My advice on buying a car

Date: Thu, 24 Jul 2008 19:47:17 EDT
From: B Prentice
Subject: Car buying

Something very few people know about me is that I once worked at a car dealership. Not as a salesman, mind you, but in the parts department. But I got  to see plenty of salesmen in action during my short stint there (and I’m  not being politically incorrect… in the 70’s, the sales staff was all male).

The best thing that came from that job was an awareness of how the auto sales process works. Now there are a number of “sales techniques” that car salesmen use, and (except for the leasing game) I doubt they have changed much  over the years. They are all designed to take as much $$ as possible from the customer.

My advice on buying a car follows:

1) Know what you want (generally) and what its  worth before going to a dealership. If what you want is a new vehicle, realize  that they are THE FASTEST DEPRECIATING ASSET you will ever own.  If what  you want is a used vehicle, condition means everything.

2) Do your research about financing, car  prices, trade in value of your old car, etc. Use KBB.COM to determine the value  of your trade in, and the value of any used car you might be interested in.

3) Take any prospective used car to a decent  local mechanic and spend the $100-$150 it will cost for a thorough  go-through. It can save you thousands if it prevents you from buying a bad car,  or at a minimum give you some bargaining power or a list of “must fixes” for the  dealer. You wouldn’t buy a house without a home inspection, would you? And  I have actually bought houses for less than some of today’s used cars.  Put any problems you want repaired in writing on any contract,  and  make sure they stay there as the contract gets written and rewritten  during the bargaining process.

4) The first time the salesman says “I’ll have to  take this to my manager” tell him you are no longer interested in talking to  anyone is not the deal maker. If he tells you that its the way things work,  ask to talk to the manager and state clearly that you are not going to play this  game, and will walk out if it happens again. Then do it.

5) Be very careful of:
– A ridiculous “processing fee” of $300-$500 – this  is nothing more than dealer profit.
– Coatings and polishes – more dealer profit
– “Free accessories” – You know they are not free,  and if they are not things you are willing to pay full price for, have them (and  their price) removed from the deal
– “back-end profit items – extended warrantees,  financing, insurances – all of these are most likely better deals for the dealer  than they are for you. Again, be sure you understand what your best deal is on  the open market for these items, before you pay too much in the rosy glow of  having gotten “the best deal of your life” on the car.
– Special sales days – again, more special for them  than for you
– Low-ball ad price in the paper or on the radio –  usually one off-beat car, already sold – just a trick to get you into the  dealership so they can pressure you into another vehicle.

This is a starter list… a minimum set of things any buyer should know.

To make it more “Chatham centric” post, I can tell you that I have bought two new vehicles from Sanford Honda in the last 3 years and was pleased with the  low-pressure sales process there (I guess they heeded me when I stated that I  would leave if the games started) as well as the professionalism of the finance manager, Willie.

I have negotiated deals on over 35 cars in my lifetime (for me,  and for family members), and still dread the process!

Good luck!

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