best time to buy a car

tvfreakazoid

I'm curious when its a good month to buy a car?
Some say wait to the end of the yr to get the best deals. Or go when they r about to close.
Im looking to buy a Z.
At a local dealership, I think its a dodge dealership they have a 2014 and I think it has the sport package. Not sure if does but by looking at the rims (19" 275 rear, and 19" 245 front)it seems it does have the sports package.
It seems like a base with sport. Has cloth seats and no power seats.
It has little over 8k miles and last time I checked it was listed for $29,999.
I can put a large down payment probably 20k+.
Any suggestions to get the best OTD price. Best way to haggle with them?
I would really like to stay below 30k.
I read that don't tell the dealer how much u r going to put down.
Any suggestions.
Thanks.

Also since this isn't at a Nissan dealership can u buy a warranty at Nissan dealership?
I would also like to add a back up camera, the z came with a aftermarket touch screen radio/nav.
I assume Nissan could add a camera for the 2014 model.

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Mudders milk

grandpawmoses

Sport will also have the spoiler on the trunk.
Start your first offer $2~3k less than KBB & work from there. They'll take you serious then.
I'd get my own best finance rate pre-hand as used car rates can be high at dealers. Usually the larger the down payment, the cheaper the rate as you are more into positive equity.
Too bad you're not close to Alabama, the Chevy dealer I traded mine into still has it on the lot & asking $32k. 2014, solid red coupe, touring (leather & Bose), sport, nav, auto, & 4K miles. I'd vouch for it's condition as it was my baby. It'd be a nice road trip.

mishuko

You could probably haggle down 1-2k from that price they put easily.

To check if it's the sports pack it will have s-mode on the Manual or paddle shifters on the auto. And coloured calipers.

It will be lower price during winter months if you have snow... I noticed that here.

Warranty? I got mine at an acura dealership used. Didn't bother for anything. Just the car.


As for financing... some companies require atleast x-amount financed. I financed through the dealer who went through my own bank. Even when I went to the bank they couldn't offer me the same rate offered at the dealer. Long story short, check yourself to see whats best. It's a used car so you won't get the fancy promo offers usually.

poto

I think most dealers are on a monthly schedule for internal scorecards, so from the middle to end of the month, pressure, may increase to move inventory.

My experience has been good taking a contrarian approach; that is, buying a vehicle that fits my needs when demand is lowest, and dealer motivation is highest. The more extreme your climate varies, the more pronounced the effect on pricing. I grew up in the midwest, and generally purchased motorcycles and sports cars in Jan-Feb.

Good advice from other posters to have your financing pre-approved from your lender. I was surprised on a recent purchase to have the dealer beat my CU rate by 0.2%, but always double-check to make sure your are comparing apples-to-apples.

As far as pricing, you may find autotrader helpful to evaluate the inventory and pricing within the area you are willing to travel to purchase. Popular Mechanics has an excellent used car inspection checklist when you find something you like.

There can be opportunities buying an "orphan" - a Nissan at a Dodge dealership, for example. If the car is new(er) with low miles, you can reduce the chance of surprises without incurring warranty costs. Carfax, autocheck and a thorough inspection are mandatory; the factory warranty remainder is your safety net.

In addition, the non-factory dealer is not as familiar with the product, model year differences and options. Your knowledge here directly affects your costs. I also think the dealer has less options to dispose of the car - pretty much retail buyer or auction, whereas a Nissan dealer would list in the locator network as a CPO.

Timing, the weather man, and your research can do most of the negotiation before you get to the dealership. Have a backup choice, a clear idea of how much you are willing to pay OTD, and stick with it. Fall in love with the car AFTER you buy it.

Of all the problems to solve, this is really one of the most fun - enjoy!

Powerwiz

If your putting that large amount down things tend to run different. You most likely can talk them down.

Best time to buy a car...highly variable. American car sales are propelled by tax returns. They literally go up geometrically starting in Feb time though early summer. Towards the end of the year there clearing out inventory so usually 0% financing, this and that come out of the woodwork.

Car dealerships work on volume bonus's, car sales people work on commission. The end of the month tends to be crunch time for most sales people. Depending on how the dealership internally runs they do all sorts of things internally to get there sales people to sell cars towards the end to hit goals.

If your really paranoid about car sales if there is a CarMax in your area there a no haggle nation wide chain. Set price and employees are on hourly. You could walk all over the lot without anyone really hassling you.

kenchan

i would offer no more than 26.5k for that used base-sport.

for 30k, just save up a little more and buy new.

Powerwiz

He would be correct on that. I scored my 2015 370z Touring for 31,500. It had 400 miles on it.

tvfreakazoid

It does have a spoiler and red colored calipers.
The price is now 28k. When it was listed a couple of months ago it was listed for 31k and it seems they lowered the price.

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Mudders milk

tvfreakazoid

So if I were to buy this and took it to a Nissan dealership would they be able to intall a back up camera system? It does have a pioneer aftermarket radio/7" screen.

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Mudders milk

grandpawmoses

Nissan dealership, probably not. It can be done though. I'd check with a car audio specialty shop.

cigarclifford

Agree with you tonight Grand Paw Moses and I hope that all is well with you
tonight...

-Clifford

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-Clifford

sp911

it was about this exact same time last year i started looking too. i think it's a good time, rear wheel drive sports car in the northeast winter. i shopped around for a few weeks, which i highly recommend, and decided on 2 that i would be happy with. i was sort of rushed since my bimmer was dying but they didn't know that. finally i called both dealers and asked whats your best price, i have 2 in mind that i'm serious about. the white one originally was 30k and they went down to 27. the grey was 33k and they went down to 30,500. i called the next day on the white one, figuring the money i saved i could by snow tires and rims for it, but there was a deposit on it. the following weekend i went (out of state) to see the grey again and got them down another $500 so i took it. the cars were both 2012 and had the same 4-5k miles on it but the grey was loaded while the white was just basic. i'm so happy i got the fully loaded one with all the gadgets. totally worth it. anyways even the ones that i hated the color combo or was beat to hell, the dealers dropped there price. i'd say you have a few more months before the prices start to rise again. good luck.

scottIN

Best time to buy a car (or any large purchase) is when you don't really want / need it. They can sense when you really want to buy it (and will pay a higher price to get it).

mishuko

Used car salesmen are vultures. They know how to spot easy kills.

That said I had one try convince me this was their best price... I found a newer leas mileage for 2k less before haggling.

Def keep your options open and don't rush

TreeSemdyZee

The "orphan" effect definitely worked for me when buying my 350z a few years back.
I bought a "used" 350 with less than 400 miles on it at a BMW dealer. Original list was over $35k. I paid about $25k for it.