What if I already took a test drive and love the car?
I do not want to visit a dealer, because they will put the hard sell on us to buy sh*t we do not need.
(The F&I guy is on 100% commission.)
I would prefer to do it all by email (or phone).
1st step talk the deal then ask for delivery. Once you and the dealer agree with the terms (including finance services such as GAP, warranty), you fill out the credit app so they know you are qualified. They will ask for your driver lic and proof of insurance once everything is done they will take the car to you and you sign the final paper contract at your place. No dealership will change the number at this step.
Ps: these services mostly for luxury cars. Donāt expect the toyota or honda dealer do this for you. Just saying.
Just tell them no, you have all the power, they donāt. Tell them if they start to waste your time youāll walk out. Put your foot down.
And I mean, test drive the car you are buying. Sometimes new cars are wonky out the factory and drive oddly. Iāve experienced this before where one car rode horrible and another was perfect
Oh English is my second language, thank you for noticing that. You are the champāļøļø
how do I obtain the MF? How can I tell if it is being marked up?
Usually you can find it here, or make a thread and ask for it and usually someone will respond with it, or you can try to find it on Edmunds forums, they usually have all that.
IMO dealerships normally donāt email you the best price, simply because they fear youāll use their quote to shop with other dealerships. Iāll pick 2-3 lowest quotes and call/visit them to ask if there are some room to get a better deal. Dealers are more willing to give deeper discount when you are talking to them in person and ready to sign.
Besides some really popular cars, is there really a no-haggle price dealership existing?
Every single dealership around the world will do a deal under the right conditions.
No exception.
Zero.
Timing is EVERYTHING.
If a dealership needs that one extra sale to make quota, they will virtually give us the car to make it. Because there are hundreds of thousands of dollars at stake.
New Yearās Eve falls on a Saturday this yearā¦ it is the last triple commission day for dealershipsā¦ end of monthā¦ end of quarter and end of year bonus on the line. The next time the end of the year happens on a Saturday is in 2022.
Believe you me - you can get the deal of a lifetime on Saturday, December 31st this year.
Over mileage allotment? Underwater on your lease? Bald tires? No problemā¦ ask the dealer to buy your problem outright and lease a new car at an obscenely low monthly payment 16 days from nowā¦ it will happen.
Please tell me more. Is this really true? How would I approach this? Make contact now and sign on the 31st?
Totally true.
Watch your email/phone light up Friday into Saturday.
Triple quota day is the 31st. It happens once every 6 or 7 years. Big money at stake. No reasonable offer will be refused when hundreds of thousands are on the line.
This forum is (mostly) silent about this, because they are all in cahoots with each otherā¦
For example, the car buying services get paid by the dealership. So they ādo their bestā to get us a great leaseā¦ but all the while a lower price is less money in their pocket. See how it works?
This is why so many people scream at me here - calling me a troll. My advice is hurting their piggy bank.
Try it. There is nothing to lose (and an AMAZING car at a great price to gain).
How do you KNOW that you will be the deal that puts them into their goal? You make it sound like every dealer is off by 1 deal and they all are waiting for you to come in.
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No. Not every dealership needs that one extra saleā¦
But many do.
The key is to spread the net wide.
The more we email, the more likely we find a desperate Christmas Eve seller.
I am already planting seedsā¦ this California Infiniti dealer has ācaught my baitāā¦ And I quote from his email to me:
āYes you can lease form California, we can ship the car to you or you can pick up also, tax going to be from your place.ā
And trust me, as New Yearās Eve approaches, he will be THRILLED to ship that new car to me at no extra charge to get that one extra sale.
Is there a quick and easy way to test drive a lot of different types of cars in a very short time without getting roped into any deal making? I feel like even if I go to a dealership and tell them flat out that I just want to test drive the car and Iāll return to make a deal, they just keep dragging it out. Iām still trying to figure out what types of SUVs my wife would be happy with. So far Iāve test drove Toyotas and Hondas. The Rav4 is a possibility, and she wasnāt thrilled with the CRV. I also tried out the Equinox which I really disliked. Still looking to test drive a Nissan Rogue/Morano, Hyndai Santa Fe, Mazda CX-5, Subaru Forrester, Kia Sorrento, Ford Escape/Edge, and possibly some Lexus, BMW, Infiniti, etc though I think those will be out of our price range. Iām in San Diego, but will be in Orange County this weekend. Thanks!
Hi CarPhan,
Iām in Los Angeles. Iām looking at the Infinity as well or a Chrysler 300. Can you send me an example email āplanting seedsā Iām totally cool with waiting till Christmas Eve. Just want to be smart about it.
best,
Ryan
Here is EXACTLY what to I doā¦
First, I make several copies of my driverās licenseā¦
With a marker, I blot out the last digit of my driverās license number AND blot out the last digit of my home addressā¦
I always take a test drive Monday thru Wednesday. These are slow days for dealershipsā¦
Important: I visit the dealership about 45 minutes before they officially closeā¦
I walk straight to the receptionistās desk. I hit the first āupāā¦ an āupā is a salesperson who gets the next prospect in the lotā¦
I say, āI do not want to waste your time. I am looking to test drive a xxx, a xxx and a xxx. I am not a tire kicker. I will be buying a new car as soon as I find the right car.ā
Next:
I tell him/her that your wife/spouse/girlfriend/mother is shopping, and I HAVE to pick her up in 43 minutes. (This is crucial to say. The weird number 43 conveys exactness. Also, it āanchorsā the idea that being late is not an option. Everyone knows stranding her at the mall will not end well).
Then I hand over a copy of my driverās license.
About 3 minutes later, keys are in hand. Like magic.
I take the test drive. It might last 25- to 35 minutes max. I always hit the highway, hills and curves. And I am not shy - I took an Infiniti FX50 out for a spin many years ago. I asked if I could āhit it.ā And man did that car zoom like a rocket onto the highway.
When I finish up, i (in a sort of rushed way) ask for a business card and then say, āI must run to pickup my girl. What days are you off so we can continue this conversation?ā
Say it EXACTLY like that. Again, sound rushed. This uses NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming) to disarm the salesperson.
Take the business card. Thank the salesperson for the quick demo. Then leave (again almost running out the door).
I have done this successfully for years.
Last time I test drove a car (2 months ago), it was so late in the evening, the salesman handed me the keys to a brand new Infiniti QX60. He said, āHave a blast with itā¦ it has a full tank of gas.ā This is great as there was no one pressuring us and hitting our emotional buttons. I returned the carā¦ and flung the keys to him and thanked him. He was closing a sale, so it was easy to leave without pressure.
This technique turns the tables on the dealershipās ādrag it outā games they like to play with us.
And trust me. No salesperson wants to start their 5-hour sales game 45 minutes before quitting time. They are tired. They are hungry. And most have family they want to rush home and see. They will be happy that you are leaving when they close for the night.
By the way: about blotting out the last digit of our driverās license and home numberā¦ this is to protect our privacyā¦
They say we need a driverās license for insurance purposes. This is not the real reasonā¦ they do it to add us to their drip mailing systemā¦ so they can send us endless junk mail.
And by the way #2: I ALWAYS email the same salesperson and ask if they want to sell me the car at the price I want. In other words, I do not ask for a test drive without following up for an opportunity to sell me the car.
Enjoy the ride!
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I went around around to internet departments at dealers around town (checked their website if it showed inventory, which wasnāt always accurate) and wrote
iām looking to lease this specific model car, and would like your best lease quote:
- specified term
- specified mileage
- specified my credit tier (it was top so it made it easy)
- monthly payment zero drive off or at least zero down
- and include the total drive off (if there was one)
And I got specific quotes form most dealers. sometimes theyād call me back and do it over the phone instead of email. (which was fine), or maybe they had a slightly different model, etc. A few dealers wouldnāt give me a specific quote unless I came in in person. I didnāt talk to those dealers any more.
After I got the quotes i called back the top few dealers and told them what the better deal I had was, and asked if they could beat it.
I canāt guarantee it was the best, but it was fairly direct.
With this method, did any dealer give you at least 20% off MSRP?
(20 years ago, āinvoiceā as 16- to 20% was standard. But nowadays, invoice is a fraction of that.)
Awesome details! Thanks so much for the tips! I especially like the going there before closing idea. I noticed when I test drove the equinox that worked out really well. I did however give them about 15 minutes to try to give me a deal, but at one point we were way too far away on numbers and they just said they would call me if they got a different (slightly cheaper) model in. Ended up working out well.
With the Chevy Spark EV, yes. With the Subaru, no
Are you trying to buy a car or interview for a job of test driver at Car and Driver magazine? MIght help to narrow the list. I am all for test driving but looks like you left out Jeep renegade, Compass, Volvo Xc60, jaguar Fpace, Mercedes GLA 250, Acura RDX, Audi Q5 from your list 
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