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Old 08-27-2010, 06:33 PM   #4 (permalink)
daleks
Enthusiast Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: St. Louis
Posts: 424
Drives: 2011 Evo X MR
Rep Power: 15
daleks will become famous soon enough
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All dealerships are the same. The best way to get a "good price" is to find a dealer with the car you want on the lot. Look up the invoice price on KBB or cars.com for your zip code ahead of time. Show up and represent yourself as a serious buyer (aka look like an adult), and then stick to what you want to offer and don't budge a penny.

Let them start talking numbers first to you and just go after their line items. You don't want roadside assistance, nitrogen filled tires, prepaid dent removal service, extra clear coat, etc. When I bought my Toyota the dealer had a line item for "refunding" me half of the holdback (percentage of sale manufacturer pays to dealership in the form of a rebate). It's all BS. Just focus the final number in terms of invoice (including destination) + dealer profit + TTL (tax, title, license). You want to whittle away at the dealer profit section since the other items are fixed.

If you're financing the finance manager will try to make you feel like an idiot for not signing up for the extended service warranty. I strongly feel these are unnecessary and be consistent in saying you're not interested should you not wish to have one. You need to make up your mind on this BEFORE going to the dealership though. The finance manager will also tack on a silent $150 document fee. You can negotiate that one away. There is a B&O fee too that we pay since we're in Washington state, but it's nominal (<$50).

If they are rude or challenge you to explain yourself, then tell them you want look at other dealerships. It's not like Nissan dealerships are rare. The mental part of the game is they try to make it seem like they're doing you a favor, but in reality it's the other way around. Always be polite, but get everything in writing (invoice for deposit and downpayment), and don't take any sh*t from anyone.

One more thing is if you're doing a trade they won't offer you much. Trades generally work by them calling around for a buy bid on your old car. The offers are rarely that good, and then you have another factor to consider in whittling away at the dealer profit since it now includes the amount they can make off of your trade. Plus, at some point they'll ask you for your keys while you're sitting down talking to someone else. It's generally to go check the odometer and do a quick check on the car, but they never bring the keys right back. It's a mental thing to make it feel like they already "have" your car. My point being is to never give them your keys until the deal is in writing and when they inspect the car just walk over there with them.

Have fun.
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