What I'm up to:
I'm hoping to upgrade from a small car to a midsized pickup. I want to be able to carry a bunch of tools and misc household items with me down to Florida. I also want a vehicle for hauling stuff when I get down there.
I've narrowed my selection down to a Honda Ridgeline or Chevy Colorado. The Honda has a smoother ride, but the Colorado is much more loaded up in my price range, and has better towing capacity, which I've now decided that I want.
My buying/negotiating experiences:
Twice in the last two weeks I came very close to purchasing a new truck.
Both negotiations fell apart, because of the trade in value for my car.
My 2018 loaded up Civic is in great shape with only 23k miled. KBB says the trade in is Good:14.6k. Very good:15.2k. Excellent: 16k.
Deal #1 they offered 14.6 trade in. I said I wanted 15.2. They came up to 15.0 via text, and we never got the deal done over $200.
Deal #2 they offered 13.0 trade in , and came up to 13.5. I told them I wanted at least 14.5, and left again. Note: I really liked the truck, and they were playing the game of reducing the price by $1000 with a qualified trade in. I came down two more times to 14.0, and 13.750. They wouldn't budge, and we didn't get the deal done over $250.
My comments:
- I can't believe how stubborn I am.
- I'm not a strong negotiator. Can you believe there wasn't an extra $250 of profit on each of these deals to have the dealership accept my offer? That makes me think I held my ground fairly well.
- Dealerships must still be selling cars with no problem. This guy doesn't want to pay our price, bring in the next guy. Maybe our economy is better than advertised.
- It really is a big game, and I'm assuming I will get screwed to some extent by playing this game. I'm still trying to have some fun with the process. I'm truly not expecting the best deal in town, just trying to not be an easy chump.
PS: I really don't need this truck until fall, so I'm not in a huge rush to make this purchase.
I'm interested in what you think about my silly behavior, what the dealerships did, and the whole new car buying process.
JP
I'm hoping to upgrade from a small car to a midsized pickup. I want to be able to carry a bunch of tools and misc household items with me down to Florida. I also want a vehicle for hauling stuff when I get down there.
I've narrowed my selection down to a Honda Ridgeline or Chevy Colorado. The Honda has a smoother ride, but the Colorado is much more loaded up in my price range, and has better towing capacity, which I've now decided that I want.
My buying/negotiating experiences:
Twice in the last two weeks I came very close to purchasing a new truck.
Both negotiations fell apart, because of the trade in value for my car.
My 2018 loaded up Civic is in great shape with only 23k miled. KBB says the trade in is Good:14.6k. Very good:15.2k. Excellent: 16k.
Deal #1 they offered 14.6 trade in. I said I wanted 15.2. They came up to 15.0 via text, and we never got the deal done over $200.
Deal #2 they offered 13.0 trade in , and came up to 13.5. I told them I wanted at least 14.5, and left again. Note: I really liked the truck, and they were playing the game of reducing the price by $1000 with a qualified trade in. I came down two more times to 14.0, and 13.750. They wouldn't budge, and we didn't get the deal done over $250.
My comments:
- I can't believe how stubborn I am.
- I'm not a strong negotiator. Can you believe there wasn't an extra $250 of profit on each of these deals to have the dealership accept my offer? That makes me think I held my ground fairly well.
- Dealerships must still be selling cars with no problem. This guy doesn't want to pay our price, bring in the next guy. Maybe our economy is better than advertised.
- It really is a big game, and I'm assuming I will get screwed to some extent by playing this game. I'm still trying to have some fun with the process. I'm truly not expecting the best deal in town, just trying to not be an easy chump.
PS: I really don't need this truck until fall, so I'm not in a huge rush to make this purchase.
I'm interested in what you think about my silly behavior, what the dealerships did, and the whole new car buying process.
JP
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