share your car-buying experiences!

[sniperruff]

thinking of buying a car in the near future but i haven't got much experience for spotting mechanical problems with a car...

so anyone has any stories to tell about a past experience from buying a new/used car? stories of getting ripped off and whatnot?

share it with the forum! it might just help poor kids like me!

=)

 

I knew I wanted an Accord LX 5-speed manual back in April of this year. I test drove a couple different makes (Honda, Subaru) and decided I liked the Accord best. I emailed a couple Honda dealerships, forwarded their respective emails to each other without naming names (to promote competition) and took the lowest offer. I didn't set a foot into the dealership until the day I picked up the car. It was all done online and over the phone. Once I was at the dealer, the delivery process took about an hour.

It was the least painless car-buying process I've ever experienced. And I'm thrilled with the car, to this very day.

 

[GagHalfrunt]

Rule 1 of new cars: When buying a new car, know EXACTLY down to the penny what the car actually costs the dealership. If you know what it costs you win, if they convince you of a phantom number to prove what a good deal you're supposedly getting, they win.

Rule 1 of used cars: Don't buy anything without letting a mechanic check it out first.

 

[MartyMcFly3]

First car i ever had my dad got me an '88 Dodge Ares for $500 from his friend. You'd turn on the map light on the passenger side, the radio would die out and the clocks/radio programmed stations reset. You open the back door on the passenger side, same thing. The horn didnt work, and there was no beep to remind you when you left your lights on. Man that was one crappy car.

After I drove that for about a semester in high school, it crapped out so my dad and I put our resources together and found a '94 Grand Am in really good shape which i still drive. Love it especially compared to the first car.

 

[Ornery]

Never buy a sports car used.

Figure out which cars have the best reliability record, and take your chances with one of those. Use CarFAX. Try and buy a one owner car, preferable not by a kid, and certainly not a rental. Figure out what options and criteria are important to you and stick to your decision. It's worth a few extra bucks to get just what you want, so don't be in a hurry to buy. I waited a few weeks, and researched no less than 23 cars before settling on my wife's current one. Had to drive 45 minutes to get to the dealer to look at it, but hell, that's just an average daily commute for some people!

I found that private owners were asking just as much, or more for their cars as dealers, so it didn't bother me to buy from one.

 

[KoolAidKid]

I used the materials available at fightingchance.com. They tell you all of the secret dealer incentives, etc. I then faxed the 20 or so VW dealers in my area and said the following...

Dear Sales Manager,
I will be purchasing the xxx within the next few days. I know that your dealership will receive a $xxx factory-to-dealer incentive, and the invoice price is $xxxxx. I will purchase this vehicle from the dealership that offers me the lowest price within the next 48 hours. Please call me with your offer.

This actually worked really well. Without doing any haggling or even going to a single dealership I got 15 offers within 12 hours of sending off the faxes. The invoice on the car I was looking for was around $17100, and I got offers between $15500 and $18500 (inlcuding everything but tax). I called up the dealership with the lowest price, they drew up the paperwork and set the car aside for me, and I went to pick it up. Easy. They didn't like me particularly, but I don't particularly like most car dealerships either, so I didn't mind.

 

[sniperruff]

interesting tactics jumpr and koolaidkid... i'll try that out when i shop for a new car, hopefully in a year or two?

i've just graduated in may and owe the bank $14k.... so that pretty much kills my hope of buying any sort of decent cars.

i'm thinking about buying a used car. of course i want to spend as little as possible... as long as it runs and has a seat in it im happy. the only problem is that cheap/old cars are usually riddled with many sorts of problems...

thanks for the suggestions. i'll probably pay a visit to a dealer like ornery mentioned...

 

[RossMAN]

Good thread idea.

My tips:

• Remember you have the power to say NO and walk out at any time. You don't HAVE TO buy a new car.
• Read CarBuyingTips.com and Edmunds.com
• As mentioned previously know the car's invoice price.
• Contact your local credit union for pre-qualified financing BEFORE visiting the dealership.

Here's what we did:
No haggling was needed. Our 2002 Honda Accord SE invoiced for $19,500.00 we only paid $17,244.00 (including $495 destination fee) plus $113 Oregon TTL, tax title and license thanks to a loss leader ad.

Saturday morning we purchased The Oregonian newspaper, flipped to the car ads. They had 7 Honda Accords at roughly $2,000 below invoice, all the SKU numbers were listed in the ad. By the time we visited the dealership (about 2 hours after they opened) 5 had been sold. They had 2 left , so we got #6. Since it was a loss leader ad, there was no haggling involved.

We'll probably purchase our next car using our Credit Union's car buying service, CostcoAuto.com or using another loss leader ad.

Do your homework, research, haggle and play dealerships against each other!

 

[Squisher]

Originally posted by: RossMAN
Good thread idea.

My tips:

• Remember you have the power to say NO and walk out at any time. You don't HAVE TO buy a new car.
• Read CarBuyingTips.com and Edmunds.com
• As mentioned previously know the car's invoice price.
• Contact your local credit union for pre-qualified financing BEFORE visiting the dealership.

Here's what we did:
No haggling was needed. Our 2002 Honda Accord SE invoiced for $19,500.00 we only paid $17,244.00 (including $495 destination fee) plus $113 Oregon TTL, tax title and license thanks to a loss leader ad.

Saturday morning we purchased The Oregonian newspaper, flipped to the car ads. They had 7 Honda Accords at roughly $2,000 below invoice, all the SKU numbers were listed in the ad. By the time we visited the dealership (about 2 hours after they opened) 5 had been sold. They had 2 left , so we got #6. Since it was a loss leader ad, there was no haggling involved.

We'll probably purchase our next car using our Credit Union's car buying service, CostcoAuto.com or using another loss leader ad.

Do your homework, research, haggle and play dealerships against each other!

There're times when I think I'm RossMANesque then you set yourself apart.

Lucky I can still get a GM discount and pep-cars.

My '02 Z28 came in at $22K with a list of close to $30K. Thank You, GM Card MasterCard 5% rebate. GM employees could get $700/yr. and could accumilate for up to 4 years.

 

[oogabooga]

I bought a used 1993.5 Infiniti G20 from a family friend and it was quite easy and hassle free. First the guy had all the paperwork, did factory maintenance and documented EVERY oil change. The car was in decent condition, but he was very honest and upfront.

Basically he showed me a mechanics report of what needed be done to the car (and of course i had a mechanic confirm all this) and then knocked the total price of the repairs (around 600 dollars) off the final agreed price. He had driven the car moderatley, and the interior was sun-damaged from sitting around. So while not in the best shape, not in bad shape by any standard..

After all was said and done, i got a good deal, and my car is running great. I managed to get all the reapirs done for much cheaper than expected, and the car for much less than expected, end cost was around 2500 to date (which includes car, repairs, new windshield, 4 new tires, new stereo, etcetc).

 

[jagec]

Originally posted by: Ornery
Never buy a sports car used.

I disagree...never buy a sports car without having a mechanic check it out. Econoboxes you CAN buy them without having a mechanic check it out if you know a bit about cars.

Never buy new. Way too expensive. If you are rich, go ahead, but for the vast majority of us buying a used car is better

Dealerships are always more expensive in my experience. Buy from a private party.

You can usually tell just by driving it how beat up it is, and how "old" it is. 200,000 mile cars just drive differently than 100,000 mile cars, and cars that have been beat up drive differently than cars that have been babied. Just looking at the engine bay and interior can give you a good idea of how well taken care of a car is.

Plan a few hours to check out a car...DON'T rush it. DON'T check out a car at night, and if the car is a long ways away from your house, don't be afraid to "waste the trip" and say no if it doesn't look right.

 

[GnomeCop]

I used www.carsdirect.com to get my new 2004.5 Volvo S40 T5
asked for a quote from several places. Most places got back to me within a day. I went for a few test drives haggled for an hour or so, left because they were stagnant on pricing.
Recieved calls frequently from the list of places I requested quotes from, kept getting quotes over 30K out the door. Budget was only 30k MAX.

after 6 days, the last dealer on the list got back to me, offered me a great deal at under 30k out the door, went there the next day haggled a200 bucks off the price. Got the car for 700 bucks under invoice, and 29,500 out the door, spent a total of 1.5hrs there.

 

[torpid]

I did a lot of test driving and comparisons before buying my car. I was convinced I wanted a vw passat glx. However, the dealer turned me way off. He was a total huckster personality-wise. He even used the line, "which car would you like to drive home today?".

I was dissatisfied with their price, having done some recon work and knowing that it was too high. I then went onto one of those sites like lending tree. The dealer saw me posting there and sent me an email in an obviously passive aggressive tone telling me that I won't find a better deal than the one he offered me. I went to the other branch of the same dealer (unfortunately there was only one dealer in town, and I was hesitant to go 90 minutes away to another dealer for only moderately better prices -though significantly better service), and was only treated slightly better.

I then gave up on a new car for a while, until a nice deal on audi a4's came around. The salespeople there treated me so much better it's absurd. The deal was also a lot better, as was the trade-in they were giving me on my car.

 

[Descartes]

I created a buyer's order for an '03 350Z, put the price I was willing to pay ($1000 under MSRP--an unheard of price when they first came out), and faxed it to all the dealers within a few hundred miles. I went to the first one that I felt was treating me right, and I signed their order for the car.

I try to keep the momentum of a car purchase on my side, so rather than ask them for a price, I simply tell them; if they don't want to accept, then I can move on. It's great for both parties, because neither of us waste time with all the antics. I tell them what I want, how much I want to pay, and absolutely nothing more. It obviously pays to do your research before you go. Find out what deals others are getting by visiting forums dedicated to that car, read about dealer incentives so you know how much they're really making on the car purchase, and find out how much you're willing to pay.

 

[toant103]

Originally posted by: sniperruff
thinking of buying a car in the near future but i haven't got much experience for spotting mechanical problems with a car...

so anyone has any stories to tell about a past experience from buying a new/used car? stories of getting ripped off and whatnot?

share it with the forum! it might just help poor kids like me!

=)

Went with my uncle to Alexandria Passport Nissan. The manager wanted $27900 for a 05 Maxima with the sensory package and sunroof with the spoiler. I think the total bill came out to $29xxx with tax and title. Uncle didn't like the price so he told the manager $27000 out of the door. The manager and saleman kept on talking about it for like 30 minutes. BTW, this was like 6 PM and they were about to close i think.

The manager said ok, we'll sell it for $27000 out of the door but no spoiler. My uncle said no and the manager said bye, and don't come back. He then pull the door shut on us. So we were in the parking lot thinking about the deal. We agreed that's a pretty good deal for $27000 out of the door w/o the spoiler. We came back and want the car for $27k, he said i don't want to sell it to you for that price now, not even at msrp.


I'm in the process of calling Nissan Headquarter to complain. BTW, his name is Bruce.

I know my writing skills suck so please don't complain.

 

[Ornery]

"I disagree...never buy a sports car without having a mechanic check it out."

A mechanic isn't going to be able to mic the wear parts on the engine, that are at, or near the end of their life, due to stomping on it when it's cold. Sure, you can see if it's huffing oil, but what if it's just short of that point? You can't see a twisted axel or broken tranny guts. You can't see if a modded chip has been swapped back for the original one. Chances are too great that a "sports car" has been driven like a sports car.

 

[sniperruff]

Originally posted by: Ornery
"I disagree...never buy a sports car without having a mechanic check it out."

A mechanic isn't going to be able to mic the wear parts on the engine, that are at, or near the end of their life, due to stomping on it when it's cold. Sure, you can see if it's huffing oil, but what if it's just short of that point? You can't see a twisted axel or broken tranny guts. You can't see if a modded chip has been swapped back for the original one. Chances are too great that a "sports car" has been driven like a sports car.

so ornery should i always get a mechanic to check out a car that im pretty sure i'd buy from a private seller? the other problem is that it's kinda hard to find a mechanic in NYC that won't rip you off...

and thanks for the advice guys.... i guess so the car-buying experience is not as painful as i have imagined... except for toant... well get the altima 3.5SE (better looking IMO) from some other dealer if that dealer is such a douche.

by the way my uncle is offering me his old early 90's chevy lumina with 100k miles (i think it's a 3.1L but with a 3-speed auto i think) with no major problems but a set of worn out front struts.. . pretty much for free or a couple of hundred. i'd probably just settle for that if i can't find some nice deal.

 

[OS]

Originally posted by: Ornery
"I disagree...never buy a sports car without having a mechanic check it out."

A mechanic isn't going to be able to mic the wear parts on the engine, that are at, or near the end of their life, due to stomping on it when it's cold. Sure, you can see if it's huffing oil, but what if it's just short of that point? You can't see a twisted axel or broken tranny guts. You can't see if a modded chip has been swapped back for the original one. Chances are too great that a "sports car" has been driven like a sports car.

I wanna say something about this. I knew this guy who had a pretty heavily modified corolla. Because it had a crappy filtering cold air intake (cone filters often suck), the inside of the throttle body and engine manifold had a thin coat of grime. He put a nitrous kit on this car and the first time he installed it, it was done incorrectly so when he turned on the car first time after, it ran WOT in park for several seconds until he shut it off. Then, after he got it correctly installed, he started jacking up the the hit of nitrous. 35 HP, 55 HP, 75 HP. He eventually ran through about 50 ten pound bottles worth of nitrous through that car. It was a freaking monster for a ghetto compact car, it trapped higher in the 1/8th than WRXs do. Then there was this one time he tried ebrake drifting in an empty parking lot, lost control, and got the car to jump over a curb into some grass.

Amazingly, the car never broke despite all this abuse. He eventually got bored, put it back to stock, and then sold it to an unsuspecting old asian lady. :Q Even if you took the car to a mechanic, it would be hard to tell it was that badly abused. The car always looked fine on the outside and under the hood.

 

[Ornery]

Originally posted by: sniperruff

Originally posted by: Ornery
"I disagree...never buy a sports car without having a mechanic check it out."

A mechanic isn't going to be able to mic the wear parts on the engine, that are at, or near the end of their life, due to stomping on it when it's cold. Sure, you can see if it's huffing oil, but what if it's just short of that point? You can't see a twisted axel or broken tranny guts. You can't see if a modded chip has been swapped back for the original one. Chances are too great that a "sports car" has been driven like a sports car.

so ornery should i always get a mechanic to check out a car that im pretty sure i'd buy from a private seller? the other problem is that it's kinda hard to find a mechanic in NYC that won't rip you off...

and thanks for the advice guys.... i guess so the car-buying experience is not as painful as i have imagined... except for toant... well get the altima 3.5SE (better looking IMO) from some other dealer if that dealer is such a douche.

by the way my uncle is offering me his old early 90's chevy lumina with 100k miles (i think it's a 3.1L but with a 3-speed auto i think) with no major problems but a set of worn out front struts.. . pretty much for free or a couple of hundred. i'd probably just settle for that if i can't find some nice deal.

Suit yourself on the mechanic inspection. I've never taken one to be inspected before buying, but I'm the one who works on the cars, so it's my funeral if I screw up. I'm more concerned that even a top notch mechanic won't be able to tell just how badly a car has been abused. Buying a used car is always a gamble, but a used sports car is more of a risk than I'd care to take, no matter who checked it over.