Car Dealership Shenanigans

[athena53]

One other caveat: In our state prepayment penalties on loans are illegal. I don't know that to be true everywhere. So that has to be the first question if someone is looking at one of these maneuvers.

And be careful how "prepayment" is defined. The loan I described earlier, where I got zero break on the finance charges for paying a substantial amount up front and paying increased monthly amounts, specified that if you paid it off in a lump sum they'd use the "actuarial method" to calculate the balance due, which is not exact but pretty fair. It may be that that loan qualified as not having a prepayment penalty but it did nothing in my case, when I accelerated the payments.

 

[mystang52]

Before buying a certified used Toyota recently, I checked CarMax (among others) and found them to be relatively pleasant to deal with. The Toyota dealer's staff was sorta sleazy and it was frustrating getting them to believe that I wasn't going to pay for finish sealers, fabric protectors, extended warranties and all the usual crap. So I had to listen to the sales pitches which I assume their management mandated they do.


It was surprising that CarMax couldn't beat buying CPO from a dealer.

Last year DD went shopping for, and ultimately bought, a CPO. The latest shenanigan: attempting to charge a $500 Certified Fee.

 

[CoolRich59]

I think it probably even works better if the wife is the negotiator and her husband is the absent authority.

Not in my case.

Back in the day, I negotiated contracts for a living. Not only was I a better negotiator, I enjoyed playing the game.

But, the DW was the absent authority - and she wasn't role playing! She was (and still is) frugality personified. I remember spending 8 hours at the dealership haggling and finally reaching a deal. I told the dealer that the car would be titled in mine and my wife's name, and so she'd have to come in and sign the docs too.

She showed up, asked how much the car was going to cost, then announced "Forget it. That's too much" and walked out the door. I thought the salesman was going to start crying.

 

[OldShooter]

Not in my case. ...

There are no universal rules, but my point was that a woman is more likely to be perceived as weak and heavily influenced by the absent authority. Being underestmated is IMO an asset in a negotiation.

 

[CoolRich59]

There are no universal rules, but my point was that a woman is more likely to be perceived as weak and heavily influenced by the absent authority. Being underestmated is IMO an asset in a negotiation.

You are right; I agree that women are often perceived that way. In our case, car dealers and other merchants have underestimated my wife to their dismay.

For example, one day a fellow came to the door and offered to seal our driveway. He used the familiar sales pitch: We just did one your neighbor's driveway and got done early. Since I already have the crew and materials, I'll give you a great deal, blah, blah, blah. The wife agrees.

About 30 minutes later, the fellow comes to the door again and says "Gee, your driveway is longer than I initially thought and I underestimated how much time it would take and the amount of material we need. I'm going to have to charge you another $100 to finish."

The wife says: "It's not my problem you miscalculated. You agreed to do my driveway for that price and that's the only amount I'm going to pay. You either finish my driveway now or I'm calling the police."

That fellow didn't say another word, just turned tail and got back to work.

 

[Nick12]

You are right; I agree that women are often perceived that way. In our case, car dealers and other merchants have underestimated my wife to their dismay.

For example, one day a fellow came to the door and offered to seal our driveway. He used the familiar sales pitch: We just did one your neighbor's driveway and got done early. Since I already have the crew and materials, I'll give you a great deal, blah, blah, blah. The wife agrees.

About 30 minutes later, the fellow comes to the door again and says "Gee, your driveway is longer than I initially thought and I underestimated how much time it would take and the amount of material we need. I'm going to have to charge you another $100 to finish."

The wife says: "It's not my problem you miscalculated. You agreed to do my driveway for that price and that's the only amount I'm going to pay. You either finish my driveway now or I'm calling the police."

That fellow didn't say another word, just turned tail and got back to work.

It's a good thing he did not retaliate. My neighbor had a contractor do a job. Then my neighbor called his manager later on the terrible job he did. A week later my neighbor called the cops. Someone came to his backyard and with a knife cut through his screened porch. The person was never caught.

 

[Rianne]

Just a caution for others, make sure that the contract on the website that you review is the one that you sign. It could be that the website is out of date, or there are different "contracts" for different "customers". It wouldn't be the first time. What one signs is the legal document, not the one on the website.

It was a PDF showing all signatures.

 

[Paulz]

If I'm buying a used car I only buy from Carmax just because there is no haggling and fewer "shenanigans".

For new cars, I buy through my credit union. I have to tell them the exact car I want with all options, and then they poll the dealers to get a out the door price. The credit union buys the car on my behalf. Nice thing is I pick it up from the CU, so zero dealership involvement. Downside is I have to get a loan from the CU to use, so I do that and pay it off the next month. I hear Costco has a buying program where a price is set. I haven't used theirs, so can't comment on it.

 

[Paulz]

I'll be buying a 2019 or so car in the near future, and am thinking of going to Carmax. They advertise no haggle prices and refund after 7 days and things like that. Had anyone here used them or know much about them?

I've bought three cars from them and sold two of them back 8+ years later. Not the cheapest, but the price is the price. The cars come with a limited warranty in addition to whatever the car might have left over from the manufacturer. They do have an extended warranty you can buy, but there is no pressure.

I highly recommend them.

 

[CRLLS]

I've bought three cars from them and sold two of them back 8+ years later. Not the cheapest, but the price is the price. The cars come with a limited warranty in addition to whatever the car might have left over from the manufacturer. They do have an extended warranty you can buy, but there is no pressure.

I highly recommend them.

If you are a warranty person, you don't have to buy an extended warranty from Carmax, you can buy an extended warranty from the mfgr just like you would buy on a brand new car. No difference in coverage or terms. I did this with my Ford Escape that I bought from Carmax. I bought the warranty online from a Lincoln/Mercury dealer at a good discount over the list price. A little Google will get you the places with the best prices to purchase one. It is honored by any Ford dealership and is transferrable. I suspect, but do not know, that other mfgrs might offer the same type extended warranty.