Tips for the BEST deal!

In today's day and age, buying a car can be easier than ever. It can also be harder than ever. Once you settle on a specific vehicle(s), the negotiating begins. The BEST most FOOL PROOF way to get the best deal is as follows:

1) Edmunds.com for invoice vs. TMV pricing. Also do research so that you are informed about any customer AND dealer incentives. Edmund's may not know about these dealer incentives as they had nothing posted for the month of March for "our" dealership. Look at TMV pricing to see what other people are paying.

2) Find the dealerships most recent newspaper ad. Look at the vehicles listed. Where it says dealer discount, KEEP TRACK of this. Make sure there is no "dealership" loyalty incentives. This is a game dealers use and hardly anyone will qualify. It's set up so that only people who have purchased their last 5 vehicles from that dealership qualify, and they must be trading in a vehicle that they purchased in the last 6 months. It's a game.

3) E-mail the dealers in the area. NOTE: over the Internet dealers are not required to include DESTINATION in the price of the vehicle. Invoice pricing reflects destination as being included. ALSO, ask for a specific breakdown of ALL the costs associated with the purchase of the new vehicle. You want an itemized list, and an OTD (Out The Door) price. Tax's, motor vehicle, EVERYTHING included.

4) Now what you need to do is compare dealer to dealer, and possibly visit each dealer. As long as you get a price near invoice, less any incentives, you have done a good job. Keep in mind that dealers will play games and that what may seem like the best deal, could turn out to be a complete phony. Until you actually sign the paperwork in the office and take delivery of the vehicle, your not out of the clear. Some dealers will actually deliver the car and then call you back because there was an "error" on the documentation.

Every dealer is different, and depending on what kind of vehicles they are selling, you may find that they may not be willing to negotiate at all. Just beware for the "highway" dealers. They are notorious for playing games and doing anything to sell you a vehicle.

Note that you should always have insurance, credit approval, and proper documentation for both. Dealers will do "spot" deliveries where they will put you in the car and you will drive away, without any of the formal paperwork completed. Once you drive away in the new car, you'd hate to give it back. If they come back and tell you that you've been approved at a tier 3 rate and your monthly payment goes up $15/month, you may feel obligated to pay the difference. This is just one of the MANY games they may play.

Next time we'll discuss dealer fee's...such as Doc (documentary fees), window etching, that "appearance" package, extended warranties, and other fee's associated with additional revenue earning practices that dealers use.