Zyuan10

Hello. Can anyone give some tips on how to haggle? ^_^;

I don't know how some of you can go "back and forth" for over 10 minutes with the salesmen since my "negotiations" barely last 1 minutes.

I'll recall my recent experience with the acura dealership...

me:"I'll offer you 28,000 for the non-navi TSX"
salesman: "WTF?! You're joking right?!? NO WAY!"
me: .........
end of convo

So how do you guys do it? or supposed to do it? xD

mikeucla

Try dealing with the internet sales managers at the dealerships. Do everything via email. FWIW, I was able to get a brand new 2007 TSX with navi for 27,995. If you're looking for non-navi, I'd shoot for 26,500. Depends on your location though. In southern California, we have lots of options for dealers, so with enough haggling you can pretty much get the car for invoice. Also, look at carsdirect.com or edmunds.com. my

aaronng

Test drive first. Then when the salesman sits down with you, you tell them you will offer $26,000 for it. You'll get the same response, and then you ask, "how much are you asking for it?"

Then the haggling starts. You offer 26,500 and go up slowly to your intended 28,000. If he still exceeds 28,000, you say that you guess you won't be buying one today from here and put away your chequebook (for dramatic effect). Get up and leave.

yeefuchew

I agree. Do as much as you can over email. Send the quotes you get from one dealer to another and let them try to out bid each other.

stephanoya

The salesman sounds like an asshole, don't be afraid to offer low - its your money
Try convincing the dealer with Edmunds.com's TMV prices (if you live in the States)
Edmund's has a pretty good guide for negotiating car prices too
http://www.edmunds.com/advice/strate...3/article.html
http://www.edmunds.com/advice/buying...6/page007.html

nj2pa2nc

I agree-use the internet- get prices from a few acura dealers and let them compete. Let them know exactly what tsx you want and how much you want to pay. Good luck

cmschmie

When I decided on the TSX I read many posts in the "Prices Paid and Buying Experiences" thread at Edmunds.com. I saw non-navi going for anywhere between ~$26k and $27.5k. I had set myself to $26.5 and went on the dealership

Told the salesman I've seen these selling in the 26s. He came back with $26,990. I shot back $26,500 and like 2 minutes later I was filling out paperwork.

In some ways I wish I could go back and maybe tried to get it a little lower, or had him throw in the Silver Star wheels at the $26,990 price. Oh well...


Couldn't really get competitor prices as there is only on Acura dealership in Charlotte. But they are very good.

jlukja

how about:

you: "I saw an ad in the paper where XYZ is selling it for 28,200 and thought I'd give you a chance to get my business"

you: "Dealer cost on these is only $27,000 so you're already making a $1K profit."

you: "I've checked around (Edmunds, Acurazine, etc) and the're selling for $28,000, if you're not interested I'll go to another dealer"

Tex929rr

Most important thing, right there. If you are ready to walk, you are in control. Do not use the walkout as a negotiating tool - just leave. If they want your business they will contact you again.

joerockt

First off, never talk with the sales guy. As soon as you sit down to talk price, tell him/her to bring the manager over and talk with him directly and let the sales guy sit there. They dont need to be part of it.

Second, make sure you have plenty of material to back your reasons for asking the price you want. Have the invoice price on hand, Edmunds market value, etc...

Lastly, if you cant get close to your price, be prepared to walk...

Also, when you're ready to buy, make sure its at the end of the month and at the end of the day. End of the day is most important because chances are they may have already had a good day and are ready to get those last few sales out the door. And of course, they dont want to spend the rest of the night haggling with you, so they would be more apt to give you what you want.

Good luck.

rza49311

iTrader: (1)

www.fightingchance.com

$35 for a pretty good guide that can be applied to your purchase and future purchases.

nj2pa2nc

how far are you willing to travel. I live in NC but bought my tsx in Pa-thanks to knowing the service manager. remember after you buy the car you can take it to any acura dealership for warranty work. after I picked up my car the 700 mile drive home in my new tsx was awesome.it also saved me almost $2,000 buying there over the closest dealer to me in Wilmington

jlukja

I live in SoCal and there has to be about a dozen dealerships in my area. Despite that, I got the best deal in Palm Springs (about 120 miles away). The drive there and back saved me a little over $800.

Washington

I'd say by far the most important piece of information you can have is the dealer's cost for the car. Decide how much above that you are willing to pay, knowing that that is their profit. Invoice does NOT represent the dealers cost - there's a standard holdback, 3% as I recall, that allows a dealer to sell at invoice price and still make an $800 or so profit. I'd suggest $500 to $1000 is a reasonable amount of profit, perhaps the lower end for a hot market like L.A., or near the end of the model year.

I don't think it's a bad idea to let the dealer know that you know their exact cost. Expect them to deny your cost figures.

Searching around in Edmunds or paying Consumer Reports $12 can get you the precise dealer price, including holdbacks, dealer costs for options, and other specials offered to the dealer.

Watch out for the dealer add-on packages, which a lot of dealers use to jack up the price. Here, it's the "Rocky Mountain Protection Package" and includes clear bra. To some extent, you can tell the dealer "that's your problem that you decided to increase the price of the car by including clear bra." On the other hand, it does have value and it does increase to dealers cost.

The local dealer here also adds a "market adjustment" of a few thousand to the sticker. Maybe a few people actually pay that (only because they haven't a clue), but there's nothing in the Acura dealerships right now that warrant such a charge.

Mokos23

You need years of experience and good ways of negotiating

n1ke5h

haggling is in my blood...im indian my parents and my uncle came with me and they were so firm about things. my uncle even made them give me free oil changes for a year. and dont forget to make the sales guy buy you a keyring at least. if theyre firm on their end with prices tell them you'll pay that much if they include something which youll end up spending money on too, like all-weather mats for example.

wenge

sadly my local dealers are all internet idiots.

1Louder

My suggestions based on both buying and (at one time) selling.

- Research first what you are willing to pay. 5% over invoice is probably a good low point, but realistically if the car is in demand you'll likely need to settle for something more. But figure out in your mind first what your "yes" point is. Also, my opinion is your better off making it a reasonable proposition. If you go in and offer $24K they're likely not to take you seriously. You want it low, but not so low they dismiss you.
- Research available financing yourself first. Know what rate you qualify for, know what payments should be based on the price you want to pay. Your best off bringing a calculator with you that can compute payments, regardless if you get your own financing or let them do it.
- Find two dealerships with the car you want in stock.

To negotiate:
Start at dealership A and offer them $1K less than your yes point. If they say no, offer the same deal to dealership B. If both say no, adjust to $750 or $500 below your yes point, and repeat. Let both dealerships know this is how you're doing it, and they're competing against eachother. The first dealership to say yes gets the sale.

I'll be the first to admit this could be a real pain to do and time consuming. But stick to your guns, stick to the deal you want, and don't be afraid to leave. Don't let them discuss payments - stick to the sale price. Double check any payment they show you with your calculator. Good luck!

Zyuan10

Thanks for all the replies. I'm jotting down some notes right now ^_^

I also have some "myths" about dealerships i would like to confirm if they're true or not, I heard these from my parents.

1. During the test drive, if you show that you really do like the car then it's less likely they'll give you a good deal for the car

2. picky color choice will make it less likely to get a good deal

3. If you want to add accessories (spoilers, wheels, etc), then the price won't lower at all.

^Are the above two a factor in any way effects how close/far the final deal will be to the buyer's ideal price?

Also, can I order OEM authentic acura parts elsewhere (online) for cheaper and have the dealership install it for me and just pay them installation cost? or can I just request that service from an auto body shop?

Thanks again for the tips, everyone!

1Louder

I'd say not true on this one - most of the time. The fact you like it means you're interested in buying one. Whether you buy from them is another story. The fact that they know you want one means if they don't sell you one, someone else will. However, there's a difference between, "I like the car - let's talk." and being enthusiastic to the point of, "I'm not leaving without this car." You want the former, not the latter. Once they know you're emotionally invested (and won't likely leave), no, you won't get as good a deal.

Dealers may try to do this, but don't let them. The worst is you may have to wait for the color you want to be delivered, rather than drive it home out of their inventory. Also, internet searches can let you know where a car is that has your color. You're the one dropping $30K - get the color you want. Now when I was selling (before the internet, so the dark ages... ) this was more true (which is why your parents may think so). Back then you were at the mercy of what was in stock because there was no practical way to research (except by phone). Rare colors were more expensive. But not so today. If they try to tell you that it is, walk.

The price for those individual items will likely not be lowered in negotiations (the can be, but not by much). Two important things about accessories: a) they are not huge profit items in the first place and b) they are typically profit for the parts and service department, which is different from the sales department. They (sales) usually have no authority to lower the prices because they are "owned" by the parts department. However, you'll be negotiating a total price - the car and your adds, so just focus on the price you want or all of it and let them figure out which pot of money they take from to get you that price.

Hope that helps!

PJS

Best one I can offer is the snotty retort.
Had a real ding dong with the sales guy, and eventually realised we weren't on the same planet, never mind wavelength.
So, as I got up, he said to me if I wanted to think it over, that'd be fine and give him a shout when I was ready to do the deal.
Quick as a flash, out came my business card along with "When you're ready to be serious, then give me a call".
Completely flummoxed him, and apparently (as I found out some months later) I was called everything under the sun for being so audacious!
Needless to say, that dealership didn't see my money and another did, albeit for a completely different make.

Bottomline, some people are born hagglers, others due to their personality aren't or can't and want to get out as quickly as possible with the whole thing over and done with.
Either take someone with you who will haggle on your behalf, or learn to become more assertive - it is your money after all, and if you're not comfortable spending more than $X, then don't be pressured into it or told otherwise.

siakol

Internet sales is the best route for you. I got my 05 6 spd silver tsx for 25,800 which came out to 28,050 out the door. The trick is get the sales manager from the net to offer you the 25,800 from acura.com, print it out then got to the dealership. Test drive a car then talk business. The evil salesman will try to trick you to buy it for 28,000 or more and then bust out your printout and yell to him "in ya face sucka!"

alucardx

another vote for internet sales. wasn't too difficult, i handled all the haggling through email between 3 different dealers.

had all printouts, and a piece of paper with all sorts of notes on it when i came in. one guy remarked how impressed he was with the research i did. to me this is obvious, if someone's spending $25k+ who wouldn't have this stuff?

only thing left to do was get current car appraised for trade-in in person, then that based my decision on who I bought from.

Rpappi

go to edmunds.com or kbb.com or nada.com
get the invoice for the exact car that you want and take that to the dealer. and shoot for 100 dollars over invoice. (100 more than what they pay) that way they are still making alittle money (what they want) and you still get a good deal (what you want). if they wont bring it that low then dont be afraid to walk out. they are not the only dealership in the world. and most likely they will have you number and you can tell them if they are ever willling to drop the price have them give you a call.

also research incentives and expecially dealer incentives. (dealer gets money back from the manufacture for selling the car. there for you can drop the price alittle bit more because the dealer is getting alittle extra money. either way they will make a little money. dont be afraid of the dealer HE NEEDS YOU MORE THAN YOU NEED HIM. your the boss. make the rules if he doesnt budge neither do you.


dont forget about getting stuff thrown in like floor mats, key rings, free oil, changes ect.


if you bring paper work on the car it shows them that you researched and you know more than the average joe. knowledge is power.

Brandon24pdx

Do yourself a favor and take an hour to read this:

http://www.edmunds.com/advice/buying...2/article.html

you'll like the information. It's an interesting read for sure.

drewba

A trade-in definitely complicates the Internet sales process. I'm going through this right now with my wife's car and it looks like I'm going to have to visit each dealer to get the trade-in appraised. With that comes the sales pressure.

How did you handle shopping the trade-in? Did you let them know ahead of your visit that you were just looking for an appraisal and weren't buying that day?

INSPIRE 32V

iTrader: (1)

and once he does execpt the offer ... than you do this

Zyuan10

I've just sent en email to one of the long distance dealerships using the tips you guys provided

I live in Portland, OR and I've just made an offer to Kendall Acura in Eugene (a two-hour drive)... I hope this deal succeed. I still have excitement residue inside me from my first time driving the TSX... and that was a week ago! Pray I don't get TSX withdrawal xD

Brandon24pdx

Screw that, i'll sell you my 06 for 26k. It's only got 2,500 miles and just came back from its first oil change yesterday

Trophyhead

I'm not much of a haggler, so I probably don't always get the BEST price I can squeeze out of a dealer. However, I do a few things when buying a car that help me get a pretty decent deal.

1. Do my homework. I research a car thoroughly, including the price the dealer pays, holdback...all the stuff that's been mentioned previously. I then decide what I am willing to pay based on what I can afford and what I think I can get for the car. I choose not to insult the dealer with a ridiculously low offer. I make one offer. If I don't get it, I do #2, which is...

2. Be willing to walk. If you can't get your price, then be willing to walk out the door without the car. Salesman and/or dealerships that need the sale will be calling in a couple of days to sweeten the deal. If you live somewhere with limited dealership options, try the internet to inject some competition in the deal.

3. Avoid the payment game by getting your own financing pre-approved prior to shopping. Dealers play games with the financing to get you into the payment you want. But beware, you might end up paying more for the car. I always have my financing approved from my credit union before walking into the dealership. But I always listen to what the dealer has to offer. If AHFC is offering a good rate, it might beat my credit union, so it's a pretty easy choice. One of my cars is financed through my credit union, the other is financed through AHFC. I took the best deal offered at the time.

It's not a perfect system, but it works for me.

alucardx

indeed that is an issue. I did let each dealer know ahead of time that i just wanted an appraisal and i wanted to get one from each dealer before i decided. there's two issues.

1. the dealer will say this is what we'll give you today, right now. we give you no guarnatee that if you come back we'll offer you the same price. (ie. pressuring)

2. one pushy dealer that totally put me off actually made a good point. if he's not the last on my list then why would he bother working with me on a deal when the last guy on my list will be the one that will likely undercut the first two guys. he made a good point but i didn't like his attitude or the attitude of the dealer so i said screw them.

coincidently i bought from the 3rd dealer on my list

jwhite4

I might be in the minority, but instead of haggling for what I thought the best price was, I contacted 6 local dealers, and just asked them for their best price. I had a combination purchase:

- 06 TSX auto no-nav
- some Acura dealer accessories (mud guards, air deflector, door trim, etc.)
- some local dealer accessories (LoJack, remote starter).

I new the prices would be all over the map - some would be lower on the auto, but higher on the accessories, and vice-versa. I figured 6 dealers in a relatively competative market (Phila-S. Jersey) should give me a pretty decent price.

When I got the lowest price, I took it to my preferred dealer (closest one, also on the way to work) and had them match it. Could I have haggled for a lower price, maybe. Could I have paid more, absolutely. Whether true or not, my salesman said my price was one of the lower ones he sold one for (he told his manager that I was going to buy at their competitor Acura dealer, which I guess helped).

I'm not really a haggler, so I think this was a great compromise between getting a fair price without doing a lot of work.

Jeff

alucardx

Which dealer did you buy from?

I bought mine from Metro Acura near the PHL airport

jwhite4

Sussman (now Elite One) Acura in Maple Shade. I think Davis Acura in Langhorne had the overall lowest price. The Sussman salesman I dealt with however told his manager that Turnersville Acura had a lower price, and would they match it. I guess that's their biggest competitor, and would drop their price rather than a sale going to them.

Surprisingly, even though the major difference was on the accessory items (wheel locks, air deflector, etc.) - with Sussman being higher - the salesman kept those prices the same, and dropped the price of the car so that the total matched.

The remote starter and LoJack were some large-ticket items (I think $1300+), so I knew with those probably having a decent profit margin, they could afford to offer a discount on the other items. If I was coming in for a TSX by itself with no additions, I doubt I've have gotten it for the same price. As long as they make $xx on a sale as a whole, I'm sure they are probably happy.

Jeff

Zyuan10

Okay... I got a quote of 27,000 (my offer is 26,600) from Kendall Acura in Eugene, OR (~2 hours away). Does this sound fair? great deal for me and them? or should I strive for 26800? I'm excited... this deal beats both of my local dealers

mav3556

Well Seriously, I'm a cheap ass I got my 05 TSX w/ Navi for $29,000 in Northen California. Sometimes you have to act like an ass toward the salesman, and never bring a newspaper with you when you go to haggle because the salesman knows your dicking around. Best thing to tell a sales man that you need a car today and your not going to go anywhere else. Remember that the longer you stay at the dealership it tells the salesman and manager that your not joking or shoppping around. Most of the time the dealership will give you the price you want.

alucardx

i'm guessing thats for a new '07. i guess that's not bad.. i would try to get it down some more.

Zyuan10

okay.... the negotiating (through email) stops at 26,7500 (w00t!) as "factory equipped"... what does this mean?

'07 ABP/NBP/RBP, here I come!

Jeff_B

The best thing you can do is simply do your homework. Find out the invoice price, what people are paying in your area, etc. If you are leasing, make sure you know the MF rates and residual values and use a lease calculator to determine what you should be paying based on the selling price.

Once the salesman or manager realizes that you know what you are talking about and aren't going to be ripped off, they'll be much more willing to meet your terms (assuming they are fair for the dealership as well). But if they just think you made an offer up in your head, it's going to be harder to get what you want.

Zyuan10

^that's very true. in one of my local dealers, after seeing how hopeless it was to negotiate with the salesperson's glorified personality I made a just-for-the-heck-of-seeing-his-response offer out of my head (28,000) and he freaked out as if I was trying to steal money from him.

The dealer I'm talking with now, met all of my terms with a bit of intellectual negotiating. I made my offer after I cite some sources about the invoice price (kbb, edmunds, the usual). You can say I'm pretty much getting my car for invoice atm. (waiting to close the deal)