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THE DEALERSHIP FOR YOUR PURCHASE
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Buyer Navigator Step 6: The Dealership, it's time to Purchase. Check-List Now you know what car you want, you know the dealer invoice of the car, you have a target price in mind, and you know how the dealer-manufacturer relationship works. Your bank has already approved you for a loan at a low interest rate. Your insurance company has provided a quote for a new plan, and still you're within your budget. You're ready to step into a dealership if shopping via phone, fax, email, buying service, or no-haggle dealership just isn't your style.
Before you get there, you need to come prepared. Bring the following: 1.
Notebook. Fleet Sales Here's the Hot Tip: before you visit a dealership, call ahead. Ask to speak to the fleet manager. If there is no fleet manager, you will have to go about buying your car the traditional route: negotiating with the sales manager through a salesperson. If you are able to get hold of the fleet manager to make an appointment, however, you will be a step ahead of the game. Working with a fleet manager rather than a salesperson offers several distinct advantages. First, a fleet manager is completely capable of closing the deal without conferring with the sales manager. When negotiating, it's always best to reach a meaningful agreement with the person with whom you're negotiating. In traditional sales, the salesperson will almost always need to get the deal "okayed" by his or her boss. So even if you're a superb negotiator who has just agreed to buy a car at the dealer's cost, the deal must first be ratified by the third-party sales manager. And that can be frustrating. Second, the fleet manager is used to providing customers with discounts. Fleet sales, after all, take volume into consideration. But a fleet manager is willing to negotiate readily, and will not expect the customer to pay the MSRP. Third, the fleet manager is salaried. That's not to say fleet managers don't receive a commission, because they do. But the fleet manager is a professional salesperson who is paid more than the average salesperson on the lot. To a regular salesperson, one smaller commission may mean the difference between eating a good meal or running through some fast food stop for dinner, but that's not the case with a fleet manager. Basically, fleet sales and personal sales differ due to expectations. Fleet sales aim for a "fair" price, and personal sales aim for MSRP. When negotiating for the best price, the odds favor negotiating with someone who is starting with lower expectations. If you can't get an appointment with a fleet manager, you may want to try making an appointment with the sales manager. If that doesn't work, you'll have to simply show up at the dealership. When you step onto a dealership's lot, a salesperson will soon ask if you need any assistance. When shopping for cars, this is one of life's certainties. The salesperson who first approaches you is called the "Up Man," because you are the "up." He or she will be your contact from this point forth until a price is agreed upon. And if you decide to leave without agreeing to terms, the salesperson will present you with his other business card in case you should come back. Remember, you hold the power and if you don't feel comfortable with the person who approaches you, you have every right to choose another salesperson. RETURN TO CAR BUYING INTRO PAGE Since you will probably test-drive the exact vehicle you plan to buy, use the test drive to your advantage by looking for flaws or aspects of the car that annoy you. As you should have thoroughly test drove this chosen model already. The car may sound great on paper, and you may have liked it the first time around, but it might not be right for you. After the test drive, the dealer will ask something like, "What do I have to do to get you in this car today?" Most of the time the window sticker works as the opening offer. No salesperson will open up by saying, "I'll sell you this car for less than we claim it's worth!" Unless, that is, the dealer is making incentive money and has elected to pass the savings on. More likely, the opening "offer" from the dealer will sound like this: "What kind of monthly payment are you looking for?" Always beware the payment question! This question should send red flags sprouting out of your ears. Do not answer it. See, a good salesperson will always avoid negotiating on the price of the car for as long as possible, directing you instead to questions about payments. They know that if they can get you to commit to a payment plan, they can swindle more money later by playing the numbers game at the finance office. You don't want to give them any information about payment up front, because if you argue about the price of the car later, they'll come back with, "Look, we got the payments down to what you wanted." Always negotiate the price of the car first. If they give you a hard time about not answering their question, just say, "I don't talk payments until we've settled on price." The dealer may ask loaded questions to direct your attention away from the price of the vehicle. "Would you pay $2,000 a month if the car only cost $1?" "Of course not," you reply. "But would you buy a $50,000 car if it only cost you $200 a month?" the dealer asks. And already you're talking about payments rather than the cost of the car. When the conversation turns to payments, simply let the dealer know that you are not a "payment buyer." Firmly state that you're not interested in discussing payments until you've agreed upon a price for the car. You already know what you can afford, which is why you're looking at this vehicle in the first place. If you have taken our advice and pre-arranged financing before visiting the dealer, the smoke-and-mirrors payment question becomes a moot point. Buyers who have pre-arranged financing cannot be sold on payment because they already know what the maximum payment will be, so the dealership has no alternative but to negotiate the actual selling price. And once the price drops, buyers who've used our advice can count on a payment that drops. RETURN TO CAR BUYING INTRO PAGE "A
direct auto information mainstream for the consumer" |
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