The goal of a test drive is to see, as closely as possible, the same kind of driving conditions the car will be used for after purchase. If you commute, drive the car in both stop and go traffic and at highway speeds. If you frequently drive into the hills, try to find some steep hill to climb. Drive over bumps, take sharp corners at high (but not dangerous) speeds and test the brakes in a safe spot, such as a unused parking lot. Get in and out of the car several times and be sure to sit in the back seat, especially if you plan on carrying passengers. In short, ask yourself what it will be like to have this car for a number of years.
While you are checking the car, don’t be distracted by the sellers pitch. Don’t drive with the radio on, you can evaluate that later. A new car is a big investment; make sure you spend enough time really checking it. And then, consider one last thing: your intuition. If you are uneasy about this car, follow your instincts. A vehicle purchase decision is too important (and expensive) to undertake without total confidence.
After test driving, you should leave the car lot. Why? Because you will probably have to drive other types of cars at other places. It’s a good idea to do all of your test driving in one day. Driving the cars back to back will help you uncover even minor differences, which will lead to a more educated purchase decision.
So, how do you get out of the hands of the salesperson? Generally, most salespeople are pretty mellow and won’t pressure you to buy right away. Besides, you can remind them you still have more cars to drive and you can’t make a decision now. Ask them their name again before leaving and tell them that you will ask for them when you come back. Most good salespeople will respect that. If they don’t, you probably won’t be coming back to make a deal with them anyway.
Don’t let the person selling you the car know that you like the car. Try to point out negative points about the car like if the car is big and won’t get good gas mileage or if the car has high mileage that it will need more repairs sooner.
If a dealer knows you are in love with the car you just test-drove, you will be in a weak position to negotiate. But if he thinks you might walk away without buying, he will treat you carefully. Open negotiations by saying, “I’m ready to buy today if we can reach an agreement on the price.” With this phrase, you are striking just the right balance. Why? You are letting the dealer know that you’re serious about buying a car, not just “kicking tires.” A dealer is more apt to give you his best price if he feels he might have a solid sale right then and there, as opposed to throwing a higher price out to someone whom he feels is just wasting the dealership’s time.
There are people who say that the best way to get a good deal on a used car is to walk out three times. We don’t believe the process has to be that drawn out. And it doesn’t have to be confrontational either. But you do need to let the dealer know that you will walk out if you don’t get the price you want.
Jumping ahead a little, here’s a simple tip. After you’ve made your offer to the salesperson, and he’s taking your offer to his manager, get up and leave the sales room. It shows that you don’t feel under obligation to remain under their control. Go look at the cars in the show room. Or go to the restroom. Or tell them you need to get something out of your car. It’s a little show of force that will help you make a good deal.
By now, you should know the approximate value of the used car you’re considering. Just knowing this value will make you a better negotiator. After all, if you know the car is worth only $12,000 and the dealer is insisting it’s worth $14,000, it will be difficult for him to convince you to buy it.
Rest assured that the dealer will give you all kinds of reasons to justify his price. The dealership’s overhead is expensive, they had to clean or repair the car, your Internet figures are “way off,” and the like. But if you have looked up the TMV® of the car on Edmunds.com (and included all options and allowed for the mileage) you should be very close to the right price.
Before you leave for the car lot, you should print out Edmunds.com True Market Value page for the used car you want to buy. If you have been shopping for some time, you will have also gained first-hand knowledge of car prices in your area. Then when you spot the right car, at a good price, you can make a competitive offer.
You might want to consider buying a certified used car that has been inspected and is in good running order. Furthermore, if anything does go wrong with the car within the period of the warranty, it will be fixed for free. This means that if you are considering buying a certified used car, and it appears to be in good condition, you don’t have to do any further checking to make sure it will be reliable.
Certified used cars are usually found on new car lots. Take Volkswagen, for example. Its certified used cars are subject to a 112-point inspection. VW then certifies the car with a two-year/24,000-mile limited warranty that even includes a roadside assistance program. At Edmunds, we bought a certified used 1999 Passat GLS. Four months later, it overheated. The repairs (not extensive) were covered by the warranty.
While buying a certified used car removes a lot of the guesswork about the vehicle’s mechanical condition, you pay for this service. Certified used cars that sell in the $10,000 to $20,000 range are estimated to be $500 to $1,000 more expensive. So the real bargains actually fall into another class that we will talk about next.