I got an offer of 25,800 for an auto non-Nav. I told the internet manager that if I buy the car it will be next weekend. He's asking for a deposit. How much of a deposit do you think I should put down? I need time to apply for a loan from my credit union...

 

$100 is what I've seen as normal. Make sure it's refundable in case something falls through.

 

I would not put any money down until I was pre-approved from the credit union. Being pre-approved is 10 times more powerful than a deposit. They will instantly pre-approve you with Honda financing, give you a cheaper interest rate, add an extended warranty, add aftermarket item to sweeten the deal, it will cut the negotiation time in half and give you more power to say no and make them beg. Pre-approval tell them you are ready to buy today if the price is right. A deposit is more of a maybe, I’ll call you, don’t call me.

Think how embarrassing it will be if the credit union only approves you for $19,990 instead of the asking price.

 

 

I actually am a car salesman for Scion...The minimum deposit that we require for a Scion is $500. The way you gotta look at it is putting down a deposit is like making a commitment to buying the car. If the customer is unsure, we arent gonna force them into trying to get a deposit out of them. If the customer is adding more than a $1000 worth of accessories then we require them to put down a $1000 deposit. We also arent the type of dealer that tries to keep the deposit either if the customer cancels. Like I said, putting down a deposit is making a commitment and becomes a binding contract.

 

I put down like 68.17 when i bought mine lol. It rounded it out to an even number ^^. I was pre-approved for a capital ones check. They limited me to 25k and after taxes my tsx came out to 29 and change. On the day of, honda got me approved for the ammount I needed from chase. So getting pre-approved from honda/or another location for the ammount you need would be a good step to go towards before putting down a down payment.

 

I got pre-approved when i went into get my TSX. I wanted a rare color/interior/nav combo that had to be shipped from japan. I put down 1000 after i had approved credit through honda and made sure the deposit was refundable. I was putting down a large downpayment anyway so it really didnt matter to me, so i put 1k down. I ended up getting a great discount on my options. and got about 3 grand knocked off the retail asking price. All you have to do is make sure it is refundable and get a copy of the check that you just gave them. I even backed out of my first deal cause i kept getting delayed on delivery of my on order tsx so i went back to what i love the best, black on black and had no problems at Radley

 

i think some people get deposit and down payment switched up.

i gave my internet salesman a $500 deposit to "reserve" the car. basically, i gave him my credit card number and was told that it would be applied to the price of the car.

but when i got to the dealership, he told me that he didn't even run the credit card number.

oh, and yes, it was refundable.

 

yea, a deposit is only used for holding the vehicle in your name and is applied towards your down payment...which is the amount your putting down on the vehicle so you finance a lower amount. Two totally diff things.

 

Exactly what happened to me.

 

I did the same but the deposit wasn't refundable... I figured it was fair, the price was already negotiated and I couldn't pick up the car for a week. They only had one on the lot like I wanted and they might have been able to sell it that week.

 

no depoist isnt refundable...you can always get your money back if you fight them just so you guys know...thats how it is at least in NY

 

When I was buying my TSX I put down a refundable $500 deposit so they could hold the one I wanted. Just make sure it is refundable in case you dont get approved for the loan for some reason.

 

I didn't put down any deposit. After we negotiated the price I asked my salesman if he wanted a deposit and to document the deal. He declined. I think he was afriad I would shop the deal around. I told him I was talking to another Acura dealer but I was happy with this price and had no intention of going anywhere else. One week later when the car was in I took my check (downpayment), loan and drove off with the car as promised. Pretty easy car deal actually. I know I was taking a risk not getting it in writing but it all worked out just fine.