Do the work from home
The best negotiating happens before you meet anyone. Look up what buyers in your area are actually paying for the exact model and trim, which the major pricing guides publish free. Then email the internet sales department of four or five dealers and ask each for an out-the-door price in writing: the price of the car plus every fee, tax and charge. Send the lowest quote to the others and ask whether they care to beat it.
Four deals, not one
A dealership can make money on the price of the car, on your trade-in, on the financing and on the products sold in the finance office. The old worksheet that salespeople draw, with four boxes on one page, exists to blur these together, so that a gain in one box hides a loss in another. Settle the price first and say nothing about a trade-in or how you will pay until it is fixed. When a salesperson asks what monthly payment you have in mind, say that you are negotiating the total price. Any payment can be reached by stretching the loan to seven years.
Fees and the finance office
Sales tax, title and registration are set by the state and are not negotiable. The documentation fee belongs to the dealer, and some states cap it while others let it run to several hundred dollars, so count it as part of the price. Charges labeled market adjustment, dealer preparation or protection package are simply additional profit, and you can ask to have them removed.
The finance office has a practiced pitch for the following items.
- An extended warranty is optional, its price is negotiable, and it can usually be bought later, before the factory coverage ends.
- Paint sealant, fabric protection, window etching and nitrogen in the tires cost the dealer very little and are worth about that.
Leaving is your leverage
Go on a weekday near the end of the month, when sales targets loom. Eat beforehand, because long waits while someone talks to the manager are part of the method. Read every figure on the contract against your written quote before signing. Do not drive the car home until the financing is final, because a dealer who calls a week later to say that the loan fell through will offer a worse one.
Tip Have one sentence ready and mean it: you will think it over and they have your number. Most of the best offers arrive by phone the following morning.
