"njp1589" (njp1589)
10/18/2016 at 10:15 • Filed to: None
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"njp1589" (njp1589)
10/18/2016 at 10:15 • Filed to: None | 0
| 17 |
SLS for your time.
So the time of car-buying will soon be upon me, and a few friend suggested that I look into Costco/Sam’s Club to see if they had any deals. I mostly scoffed at this thought, assuming that there would be minimal savings. Oddly, though, the savings don’t appear to be as minimal as I thought;
So here’s the cheapest one I can find at a dealer...
and here’s what the Sam’s Club/TrueCar thing spits out...
Well, that’s pretty surprising. The same level of savings got spat at me on the Optima I was looking at too.
Clicking the whole “view member pricing” thing takes me to the next page, where it says there are 3 dealers in their “network” who would review and contact me... possibly with spam (ugh).
That said, I’m not entirely sure how it works from there. Do I have to negotiate to that price? Do they just say “okay, this is the price, come get it and we’ll figure out financing?” I’d appreciate anyone with experience.
Also, this is almost certainly at the top of the HP/$ scale. Would make me look like a basic bro though.
Arrivederci
> njp1589
10/18/2016 at 10:22 |
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My understanding of the Costco/TrueCar deal is whatever price that they give you is what you pay at the dealer, plus tax and fees. It’s up to the dealer to be willing to sell at that price, so if they weren’t okay with it, I don’t think they’d contact you.
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njp1589
> Arrivederci
10/18/2016 at 10:24 |
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That’s kind of what I figured... Kind of removes any negotiation from the process... Which may or may not be a good thing.
RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
> njp1589
10/18/2016 at 10:32 |
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I seem to recall that Automatch wrote something on TrueCar a while back that was not entirely complimentary. Plus which, there’s the following post from BugEyedBeetle:
http://oppositelock.kinja.com/i-hate-truecar-1623833713
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RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
> njp1589
10/18/2016 at 10:33 |
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Ah, here we go:
http://thegarage.jalopnik.com/the-truth-about-truecar-savings-1559397086
E92M3
> njp1589
10/18/2016 at 10:39 |
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TrueCar is a traffic/lead generator. They get paid to bring traffic in the dealer. Think of it as a car version of Salesforce. This person is interested in buying a car, here’s their contact info. They usually have 1 maybe 2 cars at that price. Sometimes they are “already sold”. They’re often base models in non popular colors. I’d guess 95% of the people who use TrueCar end up buying a higher optioned, different color car than the Truecar “guaranteed price” car. Even if you don’t buy from that dealer, TrueCar gets paid a small amount for providing the lead.
It’s just a more successful way to market. Compared to mailing out thousands of flyers randomly and hoping to get getting one or 2 leads per 1,000 mailed, 100% of people who submit their info on TrueCar are “in the market” for a new car.
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njp1589
> RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
10/18/2016 at 10:48 |
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That is pretty enlightening. If nothing else I should be probably using the estimates as a starting point for negotiations, rather than a hard and fast number.
Looks like I should use this as more of a guide than a service.
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njp1589
> E92M3
10/18/2016 at 10:50 |
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The more I’m reading about the actual system, the more I’m finding this to be true.
I guess the only useful bit this will provide me is a starting point for negotiation as far as cost goes.
haveacarortwoorthree2
> njp1589
10/18/2016 at 11:10 |
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Probably better off getting Tom McParland on the job. (Disclaimer: I used to work with someone high up at TrueCar and wouldn’t want him to help me buy a new chair)
Mid Engine
> njp1589
10/18/2016 at 11:17 |
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I bought my last new car in 2013 (Jetta TDI Premium, soon to be the property of VW) and used data from a variety of sources, in the end I figured if I got better than Costco pricing then I was doing well. I negotiated the deal via email and refused to go into the dealer (except to pick up the car). I had no trade-in and agreed to finance half the car since they were offering 0% interest.
You would think that a deal that straightforward would be a no-brainer, but no... the dealer tried to bump up the price with extended warranty, security etching, and a few other tidbits. Rip up the contract and start over Mr. Sleaze Finance manager, took me over 2 hours to pick up the car. Apparently, I have nothing better to do than hang around a car dealer for hours.
With the TDI going back to VW here I go again with the new car buying bullshit, again with no trade in and no need for financing. I’ll certainly take my time as I have another car to drive but the process is so fucking painful it makes me cringe. Wish my Tesla Model 3 was on it’s way...
someassemblyrequired
> njp1589
10/18/2016 at 11:57 |
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Start with it as your initial offer - remember they are saving a few hundred bucks on paying TrueCar if you walk in off the street. It includes freight, but they may try to charge you BS dealer fees and Vin etching and stuff at that price, plus tax and tags.
Make sure you find the car at the lot, got a lot of BS “one is coming in today” when contacted by the dealers, especially those further away.
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njp1589
> someassemblyrequired
10/18/2016 at 12:04 |
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Yeah, I’ll have to keep that in mind.
I was almost tempted to put a deposit down on a Colorado today because of a really good deal, but I wouldn’t be able to pick it up till Sunday, and by then they’d have found a million ways to screw me.
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someassemblyrequired
> njp1589
10/18/2016 at 12:23 |
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I suspect you’re right - the Colorado wouldn’t be there by Sunday, but they’d just happen to have 15 LTZ Super Packs for $10Gs more, and no your deposit is not refundable, even though we sold that truck.
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njp1589
> someassemblyrequired
10/18/2016 at 13:02 |
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Yeah, 9k under MSRP screams bait and switch to me. Especially when it’s in Miami.
JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder!
> njp1589
10/18/2016 at 13:14 |
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We’ve used truecar many times just to get an idea for pricing.
Let’s for instance use that Mazda 6 you have up there. $19,927 is the truecar price. There are dealers who are Truecar dealers, meaning that if you walk in with that paper,that is the price you will pay. The only way to find out what dealers are Truecar is to pt in your info though, and then get harassed by every dealer within 75 miles or so.
What we do, is take that price and contact your local dealer.
“Hey local dealer. Truecar says this Mazda 6 is worth $19,927 but your dealer is closer/I prefer to work with you... whats the best you can do?”
They usually reply with something like
“We are not a Truecar dealer but we want your business. We can sell you that Mazda 6 for $19,500"
It takes most of the negotiations out because you have a pretty solid idea of what the car is worth. Sometimes, you won’t get a much lower price,but they will most always match it or come within a couple hundred because they want the business, and don’t want to give it away to a different dealer.
We bought two of our Volvos and our Subaru this way.
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njp1589
> JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder!
10/18/2016 at 13:27 |
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That’s the plan as it goes right now.
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someassemblyrequired
> njp1589
10/18/2016 at 13:32 |
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Unless you are Tony Montana, you don’t want to buy a car from this guy.
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JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder!
> njp1589
10/18/2016 at 13:33 |
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Seriously though. Whatever you do. Don’t give your real information to get the certificate. Find the price and contact dealers yourself.
We still get the occasional email 8 months after the fact from dealers hours away...