What is a good ballpark figure on how low a used car dealer will go on the price of a car? If a car is listed at $8900, what would be the lowest price the dealer would accept? $7900? $8400? I have no idea what to offer for such a car. Anyone have any ideas? Thanks!
Try to find out what the Blue-Book price is for private resale. Start there and see if the dealer will meet you somewhere in the middle.
Know that dealers make more off used cars than they do off new cars. Dont be afraid to make an offer and then come back the next day to negotiate more. In other words, dont sound impatient and don`t let them talk you into buying the car that day. Make them sweat a little.
Do research and find out what the exact same car has sold for in your area in the last six months or so. Check e-bay and carspot.com (for example) for comparing prices of sold cars. At the least - get an idea of what other private sellers are asking by checking the internet car sites.
Dealers generally pay less for the car than you could have bought it for privately. Look around your area for others selling the same car.
Try NADA, Kelley Blue Book or Edmunds to start getting a handle on what various cars are worth. But be forewarned that my experience has been that they run a bit high, even though they are supposedly based on actual sale price data.
Then go to a site like Autotrader and see what people are asking for similar vehicles all over. If you find a specific car on Autotrader that you’ve also seen at a dealer’s, you’ll notice that the online asking price is most likely significantly lower than the sticker in the window. A dealer once explained the thinking behind that to me: if you arrive at his lot and start looking at what he’s got, he knows you’re out physically shopping for a car and can cover only so much ground, whereas if you’re shopping on the 'net, you can see just about everything that’s out there, thus the posted pricing is more competitive.
You might also take a look at AutoNation; they have a no haggling pricing policy which might provide some useful info.
Finally, check the car’s VIN history through AutoCheck for accident reports, water danage claims, etc.
My last two vehicles were found on Autotrader and purchased for 20% and 17% below the dealers’ window sticker prices.
Good luck.
Dealers make HUGE profits from used cars. These days, they will generally come down quite a bit, depending on the vehicle. whuckfistle has real good advice. I’ll add: Don’t let your enthusiasm for a praticular vehicle get in the way. Its just a car, there are many like it. Decide what it is worth to you and don’t budge from that price. If the guy won’t give it to you for what you want to pay, someone else will. But then again, research the car you want, and determine a fair price. The dealer won’t sell it for less than it is worth, cause someone will give them that.
You might also try dealing with a broker, or small independant seller, but you can get burned if you don’t know what to look for in a vehicle as far as condition goes. However, I picked up a newer, super-luxury mega-car last year from a broker for cents on the dollar, and have been real happy.
In short, study up on what you want, and shop armed with knowledge on your side.
Thats what I did. Then I bought something else entirely on the spot cause I couldn’t pass up the deal! 
(Man, it is an awsome car though!)
Email: Obfuscating communication for over a decade!
If this helps: Was dealing on a 2000 Nissan Maxima SE in the SF Bay Area. Dealer was asking $18500 and I had him down to $15000. Ended up getting something else, but those are some raw numbers for ya.
She told me she loved me like a brother. She was from Arkansas, hence the Joy!
At the risk of annoying other posters, the FIRST thing to do is to take a look at the Consumer Guide’s list of used cars you should NEVER buy.
After getting a copy of that, then go to a site such as Edmunds or to www.intellichoice.com to find out what the fair market value is of the car you are interested in and the consumer rating of the vehicle. You can even ask for free quotes from local dealers.
Armed with that information, go to your local car lot and find a car you might like. Note every ding, dent, paint scrape, upholstery stain, etc. Ask to take the vehicle to a mechanic for a checkup. Check the mileage–is it due for a brake job or other major maintenance? Then play hardball. Start a few hundred under what you are willing to pay and work up from there…and not in even dollar increments. Point out the car’s faults even to the point of exaggeration. Don’t buy any BS about how he/she “can sell this car in a second for the lot price”. The answer to that statement is “not to me”.
If you have just GOT to have one of the cars on CG’s do-not-buy list, make sure you let the dealer know that you are doing him a favor by even considering the heap, given the poor performance history of the vehicle.
Most important: when you have reached your “drop dead” number and the dealer is still jerking you around, get up and leave. He probably will come running after you.
Take the car for a test drive & when doing that, take it to another car dealer & ask him what he would pay for it…
Some used cars seem to cost more than new cars. A new 2003 Kia locally might be $7,777 (ad on tv), but a used 2002 one $8,000…weird, eh?