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The wifey is ready for a new SUV. Hers is 2005 with 200K miles and worth only about $3k in trade. There are five local dealers with the car she wants.

She has done all the research and only the negotiation is left.

Grab a coldie, a great cigar and relax.

T Dub is spot on. Use TrueCar as your ceiling. Negotiate with your dealer directly after deciding who will provide you with the. best service should you ever need it. Have purchased three cars in the last four years and always paid less than TrueCar with no hassle at all.

Buying "NEW" is the worst investment one can make. Might as well light your cigars with thousand dollar bills.

Not always true anymore especially if financing. That’s outdated logic in some instances.

I was far better off buying my Honda Pilot new over used. Not considering the difference in interest rates I saw my exact car 2 years later for the price I paid new. At the time the manufacturers were desperate to move new cars and incentives drove things. Factoring on 0 interst vs used car rates it would have been dumb to buy used. I’d have had an older model of the same car for more money.

Your statement can be true but also not so much. Same for the lease vs buy traditional argument. It really depends on pencil to paper and your situation. I don’t lease because I drive too many miles. However, that will change and a lease may make sense. Don’t let tradition and bias trump math.


Edit: I took your comment as used vs. new. You never mentioned used. If that isn’t what you meant I agree. Neither is a good investment but usually a necessity and commodity.

True that. Although zrx’s van is the gift that keeps giving.

Getting me an F250 with an 8 inch lift soon! Been wanting one since I was a grasshopper

Yes...Yes Sir I Am!

Apparently, cars are a depreciating asset. But fall in to the category of 'asset' as opposed to liability.

Car payments are liabilities

Or am I stating the obvious? It is my specialty.


https://www.moneyunder30.com/is-my-car-an-asset-or-a-liability

Not so much with pickups, the price of a good used truck is too close to a new one, especially of there are any factory incentives.

I rarely buy new, 2 to 3 year old car prices drop quicker than they will in the next few years, there are very few cars if any that won't last a long time anymore, and there's always some warranty left.

that said, I do know a few tips...

there is no such thing as MSRP. Memorize this or stop reading now. Insist they not mention that insult when you walk in the door. It is a made up starting point from which to offer fake discounts. I've said "why not start at a million and discount 980,000?" Just as absurd.

if possible, before entering the showroom, find out the invoice/price paid by the dealer for the car and work up from that...you may not have to work up at all, especially if you can find out what monies the dealer will get from the factory holdback, unit bonuses, or elsewhere after selling to you. I've seen it happen where one pays less than invoice because the sale triggered enough bonuses to the dealer that they made plenty of money.

Might learn average invoice for your desired model on manufacturer's website, but can probably get the sales manager to show you the invoice on the specific car you want.

There can be as much as three parts to making a deal, price of the car desired, trade in value, financing...KEEP THEM SEPARATE. Do not allow overlap, you will lose any edge from one to another in the confusion game that they play better than you.

When asked if you have a trade in or what you want to pay a month, respond by saying "what does that have to do with the price of the car I want?" Do not give in, Better to walk out. There are nothing but cars available in the world, never ever show that you loooove the one today. And stating a monthly payment sets the price without a struggle, they just extend the term of the loans, and stuff.

me too...bought my last two cars using Costco...Costco salesman was matter of fact...showed me invoice, dealer incentives and Costco price...if I liked it, we did the paperwork...got pre-approved for new car loan at credit union and compared that to dealer financing, taking the best of the two...


Costco has (had 9 years ago, not sure now) a certified used car dealerships service...used that to get pricing for a certified used two year old SUV my wife wanted...got two dealers who had one from Costco, but wifey saw a third one on-line and we went there...she fell in love with the car and only got a few hundred taken off their asking price...never found out what the Costco price would have been for a comparable one...you have to go to the dealership and see the Costco salesman

I probably should have included Costco in the options. The internet negotiations are working well with all five dealers giving discounts around 10% off MSRP. Have not introduced the trade-in so far.

Thanks for the many tips. (most of which I have used in the past since my day job was buyer for a Fortune 500 firm for many years)

I also have invoice price, MSRP, retail and wholesale prices of my trade-in, avg price paid for this same SUV according to True Car and Edmunds. And I don't mind walking.

Haven't bought new in many years...I think my last new car was a 2005. If selling old one, however, consider 'We Buy Any Car'.

The commercial jingle alone was enough to make me steer clear. But after low ball offers from many, including a dealer we were negotiating with, I gave them a call.

Took about 40 minutes from driving up, through inspection and paperwork -- and we walked out with a check more than 30% over what a dealer was offering as a trade in.

Great experience.

Yes, they do, depending upon what you are purchasing, the savings can be quite good through Costco. My father purchased a Chevrolet Silverado 3500, loaded to the gills with extras, and after all the markdowns my uncle could get, Costco knocked off an additional 1500 off of the price. My dad walked away with a 59,000 dollar truck for about 44,000.

Lol, I agree. Depending on when the car was purchased, Corollas can be anywhere from 21K to 14.5K, which is completely dependent upon the price the dealership itself paid. I got my Camry for a steal at 19,199. It’s the lowest price I personally have ever seen on a Camry. Three months later, my uncle, the GM, picked up the same one for his wife at 22,900.