Car Buying from a Dealer

Have you ever heard that you don't want to go to a car dealership? All though most of us hate to go to the car dealerships to purchase a car we often find ourselves ending up at one. For the most part we feel we are getting a better deal than going to some person we don't know or an auction where we can't test drive the vehicle. There are many tips that can help you get through the car buying process with a car dealer that you may feel help you the next time you purchase a new or used car.

- When purchasing from a dealer you have to know about the car. In other words do your research. Go to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and learn the facts about the car. Is the car going to be road safe? What might the dealer not want to tell you about that particular car in order to make a sale?
- You will also want to check out Kelly Blue Book or some other consumer report where you will learn the retail value, the used retail value from a car dealership or private sale, and what the car is really worth. The details that are given are based on the condition, amenities that come with the car, and the year of the vehicle. Armed with this data you have a better negotiation stand with the car dealership.
- You also want to know where you stand on your FICO credit scores. Not everyone is honest when it comes to these numbers. To make a sale they may tell you your numbers are low. If you have the scores in front of you, you can make a stand and ask to see where they pulled their numbers. A car dealership also uses a risk number that is determined by more than just the FICO score. This number will tell them the likelihood of your not making payments regarding a loan or getting into an accident. Your credit scores are going to be important to the negotiations as well.
- You should also ask to see the carfax report. Carfax is a report put out on your vehicle vin number. In other words the maintenance schedule, accident reports, and other things that a vehicle may go through are reported to carfax and available to consumers. In fact you can find out how many previous owners there were for the used car you are interested in. The dealership must show you this paper if you ask for it. It is another line of defense to make sure the dealership is being honest about the cars mechanical state.
- Don't buy into the salesman line. They have several different sentences that are supposed to pressure you into taking the sale right then, such as 'This is such a hot deal you know it won't be here tomorrow, or I have five other people interested in this car'. There are many lines and you should establish that you are in control during the negotiations not the salesperson.