Maybe if I showed them my Jalopnik Gold card...

"and 100 more" (nth256)
10/26/2016 at 07:31 • Filed to: None

Walked into multiple car lots yesterday, trade-in ready and pre-approval on tap, only to be turned down. Nobody could work in my price range. I even had a dealer ask me, “Have you considered buying from a private party?”

I did get some wheel time from one dealer who tried his best to help me out. I felt bad, but I really didn’t like any of the cars he showed me. I’m taken aback by how straight-forward and no-bullshit all the dealers were, and how willing they were to offer me advice for my particular situation.

Ugh, I was hoping to be done with this yesterday. I love cars, but I hate shopping for cars.

DISCUSSION (23)

OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars > and 100 more
10/26/2016 at 07:37

Look for a LS430 or early 2000s Land Cruiser. Most are in that range with about 150k miles which is not bad. I have over 300k on my Ls400.

punkgoose17 > and 100 more
10/26/2016 at 08:05

Many dealers don’t sell cars under 10k because there is less margin for them, but I found out surprisingly they will sell some cars that are much lower than 10k if they get a trade in on a really clean low mile car. Try autotrader to find cars that work for you, then you will know what dealers to go to see specific cars.

extraspecialbitter > and 100 more
10/26/2016 at 08:06

Do you live in a densely populated area? I notice you can haggle more from authorized dealers that are kind of out of the way.

themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles > and 100 more
10/26/2016 at 08:22

Mitsubishi mirage? Any luck with one of those? Or do you need to haul more buts than your own?

Tripper > and 100 more
10/26/2016 at 08:40

Check for trades at high end dealers (more luck at dealers that are not affiliated with one brand). There is a pre-owned BMW, Porsche, Audi place near me. Every once and a while they’ll get a trade that is in good enough shape for them to sell outright. I picked up an explorer there a few years ago for $2400 that was easily worth double that.

The Stig's former college room mate > Tripper
10/26/2016 at 08:58

Agreed. If you want a good deal on a car, buy it from a different brand. Most dealers price their off brands lower than market price to make them attractive. If i’m looking at two identical Honda Accords and one is at a Honda dealer and the other is at a Toyota dealer, and they’re priced the same, I’d buy the one from Honda. So the Toyota dealer will price theirs lower to attract buyers.

Also, it doesn’t hurt to cruise through the wholesale line and see if there is anything interesting there. A car may be getting wholesaled just because of age or mileage, or it’s an undesirable model for that dealer. But most will happily sell the car to you, unless they feel there is something seriously wrong with it.

The Stig's former college room mate > punkgoose17
10/26/2016 at 09:10

Most (new car) dealers don’t want sub 10K cars not because of low margins, but because it’s hard to get financing. Almost anyone can get financed for a new car. You just need income. i’ve seen credit scores in the 500's get approved. Banks don’t want to finance old cars because there is no equity in that vehicle. So a cheap used car at a new car dealer becomes a cash purchase. And believe me, if you walk into a dealer with 10K in cash, any decent salesman will turn that 10k into a down payment on a new car.

So the cheap old cars get sent to auction and bought by the corner used car lots. And people with low income and no credit end up buying them and paying 25% for 96 months.

deekster_caddy > and 100 more
10/26/2016 at 09:25

I don’t know what your financial situation is (are you looking at new cars or used?), but I had the most success emailing dealerships through their websites after I’d already figured out what car I wanted and what I could afford. I sent them an upfront email through their website, worded something like this:

‘I’m buying a car within a few weeks and sending these messages to several area dealerships to save you and me some time and hassle. I’m looking at X car with X option, I’m going to [buy, lease] and I have a trade in worth about $x,xxx. I see you have x car listed that has the options I’m interested in, what’s your best price?’

I was pleasantly surprised after a few disappointing emails to hear from one dealership who really, really wanted to make the sale - ‘We’ve got an offer you can’t refuse if you come down today.’ Their offer was thousands below anything I had been negotiating with others. They took a bath on the car trying to make some kind of quota, or at least that’s what they told me...

One negotiating tip - don’t ever pick up the phone until it comes to that final number they don’t want to put in an email. I wouldn’t answer my phone at all, and only responded to emails until I had something I wanted.

The Stig's former college room mate > and 100 more
10/26/2016 at 09:28

I hate to stereotype, but poke around dealers for brands that are traditionally purchased by senior citizens. Our Lexus franchise gets 10 year old cream puffs with low mileage all the time, but ends up wholesaling them because of the age.

Frenchlicker > deekster_caddy
10/26/2016 at 09:38

The email thing is a pretty solid tip. I won’t talk on the phone with any car dealership currently. If they won’t take the time to type and send me more info and pictures than I’m not taking the time to buy a car or truck from them.

and 100 more > OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars
10/26/2016 at 10:08

Financing is becoming a hurdle for me.

One dealer told me to shoot for Toyotas specifically, because lenders are fare more likely to look past a high mileage or older vehicle. He was pretty emphatic about that point. And he had no Toyotas he could sell me.

and 100 more > deekster_caddy
10/26/2016 at 10:12

That’s fantastic advice, thank you! I really appreciate that!

and 100 more > Tripper
10/26/2016 at 10:19

I avoided “luxury” dealers, specifically because I was afraid they’d charge more, since they typically have more money walking on the lot looking for cars. I can see I was wrong to think that!

and 100 more > themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles
10/26/2016 at 10:21

Yes, at least 4 more butts. I’m in a Jeep Patriot now, and looking to go bigger - not like, Tahoe- or Sequoia-bigger, but more like 4Runner-bigger.

and 100 more > extraspecialbitter
10/26/2016 at 10:22

I can confirm that, I got more traction with dealers that were part of small chains, outside the metro area. That said, their selection was more limited.

OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars > and 100 more
10/26/2016 at 11:11

Do you have a bank you could get pre approved from?

and 100 more > OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars
10/26/2016 at 11:20

Yes, I’m already pre-approved thru my bank.

But I was told by multiple dealers that my lending rate was incredibly high for my situation, and to try a credit union instead.

OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars > and 100 more
10/26/2016 at 11:27

Yeah credit unions tend to be a better deal. I believe Doug has financed all of his cars through a Credit Union. I’m glad the dealers are being so truthful. That’s great.

and 100 more > OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars
10/26/2016 at 11:30

It has been refreshing, compared to all the horror stories and everything I was expecting.

OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars > and 100 more
10/26/2016 at 11:33

What part of the country are you from?

and 100 more > OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars
10/26/2016 at 11:36

Central Texas.

OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars > and 100 more
10/26/2016 at 11:39

Ah. Southeast and Southern hospitality is the best

themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles > and 100 more
10/26/2016 at 13:21

Hmmmmm.....they’ll be a bit harder to track down but if you go down the obscure brand route yo ucan take your dollar further. Isuzu’s Ascender is just a trailblazer. A newer one should be well under 10k and be serviced with any trailblazer parts. Same with the i420 or whatever their colorado/canyon clone was. Ummmmm.....hmmm.....Suzuki equator is just a nissan frontier underneath. And the mitsubishi raider is a dakota underneath.