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Hey folks, car shopping now. What's the best day of the month to buy a used car off a dealership? Beginning, middle or end of the month make a difference to get the best deal?
Any day is the best day. If you go to a dealership unprepared, it really doesn't matter what day you go, you'll spend more money than you should.
The idea that certain days are better because the dealership wants to make numbers really doesn't hold up. Anyone who thinks that the awards for sales and so on mean anything to the buyer is dreaming. When was the last time you went into a dealer showroom and didn't see a wall plastered with awards? Walk around, it's there. What happens is that territories are so defined that any dealer can get awards, even if they were the only dealer within hundreds of miles. Lets be real about all this.
If you go into a dealership with the idea that this day is the best day you'll probably get taken. Why? Simple, you've already prepared yourself to think that the price you get will be better than other days. Wrong.
Pick a day, any day and if you go into the dealership armed with information and some negotiating skills, you can get the best deal possible. On the so called "best day" a bad negotiator will get a far lesser deal than a good negotiator can get on a "bad day". That is just the way it works.
Probably the number one factor in overpaying for a car is not knowing or not caring enough about the price you want to pay for a car and not knowing "exactly" what car you want or need.
Right along with that are those who buy the first time they walk on the lot. If you don't walk away on that first trip, figure you've paid too much.
Never let a salesperson call you by your first name. It should always be Mr/Ms/Mrs or whatever. The easiest way to break down barriers is to use someone's first name. The instant they use your first name, correct them. They are not your friend or even an acquaintance, they want your money and the most they can get. You don't need to be hostile but keeping it formal allows you to maintain distance.
A favorite trick of salespeople? Feigning anger, disappointment or frustration. Don't fall for it. They do this to play on your emotions. It goes like this, they start using your first name. Once you get to the point where the final numbers are being talked about and you are ready to walk, they will go back to "Mr..." or "Ms..." and show some false emotions of frustration. They are playing you. By always keeping it formal they can't really do this. You know yourself that using formality changes how you speak to others. Keep it that way with salespeople.
Where most people get screwed? When they sign the final docs. Write down the agreed upon sales price and if it is one penny different at signing...STOP. Call them on it. No matter what they say, make sure the last number is the number you agreed upon and that the numbers for registration/licensing/tax haven't changed. Dealers will lower the registration/licensing to make the price match but then you have to pay the difference later because it is a government fee or tax. Beware.
Follow the dealership car listings. If a car has been sitting there for a while, then they are more prepared to make a deal on it. Just make sure you know WHY the car didn't sell and give it a good inspection, ideally by YOUR mechanic.
I like those "preparation" fees printed on the bottom of the contract so they can add $400 or $500 to the price, supposedly for things like making keys and detailing the car, which should be done anyway. And the detailing is always done to a bare minimum, since God Forbid they don't ********* out of every penny they possibly can. I've sworn off regular dealerships for used or new cars, since after several disasters I am convinced that they would sell their own children for the right price. I now deal with CarMax, who is plain and straightforward throughout the whole process, with no-haggle pricing, and gets you in and out quickly if you already know what you want. The only people worse than car dealers are real estate agents. They make ambulance chasers look like angels.
I've always been told about the last day of the month thing. Not sure if it really works as the last 4 cars I've bought have been: Scion (fixed pricing), used car through private sale, Car Max and the most recent was through USAA's car buying service.
When I buy a car, new usually, I know before hand exactly which car I wan t, exactly how I want it equipped, and exactly what I am willing to pay for it. I present my deal and they can take it or leave. There is NO haggling. I am not interested in anything other than 'my' deal.
FYI, my pricing usually involves their "invoice" cost. Usually the car costs them less than their invoice, or they get various backend promotions from the manufacturer for taking inventory from them, incentives for certain vehicles, incentives for certain sales levels, incentives to have certain cars on their 'floor', etc. I don't begrudge them making a profit...maybe $500 per car or something, but I want it done on my terms so I don't have to deal with some dolt who barely made it through fifth grade and now 'wants to put me in this car today'. Please...that stuff makes me want to RUN as fast as possible.
No, they aren't my friend any more than the clerk who rings me up in the big box store, and we aren't all chummy because I am going to buy a car and line someone's pockets and make his quota. It isn't about him, or them. It's about me and what I feel comfortable with. If they are making a couple grand off me on the back end, fine, as long as I am comfortable with my deal, and don't have to listen to their BS. Grrrrr......
Yup...car salesman...right down there with realtors and lawyers in term of ethics.
I don't know about you but when I buy a car, it takes a long time... minimum time has been a week.
I have never bought a car on the same day as when the negotiations started. Yes, there are quotas salespeople need to fulfill but at the end of the day, it's THEM that needs to sell a car. I don't need to buy one... at least not from dealer A. There are hundreds of dealerships and thousands of cars on the market. Altho I realize that we are talking about a used car, but there are many cars that are as just as good if not better. There are plenty of fish in the sea and think about who needs the sales more, you or them. Longer they keep the car on the lot, more interest they are paying. If you have communicated to them that you are a serious buyer and not just a tire kicker, they will sooner or later come to the rock bottom price they can sale the car for. Make sure you meet the sales manager because the sales manager will be hounding the salesperson regarding you. When they make the follow up calls, I simply tell them that I love the car and want the car but I cannot afford it at that price and low ball them within reason. This is where your research about the car will come to play otherwise they will take you for a psycho and no longer want to deal with you. You do have to be ready to let that one go if you truely want the rock bottom price. Once I feel like I have exhausted them, then I go in for the kill. This may come at the end of the month because of the quota but that doesn't mean you should head into the dealership of the 30th of the month.
Car dealerships don't care how many units they sell a month in most cases. Salespeople, on the other hand, do sometimes have monthly sales quotas that they have to fill. So if the salesman you're working with is a little short at the end of the month he or she might work a little harder for you to get a deal; but the selling price still has to be approved by the sales manager or GM so ultimately their final bottom dollar isn't affected. And there's always the chance that you'll wind up with a salesman who has already made his quota and night try to delay the sale until the first of the month if he thinks he can get away with it.
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