Dealing With A Dealer
Provided By: CarInsurance.com
Last updated 2:35 AM Oct-24-2008You want to buy a new car. The time is right to change out cars or just add another vehicle to your garage. You have done your research and now have to go to the dealership. Car dealers can make you almost beg for the price you want and take hours of your time getting it. Working with the dealer can be the hardest part of the vehicle purchasing process. Learn how to deal with the dealer.
First and foremost before visiting the showroom of a dealership you must have done your research. This research includes not only deciding on what exact vehicle you want to purchase but what price you should pay. Doing a little investigating online will allow you to find out what the manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP) is compare to what the invoice price is. The invoice price is what you want to get as close to paying as possible. It is almost impossible to get the invoice price exactly because the salesman and dealership does need to make some money.
Besides knowing the invoice price know what the extras or options are going to cost you. If you research correctly you can find an invoice price that includes the options you want. This way you have a total number in mind. But it is also smart to remember how much the options as they are separately added on should cost so that you will know if the dealership is trying to overcharge you on any of the options.
Now that you have in mind what you expect to pay it is time to put on a confident face and sharpen your negotiating skills. To go into a dealership and strike a deal on a vehicle takes patience and a stubborn streak.Why stubborn, because a car purchase is probably the most expensive purchase you will make next to your home. That is why you need to know what you want to spend and be able to stick to that amount by being stubborn.
Car dealers work on commission. The more they can get you to pay for the vehicle the more money the dealer will make. This is also why dealers seem to be pushy and might try to rush you to purchase a car before you can do research or even think straight. Dealers learn to read people and work on your desire for a new vehicle, thus get you to pay the price they put in front of you.
Remember the power is always with you. You can get up and walk out at any time. Some dealers will stall you or run around showing you the parts department or have you meet the manager to keep you around longer while they work on your desires. Other dealerships have been known to “hold” onto the car keys of the car you drove up in as you do your final test drive on the new car. The “holding” of the keys turns into a stall tactic to keep you in the dealership while they “look” for your keys. To stop this from happening never surrender your keys to the car you drove up in.
Dealers have many years under their belts of reading people and that is why it is important for them to see that you are serious and confident in what you want for the price that you want it for. If you show them your self-assured face when you come in they are less likely to try to walk all over you. Instead they will get down to the facts and figures much quicker.
When the facts and figures come out you know it is time to start negotiating. Let the dealer tell you what they say the price for the vehicle would be. If it is just at the MSRP or a high price near that pull out your research. Here is when they will realize you are serious and know how their game works. Your research will show what invoice price is and what your options should cost.
Let the dealer know you want to hear a number as close to the invoice number as possible. As you make this request do so in a calm and agreeable voice. You do not want to annoy the dealer or come across as confrontational. You just want to get a fair price and you should let the salesman know that.
If negotiations go well you will end up paying around 5% over invoice. One way to knock the price down to this is to remind the salesman that you will be bringing the vehicle to their dealership so their service and parts department will make money from you in the future. This should help the negotiations move along pleasantly.
What if you go through all of your research and numbers but the dealer will not give you a good deal? Then it is time to say thanks for the chat and walk out. If you really like the dealership as a whole but just do not care for that particular salesman you can come back at a different time and find someone else that might be willing to wheel and deal with you.
If it is not the salesman but the dealership as a whole you are not fond of leave and find a different dealership that will deal with you. When I bought my current car the dealer was rude and talked down to me. At one point when he would not listen or read my research by dismissing it as incorrect he arrogantly pointed out that the dealership was ranked number two in all the state. I memorized the dealership that was number one.
The number one dealership turned to be about an hour out of town but guess what, I called on the phone and was able to negotiate over the phone the exact price I wanted. The car was not on the lot either so I ordered it with the options and trim that I desired. So sometimes you can even negotiate over the phone to get the deal you desire.
Dealing with the dealer does not have to be difficult. If you go into the dealership with your factual research and know what you want to spend on the vehicle than you are already ahead of the “dealer’s game”. Remember you are always in the driver’s seat of the negotiations. You can take the deal or walk out at any time.
This was the easiest way I've ever bought insurance.
Nicolas B.
Orlando, FL
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