New Car Buying TipsOur new car buying tips are intended to help give you the information we need to make a smart deal.
After all, buying a new car is probably our second most expensive purchase after the purchase of our home. So, let's try to do it right !! New car buying tips : Choosing the basics Choosing means selecting one from among several choices. The problems inherent in choosing are knowing what is best for you, and avoiding the myriad of myths presented by salesmen anxious only for a sale. You must rely heavily on a salesman for product knowledge and advice, but you need not be completely at his mercy. Do not accept everything he says without question, for you are making the selection, and you must live with the consequences of a poor choice. The process of choosing should be based on following simple new car buying tips : Does the function satisfy my needs? Whenever your process of selection reaches an impasse, ask this basic question: "Will it do what I need done?" It is easy to become confused about exactly which car, with which engine in it, will be the right car for you. The best rule of thumb for the average family putting average mileage (12,000 miles or 20,000 km per year) on its car is to avoid the smallest and the largest engines available in a given series or a given model. Make a selection from the engine (s) in the middle, provided there is a midsize offering. If you drive fewer than 12,000 miles per year, the smaller engine offers both economy and performance. If you drive more than 12,000 miles per year, the larger engine offers performance and durability. Your personal driving habits and the use to which you put the car determine the size that is best for you. Explain to your salesman just how you plan to use the car, what economy and performance you expect, the miles you plan to drive each year, and how long you plan to keep the car. Individual needs are different and require individual consideration. Knowing your intended use, the salesman can better counsel you according to his knowledge of the individual capabilities of the models within his product lineup. However, you should know the following new car buying tips : Salesmen are trained to sell what they have in stock, rather than factory order what you want or lose the sale to another dealer. Immediate sale equals immediate cash flow. When a salesman's advice seems contrary to what you ask for, test him. Does he have what you want in stock? Is he trying to sell you something only because it is all he has to offer? Will he factory order what you want? If he doesn't have what you want and is not willing to factory order it, his advice and motives are to be questioned. Some people have preferences that will not change regardless of the arguments and logic used to dissuade them. Past experience, good or bad, will dictate their preference and choice of engine and transmission. You must avoid all myths and misconceptions based on hearsay or product misuse. Talk to people who own what you are considering and decide for yourself what is best for your needs. A car must be chosen and driven according to its limitations and capabilities.
New car buying tips : Choosing a dealer From whom should you buy, a large dealer or a small dealer? If both offer about the same price for the same merchandise, which will take better care of you on after-sale warranty work ? Check out the following new car buying tips on this question : Let's define small and large. A small dealer is not to be confused with a small-town dealer. Most small towns have small dealers and, in some towns, only one dealer of each particular brand name. Here, too, are found multiple-line dealers, two or three dealers who carry most of the major brand names among them. Negotiations are more difficult in a small-town atmosphere because of the element of monopoly. If it is the only movie in town, you go to it; if someone is the only dealer in town who carries the brand name you want to buy, you buy from him--at his price and on his terms. The two major new car buying tips that may be used against the small-town dealer are time ("I'll wait until next year to buy") and competition ("If you won't give me a better deal, I'11 buy Brand B"). It is difficult to shop Brand A against Brand A if the next A dealer is 60 miles away. So you must outwait the small-town dealer on price or threaten to buy B. The small dealer, by virtue of his size, has a smaller inventory from which to choose, a smaller showroom, fewer salesmen, a smaller service department , fewer mechanics, and, not surprisingly, a lower volume of business than the large dealer. Small almost always wants to be big. While there are exceptions to the norm, most small dealers want to grow and expand their facilities. They want to increase their sales volume and someday become number one. This is accomplished by developing a clientele of happy, spread-the-good-word, repeat-business customers. Small dealers seem to appreciate your business more than larger dealers; they have not yet acquired the aloofness that often follows success and the status of being the biggest around. They may do more little favors for you than the larger dealer would under the same circumstances. But there is an opposing argument. If a dealer is small and has been small for a good number of years, perhaps there is a reason. It is possible that the small dealer has poor service, sloppy salesmen, and a care-less attitude. However, our new car buying tips don't mean that large always equals better, or even adequate. The large dealer may seem better able to give you the service you need when you need it, but this is not always true. A frequent consumer complaint is that most dealers, especially large dealers, sell more cars than they can possibly service. This means that the large dealer, with a larger sales volume, could be less able to properly service every car sold. So what are the best new car buying tips to follow to help you make a good decision ? It is literally impossible to judge quality by size. Choosing a dealer usually boils down to price and reputation, which includes the reputation of the service department There is only one way to take the guesswork out of choosing a dealer: talk to people who have bought from each respective dealer. Most dealers place a bumper sticker or logo label on each car they sell. When you see a car parked somewhere boasting the sticker of one of the dealers you are considering, take a few minutes to meet the owner to ask him a few questions. Do not be bashful about approaching a stranger to ask him what he thinks about his car, and about the dealer from whom he bought. Do not restrict your investigations to one or two people, and give the small dealer the same consideration you give the large dealer talk to the same number of people who bought from the large as bought from the small. Do not ask a car salesman for the names of people who have bought from him. If he does give you a few names they will be those people he is 100 percent certain are happy with him, the dealership, and the car. One of the basic new car buying tips, often overlooked, is to check with the Better Business Bureau in your area. They can tell you much about the dealer, including the number of complaints filed against him. If there is a Consumer Protection Agency in your area, contact it. Even this does not ensure a problem-free purchase.
New car buying tips : The Automobile Broker An automobile broker will factory order the domestic car of your choice for local delivery through the respective brand name dealership. The automobile broker's major sales pitch is "dollars saved" (discount). You are told that he has no salesmen to pay and no facilities to maintain, and that he can sell you a new car at a little over dealer cost.
Working as a franchisee, the automobile broker places your order through a buying company (franchisor) who receives a fee per unit ordered. The local dealer who delivers your car receives a courtesy delivery fee of $100 to $125. The automobile broker himself will write as much profit as possible and call it a brokerage fee, a get-ready charge, a buying fee, or any combination of the three. The illusion of savings is simply that--an illusion. Buying through an automobile broker is certainly not part of our new car buying tips because of the following intrinsic disadvantages: You cannot work a trade, you must dispose of your old car on your own; and after-the-purchase service leaves you at the mercy of a dealer who did not make a decent profit on the deal. All disadvantages of factory ordering apply to the automobile broker, for he does not carry an inventory. Inspection of merchandise is severely restricted. Your recourse is limited: the dealer made no representations (he only made the delivery) and the broker only placed an order at your request. That leaves the factory and an elusive factory representative.
New car buying tips : Choosing the right period There are two major new car buying tips to consider : reasons for the automobile business to slow down are crisis periods and seasonal periods. The Crisis Period This is usually economic in nature, and either local or national in scope. When the general economy slumps, people tighten the belt and spend less, and those items they do buy are primarily the necessities of life. So when things are slow, take advantage of it--don't tighten your belt; spend and save. The Seasonal Period At certain times of the year, salesmen put forth less effort to sell to a customer and use "the fault of the season" as their excuse. All salesmen experience the seasonal slump at some tome during the course of a sales year. The fact that salesmen psyche themselves out like this is a reality, and it works to your definite advantage. The following new car buying tips will give you an edge. 1. Around Christmas This period usually runs from 2 weeks before Christmas to about 3 weeks after. During this period, a salesman's sales enthusiasm slackens as boredom sets in, and he literally becomes rusty standing around waiting for the clock to strike quitting time. Our best new car buying tips with respect to this period of the year are that you must never refer to the car as a Christmas present, and you must always convince the salesman that it is not that important that you buy before Christmas Eve. If the salesman suspects the car is a gift, he will hold out for a higher price. 2. February This is a small slump and most salesmen are waiting for the more active spring market to hit. Your edge is between February and spring. 3. Summer A slight edge to be found now. It is midyear, between models, and sales are slow. Salesmen think people will be spending their money on vacations and pleasure. Play coy and act as if you can wait for the new cars to hit the market. After all, you would rather take a vacation. 4. Fall Check out our new car buying tips for this critical period. There are three periods of significance: before, during, and after new-model introduction (NMI). Before NMI, the salesmen have been driven up a wall by end-of-the-year bargain hunters. The salesmen's resistance has pretty well been worn down, but they can get edgy. During NMI, salesmen become aloof--new product, excitement and enthusiasm, high profits to be made--and hold out for top dollar on everything. About 1 month after NMI, negotiations begin to loosen up-Christmas is coming.
New car buying tips for other periods
Monthly The best new car buying tips to follow is to shop at the beginning and at the end of the month. Most dealers project the number of units they want to sell for a given month at the beginning of that month. If they fall short of their goal toward the end of the month, they will sacrifice profit to meet their goal. Also, salesmen on a volume bonus structure will be pushing their sales managers harder to help them meet their quota. All dealers like to kick off the month well--so they write better deals during the first few selling days to get as many sales on the board as possible Weekly The better times of the week follow the same pattern as those of the month--kick off well on Monday and wrap up well on Saturday. Some dealers offer their salesmen a bonus called a "Spiff" for Saturday volume. If a spiff is on, your salesman will eagerly try to see that you get the car you want at the price you want to pay. He wants volume, not profit . Daily You could be either too early or too late. The better time of day is from three in the afternoon onward, but not before two hours before dealership closing time. Too early in the day salesmen feel there is still the last two hours before closing time and you will not have the time to employ ail your strategies. When the salesman senses you are a tough sale, he will give up the effort of negotiating and appeasing just so he can go home. Factory Strike Do not expect to find a bargain during a factory strike. Dealers must make as much profit on their sales as possible, for they have no way of knowing when they will be able to replenish their dwindling inventories.
|
