When it comes to buying a vehicle, whether you are buying brand new off the showroom floor or you are looking at buying a good quality second hand vehicle, you want to pay the best possible price. Of course sellers will often inflate their prices, which gives you some negotiation room, reducing them in price to pay a price you feel comfortable with.
There are a few things you can do to improve your car negotiation and secure the best possible price. If you are not a professional car negotiator, then you are going to need to know where to start to ensure you get the car you want at a price you can afford.
The first step to any successful car negotiation is to do your research. Once you have identified a vehicle that you feel is the right match for your needs, you are going to want to see what they are selling for right now and how many companies are selling them. You may find a selection of this particular vehicle type and model at numerous dealers in your area, which opens you up and gives you the upper and when it comes to the negotiation side of things.
Call the dealers directly. The good thing is you can do this from home, which can save you valuable time and energy. Identify if the vehicles you have seen online or in an advert come with a service history, if they are road worthy and whether they require any work. Speak to the dealer about a warranty period, especially with a second hand vehicle. Some dealers will offer you a thirty, sixty or even a ninety day warranty when you buy the vehicle to provide you with complete peace of mind.
Speaking to each of the dealers regarding the vehicle is just more information you can collect to bring out your car negotiation skills. You will be able to narrow down your search based on the information you have collected. You will also be able to identify vehicles which may require a small amount of TLC, which gives you even more negotiation room moving forward.
Once you have this information, you can start your car negotiation over the phone with the dealer before wasting your time to view a vehicle where there is no room to move when it comes to price and ends up outside your budgeted price range.
Ensure when it comes to buying another vehicle, you don’t trade in your current vehicle. Rather sell your current vehicle on your own. While this may be a bit of a headache that you don’t want, you will be amazed how much more money you can get by selling your vehicle privately compared to what they will offer you if you trade your vehicle in.
Play the dealers against each other to see which one is going to fall for your car negotiation tactics. If the dealers have the same vehicle in similar condition at different prices, then you can use this to your advantage, giving you room to negotiate to see which one is going to provide you with the best deal when it comes to purchasing a new vehicle.
When you are happy that you have car negotiated your way to securing the best price, you can make an arrangement to test drive the vehicle. During the test drive you may identify other issues where you can negotiate even further to secure the price you want to secure.
Only once you are completely satisfied and comfortable with the deal, should you go ahead and sign on the dotted line, taking possession of the vehicle.
