So Me and Ms.Xicano77 are in the market for buying a used car. I looked at the newspaper today and saw the following:
04 Chevy Impala
$169/mo
0 Down+TTL
90 day pmt defferral with approved credit
72 mos payments @ 7.9%
“Hmmmm” said we. “Sounds interesting.”
But. Before we go down to the lot.
What key questions to the auto dealer should I ask that would give us the appropriate answers to make an informed decision? 
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and…yes…does that above sound like a good deal?
Questions:
Is it still there?
How many miles does it have?
OK, so what’s your price? (Determine price first, then negotiate payments)
Question to ask yourself, “Can I afford to pay more?”
The car Blue-books between $11k and 14k, depending on mileage and trim level. Reversing the loan terms puts the price of the car at about $9100 plus tax, etc. Stretching the payments over six years will probably mean that the remaining amount you owe will be more than the car is worth at some point. I figure that they took the car in at $7000-7500?
Best bet might be to secure financing somewhere else (with loan terms that you like) and go for $9000 out the door, tax and fees included.
Well, car guy here. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. When we put any kind of advertisment in the paper, it is usually just to get people in the door.
TTL = Tax, tags, and license, plus they usually throw in a dealer fee. Most dealers just use +++ meaning ‘plus anything added that does not include the price of the car’. Assuming you have a state tax of 6%, a tag of of $250, and a dealer fee (don’t expect to get it ‘waived’ on such a low priced car) of $399.95 you are looking at a car that they are selling for $8483.05.
Now it comes down to what kind of Chevy Impala it is, how many miles are on it, condition, etc. If it is a 2004 base Chevy Impala that a dealer took in trade in Nashville, TN with 55,000 miles, the dealer could have paid around $7500 on it, and are still making a cool grand. There are many variations.
But I will say this, they are going to try to get you somewhere. The approved credit part might require a 800+ beacon, by their standards (even though a good 700 beacon might be good enough). The car might have no warranty left on it (3 year, 36,000 miles for Chevy), and they might try to sell you an extended warranty, etc.
This could also just be a unit they need to get rid of, so it could be a good buy. It could be a ‘loss leader’ to bring you in the door. It could be a pink car with green pinstripes, cigarette smelling, tears in the headboard, flooded from the hurricanes.
Either way, ask for a CarFax if you must go after this car.
Or do the smart thing, and never go after any advertisements using payments to get your attention (on a purchase, not a lease-leasing payments mean a lot for advertising). Find the car you like, get the best price, from there get the best interest rate, and from there do your deal.
Looks like it’s a $9700 car, but KBB using all of the defaults for the cheapest model indicates that it ought to be worth more than $14,000. So… something’s wrong with it, or it has a helluvalot of miles. In either case, you’ll have it for six years and be making payments for six years and insuring it at full coverage for six years.
Around here the only people who buy/use Impalas are Taxi companies.
Yuck – I hope taxis are cheap, then? Around here we’re used to Crown Victorias and Lincoln Town cars – although one “upscale” taxi company has recently introduced a Chrysler 300. I’m dubious about the latter.
Next some German guy is going to come in bragging about their Mercedes taxis.
Oh, lately I’ve seen a lot of taxis in Mexico using some tiny little Korean Hyundai thing – Atos by Dodge or something. Pictures. Not that there’s anything wrong with miniature cars or anything, as long as one can actually fit inside of them.
I didn’t say they were the only cars used by cab companies, Crown Vics and Intrepids are usually what they use, but I’ve NEVER seen anyone drive a personally owned Impala, only cabs.
Chevy may not market them heavily to consumers in Canada.
In fact, the Crown Vic in Canada is ONLY sold to fleets… though not the Grand Marquis.
xicano70,
That car comes with two engines.
There is a 3.4L V6 and a 3.8L V6.
The 3.4 is from a family NOTORIOUS for leaking head gaskets… if it happens without you noticing it WILL total your engine.
I suggest avoiding the base engine at all costs, including walking away from this car.
The 3.8L V6 is famous for its reliability. You won’t really notice the speed difference unless you’re a maniac, but for reliability’s sake, get the 3.8L or get something besides an '04 Impala.
Yeah…that’s what my brother advised me.
Thanks for all the advise. 
Thanks! The add said “WAC 680 Beacon” which had my head scratching until I google enough to figur what it meant.
Thanks for the advise. That really made me look into this a bit more in detail.
Is this it: http://www.carfax.com/ ? 
Thanks for the heads up. The add doesn’t mention which engine it is, so I’ll go by the lot and just get the info.
Yes, that is the site but if you do it that way, you have to pay for it. If you go to the dealer, they should provide one for free to you. It makes more sense to do it that way. ALSO, ask for a CarFax printed and done that day. If they took it on trade 3 months ago and the an accident or problem was noted 1 month prior to that (4 months ago), the CarFax they have on record from three months ago might not be good anymore.
Ask for a CarFax that is up-to-date and it might reveal a problem. Also, I do recommend taking a pre-owned car that is not under warranty to a mechanic for another check-up.