Any tips on buying a new car (online)?

[FinanceDude]

I wonder why. After all, there is no sign explaining the 'rules' when I walk in. If I talk to a salesman I don't feel I owe him/her any allegiance (unless they really went out of the way for me). If the 'internet guy' is gonna give me a better price, why wouldn't I deal with him?

Internet guy usually can because he is paid a salary from the dealership while the salesmen are on commission, so usually the salespeople hate the Internet guy..........

 

[Free To Canoe]

Internet guy usually can because he is paid a salary from the dealership while the salesmen are on commission, so usually the salespeople hate the Internet guy..........

+1

 

[ERD50]

Internet guy usually can because he is paid a salary from the dealership while the salesmen are on commission, so usually the salespeople hate the Internet guy..........

OK, so if I need to 'play this game', how do I go about it?

I spent 10 minutes at one dealer (not even a test drive, they didn't have the 6cyl/trim I want in stock at the time). DW & I did take a test drive at another dealer, but that model is a 'cousin' of the one I will probably buy (Kia versus Hyundai - same basic vehicle). Other than that, I've only talked on the phone for a few minutes with one dealer, telling him which model/trim I would consider. This guy has my name/number - do I just start ignoring him? It's not like he has a big investment with me.

While I know the trim level I want, I would still want to test drive and look it over, just so there are no 'ooops, I didn't know that!' moments on such a large purchase. And of course, DW must see the colors in daylight. How do you cover that with the 'internet guy'?

-ERD50

 

[rescueme]

Has anybody bought a used car online? Looking for a used car 2008 or 2009 Toyota Camryor Honda Accord. Just starting the car buying process. I dislike haggling with car salesmen. My wife would want to consider 2008 or 2009 Toyota Rav4 or Honda CRV.

I did three years ago via EBay Auto. Purchased it (off lease) from the original leasing dealer in another state. I matched the vehicle, options, mileage against similar cars within 100 miles of my home, and I could not find one (at the time) that compared in options, or price.

Had him take additional pictures and email them to me. I was not too concerned about the mechanical part since it was fairly low mileage (32k) and as a manufactured certified used car.

In my case, it worked out well and I would not hesitate to do the same thing again (assuming there was a car I was interested in). However, in my case, I only put a few miles on a year (it just turned 45k) and since I drive my cars until the "wheels fall off" I expect to be driving it for many years in the future.

BTW, it was delivered to my home (Detroit to PA) via a flatbed trailer, by a firm that "shuffled" used cars around the country as a business. It cost $500 to have it transported. It originally listed for mid-50's when new and I paid in the low-20's so for me, the transportation cost was not a problem. Since it was a U.S. badged vehicle (Cadillac) the discount was more than a popular foreign badged vehicle.

 

[Free To Canoe]

OK, so if I need to 'play this game', how do I go about it?

While I know the trim level I want, I would still want to test drive and look it over, just so there are no 'ooops, I didn't know that!' moments on such a large purchase. And of course, DW must see the colors in daylight. How do you cover that with the 'internet guy'?

-ERD50

I started by visiting the Mel Grata (see above post) and other dealerships to narrow down the models, options, color etc. At that time I was not sure I was going to do the internet thing. All I knew then was that a good offer was below sticker. I might have bypassed the research project if I got a good offer on something I wanted. No good offers were forthcoming. No vehicles with what I wanted were forthcoming at the local dealers, either. I am really glad I took the internet route.

Free to canoe

 

[FinanceDude]

OK, so if I need to 'play this game', how do I go about it?

I spent 10 minutes at one dealer (not even a test drive, they didn't have the 6cyl/trim I want in stock at the time). DW & I did take a test drive at another dealer, but that model is a 'cousin' of the one I will probably buy (Kia versus Hyundai - same basic vehicle). Other than that, I've only talked on the phone for a few minutes with one dealer, telling him which model/trim I would consider. This guy has my name/number - do I just start ignoring him? It's not like he has a big investment with me.

While I know the trim level I want, I would still want to test drive and look it over, just so there are no 'ooops, I didn't know that!' moments on such a large purchase. And of course, DW must see the colors in daylight. How do you cover that with the 'internet guy'?[ERD50

First of all, Kia is owned by Hyundai, and while they share some parts, a Hyundai is a nicer car. I would do the following:

1)Find the car and trim level you want by either Internet search or calling around and dealing with the Internet sales guy.

2)Internet guy will let you drive vehicle if you want, no big deal.

3)Just be honest with the salesman who will call you, tell him you want a Hyundai, not a Kia, and they didn't have the model and trim you wanted, so you are looking elsewhere, and tell him not to call you anymore. be polite about it. Trust me, he doesn't want to keep calling a guy who has no intention of buying from him either, why waster your and his time?

 

[ERD50]

First of all, Kia is owned by Hyundai, and while they share some parts, a Hyundai is a nicer car. I would do the following:

1)Find the car and trim level you want by either Internet search or calling around and dealing with the Internet sales guy.

2)Internet guy will let you drive vehicle if you want, no big deal.

3)Just be honest with the salesman who will call you, tell him you want a Hyundai, not a Kia, and they didn't have the model and trim you wanted, so you are looking elsewhere, and tell him not to call you anymore. be polite about it. Trust me, he doesn't want to keep calling a guy who has no intention of buying from him either, why waster your and his time?

Thanks, but it's actually the other way 'round. We test drove the Kia, but decided (based on reviews and trim and option lists) that we liked the Hyundai better. The dealer that I've been talking with is Hyundai, so I can't really just say 'bye', as that is very likely the dealer I would buy through.

Maybe I'll just start emailing the internet guys at the 3-4 dealers in our general area, and then give this sales guy a chance to match that price. All he has invested is a few phone calls with me, so not a big deal really.

I was going to try to use the Kia/Hyundai thing for leverage - but most of these dealers represent both, so they can just say "Fine, we have Kias to sell you".

-ERD50

 

[Lusitan]

Interesting discussion about the whole "internet guy" versus "sales guy" thing within the dealer. I wanted to test drive a Honda and a Toyota.

So I went to a Toyota dealership and asked to test drive one, spent 5 or 10 minutes talking with the guy afterward and gave him some of my information and got his contact number.

Process took a little longer at the Honda dealership, and the guy insisted on at least making ME an offer (even though I told him I was not going to buy anything because I was still considering which car I wanted) so that guy invested maybe an hour of time with us considering he took two test drives (one with me and one with my wife, because unlike the Toyota dealership they wouldn't let us strap the kids' carseats in an take them with us) and then his little let's-make-a-deal chat.

I did notice that the deal he was offering seemed along the lines of a "good deal" (even approaching a "great deal") based on the Edmunds and TrueCar site information.

My thinking was that, once we've decided what to buy, I'd contact several dealers via email (including the one that I test drove at) and let them bid for my business, telling them I'm ready to buy for cash today if any of them offers a good deal. Not sure whether I should mention that I test drove something there or not, and who the sales person was, or whether they'll sort that out in the records when they see my name should I choose to buy from their internet guy.

Like ERD50 said, I don't really care how they allocate the commission, that should be their headache not mine. I'm buying from the dealership, not the individual dealers. I expect this is not an unusual event so they should have worked out a fair way to deal handle it by now.

 

[Katsmeow]

Here's another basic question -- when you're buying car "in cash" ... what do you do, pick up a cashier's check once you've determined the final amount? Presumably the dealer is not going to accept a check from my Vanguard account ...

This depends on local practice. The last car we bought, we used edmunds and got back a list of dealers and dealt with their internet salespeople. When we settled on a deal I just wrote a personal check. I've heard from some people that in their area a cashier's check is standard however.

We are about to most likely buy a new 2011 Town & Country minivan (I looked at the Toyota and Honda and neither met my needs) and will likely follow the same procedure.