PAY CASH, FINANCE - GET A DEAL!
OK -- here it is direct from a former car salesman for many years in NYC and Miami who worked both for many dealerships and for myself. You want the best price -- that's fair. Dealer wants the highest sale price -- and will use every trick he can to get it. He'll juggle the numbers anyway he can to get you where he wants you. Sure, he'll take money off the price - and whoever said $100 - $200 off is a good discount - is really being much too soft & nice with the salesman and dealer! You should walk in the dealership figuring you can take $1000 +/- off the price!
Anyway - the dealer will lower the price if you're gong to finance with him because of the points he'll make on the interest rate he'll charge you, that's true. He may get the $ for 5-6 % let's say, but offer it to you for 10%, and then lower the price of the car a bit, &/or then maybe even lower the interest a half point, just to get you to buy -- TODAY!
Either way -- he's making money off you. And there's not much you can do about the dealer making money -- don't worry so much about that -- the guy's in business to make money - so let him. Just don't let yourself get ripped off in the process. The dealer's got every right to make a FAIR profit.
So, what you've got to do is be firm, strong and equipped with knowledge. Don't go into the dealer like a kid with 5 bucks who goes into a candy store -- looking to spend every nickel on the candy that catches his eye - no matter if there are better deals on the candy to be had. Do not fall in love with the car! There is always another car, and the BMW fact'y will make more. Promise.
OK -- so now you've got to be ready to play the game with the dealer. And the extent to which you play the game depends on how much of a discount you want and how badly you want it. This can be really fun if you let it be. So -- don't tell the dealer you have CASH; don't tell him you're pre-approved from a credit union! You don't have to tell him anything! Just keep going & going for the best price. He's going to start that: "If I can sell you this car for $xx,xxx.xx will you buy it today?" Or, "If I can sell you this car for this much and you finance with our company and I can get you this x percentage rate for this x term, will you buy the car today?" Or, "If I can waive the dealer fees (which is sometimes very difficult to do, but not impossible) and I can get you the price you want at the interest rate you want and the term you want,. will you buy the car today and finance with us?" Sounds like he's giving you the ranch doesn't it? Hold on buddy -- read the words I typed. If I can...will you...today. Those are the important words to hear. He's not promising you ANYTHING when he says all that. He's just saying the things you want to hear wrapped inside some shifty wording, so when he comes back from the finance manager or the sales manager or whomever it may be in the other room pumping him up to go back to you and get more money - he can always say, "Well, I couldn't get you this much because that's under our cost to get the car in here and we can't lose money, but since it's Wednesday or the end of the month or the middle of the month or the first of the month or whatever, I can probably get you something more like this: and he'll show you or write down an amount that is much higher than you want to pay... then it all begins -- the "Step Process" of sales. He's going to step you up to the price he wants, and he's going to fdo it a little at a time, and the salesman is going to try and make you believe that he's fighting for you, and that the manager is a hard-ass. But he's getting it done for you -- he's softening up the manager for you. Yeah right! But after a few trips to the manager -- you've already been stepped up a bunch of money you didn't intend on spending when you walked in. But they're wearing you down, making a good show that the salesman is on your side and playing you into their hand.
Don't tell them anything, or bend the truth like they will - you can always say you changed your mind. But when you get the price you want - keep them thinking you're going to finanace with them, but get the price in writing. Pull the same thing on them that they'll pull on you. Tell them, "OK. If you'll sell me this car at this price I'll buy today, but only if you initial that." And have the salesman and manager do just that. Now, when they start sending you back to the finance man -- who's going to try and sell you warranties, floor mats, undercoating over the existing undercoating, auto insurance, life insurance just in case you die - you want your car paid off, and who knows -- if his brother's into Mutual Funds -- he may try to sell you on those as well -- tell this guy as he begins to write up the credit doc's, "hold on sir, I just have to make a quick call" -- and make like you're calling your bank - or actually call them to discuss the rate and term of the loan the dealer is going to give you. This will really throw the finance mgr off (piss him off is more like it) and then begin your back-out of the dealer financing. It may get a little sticky at this point, but remember, you can always walk out. And if they let you get to the door once you've go to this point - none of you ever had any sort of meeting of the minds anyway and all was for naught.
Happy buying. Recent grad huh? Good training in the world of negotiations. If you can negotiate that - you can sell the empire state building to Iowa.
Saro
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