Negotiate Pricing On Used Cars

By David Plowman

So, you’ve decided to get a new car. You know the make of and model you want. What’s your next step? If you said “go to the dealership and buy the car,” chances are you won’t be getting the best price.

In order to get the best deal you need to negotiate. And one of the keys to successful negotiation is knowledge. In car buying, as in many areas, knowledge is power.

But the good news is you probably won’t even need to leave you house to complete this research. Just go to the internet, a researcher’s best friend in the 21st century.

Your first step is to consult the car manufacture’s website where you can find the manufacture’s suggested retail price (MSRP) for the car you’re looking for. Remember, this is not the actual price for the car at the dealership. In fact in most cases, your bottom-line price will likely be less than the MSRP.

But the MSRP serves as a baseline dealerships use as a common starting point. When it comes time to negotiate. For example, when you talk to the dealership, you can tell them you will pay $150 below the MSRP.

While you’re on the carmaker’s site, check out the available options. Decide what options you want and don’t want before you enter the dealership, This will prevent you from letting the dealer sweet-talk you into getting add-ons you don’t want.

While you’re on the web, you may want to check out sites like CarsDirect, ConsumerGuide or Autoweb to get more information on pricing and options.

Armed with all of this knowledge, you are ready to negotiate. But you don’t have to drive to the dealerships to do this. You can haggle over the phone. In fact, some car buying experts say this puts you in more powerful position, since you aren’t meeting the dealers on their terms on their premises.

Simply call the dealerships up, tell them the make and model of the car you are looking for, and ask them how much below the MSRP they are willing to go. Get an exact price from them, don’t accept vague answers like, “We’ll beat any price,” or “Come on down to the dealership, and we’ll talk.”

Once you’ve settled on a price, ask them to e-mail or fax a written confirmation of the price.

Whether you negotiate over the phone or in person, remember dealerships are in completion with another. Don’t allow them to strong-arm you into a price you don’t want or load your car with options you won’t use. If you feel the talks are getting out of control, make that your cue to visit another dealership.