I've never bought a used car before, so new to the process.

If I find a car on autotrader / cars.com / craigslist, thats at a dealer:

Would I typically be able to get the car cheaper if its at a different manufacturer's dealer? For example, if a Mercedes is at a Jeep dealer, would the Jeep dealer typically be willing to sell it for less than if it were at a Mercedes dealer since I presume they have less people coming in to look at Mercedes?

Should I be using Edmunds / KBB as a reference? Should I use the private party sale or the trade-in sale as my target price for buying the car? Generally speaking, how much under advertised price would you initially offer and accept?

 

Typically No.
they sell cars based off of......(see below)

Edmunds/KBB/ NADA
usually you wont get thousands and thousands off.
the dealer is trying to make money, and you're trying to save money.
so a fair deal, would be something in the middle.

Do you have a car in mind, so that we could take a look at it?

 

I wouldn't assume that the Mercedes would be cheaper ... In fact, if the Jeep dealer has the Merc there it's because they think they can make a good profit on it because they either stole it on trade or it's in amazing condition and they can ask a fortune for it ... Or both.

But a Merc dealer could do that too.

Edmunds isn't completely off but KBB is really out-of-whack IMO.

My advice is to do a ton of research ... If you're looking at a Mercedes SL, go find an owner's board and see what people on the board are asking for their SLs. There's no one more irrational about the value of a car than its owner

 

Every dealer is different. However, if you see a Mercedes at a Merc dealer, chances are it's a CPO (certified pre-owned). It's gone through some inspections, worn parts replaced, warranty extended, etc. Some think it's a waste of money, some will buy only a CPO car.

I highly doubt a Jeep dealer would CPO a Merc, so chances are you'd get it cheaper there, but as you can see it's not that simple.

on negotiating

 

I will only buy a car from a dealer when i can get it for private party pricing. You will have to look longer but you can find something like this. When a dealer has a car on their lot for 60-90+ days, they sometimes will discount the hell out of it to sell it to avoid interest from the bank.
Sometimes they hold onto it and end up taking a bath later down the road.

 

I would make sure to get the car checked out by a local mechanic and/or body shop that I trust. Never believe what Carfax tells you, especially the part where it says its never been in an accident. As for price it really depends on how easily the dealer think it can get rid of the car. If its been sitting on their lot for 60 days then that's when they start to get desperate.

 

We just bought a pre-owned E350 from a VW dealer. The price was thousands less then a similarly equiped car at the Mercedes dealer. That said, the dealer knew this, and even knowing the VP of Public Relations for the dealer, they didn't budge much on the price, b/c they knew it was a very aggresive price. They priced it at that level b/c they didn't want to get stuck with it. The longer it sits, the more money they lose, and a VW dealer isn't in the business of selling Mercedes.



And this is why it is thousands cheaper at VW... b/c it is not a CPO. And if you buy a pre-owned, you cannot get it CPO'ed unless you buy it from the manufacturer's dealer. Basically, you need to buy a pre-owned Mercedes at Mercedes if you want a CPO. That said, we still bought it b/c it was basically new, in great shape, and had full warranty. We then went to the Mercedes dealer and bought an extended warranty... so we're fully covered for a LONG time.

So that's the chance you take. Had my friend not worked for the automotive group which had the car I would have been a little more cautious about buying a Mercedes from a VW dealer. But like I said, it was a clean car, basically new car and we couldn't pass up the deal... so it really wasn't much of a decision. We bought it on the spot the day we drove it... right after the test drive actually.

 

The worst part is when you think you've found the right car, then you realize it's 2,700 miles away...

 

Lately NADA has been more accurate than KBB in my opinion. Anyway I would be very careful buying a car from Craigslist, yes it's local so you can go look at it...but the quality of the greater percentage of people that use the site are less than reputable in my experience.

If you do buy private party though, make sure you get a trusted mechanic/enthusiast to look at it if you have a limited knowledge of that particular vehicle, and of course test drive it.

As for haggling, just have a certain number in mind before going in, that you will not go above/below so you know when to walk away. And bring someone with you, don't show up alone.

 

Thanks for the response so far.
I'm looking to spend $20-30k for a mid sized sedan with under 60k miles (and preferably under 40k miles so its still in warranty), that has more power & luxury than my current 05 TL.

I like the Mercedes E550, but I haven't really driven many cars yet in that class (cars that would be $50k+ new) -- I'm going to stop by a bunch of dealers to drive various cars tommorrow.

 

Look at the M45. In that price range, a lot more power than the TL and lower cost of ownership than the E550.

I usually recommend purchasing them from their dealer. And definitely shop around a bit.

 

Tis true. We went from an Audi to a Mercedes and I can already see the cost of ownership will be a little bit higher. But you gotta pay to play.

Oh, and if you look at the E550, keep in mind there is a HUGE difference between the 03-09 E-Class and the 2010+ E-class. HUGE difference. And don't rule out the E350. Good power and it's a V6 vs a V8 which makes a big difference in cost of ownership as well...

 

^I would think it would be less to own the Benz, due to usual Audi quirks. Unless you went from an older model Audi to a newer model MB.

E350 is a great car in my opinion, a guy I work with owns one and it has been great for him.

A used CTS-V may be close to your price range as well OP, biggest cost you would have is fuel.

 

I heard the diesel E does a pretty good impersonation of being a fast car as well

Other cars I'd suggest you look at:

Lexus GS
Audi A6
BMW 5
2G CTS DI
Newer Jag XF
(Don't know if these last two are in your price range)

Shop around, take your time determining which car you want, first, then find a good example. Good luck with your search.

 

This is true. the Acura dealer I bought from sold me the TSX below private party book because they had been sitting on the car for almost 6 months by the time I went to look at it.

Also, walking out is a good tactic; they initially refused my $19,500 and $20,000 offers for the car, but we left for lunch and they called us at lunch agreeing to $20k.

And, some dealers are irrational as well. I tried buying a Volvo S40 from a Volvo dealer and it had sat there almost 2 years (untitled 2008 with 15k miles) but they refused to budge from KBB dealer retail even though I was offering to pay private party (excellent condition) for the car.

That S40 is still sitting at that Volvo dealer.