Buying a car: Advice needed

In My Humble Opinion
1

After 250,000 miles, my old rustbucket has finally called it quits. I can’t complain, though, considering the value I got from my money. She lasted a bit longer than anyone expected, given her frail condition. In just a few short hours, some noble Craigslist denizen will come knocking on my door to take her away, and make me $500 richer. Like the guy in the Subaru commercial, I think I’ll hold on to the shifter – fond memories, and all.

Anyway, thus brings me to my quest for new wheels. I haven’t thought about buying a car in over 6 years, so I’m kind of rusty when it comes to wheeling and dealing. I’ve set my heart on a 2010 Mazda3 s Grand Touring (in Celestial Blue, for the record). A quick test drive got my head and my heart on the same page.

I’m shopping around among 3 dealers right now. All are offering the same vehicle – the 2010 Mazda3 s Grand Touring, 6-speed manual, with the Moonroof package, autodimming rearview mirror, wheel locks, and Sirius radio. Seems to be a popular item on the Mazda lots. I’d wanted one with the Technology package, which includes navigation and keyless ignition, but those seem to be sparse. I digress. I’ll settle for this popular lot choice.

MSRP for this vehicle with these options is $24,470. Invoice, per Edmunds.com, is $22,762, including a $750 destination charge.

How would you go about dealing with the dealers on this car?

The first dealer made me an offer of $22,411. I told him that I wanted an Out-the-Door (car + tax/title/tags) for $23,000 (putting the actual vehicle sales price at $22,258, or $504 below invoice), and to let me know if he could do it. I told him if I got a yes, I’d be in this weekend to take it off the lot.

I haven’t really haggled with the others yet, as they only have Gunmetal Blue in stock, and my heart is yearning for the Celestial Blue.

Is my offer reasonable? Or am I out of touch with today’s market? Input is welcome from anyone – car dealers, auto financers, anyone who’s recently bought a car, etc.

Oh, and I’ve love some floormats, too. When should I throw that in the mix? :slight_smile:

2

Well, you got Edmunds Invoice, so check their “what others are paying” and also use their email feature so that other dealers can make you an email offer. Also check Edmunds dealer incentives page for that car.

3

You’ve done everything right. You’ve set a price you’re willing to pay, and now you’ll see if the dealer accepts.

Don’t tell the dealer that the color is your thing. I had the only red 2 door accord within 600 miles and a customer who told me up front that the color was very important, and I convinced my manager to refuse to dealer trade it, and made a 3,000 profit deal on it (helps when the manager is family – not all lots will refuse a DX).

In general… If you want floormats, you’re better of purchasing them separately IMO. The less you can “bundle” into the price of a car, the less you’re likely to pay over all. Parts departments in car dealerships make massive amounts of cash. They often mark their stuff up a lot – as a matter of fact, see if “Wheel locks” are a standard feature in the package you’re purchasing. They may be something that all of the dealers in your area include for the sake of making a few extra bucks, you might be able to get them to remove it, but since you’ve already made your offer, I doubt it.
Chances are, the salesman is going to counter your offer – stand firm. Tell them simply, “I’m offering you a sale. No, it’s not going to be big profit, but it’s a sale, and it’s very little work.”

Also, before you go into the dealership, especially the finance office, make sure you know exactly what rates you qualify for, from what banks. They can, and will, make money on the back end if you let them.

4

Thanks for the help, guys. The dealer wrote back this morning, essentially rejecting my offer. He pointed out that they were offering it at invoice already, and reiterating some selling points for his particular dealership’s services. Oy, this looks to be a long weekend!

5

Have you tried autobuy.com or one of the online tools? ? Some of the online ones will find you the car at the cheapest price and you can put down how far you want to go.

$22,000 seems like a lot of money for a car? I only buy used Saabs and there is a guy in Maine that hooks me up. I got a 99 SAAB 9-5 FOR 2,000 Dollars and it’s loaded and fun to drive. I will get many years out of it because they are well made vehicles. The road salt does them in. No car payments and low insurance beats new car smell and paying out 30,000 dollars by the time your done. He also does all the mechanical work and it’s much cheaper then a dealership. 50 per hour labor vs. 90 dollars an hour labor.

Try the online autobuy and see if you can do better. Always do a Kelley Blue Book check to make sure the price is right for the mileage. KelleyBluebook.com… Good Luck!

6

Ask him if he’s willing to cut into holdback (a percent the dealership gets back for buying a car, st invoice, from the manufacturer) for another sale. Ask it just like that, without the explanation. Not sure what holdback is on Mazdas, but it’s like 3% on Toyota/Honda IIRC.

Tell him he can replace the car in 90 days, at most, but he’ll never be able to replace you as a customer, and there’s not shortage of cars available… How many customers has he got?

Remeber, he will probably sell it to break even/make very little. The only real question is if you’ve got the balls to get him to do it.

7

I have zero experience in buying cars, but we might be looking at replacing my husband’s lemon this summer.

Since my father seems able to negotiate the pants off of most people, I asked him for a bit of advice this past weekend. It wasn’t a long conversation, but he told me this:

Negotiate for long-term things. Saving money upfront is nice, but in a few months, you’re going to need an oil change or winter tires, and those are extra costs you’re going to have to pay for. See if you can get them to accept the price they gave you, but you get a year’s worth of free oil changes, or a set of winter tires included.

I know that’s not much advice and certainly not coming from an expert, but perhaps it will give you a different mental approach to what you’re willing to pay and you can address the dealership differently?

Good luck!

8

You are only a couple hundred dollars away on selling price. IMO your offer is quite fair. Are you willing to come up the couple hundred if they do not come down? I think one of the other two dealerships will jump on your offer if the one you are dealing with now doesn’t.