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Women &
The Car-Buying Experience: A Few Tips To
Help
Women make up the larger part of the
population that purchase cars on their
own. And, whether you're going with your
boyfriend, your husband or your dad, the
fact is that more than 80% of the time,
the female makes the final decision,
even if the car is not for her. These
are FACTS. It is to your advantage to
know other facts when going to a
dealership to buy a car.
Armed with said
facts, you'll be able to make your
experience less dreadful and you'll come
away with the car you want at a good
price without having to spend 8 hours
trying to do it. I know. I used to work
in the business and saw all the tactics
that 'old school' car dealers (and their
employees) utilize to intimidate women
buyers. Sadly for them, they never got
the concept that women are NOT as stupid
OR helpless as they may have been
in another era. Again, this is most
definitely to your advantage. |
Before I go further, I think it's
important to tell you WHY I opted to
sell cars. After all, most people are
about as fond of car salesmen as they
are of sticking cactus under their
fingernails. So why would anyone WANT to
sell cars? Well, I was sick and tired of
watching my sisters, friends and various
other gals get ripped off. And I was
certain that I could do a better job
than most of the bozos I'd seen on
various lots, using those tired old
'slick' lines and laughing all the way
to the bank. You could say that I was on
a mission. I spent 4 years selling cars,
quite successfully I might add, and only
quit the business because it was
apparent to me that I was NOT going to
change the way business was done. The
Old School Boys Club was firmly
entrenched and I wasn't going to change
that. What I did change, however, is how
all the women I know now buy their cars.
In other words, I learned the business
and can now use that knowledge to help
others. It's an awesome feeling and the
time I spent was well worth the payoff.
To that end, I shall share what I
learned in an effort to help YOU make
the car-buying experience a bit less
dreadful.
DO YOUR HOMEWORK:
There is a wealth of information on the
Internet that can assist in your process
and limit the amount of time you need to
spend at the dealership. Such resources
as www.Edmunds.com and www.kbb.com
(Kelly Blue Book) will give you exact
prices on both retail and dealer costs,
as well as reviews on the vehicle in
question. KBB.com is great for reviewing
used cars, Edmunds.com is both new and
used cars. You can also get help from
Costco if you happen to be a member.
They have a pretty awesome buyers plan
that allows you to know before you get
to the dealership what price you'll pay
for the vehicle you've chosen. This
eliminates all the 'haggling' nonsense.
Most dealerships that allow Costco deals
have one salesman who works with those
customers and you can even schedule an
appointment to minimize the time you're
there. It's quite handy. If you don't
happen to be a Costco member, you can
still arrange things in advance by doing
your research about the car you want and
then calling the dealership to make an
appointment with their Internet Sales
person. But we're getting a bit ahead of
ourselves.
First, figure out what you want. If
you're deciding between a few different
vehicles, set aside a couple of hours
during the week (if possible) to go to
each respective dealership to test-drive
the various models. I suggest week days
as opposed to weekends because there's
typically less traffic at the
dealerships during the week and you can
get in and out pretty quickly. Depending
on the state in which you live, it may
be required for you to hand over your
driver's license so they can make a
photocopy of it. Some states actually
require the dealership to have your
license on file (insurance liability,
etc) so you have to allow them to do
this. You can check with your local DMV
about your state's laws. If you must
allow them to photocopy it, GO WITH THE
SALESPERSON when he does this. Why?
Because I've seen more than one
knucklehead manager try to keep the
license in his possession in an attempt
to keep the buyer in the dealership. As
stupid as this sounds, I've seen it
happen.
So, you've driven the cars you are
considering and narrowed it down to 2.
Next step is to see which car is going
to be the better value. Go to Edmunds
and research each vehicle. Get the MSRPs
as well as the dealer's invoice price.
You can also use their calculator to
estimate what your monthly payment will
be. It's a good idea to know your credit
rating beforehand, so you'll know what
kind of interest rate you'll qualify
for. At this point you can plug in all
your numbers, from how much of a
down-payment you'll have to the length
of the term and figure out if it's
doable. You can also go directly to the
manufacturer sites to see if they have
any special deals going on (offered by
the manufacturer, not the dealership)
and plug these numbers in as well.
FINANCING OPTIONS:
Depending on what kind of offers the
manufacturer has, you may wish to
finance your vehicle elsewhere and
bypass the entire dealership finance
department. More often than not, they're
going to try to charge you a percent or
2 over what you actually qualify for.
They make money on this, so they'll do
their best to jack up the rate. If you
go to your credit union or other
financial institution beforehand, you'll
be able to get the best possible rate
and, again, spend less time at the
dealership. When I bought my last truck,
I went through my credit union and got a
rate that was 5% less than the
dealership offered. That's a HUGE
difference in your total cost, so don't
underestimate what you may be able to
find.
TRADE-INS:
If you're planning on trading in your
old car, the best thing you can do is to
get the value of that car on KBB. You'll
need to look under 'trade-in value', NOT
'selling privately'. and here's the
reason for this. Whenever you trade a
car in at a dealership, that dealership
is going to offer you the least amount
they can in order to maximize their
turn-around profit. In most states,
they're required by law to run those
cars through the service department to
make sure the car meets minimal state
requirements for reselling. This costs
the dealership money, so they take that
into consideration when making their
offer to you for the trade-in value.
Also, if the trade-in has more than 60K
miles, it's value is drastically reduced
because the dealership can't offer any
warranty on it when they try to resell.
In short, it's likely that your trade-in
is going to be sold to an auction
(that's where those little, privately
owned car lots get their cars) and the
dealer isn't likely to make any profit
on it. Hence, their ridiculously low
trade-in offer.
If you want to get the most for your old
car, you're better off selling it
yourself. It's not nearly as convenient
as trading it in, but you're most likely
to get the most for it if you do it
yourself. If that's not something you
want to contend with, then get all your
information gathered about what you can
get fro a trade and don't say a word
about it to the salesman until AFTER
you've negotiated your price on the new
car. Keep the trade-in out of the
equation to secure your new car price.
It'll minimize even more 'negotiating'.
AT THE DEALERSHIP:
So now you've got all your information
gathered and you've made your decision as to
which car you're going to buy. You've also
figured out where you're going to get
your financing and the value of your trade-in.
You're ready to buy your new car.
Before you drive onto the lot, you must have the
following decisions made:
Your Down Payment (the MOST you're willing to
put down on the car)
Your Monthly Payment (not a penny more)
Your Trade-In Value (the least you're willing to
accept)
Your Credit Score (if you're financing through
the dealership)
Go in and ask to speak to the new car (or used
car) sales manager. Tell him/her what car you're
going to buy. Drive the car one more time to be
sure it's 'the one'. Once you've returned from
your test drive, they're likely going to sit you
down at some desk and begin the whole
'negotiating' process with what's called a
'4-square'. This is where you'll be asked to
fill in your information (including your SS
number). DO NOT fill in your SS number until
you've got the deal you want. Because the moment
they have that number, the salesman or the
manager is going to run your credit. If you
already know your credit score (which you
should, if you've done your homework), they
don't need to do this just yet. As soon as
you're done filling in your information, they're
going to disappear into another office and start
with their highest numbers. The moment they
return to the table, take that 4 square out of
his hands (he is NOT going to want you to do
this, as this is his 'control' document...they
actually teach you this when you're new to the
car business!) But, grab the paper and cross out
everything they've written down, replacing each
number with YOUR numbers. These numbers will
include price of the car, down payment and
monthly payment. (the 4th square is for the
trade-in, which you're not getting into just
yet) Tell the salesman or manager that this is
your 'final offer' and you've got 45 minutes
before you'll be leaving the dealership. Check
your watch and make a note of it on the 4
square. They may try to tell you that you can't
buy a car in 45 minutes, and I'm telling you
that YOU CAN. I've done it more than a dozen
times with various friends/family and it is
totally possible to buy a car in that amount of
time IF you've done your homework and have all
your ducks in a row.
At this point you're going to have
nerves of steel because it's likely all the
'tactics' are going to appear. DO NOT BE SWAYED.
Stick to your guns and tell them this is it.
PERIOD. If there's anyone in charge who's got
half a brain, you're going to be signing
paperwork in 15 minutes or so. If not, stick to
your plan and LEAVE. If you're making a
reasonable offer, they're going to make the
deal. If not, you'll know soon enough. By
'reasonable offer' what I mean is an offer that
is above their invoice cost (they are entitled
to make a profit. That's what they're in
business for!)but not so high that they're
taking your head off in their profit. Once
they've agreed to your offer, THEN you can tell
them that you'll be trading in your old car.
Don't be surprised if this is met with great
agitation. They really hate when people do this.
But, again, don't expect to get top dollar for
your trade, especially if you've just negotiated
the deal you want. They're going to make an
offer and then it's u[p to you to decide if it's
worth your time to trade-in or sell on your own.
IN A NUTSHELL:
The bottom line is this: go armed with
information. KNOW what you will or won't pay.
And keep an eye on the time. It's not impossible
to get the deal you want with little effort or
time spent. You just have to know what you're
talking about and stick to your guns.
One more thing:
Depending on your location (4 season climate or
not), there are certain months when you're going
to have an added advantage. In the 4 years I
sold cars, I found that November through the end
of February were much leaner (in sales) than the
rest of the year. Also, the end of the month
(whatever month) because dealerships have quotas
and they're more likely to take any deal in
order to meet those quotas. Summer is probably
the busiest for dealerships, so if you can avoid
shopping during the summer and wait til late
October or November, it may help you even more.
Happy Hunting!
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About The Author:
Written By
Camille Olivia Strate
Camille Olivia Strate is an author,
empowerment coach and critter keeper in
search of the perfect pasture. Among her
many passions is assisting people in
returning to their 'true selves' by way
of empowerment coaching. She believes
strongly in 'paying it forward' and
lives by 'do what you love and the money
will follow'. Her latest book,
"Whispers" is now available in eBook
format. Hardcopy to follow soon! Visit
her personal site at
http://www.joyzachoice.com
For business information,
http://www.liveyourbliss.info.
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