Car buying/financing question

[Diesel73L]

My initial thought, reading the original post, was if the trade-in truck is in Diesel's name - it might not be possible to trade it in and have the new(er) vehicle in Mrs. Diesel's name?

We haven't bought anything yet-we've got our eye on two different vehicles and we're waiting to see what happens toward the end of the month. Dealers are usually more motivated then. Plus there are President's Day sales coming up. As for the trade, they don't care where the trade comes from. Nevertheless I'm attempting to sell it myself because I'll get more for it-trading it will be a last resort.

[andy158]

To put things into perspective here remember when a car was priced about 10-15% of one's yearly wages? Now it approaches 50% of one's yearly wages.

Most middle class wage earners have little choice but to finance anything decent, relatively new and get a respectable warranty. We simply can't afford to pay 100% of the cost in cash anymore.

I am neither pro or con concerning car dealerships. I have worked for a number of them and understand how their inventory is priced. Its called overhead. Building, utilities, licenses, insurances, service equipment, employees, etc. They have to make a reasonable profit to cover these costs just like any other buisness.

As far as trade-ins go good dealer vehicles are usually detailed and throughly checked for safety and reliability. You think you are getting low balled on your trade, but actually the dealer has to put money into the trade in vehicle to assure its safety and make it worthy of selling on his lot keeping his buisness in good standing.

If you don't want to pay MSRP or NADA prices at a dealership then buy a used vehicle from a private individual. You usually get what you pay for. No warranty, limited consumer protection (lemon laws don't apply to private sales) and no safety inspections.

For people that aren't car savy and don't want to deal with the logistics of making a major purchase a dealership is their best bet and a good salesman will guide them through every step of the purchase.

[Diesel73L]

To put things into perspective here remember when a car was priced about 10-15% of one's yearly wages? Now it approaches 50% of one's yearly wages.

Most middle class wage earners have little choice but to finance anything decent, relatively new and get a respectable warranty. We simply can't afford to pay 100% of the cost in cash anymore.

Isn't that the truth...I am one of those folks you would consider "car savvy." I've done everything from change oil and spark plugs to swap engines and transmissions-the problem is even when you do that kind of work yourself it takes time you don't have as well as a lot of money. Last winter I replaced the glow plugs (diesel) in my truck myself-the plugs cost me $150 vs. many hundreds at a shop with labor, etc...but it took me three nights after work in the freezing cold and my wife had to drive me to work which was a nightmare since our jobs are in totally different directions. And that was BEFORE we had kids! I'll continue to do most maintenance on our vehicles (oil changes, brakes, tire rotation, tune-ups) but I want the security of a good factory warranty so that if something major goes wrong it gets fixed at little to no cost in a reasonable amount of time. It's just that the amount you have to pay for that kind of security up front is kind of staggering... We will likely generate about $10K from the sale of my truck, other things around the house I've been selling, and what my wife can scrape together from her income by the end of the month. Theoretically we could buy something for $10K outright, exempt it in BK, and be on our way...until something goes wrong. If it needs a $2500 transmission in three years (we'll probably be 2 years out from BK at that point) we'll either have to drain our emergency fund to pay for it or find some very expensive credit. The other issue is that since the car is warrantied until 2019 we want to keep it AT LEAST that long. The $10K car might be on its last legs in seven years, if it even gets there. So, we're hoping to get a payment of somewhere between $150-200 a month on a certified pre-owned and call that a win.

[Nofilb]

Have to admit, I agree with Diesel. I had a recent horrible experience with an auto dealership whom I caught in many lies. Nonetheless, we do need an update from you big D!

[Diesel73L]

Have to admit, I agree with Diesel. I had a recent horrible experience with an auto dealership whom I caught in many lies. Nonetheless, we do need an update from you big D!

I literally just made a deal on my truck (private sale for $6K-the dealer wanted to give me $2K!!!) and should be making the transaction over the weekend. Shortly after that we'll be heading to the dealer cash in hand.

[MarkCantaur]

[QUOTE=jacko;559475]Another perspective from a car salesman..

I have taken the time to carefully read and then reread this article. Upon fully digesting the information provided, I was at first at a loss for words, then appalled, and now somewhat understanding of the author's point of view. I have been in the car business for a whopping two months now, and am currently waiting for the "up" bus as I write this. From a consumer's perspective, I understand the fear of not wanting to be ripped off and I have heard stories of dealerships that start negotiations at about five grand above sticker. That being said, what I don't understand is where people get this sense of entitlement that makes them feel like they deserve to get cars at prices up to $500 below invoice. I have yet in my short tenure at my dealership been the one to apply a window sticker onto one of our vehicles. If I assume correctly, it is referred to as MSRP because the MANUFACTURER has reccomended that price and has placed the sticker on the window prior to shipping the vehicle. I am a salesman everyday the same way that I am a consumer everyday. I don't negotiate the price of my cable bill as astronomical as it is, I express my disgust to public service for the cost of my energy bills to no avail, I don't haggle for a better price on my groceries, nor do I make a scene at red lobster over what I feel is fair market value for my lobster. When consumers negotiate themselves what this writer from edmunds calls a good deal, the only person that they hurt is their sales representative. The average "flat" for a new car in the state of New Jersey is $50. You meet and greet the customer, sit them down for a consultation to analyze their needs, land them on a vehicle, provide them with a spectacular demonstration, take them on a test drive, and then engage in negotiations that may last up to two hours, be hospitable towards them while your sales manager brutalizes you the whole way through, and entertain them while you wait for F&I. When it's all said and done, you have anywhere from 3 to 6 hours invested in every deal. When you tax those $50, you wound up making between $5 to $10 an hour per deal on top of your monstrous $125 per week salary. Ultimately, when I deal with a customer, I want them to leave happy and feel they got a good deal, but at the same token when I go home to my family, I don't want to feel ashamed at the fact that we have to have bologne sandwiches for dinner, again. The last time I went to the ER, I was there for 3 hours and incurred a $2200 bill. My labor lawyer that is handling a claim for me gets $750 per hour or 33 and 1/3 percent of my entire settlement. No one ever dares to question or negotiate these expenses. I guess all I really want to know is why it is determined that the guys in the car business can suffer and it is not a problem. If anyone has answers please let me know. Just a pitiful fool at the end of his rope, Ivan Casiano

I think I phrased that wrong-what I meant was get them to agree to $18K (vehicle is currently listed at $20K) and THEN apply the cash and trade. I'm thinking I'll get about $6K for the truck based on market value, I owe the bank about $900, so assuming that all goes through plus the $2K cash we would be looking at financing about $11K.

We'll see-we ended up walking out of the dealer last night (you should have seen the looks on their faces ) because they wouldn't budge on the price. They likely paid between $15-16K on trade in for this vehicle, did the minimum amount to certify it, and put it right back out there. It even has the original tires on it. Then they got all huffy with me when I told them that they should take $2000 profit on the vehicle, $3000 on the financing and be happy with it. Then they told us we could have it for $310 a month! At that point we got up and walked-they did the old stop-us-in-the-parking-lot-routine where they asked me to send pictures of my truck so they could look it over to see if they could give me more for it, etc... (I deliberately did not bring it with me) and all that nonsense.

Respectfully, this is very difficult to read. Can you not break your posts into paragraphs? Thanks.