5 Steps To Buying A New Vehicle

By: Hunter Taylor

People come up to me all the time as ask me if there really is a
secret to buying a new vehicle and getting the best price. My
answer is always a resounding "YES"! You must first do a few
things that will help you in this quest for a new vehicle. 1. Do
your homework. There are several websites now that will give you
what the dealer's invoice is on that vehicle. Remember that
these costs sometimes do not include freight and other options.
2. Test drive, test drive, test drive. Once you have found the
vehicle that you may be interested in, take it for a test drive.
A test drive should be more than 5 minutes long. One can not
possibly know how the vehicle will effect their backs, legs, and
shoulders on a five minute test drive. Let the salesperson know
that you would like to take it on a extended test drive. Some
dealerships will even let you take the car overnight. 3. Once
you have decided on the vehicle that you want, be prepared with
what you want to pay and what you can afford. Most people get
themselves in trouble by getting a payment far more than they
can afford because they are keeping up with the neighbors.
Decide on a payment and stick to it. Maybe you really do not
need that sunroof. 4. If you have a trade in, make sure you know
what that car is worth. There are also several websites that
will give you an estimate to what your vehicle is worth. Be
honest with your evaluation. Do not expect to pay wholesale for
the dealer's vehicle and get retail for yours. 5. Profit is not
a bad word. The dealers have on average a $20,000 investment
that they are paying interest on. Would you want to make $400 on
a $20,000 investment that you have had for an average of 45
days? And then pay a commission on top of that? Probably not. If
dealers let you walk out the door in today's economy, you know
that they are not making any money.

Other ideas: Try to buy as close to the end of the month as
possible. Dealers are more likely to take a smaller deal to get
another vehicle sold. They may have objectives they need to
reach.

Rebates do go away and they are not always better.

Do not go into a dealership with a chip on your shoulder. You
will ALWAYS get a better deal if you do not treat the
salesperson has if they have no idea what is going on.

I hope this helps you in your quest to buying a new vehicle. It
really is an easy process once you have determined the vehicle
you want, the fair price you will pay, and the fair value of
your trade.

About the author:
Mr. Taylor has been in the retail car business for over 20
years. He is currently the General Manager of a major new
vehicle franchise.