Easy guide to getting a new car
Posted: Mon Jun 30, 2008 6:54 pm
I finally got a new car last Saturday. I hate the process of car shopping; I like things to be simple: I go in, I pay (or get financing), and I walk out with a new car. I don't like having to negotiate a price (and I hate even more feeling like I overpayed), I don't like having to fill out tons of paperwork, and I don't like lots of hassle. But this was really, really easy to go through. Surprisingly so, in fact...
So here's what I did. The key word here is EDMUNDS:
Step 1) Pick a time to buy:
I went in at the end of June. At this time, dealers want to get rid of a lot of stock, fill quarterly/biannual quotas, and all that sort of thing.
Step 2) Find the model you want:
I went through edmunds.com and searched through several 4-door sedans that fit the bill. I settled on a 2008 or 2009 Toyota Corolla LE as the best value for my money.
Additionally, Edmunds also gives you a "True Market Value" price, that's the price you can expect as a "good deal", and the invoice price, which is usually the lowest you can possibly go. So immediately you know your negotiating range.
Step 3) Get quotes from 3+ dealerships:
This is the great step. Edmunds lets you submit requests to as many dealerships are in the area. Right off the bat I had 3 dealerships giving me offers. I called back each of them, and let them know that I was also talking to other Toyota dealerships in the area, and asked what kind of cars they have available at what kind of price.
Right there, about 80% of the negotiating was done for me, all in the span of 10-15 minutes interspersed throughout the day. It was great.
Step 4) Go to the dealership, test-drive the car, negotiate the rest:
I decided which dealership to try out first, test-drove the car, and ended up settling on (what I thought) was a pretty good deal on a 2009 Corolla LE. The rest was just filling out paperwork.
See, when I was little, I remember having to spend 6-8 hours in a car dealership waiting for my dad to finish getting the price down. This dealership had, like, a kids' play area with a TV and N64; when I was a kid, we got like a crappy waiting room with plastic benches and a TV made in 1975 that got 3 channels, 2 of which were barely visible through the static, and 1 crappy vending machine.
Ok, ok, I digress. Anyway, since half the work was done for me by being able to shop around before I walked in the door, I only spent maybe 1-2 hours between test-driving and getting to the final price. My plates were transferred over, I got the new registration, and when I got home it only took me 2 minutes to reset stuff with my insurance.
So now, I have a new car and it wasn't even painful to get it all done. I'm planning on this lasting me at least 6 years, maybe more, so it'll be a while before I'm here again. KF
So here's what I did. The key word here is EDMUNDS:
Step 1) Pick a time to buy:
I went in at the end of June. At this time, dealers want to get rid of a lot of stock, fill quarterly/biannual quotas, and all that sort of thing.
Step 2) Find the model you want:
I went through edmunds.com and searched through several 4-door sedans that fit the bill. I settled on a 2008 or 2009 Toyota Corolla LE as the best value for my money.
Additionally, Edmunds also gives you a "True Market Value" price, that's the price you can expect as a "good deal", and the invoice price, which is usually the lowest you can possibly go. So immediately you know your negotiating range.
Step 3) Get quotes from 3+ dealerships:
This is the great step. Edmunds lets you submit requests to as many dealerships are in the area. Right off the bat I had 3 dealerships giving me offers. I called back each of them, and let them know that I was also talking to other Toyota dealerships in the area, and asked what kind of cars they have available at what kind of price.
Right there, about 80% of the negotiating was done for me, all in the span of 10-15 minutes interspersed throughout the day. It was great.
Step 4) Go to the dealership, test-drive the car, negotiate the rest:
I decided which dealership to try out first, test-drove the car, and ended up settling on (what I thought) was a pretty good deal on a 2009 Corolla LE. The rest was just filling out paperwork.
See, when I was little, I remember having to spend 6-8 hours in a car dealership waiting for my dad to finish getting the price down. This dealership had, like, a kids' play area with a TV and N64; when I was a kid, we got like a crappy waiting room with plastic benches and a TV made in 1975 that got 3 channels, 2 of which were barely visible through the static, and 1 crappy vending machine.
Ok, ok, I digress. Anyway, since half the work was done for me by being able to shop around before I walked in the door, I only spent maybe 1-2 hours between test-driving and getting to the final price. My plates were transferred over, I got the new registration, and when I got home it only took me 2 minutes to reset stuff with my insurance.
So now, I have a new car and it wasn't even painful to get it all done. I'm planning on this lasting me at least 6 years, maybe more, so it'll be a while before I'm here again. KF