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

The Price is Right?

There are many websites out there offering services to get you the best price for next car purchase. Autobytel and Cars Direct are just a couple of websites that essentially perform a task you can do yourself. That job is to contact the dealership. I tried using Autobytel, which cost me nothing, but didn't see any benefit. When I bought my 2008 Honda Fit Sport, I contacted every dealership within a 50-mile radius of my home, intially by utilizing Cars.com and Auto Trader's inquiry pages which essentially get you in contact with the dealership's internet team and then I contacted a few dealerships by way of their websites again going straight to their contact/inquiry page. Fill out your basic information and within 48 hours you will either receive a phone call or e-mail from the internet manager.

You want to know a secret? The dealership that initially offered me the lowest internet price quote was the dealership in which I made my purchase. The gas prices have driven demand for subcompact cars up substantially, and here in Southern California, the Fit is particularly in demand (the dealership in which I conducted my test drive had two other customers looking at this particular model on a Sunday afternoon with temperatures soaring in the 90's). Most dealerships were not willing to go below Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price or MSRP. Some were even tricky by excluding the $635 destination charge in their quotes which is something any buyer should be aware of. What I thought was even more insane was that a lower-volume dealer just down the street from my house was actually marking the car up $1,000. The bottom line was that my phone and internet interfaces led to 2 dealerships willing to sell below MSRP but still above invoice, this is a good thing when a model is in high demand and only the motivated outlets will play this game. Out of the two, one dealer was padding their cars/deals by throwing in LoJack (the internet manager said that they install these upon receipt), which was not included in my quote. I asked if they were expecting the car soon in the trim/color I desired but without LoJack, so I could accurately gage quotes, he mentioned it would probably take a couple of weeks. A word of caution when obtaining quotes, the phone is a great way to open the lines of communication, but unless you get something in writing, a quote can appear to be a bluff by any customer calling into a dealership, and most sales associates will say anything to get you onto their lot. If you play your cards right you can win and save thousands, but if you only have a few players willing to ante up (like in my case) it's better to play it safe. I obtained the written quote, forwarded the message to the closer dealership, and they readily took the bait. I purchased my Fit Sport w/ automatic in blackberry pearl for $275 above invoice the very next day.

One final source of great information is the Consumer Reports Bottom Line Price, which tells you what the dealership actually paid for the car and can be a great bargaining tool. The report only costs $14 per vehicle and is worth every penny. This leveraging tool can be very useful for cars that aren't in high-demand or for buyers who have the luxury of time, and the patience to get a great deal. I ordered the report, but really didn't have much wiggle room as, again, the Honda Fit is selling like ice water in the middle of a desert. A great alternative available to you for free is the Edmunds True Market Value Price, or more specifically their Regional Base Price, which was only about $130 above the Consumer Reports Bottom Line Price report's dealer-paid quote.

I've had my Fit for about a week now and have decided to include a door ding log into my blogs. You see, the car doesn't feature any kind of body-side cladding or rubber trim at all; there is nothing to absorb the impact of a careless person's faux pas or the heavy door of some full-sized SUV-driving fool whom attempts to park in a compact parking space. So the official count begins: Days without dings (DWD): 7, miles on car: 443

Stay tuned...

Little Repair Shop of Horrors

In my short life I've heard one too many stories of people getting screwed by dealers and repair shops. In a recent experience a former coworker of mine took her car to the dealership to have her tire replaced. Total cost of repair was in the neighborhood of $300! I've had family members also report of similar fates when faced with dealers trying to up sell them on a tire replacement when they came in for a simple oil change. Personally, I've had my share of terrible service like the time I took my car in for a fender bender and the simple 5-day repair ended up taking twice as long. This facility was a recommended shop by my insurer and is not one I'd send my enemies to.



Can one avoid these nightmares disguised as businesses? Here are some simple rules of thumb:

1. Dealers thrive on lack of knowledge and will take any opportunity to sell you something you don't necessarily need. This overall theme spans from the showroom to the finance department and into the repair shop, and any hint of unpreparedness will guarantee an opportunity for them to pounce on you like a field mouse being swiped up by a barn owl. Bottom line: don't fall for their tricks and do your homework before stepping onto the car lot.
2. Car repair shops also rely on lack of expertise and will also take advantage of you when you're not looking. Avoid shops that look untidy or if the person running the establishment gives you the creeps. Bad vibes = bad repairs and huge headaches!
3. Get an educated opinion before you take your vehicle in for repair. If you know someone that knows enough about cars, let them look at the problem if it's not too much of a problem. Call them if you're stranded even. An easily-remedied dilemma such as a dead battery is simple to fix and can avoid having to be towed to a shop in the first place.
4. Do research before taking a car into the shop. If that check engine light came on it's usually an emissions related failure and some models are notorious for common problems. Go to forums such as Edmunds for some insight into your car's troubles. The fix could require only 5 minutes worth of labor, some basic hand tools, and could save you hundreds!

5. Get a recommendation before leaving for the shop. I know I shared my insurance horror story up above, but in spite of the delayed service, the repair was still done to my satisfaction. I took my Jeep to have a transmission rebuilt at a local shop and was fully satisfied with the experience, the maintenance tech even showed me the part that had failed, and I have since recommended this shop others and have not once received a call with bad news or someone cursing me.

Any of you have any horror stories to share?