me and the rest of the class of 2001 did.:D:( :( It was a good value even at MSRP but still..............
And everything alienman said
Niles |
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| msu79gt82 |
quote:
Originally posted by nwaring
Don't buy a vehicle that is in high demand and short supply like me and the rest of the class of 2001 did
I am amazed that I got the '04 for less than we paid for the '01.
I am almost certain that part of the reason for the good deal we got on the '04 was becasue we were repeat customers at John Eagle Acura. Those who followed my story ( http://www.acuramdx.org/forums/show...&threadid=15073 ) will recall that I told the sales rep that I'd never (for various and assundry reasons) returned to a dealership for another car before and asked him (somewhat jokingly) did they want to be the first. I'd play the loyalty angle hard - they try to!! |
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| alienman |
We waited 2 years before we finally picked up ours. I just felt queasy buying a car at MSRP. Heck two years ago when you walked into a dealership they would tell you $1000 over msrp. Just finding a dealership to test drive it was a challenge. This is similar with the Volvo XC-90 last year, MSRP only.
Today it seems MDXs are more plentiful. Possibly due to increased competition? Recession? Increased manufacturing? Regardless the reason, the more they have sitting on the lot, the better it is for the consumer, pricewise.
That's the price you pay for a more publicly desired car. Although I haven't looked into it, I'm pretty sure you can get a Toyota highlander or Ford Explorer at invoice or below... |
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| ashVID |
As stated you have to be willing to walk... I left the dealer over $300 only to have them call back and offer to sell it to me. It is best to go on a Saturday, as many dealerships offer their salesmen bonuses for weekend sales. In my case the salesman was willing to go lower (below invoice) because he was really using part of his commission to cover the discount. It is also noteworthy that I got an '03 on Dec.28th, 2003 when they were anxious and willing to be rid of it.
It ALL depends on your area and competition. I live in Tulsa where Acura/Lexus are VERY popular and there is only 1 Acura dealer and 2 Lexus within 100 miles. If you ORDER an Acura, you pay sticker. If you buy a new one of the lot you MAY get $500 off but most likely just get some freebies....
ash =o) |
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| Fabvsix |
| I first go to the local dealership I can't stand and woud NEVER buy from them. I sweat the A$$hole in circles....ya know when they run back and forth between you and their low scum manager in the back room ????????????? Then I say.....I'll think about it over night. Walk out and go have dinner. Then the next day, I call my favorite dealership and get them that paper with all the sweat and cirlcles on it..... Give it the "Sales Manager" and they do so much better and thats how I do it.....It works all the time......I always do my start with the Manager, NEVER the rookie sales person or "that" senior guy that's been there for 50 years ! Oh, always shop at the end of the month too ! :cool: |
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| erck3 |
I will strongly suggest going to edmunds.com and get a price quote on-line. You can request the dealers only contact you via email, and they will do just that (edmunds asks for an eval after you are finished, so the delaers know better than to disregard your request). I have never received a phone call unless I called the dealer first.
You will get an email from each on-line dealer and they will ask for specifics (color, used/new, options, etc.) They will respond with an offer and its usually non-negotiable. It will give you a good reference point when negotiating with a local dealer.
I am from Cincinnati and there are no on-line dealers here, so I used the zip code for nearby cities (Columbus and Indianapolis). Just a suggestion!
Good Luck! |
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| laborlitigator |
| Should the spouse be there or not? |
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| gweempose |
In my experience, most car salesmen have very little respect for women. They tend to view them as "easy marks", and thus don't treat them with the respect they deserve. I went in with my Mom once to buy a car. They acted like total a**holes toward her and wouldn't give her a price that was even close to fair. She left and vowed never to buy a car at that dealership. When we went into the next dealership she told them what had happened earlier that day and they were much nicer. She ended up buying the car from them.
I'm not quite sure if this answers your question about "spouse or no spouse", but I thought it would give you some interesting insight into the minds of you average sleazy car salesman. |
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| rachelle |
Two favorite tools are
www.Galves.com
and CarFax.
Galves tells you what the dealer wholesale is on used cars - essentially the amount - in cash - a dealer would pay to acquire a car. Use this as a starting point to get a sense of what a vehicle is worth before dealer prep, advertising, reasonable profit, etc. Keep in mind that the Kelly Blue Book price is, according to Kelly, a staring point for negotiation, NOT a selling price.
Carfax, among other things, tells you how long a vehicle has been on the lot. I find the history to be invaluable.
Online research including crash testing research - the more the better.
Also, as mentioned, be willing to leave. You can always go back or call back, but your walking out is not what a salesman wants to see.
Don't cut a deal on your first visit.
Remember, you're actually in control. And it's your money. You don't owe anyone anything.
Get your car loan pre-approved before you shop. If you can use a credit union, do it - their rates tend to be lower. Dealers can add points to the financing they get you and keep that extra money for themselves.
With regard to how salesman treat women, my two favorites are
1. The guy who, when I popped the hood on a 2002 SUV to find lots of electrical tape, started yelling that the previous owner did me a "favor" by making it "neater" and "prettier" because it would otherwise be messy looking. Uh huh.
2. The guy who, in response to my asking to see a particular SUV, asked where my "husband or boyfriend" was. I told him I didn't know it was a requisite for my seeing the vehicle (I probably should have said they were out seeing a movie together....) Mr. Charm responded by informing me that women are working now and making their own decisions and owning their own homes so hey, it's okay... Then he tried to hug me.
There was also the Mercedes salesman who said he was on his second ML Class yet couldn't answer most of my questions on the ML and couldn't figure out how to keep the hood open!
In general, I've found there to be a lot of lies (no surprise) especially with technical questions. The more research you do, the more you catch. I've been to about 7-8 dealers so far, sometimes wearing jeans and sometimes wearing a suit, and in 6 of 8 of those times, there was condescention and badly told lies (if you're going to lie, at least work at it.)
Buying a car can be unpleasant enough. Being a woman buying a car is even worse. |
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| td284 |
Out of the 8 to 10 salespeople I met when cross-shopping the MDX, the only good ones were a local Dodge dealer and the local Acura dealer. The rest were total jerks.
Rule one: don't make friends with the salesman/woman. Don't give them too much personal information, or lie.
Rule two: when you find the car you want, only deal with the managers at competing dealers and do it via fax/email/phone. I did the fax attack method, and in a few hours I had a great deal of $300 below invoice without any time waste or dealer games.
Rule three: no matter how good the deal is, be very careful with the finance guy/gal. That's where the screw gets twisted and they try to get that extra $500-1500 out of you.
Rule four: when the deal is done and you have the car, try to forget the whole experience. |
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