Anyone bought a new car recently?

[Anonymous]

I've emailed a bunch of dealerships for their best price for a particular model car. When they come back with the price, it is higher than on their website. For instance, they will have a price on their website called something like the ¨Koons Krazy Price!¨ say, 20k. Then the salesperson emails me their ¨best price" for the same car, and its 22k plus all the extra fees they want to add on. It is really aggravating. Is it just me?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I've emailed a bunch of dealerships for their best price for a particular model car. When they come back with the price, it is higher than on their website. For instance, they will have a price on their website called something like the ¨Koons Krazy Price!¨ say, 20k. Then the salesperson emails me their ¨best price" for the same car, and its 22k plus all the extra fees they want to add on. It is really aggravating. Is it just me?

Sounds like bait and switch to me. If you are in MoCo you can call the Office of Consumer Protection and find out if it's legal. And if its not, what you can do about it.

[Anonymous]

Whatever you do don't go to Wheaton ford

[Anonymous]

I went with my cousin last year to buy a car. We negotiated really hard. The guy told us that most peop don't even look at the price on the website. He will tell them a price that's more than the website and they will take it.

[Anonymous]

I can't recommend the Costco car buying program highly enough. No haggling and other dealers usually can't match the price.

[Anonymous]

OP here, thanks. We have a Costco membership. Can you explain a little more about their car buying program?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I've emailed a bunch of dealerships for their best price for a particular model car. When they come back with the price, it is higher than on their website. For instance, they will have a price on their website called something like the ¨Koons Krazy Price!¨ say, 20k. Then the salesperson emails me their ¨best price" for the same car, and its 22k plus all the extra fees they want to add on. It is really aggravating. Is it just me?

Some of those prices list includes all possible rebates that may or may not apply to you, e.g. $500 new graduate discount etc etc, read the fine print and ask them which discount are included. Cross check with manufacturers website for your zip code, they will have it on their website in black and white. Another thing, if a dealer is willing to write 20k up front that means there is some money left on the table. If they say 20k, I'd start with 18.5k or 19k, especially on 2014 models. Also, if you know exactly what you want, have tried the car prior etc and they have exactly that car in inventory, ask to work with the internet sales manager directly. This person works on fixed salary whilst the "regular" sales guys/girls work on a combination of salary and commission, so they may be trying to up the price for their own personal benefit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here, thanks. We have a Costco membership. Can you explain a little more about their car buying program?

PP here, I think you can do better than Costco pricing, use that as starting point (as you know you can get the car for Costco price no matter what) so you start with $1-2k under the Costco pricing. As stated before, any method that entails pricing being provided to you upfront, either via 1) sellers website, 2) costco pricing 3) truecar or anywhere else, means there is $1-2k on the table to be negotiated for a 20k car if not more. Forgot to mention that there are a few dealers that still have 2013 models, yes 2013 models, available that can be had for a steep discount, ie 2013 Nissan Altima V6 non-leather at Nissan Tysons, MSRP is close to 30k, they listed them for around 20k, which means you can probably get it for 18k plus tax/tags. I checked this a few weeks ago so they may/may not be there now.

Best of luck.

-car guy

[Anonymous]

Don't go to Fitzgerald either-they will rip you off big time-they are true scammers in every way!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Don't go to Fitzgerald either-they will rip you off big time-they are true scammers in every way!

They aren't scammers. They give you a price. If you want to haggle and get a better price, then do so.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here, thanks. We have a Costco membership. Can you explain a little more about their car buying program?

Only certain dealers participate in the program, so you might have to drive a bit. A few years ago, I drove 3 hours to pick up the car I wanted because the price was so low, the local dealer wouldn't match it. You can look on their website to find participating dealers.

It's a set price, so no negotiations required. I did almost all of the inquiries and ordering via email, although you can of course go to the dealer as well. They usually have a designated salesperson who handles the Costco orders, which I also like -- no sharks circling you at the dealership!

You can pick exactly which features you want; the particular combo I wanted was not in stock, so they ordered the car and I picked it up a few weeks later. The first time I bought a car this way, they did have the car in stock, so there was no waiting. My family has bought three cars this way and been very happy each time. http://www.costcoauto.com/enterzipcode.aspx?gotourl=%2fnew_cars%2fhow_the_program_works%2fdefault.aspx

[Anonymous]

If you've contemplated using TrueCar, please read this before you accept their pricing:

http://carbuying.jalopnik.com/the-truth-about-truecar-savings-1559397086

[Anonymous]

I used Truecar.com (this was in 2013) and it worked pretty well, granted, your e-mail/phone will blow up, but it gives you an idea of what people have paid for the car in question.

[Anonymous]

Interent price is usually their best price. If you email their _internet_ salesperson (like by clicking Contact on the page listing that particular car), you'll get that price. If you walk in, just bring a printout of that and you'll get that price (then deal it down a bit further).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:PP here, I think you can do better than Costco pricing, use that as starting point (as you know you can get the car for Costco price no matter what) so you start with $1-2k under the Costco pricing. As stated before, any method that entails pricing being provided to you upfront, either via 1) sellers website, 2) costco pricing 3) truecar or anywhere else, means there is $1-2k on the table to be negotiated for a 20k car if not more. Forgot to mention that there are a few dealers that still have 2013 models, yes 2013 models, available that can be had for a steep discount, ie 2013 Nissan Altima V6 non-leather at Nissan Tysons, MSRP is close to 30k, they listed them for around 20k, which means you can probably get it for 18k plus tax/tags. I checked this a few weeks ago so they may/may not be there now.

Best of luck.

-car guy

Have you tried the Costco program? In my experience, the dealer website price is VERY high and can be beat by much more than $1-2k, Truecar or other prices are still quite high, but the Costco price is pretty darn good. I'd be interested to hear if you have been able to get a better price than Costco -- maybe I can be doing better! Caveat: I've only purchased new cars this way, not used. There seems to be even more haggling with used cars.