{"id":277900,"date":"2010-02-04T17:17:12","date_gmt":"2010-02-04T22:17:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ridelust.com\/?p=36224"},"modified":"2010-02-04T17:17:12","modified_gmt":"2010-02-04T22:17:12","slug":"buying-a-new-car-avoid-these-mistakes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/277900","title":{"rendered":"Buying A New Car? Avoid These Mistakes"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Here comes the salesman – cue Jaws soundtrack…<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Buying a new car shouldn’t require a prescription for Xanax. If you spend the time to figure out exactly what you\u2019re looking for and what you\u2019re willing to pay for it, then it\u2019s just a matter of finding a dealer who\u2019ll work with you. Sure, I\u2019ve encountered my share of amoral scumbag car dealers over the years, but the vast majority of businesses I\u2019ve dealt with have been courteous and helpful. Here are a few tips to ease the pain of your next new car buying experience:<\/p>\n

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Remember: there’s no such thing as a free lunch…<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

– Don\u2019t believe the dealer\u2019s advertising hype.<\/strong> If a dealership spends the bulk of its advertising budget trying to convince you that they\u2019re the little guy, or that it\u2019s a family business, or that they have the lowest prices in town, chances are that none of it is true. If they offer you a \u201cfree extended warranty\u201d, you\u2019re paying for it somewhere. Car dealerships are like Las Vegas or strippers: they exist to separate you from your money as quickly and efficiently as possible. You\u2019re not car shopping to make a new BFF; you\u2019re shopping to get the vehicle you want at a price you\u2019re willing to pay.<\/p>\n

– Always have financing worked out ahead of time.<\/strong> If you\u2019re lucky enough to buy new cars with cash, this rule doesn\u2019t apply. For the rest of us working class heroes, make sure you know what special deals are available from the manufacturer and from your bank or credit union. Get pre approved, as this eliminates any last minute surprises when you go to close the deal. Never fall for the \u201chow much can you afford per month?\u201d line from a car salesman; know what you\u2019re willing to pay, and how much you\u2019ve qualified for before you walk in the showroom.<\/p>\n

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– Always test drive the car you\u2019re going to buy, even if the dealer has to special order it.<\/strong> I never cease to be amazed at the new cars I drive that have rattles, bad alignment or other QC related issues. If something is wrong with the way the car drives or sounds, pick another vehicle or dealership.<\/p>\n

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– Understand everything you\u2019re paying for.<\/strong> See something on the sticker you\u2019re not sure of? Ask for a full explanation. If the salesman won\u2019t give it (or worse yet, tries to feed you BS), don\u2019t be afraid to walk away. A good example is ADM, which stands for Additional Dealer Markup and can commonly be found on high demand, limited production vehicles. If you see this on the Shelby GT 500 KR you\u2019re lusting after, try to negotiate. If you see this on a Toyota Camry, just walk away from the dealership.<\/p>\n

– Know exactly what you want before heading to the dealer.<\/strong> Do your homework ahead of time; pick the models and trim levels you\u2019re interested in and build a cost analysis spreadsheet. You can find invoice and list prices at several internet sites (including KBB<\/a> and Edmunds<\/a>). Decide what you think is a fair price for the car, based upon its popularity, availability and your need to drive that make and model. Remember that there\u2019s money changing hands that you won\u2019t see; dealers get holdback (generally 2% or 3% of the car\u2019s sticker price) from the manufacturer, and may get additional manufacturer\u2019s incentives for selling targeted volumes. Even if a dealership sell you a car at invoice, they\u2019re still making a slim profit.<\/p>\n

– Don\u2019t fall for the bait and switch.<\/strong> See an ad for a car at an unbelievably good price, only to find out the dealer just \u201csold the last one\u201d? Is he willing to make it up to you by selling a different car for only a few thousand more? That\u2019s called “bait” (the car that never really existed at a once-in-a-lifetime price) and “switch” (the car that the dealer is now willing to sell you at list price). How about this: You want an AWD Honda Element but you live in Florida. The dealer tells you, \u201cSorry, we can\u2019t get them here\u201d, which really translates to, \u201cI wouldn\u2019t sell enough to justify keeping them in stock, and I really want to sell you something from my bloated inventory\u201d. If the dealer you\u2019re at can\u2019t or won\u2019t locate the car you want, move on to another dealership that\u2019s willing to work with you. <\/p>\n

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I told you the window etching wasn’t negotiable!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

– Don\u2019t be afraid to be rude.<\/strong> I\u2019ve walked out of showrooms because a salesman has pissed me off, and you should be willing to do the same thing. If the salesman is making you uncomfortable in any way, don\u2019t waste your time asking for a manager. Simply get up and go on to the next dealership.<\/p>\n

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But the Blue Book says it’s worth more!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

– If you\u2019re trading in a vehicle, prepare to be disappointed.<\/strong> Even though you\u2019ll find \u201ctrade in\u201d values on sites like KBB<\/a> and Edmunds<\/a>, I\u2019ve never had a dealer offer me anywhere close to that number, regardless of the car\u2019s condition. You\u2019ll make more money if you sell the car on your own, but that can be a big pain in the ass if you still owe money on it. Decide in advance if the convenience of trading in a used car is worth the cost.<\/p>\n

– Beware of leases.<\/strong> Sure, they make sense for some drivers, but they can be a huge money pit if you exceed the annual mileage (typically somewhere between 10k and 12k miles) or return the car with damage or excess wear. If you trade up every two or three years, don\u2019t customize your ride and drive less than 10k miles per year, then a lease may be worth looking into. If you don\u2019t fall into that category, you\u2019re probably better off buying a new car.<\/p>\n

– Talk to your insurance agent before you buy a new car.<\/strong> Chances are, you premiums will be higher because it\u2019s new, even if it\u2019s the same make and model you\u2019ve been driving for years. If you\u2019re going from a four door Buick to a Corvette ZR-1, your premiums will be much, much higher. Be sure to factor the increased cost into your budget, because nothing sucks more than realizing you can\u2019t afford to own the car you just purchased.<\/p>\n

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Here comes the salesman – cue Jaws soundtrack… Buying a new car shouldn’t require a prescription for Xanax. If you spend the time to figure out exactly what you\u2019re looking for and what you\u2019re willing to pay for it, then it\u2019s just a matter of finding a dealer who\u2019ll work with you. Sure, I\u2019ve encountered […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2161,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-277900","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/277900","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2161"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=277900"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/277900\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=277900"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=277900"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=277900"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}