Any car salesman on here?

[rah7777777]

Morning all.
The wife and I are looking into a new car for her. The newest vehicle we have is 11 years old and its time to get something else. I've never bought a new car personally, so I don't know how all that car sales stuff really goes.
I don't want to get ripped off.. Any car salesman on here that can give me some advice on getting a good deal but not going over the line and pissing the people off? You hear people say to buy at the end of the month or just low ball and walk off and they will cave and give you a better deal, etc...

Looking at cheap SUVs (Kia Sorento, Mazda CX5, Hyundai Santa Fe, that type of vehicle) If I had my way i'd get a Ford Explorer, but those are too expensive.

We did look at a used 2011 GMC Terrian, $21k and they wouldnt budge. I can't spend 21k on a car that the warranty will be out in 5 months... (Which is why im thinking go new for a little bit more)

Thanks in advance for any advice.
-Robert

 

[Zeroflat24]

My advice is stay away from any mazdas. Are you trading a car in?

 

[rah7777777]

No trade in.
Gonna keep her old car and use as my daily driver instead of my V8 truck.

Don't like mazdas? I figured all makes have moved up the ladder pretty good in recent years.

 

[TooFst]

Find out dealer cost and offer about 500$ over that... Stick to your guns and if they won't come close find another dealership and they will...

 

[GAXB9R]

Yeah i am not a fan of the mazdas either. If you go foreign go toyota or Nissan. Kias are foreign too, but some are made here in Ga and they are much better than they were. If you want to spend a grip of money on foreign go Honda what more could i say.
I am not a fan of hyundai even though they are making a comeback.

Domestic i Dont have a preference. Nothing is like it use to be.

If you look into VW or Audi expect outrageous parts and service prices along with BMW and Mercedes. Most are pretty expensive anyways due to all of the electronics. Also remember that the new cars are much harder to work on if you are a DIY without special tools.

It seems you are looking at SUV type vehicles. Is MPG a factor or size?

Also dont buy "brand" new. Find a car with less than 20k on it and you can get a good discount because its "used" even though its basically brand new with the warranty. You might even be able to find a newer explorer within your budget.

The advice always give car buyers is dont fall in love with the car. Go into the dealership with no intentions on buying the car and always ask for a lower price. If you follow that advice you wont get completely screwed. If the price isnt right walk. They can lower and if they really want your business they will. Also if you go in towards the end of the month when the sales is trying to mert quota you can snag a good deal then too.

Have you ever thought about an auction?

 

[netty2424]

ABSOLUTELY NEVER negotiate a payment amount, negotiate the sales price and interest rate.

Cardinal sin #1 is walking in and answering their first question....."how much do you want your payment to be?"

If you answer that, just bend over and get ready for it. Buying a car is simply a shell game for the dealerships. I always ask what are their dealership fees that will be added to the deal so you'll know ahead of time in case they decide to add fees if you negotiate a good deal for yourself. They'll move numbers around to make it work for them.

Find out what the manufacture deals/rebates that they're offering on they're website, i.e. special financing, $5,000 of sticker, etc.

Also look for last years models that they're trying to move quickly. They'll be more willing to negotiate with you to get it off the lot.

Used car prices are up right now because the banks have tightened up on lending money. As a result, there's not much room for dealers to negotiate.

 

[netty2424]

Oh and always go to more than one dealership to see what each of them are willing to offer.

And make it known that you are negotiating with several dealerships. Make them compete, but don't ever tell them what the other is offering.

And don't be afraid to get up and leave, even if you think you might buy the car. Them you have one more dealership to go check on. If you're a serious qualified buyer, they'll always call you back in with a better offer.

 

[rah7777777]

Reason I want to go new is for warranty.
The 100k/ 10 year warranty through Hyundai and Kia is NOT transferable, only original buyer gets it.
So Im thinking buy new.

I MIGHT go up to 0.9% interest, but really looking for zero percent. 0.9 is my MAX!
Both of our credit is really good, so anything less than 0.9 and I'll walk no problems.

We tried negotiating with the GMC dealer on a used Terrian, they would only go down 100 bucks. We walked and I was surprised they didnt try to go lower to keep us there, as he knew my wife really liked it. But I wasnt sold.
They tried all the normal stuff like going 72 months over 60 and free oil changes... blah blah.

But since then, i've decided to go with a new car that will have warranty while im paying it off.

60 months is my max and i'll only talk out the door prices with them. (Which has been looked down upon by the few dealers I've talked to so far... guess thats a sign your not an "easy" customer.

I think all of the brands are pretty good these days. Kia, ford, chevy, hyundai, etc... I wouldnt have a problem buying any of them. Ford is my favorite, but you get a better bang for your buck with some others. Kia Sorento is assembled in the U.S too, I like that.
MPG is playing a role too... Wife does about 13k miles a year, so I want it to be okay on MPG and still have the room we are looking for (Mid-size SUV)

But back to main point....
How do you find out the dealer invoice price?

How much is a safe amount to offer off of MSRP?

I want a good deal but don't want to be one of those ******** customers (But I will be if I feel like im getting walked on)

So buy on the last couple days in the month... Be upfront about price shopping with other dealers... Be able to walk out the door (which is easy since our old car works perfectly!).... talk out the door prices only....any other good advice?

Thanks all!!

 

[sprk_sprd]

Lots of good info in here

 

[netty2424]

Ed Wallace's site is an excellent source for auto info.
Ed Wallace's site

Here's a basic article on asking for dealer invoice. I've never had a dealer show it to me, but sometimes you can find them online.
Article on Dealer invoices

 

[crawfo]

I bought a brand new Kia in July this year for my wife, couldn't be happier with it. Kia and Hyundai are pretty much the same company nowadays too. Hence the same warranty. They pile their parts together to build the cars. I also extended the warranty to cover bumper to bumper 10 years. Good luck on the interest rate though, best i could get out of them was 1.9% and I have pretty good credit. They do goofy stuff with with their credit. If you take the 0% you loose instant rebates and such. It was a better deal to take the instant cash off and pay the higher rate for me. I can tell you this, I have no worries about that car, and its fun to drive. I got her the Kia Forte SX Koup. I also live in WI so there is no penalties on early pay-offs with simple interest, look into that as well to save some dough.

 

[GAXB9R]

Not sure where you live, but a guy work with just bought a 2013 toyota tacoma and got an lifetime powertrain unlimited miles warranty in atlanta. I thought this was unheard of, but he got it.

 

[Loki]

Hold the phone here, anyone who doesnt like Mazda is someone who just hates foreign cars, which Fords are built mainly over seas now anyways. Mazdas are perfectly fine cars and their speed cars are beasts.

My friend got a 2012 Mazdaspeed3 and that thing eats, is also very smooth, very mod friendly, and gets good gas mileage to boot. He got it "preowned" with 712 miles on it for 22k last year. The pre owned warranty was also better then a new one (lasts longer believe it or not lol).

Mazda has cheap ****** cars just like very other brand. There is no car company here that has 100% all cars they sell to be ****. Come on now...

I hate fords in general but my dream truck happens to be a Raptor, so I dont hate every vehicle just cause they have a badge on them.

If you also like ford and hate mazda, the old mazda trucks (AKA B 2000- 4000) were just re-badged ford rangers...


Rah- have you thought about just finding a used newer SUV and financing?

 

[Crimson04]

I would personally be hard pressed to buy a foreign built car. I understand that line is blurred anymore seeing how gm makes many cheaper cars in foreign countries and uses a Isuzu motor in it's diesel. Yet somehow import names are assembled here it makes it hard for me to decide. Like many others here I bought a American built bike for a particular reason.

Kia is based out of South Korea where most of it's pants reside. Ironically Hyundai owns larger shares of Kia. The Kia Sorento is made in Georgia for the record and out of the vehicles you mentioned it seems like the winner.

Hyundai manufactures a majority of their vehicles in South Korea. Other countries are China and the proud USA.
The Santa Fe you mentioned is built in Alabama.

The Mazda CX5 is built in Japan, which I am scratching my head over because as many I link Ford- Mazda.

Look into previous year models the dealers are still holding onto or a year old low mile model.

 

[rah7777777]

I should also add this... I'm very anal on car maintenance, I'm that guy who lets his car warm up for a few minutes before touching the gas pedal (which is why i love remote start!)
Which is why I don't think i could do a demo car. think how many times that engine is started and put into gear immediately with no warm up time. (Yes i know cars and oil are made better and it only takes 30 seconds for oil to coat everything internally, but i just want it to have some warm up time... haha)

We will most likely keep this car for 10 or so years, so i'm not too concerned with depreciation over the small difference from used to new, plus the warranty. (Everything we've found locally that still has warranty is not much cheaper over going new..)

lets face it, i'm not looking at a rich mans car, but a pretty basic cheapy

Crawfo, what was there stipulation on the interest rate. i know most places wont give you much of rebate with the zero percent. Kia has 0% PLUS $1000 off right now or $1500 off and 0.9%.

They try to screw you over on it or ??
That will be a deal breaker for me (If they pull some sly stuff that i catch anyhow)
If I can not get 0% i'll look more into used though. But i see no reason why we shouldn't, we are both right at the 800 mark. But im very interested to hear why they wouldnt for you... if its some odd ball excuse i'll be jumping in my 11 year old ride and heading to another dealer!

Thats good advice about the inspection sticker!!

Thanks all! At the end of the month we will be taking a day off to go see what we can get

 

[crawfo]

I honestly don't remember the exact stipulation on the interest. I could either take the 0% or i could take the rebate, not both. This was in July. So i took the rebate and finaced through my credit union and it all worked out for me. I still got an almost nothing rate, just didn't finance through Kia because of their game.

 

[Loki]

Like many others here I bought a American built bike for a particular reason

Like many other who wish this was true. Design, a few parts, and assembly was done here, I still consider it a world bike since to me it has to be 100% American to carry the title.

 

[captain chaos]

I want a good deal but don't want to be one of those ******** customers (But I will be if I feel like im getting walked on)

You're there to buy a car, not make a friend. Don't be afraid to play hardball and above all STICK TO YOUR GUNS AND WALK IF NEED BE! I've gotten 30+% off of sticker from this tactic alone before (took 2 weeks though). You know you've done well when you can see them physically squirm in their seat.

Don't forget, their there to take as much money from you as they can get. A car salesman is the enemy as far as I'm concerned; nothing more than a robber trying to take as much of my hard earned cash as they can get their hands on.
I'll be civil with them,so long as I'm not treated like a fool. However, I WILL NOT be lead around like a fish caught on a hook and I will not hesitate to call a stupid asking price/ counter offer anything less than what it is; straight to their face.

My wife HATES car shopping with me. lol

 

[BuellyBagger]

Only buy a car from a guy who rides a buell.