Timing and Four Squares

This is the final installment on car buying: timing. If you haven't already made that purchase there are good times to buy cars and there are not so good times. Is your current car barely running, the car making a funny rattling noise as you drive along, or do temperature extremes cause your car to overheat? Sure these circumstances put some urgency into the car buying/replacement process, but the last thing you'd want to do is let the dealer know your circumstances are dire and that your current car is in the shop. You see, you want to be in control of the buying process, that's why you got rid of your trade or are about to, the reason you took a test drive initially and nothing more, and that's why you already have financing arranged. Here are just a few ways you lose control when you make a car purchase: emotions hasten decision, current car barely running/falling apart, rushed into buying due to (fill in the blank), lack of research/preparation, and the biggest trap of all, charmed by salesperson into the showroom.

This brings me to my next point:

Source: www.consumerist.com

Ever see one of these? It's the dreaded four-square, as it's known in the auto business, and this is perhaps the best method to lose all control of the vehicle purchase. Look at all those numbers transcribed! This is where car buying gets emotional and the haggling begins.

"But I am buying from a haggle-free dealership..." you say.

I hate to burst your bubble, but even haggle-free dealerships have to bargain. As long as the four-square is brought into the equation the dealer has the upper hand. At that haggle-free dealership you still have to negotiate payments, the amount your trade is worth, etc. Eliminate variables of the four square and the buyer has the face cards/aces. The top left of the image above mentions trade (the person in this example was smart and doesn't have a trade or sold it ahead of time), score one for the buyer. The top right portion is the price of the vehicle being sold: research and that price quote come into play here, and if you have the e-mail printed with the quote, even better. The bottom left: cash down, if you already have financing arranged then this won't even need to be filled out, just show the dealer that check. And the bottom right: refer to the previous statement. In poker-speak that's a royal flush. The dealer can do nothing, but walk away from the table at this point. The opposite scenario, and most of us have been there, is the salesperson talks numbers with you, presents the figures to his his/her manager, and the charades/haggling begins. Numbers get crossed out, you get angry by their low-ball offer for your trade, numbers go through your head as you ponder the monthly payment, a permanent marker is busted out as numbers are decreased here and increased there, and then finally the sale manager comes out to shake your hand two hours later. This is what makes car-buying such a hassle and why people hate the process so much. How does this tie into timing? Well a process like this can take several hours, and being prepared like a good Boy Scout is critical here.

Other critical timing factors: buy toward the end of the month when quotas need to be met or exceeded (the last weekend of the month is ideal), avoid buying in April when tax returns entice other buyers into dealerships, make a purchase in the winter when car sales are slow and dealers are hungry for business (my previous car purchase was made 3 days before Christmas and was a pleasurable experience), and finally, if you have time on a weekday buy then to make your purchase faster (less customers means less waiting).

DWD: 8, Miles: 500