How to deal a car  here is some tips

Buying Tips

10 Steps To Buying a New Car

Introduction

The following steps will tell you how to locate, price and negotiate to buy the car you want. If you follow our suggestions the car buying process can be fast and enjoyable. But more importantly, you will have the satisfaction of knowing you got the right car for you at an excellent price.

Furthermore, there are other key advantages to following our 10 Steps:

• You’ll be able to decipher the complicated pricing system used by dealerships.
• The True Market Value of a car will be revealed.
• You will find available incentives and rebates to reduce the price of the car.
• A non-negotiating system will be presented to eliminate conflict.
• Extra charges in the Finance and Insurance (F&I) office will be eliminated.

In other words, the 10 Steps covers what you need to know and in the order you will encounter it. This quick guide can help you save thousands of dollars. It will also give you a great feeling of empowerment, putting you in charge of the deal-making process.

Step 1 to 5 :

Step 1: Starting out

These steps will help you to locate the specific car you want, and at a price that is fair to both you and the dealer. By now, you should have done plenty of research to determine which is the best car to suit your needs. And, you should have a good idea of what to pay for the car you want. Now you need to narrow the research even more. You will soon be finding the exact car you want to buy — with the options you have chosen — and then you will be determining a target price to pay. If you have done your homework, this will be a fairly easy process with no unexpected surprises.

Buying a car is a big investment, but it can be exciting and rewarding, especially if you feel like you got the right car at a fair price.

Step 2: Using incentives and rebates

Today’s new car market is crowded and competitive. Many new cars are offered for sale with attractive incentives to make you choose a particular model. In some cases, the cars with the best incentives are those that aren’t selling very well on their own.

An incentive is anything that gives you an added reason to buy a particular car. Often, however, it comes in the form of a cash rebate or low-interest financing. A car might be selling for $25,000 but the manufacturer is offering $4,000 in customer cash for a final price of $21,000. In another example, a $25,000 car financed for five years at 6 percent would have a monthly payment of about $535. But with zero-percent financing, the payment is roughly $461. That’s a huge savings to you.

Check the Edmunds.com Web site for the latest incentives and rebates available for the car you want to buy. You can also watch for TV and newspaper promotions but, remember, the incentives don’t apply to all models and are not offered in all regions of the country. Furthermore, your credit must be very good to get the low-interest financing. And finally, keep in mind that there are some hidden incentives paid directly to dealers to push certain cars. Edmunds.com tracks this so-called “dealer cash” as well, and posts the information in the incentives and rebates section of our Web site as “Marketing Support.”

Research what incentives, if any, are offered for the car you want to buy. Create a car-buying folder and put this incentives information in it as you move to the next step.

Step 3: Pricing the car

Car salesmen will usually point to a car’s “sticker price” (MSRP) as the amount you have to pay. However, the price the dealership is willing to sell a car for is often well below the sticker price. How do you know what to pay? Edmunds.com has created a valuable tool for car buyers called True Market Value (TMV®) pricing. Based on actual sales figures, TMV is the average price buyers are paying (also known as the “transaction price”) for a certain type of car in your area. The TMV figures, found on Edmunds.com, are adjusted for many factors including options, geographic region and color.

To find the TMV price, begin by looking up the car you want to buy on Edmunds.com. Follow the prompts to arrive at a final TMV price with options for the exact car you are buying. Keep in mind that this price includes the destination charge, which is levied by all manufacturers. (However, the invoice price might vary in certain regions where advertising costs and other fees are included. Edmunds recommends paying the fees listed on the invoice, but questioning any advertising fees that appear on the purchase contract.)

The incentives and rebates you researched and printed in the previous step are automatically factored into the final price. In other words, the incentive is deducted from the TMV price or the lowest negotiated price. If you are going to use low-interest financing, calculate your final buying price, then use our payment calculator to find your monthly payment.

Print these figures — the TMV, the incentives and the monthly payment — and put them in your folder for reference as you continue the car-buying process.

Step 4: Finding the exact car you want to buy

You should now have a specific idea of the car you want to buy. This means you know the year, make, model, trim level, options and color. The more flexible you can be about these specifics, the wider the range of the cars you’ll find available for sale. Being flexible will give you additional bargaining power. For example, a shopper might be very firm about the make, model and trim level, but could accept a variety of options and colors. If you’re a shopper who definitely wants hard-to-find options and a specific color, it will be more difficult to make a great deal. Why? You have no leverage as a negotiator. You have to pay the dealer’s price or try to locate another identical vehicle. Obviously, if you do find the exact car you’re looking for, there’s no need to volunteer this information to the dealership.

In any case, locate the exact car you want by sending e-mails to the Internet managers of dealers in your area. On Edmunds.com, you can simultaneously solicit quotes from multiple dealers. In many cases, you will have to follow up with a phone call. Say something like: “I’m looking for this year’s Honda Accord. I’m not fussy about the color except I don’t want black or white. I want ABS and side airbags. What is the closest thing you have to that on your lot?” Often the salesperson will have to check his inventory and call you back. After a few phone calls you will have a good idea of how widely available the car is. If there are several dealerships offering the same car, you will be in a better position to make a good deal.

Edmunds.com also makes it possible for you to search the inventory of most dealership lots. Click on “Search New Car Listings” on our home page.

As you make phone calls and exchange e-mails, take careful notes. You should record information about each car you locate, including the color, options, and the dealership name. This will save time as you continue through the shopping process.

Step 5: Internet vs. Traditional Car Buying

In recent years, car dealerships have created a new pathway for car buyers, one which we strongly encourage you to use. You can either walk onto the car lot, in the traditional way buyers have done for years, or you can go through the “Internet department.” The traditional way means you will deal with a car salesman and negotiate face to face in the dealership’s sales office. If you choose the Internet department, you will remain at home as you communicate with the Internet manager by e-mail, fax and phone. The Internet route saves time and hassle and will also save you money.

Still, many people are drawn to the traditional way of car buying since they believe buying a car is just too big of a purchase to do remotely. If you go this route, you should test-drive your car salesman carefully before moving forward. Ask yourself if you feel comfortable dealing with them. Are they impatient and pushy? Or are they relaxed and open? If you asked them about a specific car’s availability, did they respond to your needs? Or did they try to steer you toward another car simply because they have too many of that model in stock? Do they return your phone calls? Do they answer your questions in a straightforward manner? Or are they evasive and confusing?

By answering these questions you should have a sense of whether or not you want to buy from this salesperson. If you feel comfortable with the individual when researching by phone, and if the dealership does indeed have the car you’re interested in, set up a time to test drive the car, preferably when the dealership will not be very busy, such as a weekday morning. Before heading to the car lot, review all your notes and make sure you bring your car-buying folder. Also bring your checkbook, registration and proof of insurance. Keep in mind that you’re bringing these items so you’ll be ready to buy a car if you get a fair deal. Don’t feel obligated to purchase a car simply because you have all the necessary paperwork with you or because you test drove the car.

Buying Tips

10 Steps To Buying a New Car

Step 6 to 10 :

Step 6: If you are trading in your old car…

If you are trading in your old car to a dealer, you will probably not get as much money toward the price of a new car as you would have if you’d sold it yourself to a private party. However, trading in offers some advantages. You can solve all of your car-buying problems in one visit to the dealer. You can unload a hard-to-sell car without running advertisements and dealing with tire-kicking buyers, or long DMV lines. In some states, you will even pay less sales tax on a deal that involves a trade-in.

Begin the process by looking up your car’s trade-in value on Edmunds.com. The Edmunds.com True Market Value^® (TMV^®) Used Vehicle Appraiser will also give you trade-in values. After you plug in all of the vehicle’s information (mileage, options, condition and colors) you will get a specific trade-in price. This will often be different from the offers you get once you are on the car lot. At a dealership the value assigned to your trade-in varies based on the time of the month, the dealer’s specific inventory and the used car manager’s mood, but at least TMV will give you a rough idea of what your trade-in is worth.

If it’s important to you to get the maximum value for your trade-in, you should visit several dealerships and solicit bids. Tell the salesperson that the sale of a new car will be contingent on the amount he or she will give you for your trade-in. Also, tell them you are visiting several dealerships. With a little legwork, you may be able to boost the price you get for your old car by several hundred dollars or more. Remember, the extra effort you spend in getting competitive bids is far less than what it would take to advertise, show and sell the car yourself.

Step 7: Negotiating for your lowest price

Many buyers like to handle the question of price before they even go to the dealer. Internet salespeople are willing to discuss price over the phone — even by e-mail. The car salesman on the lot will try to get you in his office before he would get down to brass tacks and talk price.

It’s quite possible that, in your calls to various Internet departments, the selling price of the car has already come up. Often Internet salespeople will volunteer the selling price of their car since they know this is the make-or-break factor in most buyers’ decision making process. If the price they’ve quoted is at or below Edmunds.com’s TMV, then you are already in the right range to buy the car. If you want to try to improve the deal, you have a few options.

Everyone has their own idea of what makes a good deal, but most people just want to know they got a fair price. Here, TMV will be your best guide. If you want to try for a rock-bottom price, start by getting bids from three local dealers. Follow this up by taking the lowest price, calling the two other dealerships and saying, “I’ve been offered this car at this price. If you beat it I’ll buy it from you.” They almost certainly will. However, keep in mind that you can’t play this game forever. Eventually, they will give you a take-it-or-leave-it price. .

Also, be warned that if you ask the dealer to cut his profit, he might try to take it back somewhere else. Remember, a good deal isn’t just the lowest selling price. It’s the lowest total out-the-door cost on a car that meets your needs. This means that to get a fair deal you have to be alert throughout the entire purchase process, even after you and the salesman agree on a price.

10 Steps to Buying a New Car

Step 8: Closing the deal

If you feel good about the price you have been quoted, it’s time to take a look at the big picture. Many buyers focus on the cost of the car and ignore the related expenses. Besides the cost, you will have to pay sales tax and various fees which vary from state to state. These expenses can be estimated and totaled with the Edmunds.com calculators.

The simplest way to estimate total cost is to ask the salesperson to fax you a worksheet and invoice before you go to the dealership. This way, you’ll be able to review the figures in a relaxed environment. Compare the numbers from the dealership to those you have calculated and the TMV prices on Edmunds.com.

In some areas of the country, dealers have costs that don’t show up on Edmunds.com invoice prices. This means the Edmunds.com invoice price of the car you are researching might not exactly match the dealer’s invoice. Don’t panic — and don’t begin making accusations. Edmunds.com can’t track all regional fees, such as advertising costs. So, as a rule of thumb, consider the charges on the dealer’s invoice to be nonnegotiable. However, if extra fees are written into the contract (such as “D&H” or “Administrative Costs”) which seem bogus or redundant, ask to have them removed, or say you will take your business to another dealership.

Step 9: Reviewing and signing the paperwork

Once you have a deal, you can ask the Internet manager or car salesman to deliver the car to you at your home or office. This means you will review the contract and sign it in your space, not the dealership’s finance and insurance office (which many buyers find intimidating). Wherever this step takes place, you will be presented with the contract for your new car and a dizzying array of forms to sign. If you are in the F&I office, the finance manager (who is actually an expert salesperson) will try to sell you additional items such as extended service contracts, fabric protection, alarms or a LoJack vehicle locator. In most cases, we recommend turning down these extras — with the possible exception of the extended warranty, which provides peace of mind to some buyers. Additionally, it is worth noting that some states allow up to 60 days after purchase to cancel an extended warranty, but you should check local laws to confirm your options in your area. If the car is delivered to you, the contract is already drawn up, so these extras are not an issue.

If you have already seen a worksheet for the deal you’ve made, the contract should be a formality. Make sure the numbers match the worksheet and no additional charges or fees have been inserted. You will also be asked to sign various forms that register your new car and transfer ownership of your trade-in. Understand what you are signing and what it means. Ask questions if you don’t understand, and don’t ever feel like you have to hurry. Buying a car is a serious commitment and you should understand every document involved. Remember, once you have signed the contract you cannot take the car back.

Step 10: Inspecting and taking possession of your new car

Most dealerships detail the car and provide the first tank of gas for free. You will have one more chance to inspect the car before you take possession of it. Make sure you walk around the car and look for scratches in the paint and wheels or dents and dings on the body. If you are paying for floor mats make sure they are included. If anything is missing, or if any work needs to be done, ask for a “Due Bill” that puts it in writing. You will then be able to come back and get the work done later.

As you drive away inhaling that new-car smell, there is only one more thing to be done: enjoy your new car.