Did you recently take on (or consider) a loan of 84 months or longer on a car purchase?
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Any Questions for a Car Dealer?
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Any help is much appreciated in advance.
I'll be looking to buy a new car, preferably a Honda Civic or Mazda 3 in the next couple of months, but have had some credit issues. I have a solid income, steady employment and residence, no outstanding debt, but a couple of satisfied tax liens. I have a 572 score with Transunion, but no current accounts so Equifax couldn't generate a FICO score for me.
My big questions are ... 1. Can I still get approved or do I have to wait six months or so until I can generate a score? 2. Should I be completely upfront and let the dealers know in advance the only score I have is with Transunion? 3. If there is some way to get approved without a FICO, what kind of rate can I realistically expect?
Thanks to anyone who has some answers.
There are a lot of young people. My store's sales staff is probably about 50% under 30 years old. There are younger people there because Carmax is extremely picky about who they hire. If you have previous car sales experience (like me), they are cautious to weed you out if you exhibit old-school sales traits. They want closers but more importantly they want hard workers, no cry-babies, and team players. Remember, this is one of those Fortune 500's "best places to work" joints. But age discrimination, no. We have guys in our mid 60s here who are routinely putting out 20 cars a month.
You can make more bread at a regular dealership quicker, but if you want a good company for the long haul career and need less peaks and valleys in your sales, it's an option.
Personally I don't like sales and will be moving onto another shyster career (attorney) after this.
My answer: call a dealer. Tell them you're a ghost on Equifax, but have a 572 on Transunion. I know that one of my dealerships could use either Equifax or Transunion, so you shouldn't have to wait 6 months. Tell the dealer you have x amount as a down payment (scrounge up as much as you can). Shoot for the newest/lowest mileage Civic or Mazda 3 (get the Mazda) you can find. Run the app. It won't hurt to try. Credit inquiries will fall off after 30-60 days.
My guess - you'll get an approval for around 10-14%. If it's higher, pay 12 solid months on time, and then I guarantee you can get a new loan with a better rate. (if this is a used car we are talking about)
Personally, I refuse to buy a new car with more than 15 miles on it. I can handle one test drive by another person, but much more than that and I get irritated. My current car had 6 miles on it when I bought it. Note - this is especially true if the car you are looking at is a manual transmission sports car. Who knows how many clutch-dumps some idiot customer might have done in the car in an earlier test drive?
Can you tell I am anal about my cars? hahaha
I think it's great you knew what car you wanted before actually doing the test drive, but many buyers won't know what car they want before taking a test drive or two -- it's part of the decision process and perfectly reasonable.
I too just got done spending several months researching which car to buy. Knew it would either be the Tacoma, the Ranger or the Colorado. Looked at and test drove all three before deciding on the Ranger.
Thanks very much. Sounds like good news. My plan was to put down at least 7 to 9 grand anyway to combat my crappy credit.
Actually the reverse is true. Others can verify my experience but after probably 10000+ demos the one constant is that the buying/shopping public is very very very careful of other's ( the store's ) property. The typical auto demo normally lasts 5 min and rarely get's above 40 mph on city streets and for maybe a mile or two at best.
Under 5 miles is 'fresh off the truck'. I have no problem taking vehicles with 500+ miles. Modern vehicles are not china dolls so a few hundred miles has little or no bearing on the overall reliability. IF the vehicle has been damaged during the 500 miles in inventory, at least here it has to be disclosed on the window; the well known 'scratch and dent' sale.
just in case.....a PDI is a Pre Delivery Inspection.
However do not buy from a Buy-here-Pay-here. It will do your no good whatsoever. Get it from a Honda store or a Mazda store. They will put you with a good reputable finance company.
Think about it Isell - how many people would actually do that? Perhaps a few, rest just actually wants the product and be done with it. People (mostly) have more important things to do than shopping for a car. This kind of assurance simply means that if there is an unbearable squick somewhere behind the dashboard (not covered by any warranties and no way anybody can fix it for cheap), which was not picked up during 5-minute test drive, you may simply return it. Moreover, how much does extra few hundred miles lower the car's value, assuming no damage was made? None, so better just get over it and likelyhood of this custmer returning is high.
At Walmart (I know different scale of product, but many more transactions so it may balance) they will take it back after 90 days - I heard cases of returns after a year without receipt. Abuse? Of course - but they figured it all evens out, because again - how many people acctually do that? Most want the product.
So - I woudn't say it is that crazy as you want to paint it. Perhaps it would not fly in your store, perhaps many others would not like it either. But in an environment where a single sale is not "make or break" situation and where there is no mindset of getting maximum possible profit of every single transaction (usually achieved by "adjusting" the price to the customer), but rather creating more uniformed profit margin, this added assurance may simply mean say 1000 more average transactions per week with say couple of returns?
2018 430i Gran Coupe
Huh? I've been insulted
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
Trust me, there are a LOT of people who would abuse a program like this.
Car Max, as a corporation probably doesn't care given the percentages as you point out but for the salesperson and the managers at the individual stores, this would be a huge PITA to deal with!
I still think it's a NUTS policy!
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
I just would have a question to you - from all your posts I get a sense you are one of those honest salesguys, who generally believes in their product and would not like to bear a thought of selling somebody a POS. So - say what would you offer to a customer who bought this 25K mile "almost new but out of rattle and squick" warranty with this terrible rattle behind the dashboard that was not detected during test drive because it shows at speeds 55 mph+? No similar car available on the lot (say it was an Accord with manual and leather), fixing it out of question (zillion hours of labor in chasing a ghost). The customer wants to be reasonable and not to demand too much, but the rattle is really big and confirmed, the car was sold as "almost new" with say dealer's warranty and all nine yards.
Wouldn't returning money in that case be actually the best way to rectify the situation, other than say a deep discout, which may amount for losing even more money then return and still long-term customer satisfaction in question.
Just curious - tell me what would you offer.
2018 430i Gran Coupe
But, assuming this was the case, we would, no doubt allow the customer to exchange the car for another one. I guess if there was nothing close on the lot, we would unwind the deal.
A couple of years ago, I sold a lady a used Audi. Now,Audi's are at the top of my list of cars I don't like. They can be nothing but trouble. We did our usual, intense inspection on it and of course, we found some things to fix which we did.
It didn't matter. Within a couple of days, the car acted up in typical Audi fashion with a series of electrical and other problems. We unwound the deal and took the car to the auction.
Our store always does the "right thing" and in this case, this was the thing to do.
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I agree in all of my demos I have only ever had one person who made me so nervous I made them stop and give me the keys. They were taking a nearly $80k Range Rover down twist roads at twice the legal limit. Most of the time people are very sedate drivers and on a few occasions I have told people it is ok to push a little bit just to see how nice the car handles despite its bulk.
In regards to the mileage issue. All Range Rovers come with a minimum of 30 miles on them. I have never seen one that came in with less. LR3 and Sports typicaly have less maybe 5-10 sometimes as little as 1. For the Range Rovers I have always assumed they do a lot of extra testing at the port to cut down on out of the box issues with such an expensive car.
We've had people drop the keys back off and say "thanks, but the kids weren't comfortable on the car trip". The car TRIP.
We even hold onto their trade in if they ask us to.
Yes, it's ridiculous.
But...keep in mind, for me (and I suspect, for a lot of car buyers), the 5-day return policy is what clinched the deal! I am nutso when it comes to worrying about little rattles, squeaks, vibrations, etc. And knowing that I could buy the vehicle, and really give it a good solid 2-3 days of use made me feel 100% comfortable with the transaction.
In fact, several years earlier, that is the precise reason why I bought a brand new Yukon versus a 3-year old model from a traditional dealership. The used one looked great, ran great...but even after two long test drives, I obsessed over a few minor rattles and imperfections...and I knew if I bought the thing, I was stuck with it the minute I left the lot. With Carmax, we didn't have that worry.
I am certain there are knuckleheads that abuse the policy. But quite frankly, without that 5-day return policy, I'm not sure if I would have bought from Carmax or not.
This reeks of a lowball - by giving you that price he has made sure you'll go back to him when you want to buy - simply because nobody can match it.
I'd be very surprised if you can get that price from him when it's time to buy.
For you it is about self-protection against abuse. For others, like Carmax, it may be about trying to gain a competitive advantage over stores like yours by saying "they might be doing the right thing - or they might not - we guarantee it in writing".
It may or may not work, depending on actual details and scale of supposed abuse. I suspect that in Carmax's scale it actually may work for there are many people are willing to pay extra for that "piece of mind" (that's why F&I guys sell so many products, isn't it?).
Ending the subject - no surprise the policy came from people of CircuitCity
2018 430i Gran Coupe
That is the problem with giving people your best, best, best price right up front they always assume there is more even if there really is not. This happens to us with old used cars all the time when we have already pretty much knocked a car down to wholesale price just to try and sell it, get a customer and avoid auction fees. Even after you show people the books that this is an auction/wholesale price they still want more.
It's been too many years ago, one of my first jobs out of college was a "manager trainee" at a retail operation (Federated dept stores). After a few months of training, I became a "floor manager"....in charge of several retail depts. One of the biggest complaints my dept sale managers had with me was I always would approve a return, regardless of the circumstances. I'd say 95% of the returns were legit. I'd rather take back the 5% of returns that were questionable, than risk losing any of the 95% of the customers who had a legitimate beef. My "return" #s were always a little higher than my colleagues, but so were my sales per customer, too. I base that on exemplary customer service.
That's one of the biggest reasons I shop at Costco all the time. I have a problem with something I bought from them....no matter how high the amount of dollars involved? Costco takes it back, no questions asked. I bought almost my entire home theater system at Costco. Returned a $5K plasma TV for no other reason than I didn't like the style of it when I installed it into my system. No muss, no fuss on the return. Ended up buying another TV from them that cost $6K.
Mackabee
If your friend was making $80K selling low-margin electronics and appliances, then it isn't too hard to see how they got into financial trouble..
I'd pay $1K more for a "cream-of-the-crop" used car that the seller was willing to stand behind.. I've lost much more than that, depending on my own limited abilities in assessing the quality of used cars.. :surprise:
regards,
kyfdx
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This is very true. And, you know, I'm willing to bet this policy results in even MORE sales. Its sort of along the lines of the overnight test drive (the "puppy dog" close, as some salepeople here have referred to it). Let them take it home and they won't want to let it go. PLUS, you get those who might be on the fence. If, for instance, I was still not completely decided or comfortable with the deal/car, having it to drive around, commitment free, for a few days might very well make up my mind for me and make me want to keep it.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
At age 24, I was a Division Manager for the largest Sears store on the west coast. Believe me, I used to cringe when customers would take advantage of the "Satisfaction Guaranteed" policy Sears had in effect.
But to allow someone to 'rent' for free your $45000 Limited SUV for a weekend trip to Disney or WaterWorld and then on Tuesday have it dropped off with a note "It's not for us" is asking for the angle-shooters to hit your store. Now CarMax is a huge operation so it must not be such a problem but after I've demo'd a vehicle or two and spent an hour or two doing the paperwork and making the delivery... for $100!!.. then to have it dropped off and unwound for nada??
Not to mention encouraging 'buyer's remorse'!! NO THANKS!
people DO abuse the system.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
Actually it's more like the debit back the manufacturer or distributor and if you don't empty out your "return bay" regularly, they toss it out.
You do know that Craftsman is a Sear's brand, don't you? You can't buy "Craftsman" branded tools anyplace else.
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
I thought that type of sale was usually for the used and abused category of preowned? Which translates more into a 'gouged and crushed' sale.
A dealership couldn't knock out a couple little dents and still sell without disclosure?
I realize that. But Sears owns the Craftsman brand name just like HD owns the Husky brand and Lowe's owns the Cobalt brand - it's all done to create brand loyalty. There may be differences in the products as well - just because they are made in the same factory doesn't mean they are all made to the same specifications.
"the company that builds craftsman also builds husky and for home depot, same company diff name for the seller."
This is a broad statement and it is not always the case because other companies build craftsman tools it just depends on the craftsman tool and model number you are talking about.
robr2,
"just because they are made in the same factory doesn't mean they are all made to the same specifications."
They are not all made in the same factory.