The price of cars these days
is just out of this world. You can figure on spending upwards of
$30,000 for a family van. No wonder a lot of people are opting for used
cars. Even with prices creeping up and up there are still ways for you
to save money if you have your heart set on a new car.
The first advice I'll offer
is to do your homework before you approach a dealership. There is an
endless amount of information available on the internet. Every car
manufacturer has a website, dealerships have web sites. See what deals
they are offering on what models. Check on the edmunds.com website for
information on retail prices for new and used cars of any make and
model. You should, before you even pull into the dealership, have a
ballpark figure of what your new car should cost, including any special
packages you may want.
A lot of
dealers have taken the haggling and pressure out of new car buying,
which many of consumers like. Remember the days when you'd ask what the
price of a car is and the salesman would reply "how much can you afford
to pay a month?". You never knew exactly what you were paying for your
new car until you were at the desk ready to sign the contract. Today we
are educated consumers and those days are gone forever.
You will be able to get a
good deal during the end of model year sales. The dealers will make
just about any deal to get an older model off the lot to make room for
a new one. Also, go into the dealership at the end of the month. Your
salesman will be doing his best to sell a few more vehicles to up his
commission payment.
Get the bottom line price
for that new car before you talk about a trade in. Generally the first
thing a salesman will ask is if you have a trade in. Say "no". If your
salesman knows you have a trade in it will affect the price you pay for
your new car, no doubt. If he makes you a ridiculously good deal for
your trade in you can believe that the price of your new car will
reflect this. Make sure you know what the value of your trade in is.
Again you can check edmunds.com. Take you car to a variety of
dealerships and get an idea of this price from them.
The bottom line is to do
your homework. Get a price for the new car from several different
dealers. There is nothing wrong with each of them vying to give you the
best deal.
Consider your finance
charges. Get a quote on the interest rate you're offered from the
dealership, then check with your bank or credit union to see what type
of interest rates they offer.