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Purchasing Strategies - Questions & Success Stories
Have a question about how to start negotiations or need advice on a particular approach? Do you have a successful strategy that you'd like to share? Start here!
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Using the manufacturer website to find all dealers within a 100mi radius (not going to use online svcs that solicit quotes for me), I will call each to get the name of the fleet mgr and their fax number. On the morning of 2/21, I will fax each one a very respectful, but business-like letter letting them know that I am accepting bids for this specific car & options through 2/23 and that I WILL be purchasing this month. My ask is for their "all in" price on an in stock model. I'll specify that the bid should be inclusive of all non-finance related costs (dealer prep, doc fees, ADM). My intention is to end up with a mutually beneficial transaction where I get the lowest price possible while the dealer gets a relatively low maintenance sale so they can move product off of their lot and focus their time and efforts on other prospects.
On Thursday 2/24, I’ll then fax each of the responding dealerships again letting them know the (honest) lowest bid that came in and will request one final bid before I decide who to go with and make arrangements to take delivery on the 28th.
Well – what do you think? Does end of the month time frame help me at all? Do you think enough of the 15 dealerships in my radius will respond? Has anyone else done something similar? Do you think I’m I better off finding 3 local dealerships and just putting in the time to play the game and do the dance with them? Thanks!
Rich
Pick two or three places, preferably close to you, check out their service departments, the attitudes of service and sales personnel, and the attitudes of their customers (big indicator), and go forward in person.
When I received the responses (3 out of 5), I assumed the dealer's attitude was reflected in the salesperson's words and "tone." No response - obviously out. "Come on down we give you best price" - out. "We'll do you a favour by selling you this Accord at $500 off MSRP but the deal is good today only, and, BTW, we charge a couple hundred for dealer prep" - out. The one remaining dealership was straightforward and responsive. I was not disappointed with service experience either.
Faxes (and blast-faxing) is so, ummm, 80s?
I have selected vehicle and started doing the rounds to get prices (am getting 4 quotes). I have put this in a table that I am happy for other dealers to look at so that they know what they are up against. My problem is that ALL of them say that they won't be beaten on price. How do I handle this aspect of the negotiation?
I would be grateful if someone would offer words of wisdom.
Thankyou and have a great day.
You're going to spend a lot of time going from dealership to dealership if you do it this way. Do you have a favorite dealership among the 4 - does one of them have a better reputation, or come recommended? If so, you can take your 4 quotes straight to that dealership and show them your lowest offer (if they're not the lowest), and let them know you'll buy from them today if they meet or beat that offer.
If you don't have a favorite, go straight to the one with the lowest price, if that's important to you. But be VERY careful indeed. Often the "lowest price" doesn't end up being the lowest - you get stuck with fees and add-ons not quoted in the price, or bad financing.
When you start shopping a low price around, you're really opening the door for a lot of shenanigans that won't, in the end, benefit you.
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If you're quoted a super low price that seems too good to be true, it likely is. Check out the new cars page here first, and price out your vehicle so you'll have a ballpark idea of what to expect.
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From my viewpoint, I am constantly amazed at the pain some people will put themselves through when they buy a car.
Most dealers will round can "blast faxes". We get dozens of these a week usually on the same form letter that must be somewhere on the internet.
It really doesn't have to be a miserable procedure. My advise would be to ask your family, friends and co-workers for a referral. Ask them how well they were treated, hw is the service department, and if they felt the price they paid was reasnoble.
The "fleet manager" is usually just another salesperson with more experience than most. I have often been tempted to ask..." Oh, how many cars will you be needing for your fleet?"
It really doesn't have to be hard. It can even be fun!
thx for the responses everyone.....i hear what you are saying, and i agree that some dealerships won't want to play this game, but I've got to believe out of 15 dealers, there are 4 or 5 that are willing to trade some profit in exchange for a transaction that will take minimal time, and in order to make this work, I only need a few to play. Am I just blissfully ignorant here?
In any event, based on all the invoice/holdback/rebate info available on the net, I pretty much know the price I'm looking for. If I can't get that price via this method (which is much less time consuming for me than dealer to dealer shopping), I can always go with plan B which is the dealer to dealer dance. I'll let everyone know how it works out.
You will more likely find the worst dealers will be the ones to respond to you ... and you'll generally find that they'll get the money from you in other ways ...
Thanks, Audia. You filled in for me in a commendable manner. You are hearby promoted from the 'Bobst in training' rank to the 'Bobst surrogate' title.
Actually, I am going to try the internet approach in a few weeks. I'll be sure to let you all know how it goes.
These comments are based on several of my recent expereinces and observations.
1. I know I'm going to get blasted for this...but...IF at all possible, find a babysitter! A car dealership really isn't the place for active, demanding toddlers. They aren't happy being there and they usually present a tremendous distraction for all parties.
Yes, I love kids. Same applies to dogs. I'll never understand why some people will bring a dog into a place of business?
2. PLEASE, allow enough time! There is nothing worse than to have a customer take three hours deciding on what they want, working out a deal etc than have them look at their watch and tell us they have to be somewhere in a half hour! If you have time constraints, let us know in advance and we will try or best to streamline things.
Buying a car isn't like buying a pair of shoes. There is a lot of time consuming paperwork involved for one thing.
2. Know what you can afford. If your budget is 20,000, the 30 thousand dollars cars you want to test drive will not fit your budget.
3. Be upfront. If you have had some credit issues in the past, let us know. Often, they aren't as bad as people think they are. If you have a trade-in, let us know. It'll be worth exactly the same now or later.
4. A friendly straightforward posture will go a long way. If you don't receive the same in return, ask for a different salesperson or simply walk out.
I realize these ideas may counter what you read in the "How to buy a Car" guides but they will help make it a more pleasant experience.
Lastly, shop early if possible. People who come in an hour before closing may get rushed through the process.
Hope this helps!
Craig
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It really doesn't have to be painful for either side. It isn't a battle.
Best advise of all I can give is to ask friends and family for a referral. You will be treated like family and leave happy. You probably won't pay any more either!
Problem is, not all dealerships are like this; how do you find one? How do you know it when you walk in the door? On the other hand, this straightforward approach probably works best no matter who you buy from...
" Excuse me...I see you just bought your Caravan from ABC Motors...can I ask you if you would reccommend that store?"
People will usually be happy to share their experiences both good and bad.
Or you can even call the store and ask...
" Which of your long term salespeople would you reccomend? I want someone easy going that isn't pushy"
I get a lot of business that way.
Now that isn't always the best way, especially if the person answering the phone is dating the worst salesperson there!
I think you made several good points , but why would I leave my kids at home? They will be riding in any vehicle that I purchase , so I will need to see how the vehicle functions with the whole family aboard.
I suppose you would need to make the test drive separate from the negotiations.
When we purchased our Chrysler T&C 2 years ago I went in ready with what I felt was a fair price and was ready to deal that night. After my wife gave the van the Ok after the test drive I gave them my offer.
Well, 2 hours later the deal is not done. The kids loved climbing all over the Jeaps while we waited.
We left with no deal. Sales manager call that night and gives us another offer. Still not good enough. Finally he calls me the next day at work, and offer $200 more than my original offer.I accepted it because I like the green pea salesman we were working with.
I just think that if dealerships wanted to they could speed up the process.
Next time you are right we will be keeping test drive and negotiations seperate. Lesson learned.
It just should not have to be so hard.
guss, it doesn't have to be that hard but if you are absolutely determined to wring out the last possible dollar be prepared to spend some extra time!
It's very important to see if kids fit a vehicle, no doubt, but as parents, we should know how big our kids are, and maybe bring a stroller or car seat to make sure the trunk and rear seats work for you.
My biggest peeve about kids is that when mommy and daddy and negotiating and signg up for a $30,000 vehicle, mommy and daddy need to be paying attention - it shouldn't take 10 attempts to make a car deal happen, but if junior has all of your attention, it likely will.
I love my kids, but they don't belong in the middle of a business transaction, even as (now) teenagers. Get a sitter, or grandma, or drop them off at the movies.
Alot of great information to be learned from the regulars that post here.
Of course I don't expect anyone to watch my kids when I am out. They are well mannered enough to sit there while I sign a few papers.
I disagree about not bringing them to a test drive. I am 6'6 . I put the seat all the way back. With car seats kids sit up higher. Guess where their little feat end up? Right in the middle of my back.
There is no substitute for them actually being in the car and testing it out in real world conditions.
Secondly, of course you want the kids on the test drive, but that's another twenty minutes, big deal. My daughter doesn't whine, and she can be quiet for a half hour or less.
Thirdly, I've never picked up a car the same day that the price was set. And by that I mean either OTD price, or "so much plus TTL". Never been jerked around on the math, either.
Sometimes I test drive in June and buy in January... on my Sienna, I kept waiting for the end of the model run, and when the deals got really good, I went back and picked out my car. The salesman kept tabs, so he was suprised there was half a year between test drive and purchase, but he just kinda shrugged it off... sold is sold. And I always drive the specific car I'm buying; once around a long block is enough if I know the model.
Another thing to consider is, go for the test drive, keep the salesman's card, and then go back to him or her... the good ones appreciate it, and they get the message you're not jerking them around, and when there's a sale, it'll be their sale. I think that makes a big difference in the amount of pressure.
If you can keep your dealership visits short, you don't have to worry about half the points in isell's advice. And I agree: most people make it way too painful.
-Mathias
A college friend of my oldest son's tagged my son into helping him look at a used Mitsubishi Eclipse yesterday that his girlfriend and her father would be ultimately buying. The kid haggled his hardest with the salesman at the mom and pop store; offered HALF of what was on the sticker, because that's what his dad taught him; ground on the guy for an hour, nitpicking every little scratch on the car, royally made the sales guy mad.
The girl dropped in, started in on the guy again, something about window tint.
The girl's dad stopped by yesterday afternoon, almost got into a fight over the price.
The girl's dad called me last night. I asked if he had looked up to see what the car was worth. He said "Well....no."
The boy (19), the girl, and the dad, spent nearly 4 hours (total) beating up a sales guy, and they didn't take 3 minutes to check out NADA or Kelley to have some clue what the car was even worth, so they could make a reasonable, legitimate offer.
I can't imagine having that kind of time to waste.
If the salesman in question was smarter than a bag of hammers, he would have never engaged the "boyfriend" in conversation, given a minimal, but respectful amount of tiume to the daughter, and concentrated on getting dad and daughter in place to check out the car, get reaction, and talk numbers.
I agree with Mathias on one point. You know what the car is worth roughly when you walk into the dealership. The sales manager (or salesman) knows what he has to sell the car for to make a reasonable profit. In a perfect world, the numbers are pretty close and you get the deal in 20-30 minutes.
Occasionally, a dealer will have more money in a car than he should have and won't be able to make a deal. At that point, I thank them for the time and leave. I have done this on occasion even to my favorite salesmen. On occasion, they have called me at a later date to see if I was still interested. Sometimes we can make a deal, other times not.
However, on a couple of occasions, we have had to deal with salesmen who do not respect informed buyers. I can argue 2-3 hour for a deal if it is necessary. However, in my old age, I have begun to realize that there are 10,000 cars in the big city and it is not worth the stomach lining.
But, after shopping all over without success, the shopper usually comes to grips with this.
This is why I'm alsway so nice to them when they leave without a car. I make it clear that I'm not going to say " I told you so".
On the other hand, I have had the experience where I leave a dealership who has stated "you'll never find it for less" just to go down the street and find it for less.
And, I have to admit, I find a certain pleasure when the people who walked, return after shopping all over to find the car they really wanted was sold an hour before to someone else who recognized the value.
Works both ways...
These comments are based on several of my recent expereinces and observations.
1. I know I'm going to get blasted for this...but...IF at all possible, find a babysitter! A car dealership really isn't the place for active, demanding toddlers. They aren't happy being there and they usually present a tremendous distraction for all parties.
Yes, I love kids. Same applies to dogs. I'll never understand why some people will bring a dog into a place of business?
2. PLEASE, allow enough time! There is nothing worse than to have a customer take three hours deciding on what they want, working out a deal etc than have them look at their watch and tell us they have to be somewhere in a half hour! If you have time constraints, let us know in advance and we will try or best to streamline things.
Buying a car isn't like buying a pair of shoes. There is a lot of time consuming paperwork involved for one thing.
2. Know what you can afford. If your budget is 20,000, the 30 thousand dollars cars you want to test drive will not fit your budget.
3. Be upfront. If you have had some credit issues in the past, let us know. Often, they aren't as bad as people think they are. If you have a trade-in, let us know. It'll be worth exactly the same now or later.
4. A friendly straightforward posture will go a long way. If you don't receive the same in return, ask for a different salesperson or simply walk out.
I realize these ideas may counter what you read in the "How to buy a Car" guides but they will help make it a more pleasant experience.
Lastly, shop early if possible. People who come in an hour before closing may get rushed through the process.
Hope this helps!
Craig
==============================
You are my Hero ~ Great post.!
Terry.
You guys know what a payoff is, and how it effects the final figures, you know that your $6,500 vehicle is not worth $9,000, you know how rates effect payments and you understand that - and you would know a good deal if you saw one .. most don't ..
Some partners and myself are getting ready for the Miami Boat show .. nothing will change, most will owe more on their current boat than the value, most will shop dealers on a step-down - meaning, they will start at the $100,000 big critters and leave the show in a $35,000 ski boat when a dealer finally hits "their" payment, most will have little or no money down and most will have read a few articles, but studied nothing ...... hmmm, sounds like the car biz ................ )
Terry.
So, I am loking at the Mazda6 as a comparison. Accoring to edmunds and other sources, they go for invoice minus incetives (currently 2500). So, I went to the dealership yesterday in the late morning. I drove one, and was impressed. I was upfront about my timetable: after I get the amount of my anual raise, which is in 3 weeks.
I told him what I was comparing the car too. On the drive, he asked me what I thought, and I told him that honestly I liked the Subie a little better, but maybe not 7K better.
I have not bought the car. I did not really discuss price. Before making a decision, I would like to get an idea if my price guideline is reasonable. Do you think a reasonable approach would be to email my sales person to 1) thank him for the time, and 2) ask him to find out if invoice - incentives is a good price guideline?
(MSRP on the car is about 28,000; Invoice, 25,000, incentives 2500, or end price around 22,500). I am thinking by putting it in the general terms of invoice minus incentives, I am not asking them to give me a number.
Or am I setting my self up for a lowball?
Thanks!
BTW, be prepared to pay $900 for the “Protection Package” since every car on their lot has that package already installed and “every Mazda Nissan dealer in the country does that”.
The first time I ever participated in a message board was CompuServe's old Travel Forum. Occasionally, we would have a big get together in Las Vegas. I had the opportunity to meet a number of professional poker players, 10 years before the big craze.
They told me that there were two ways to learn how to play winning poker. The first was to run to a certain bookstore in Las Vegas, drop $300, get all the books from the masters and study them for a year or two. The second was to come down some Saturday night and they would "teach" me.
On any major purchase, you have two choices. Do your homework (significant cost in time) or you'll pay more. Period.
Are you willing to pay $22500 for a Mazda? If so, then go to the dealer and make an offer. It only takes a couple minutes.
If they refuse, then leave and think of a new plan.
I mean , this is pretty simple. It ain't nearly as hard as modifying a computer program.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
If you already have a number, why waste your own time.