Hey, sorry, but I won't have time for your novella until later tonight.

Quickly:

I said, we'll talk more about the trade value, let's look at the numbers for now. He does the back and forth between the sales manager with a piece of paper thing. Comes back with $630/month. "Um... my WRX payments are $729, there's something wrong here." I look at the numbers, and they taxed me on the value of the trade, instead of subtracting that from the tax on the new car like they should. Then he comes back with $550/month.

Sounds like a T.O. (turn over) house; AVOID these types of dealers like the plague.

Find a fleet manager somewhere and buy your Focus through him/her.

 

Is it actually Ford, or is the screwjobs at the dealership?

 

Esplain T.O. to me, oh knowledgeable guru dude.

 

Wow!
WTF? um id say drive down her to da us and pick sumthin up, or at least sumthin i dunno
thats insane!
bryan

 

oh man... yeah thats a load of crap

 

Hey, sorry, but I won't have time for your novella until later tonight.

Quickly:

Sounds like a T.O. (turn over) house; AVOID these types of dealers like the plague.

Find a fleet manager somewhere and buy your Focus through him/her.

Well, read the rest then. You'll LOVE the second group!

How do you just hook up with a fleet manager?

 

Where I used to live in Michigan there were two Ford dealers near my house. One of them was notorious for the slip of paper and back and forth with the manager crap. I went in there ONE time. I laughed so hard their other customers were staring at me. I immediately took my business to the other dealership and never had a problem like that again.

 

Remember what happend to the guy that got raped and drove his his vehicle into the dealership?

Good luck finding a much better deal.

 

Oh...my...god.

This is why it's best to have your own financing and not go through the dealer, but I had no idea they could be that mercenary.

When I got my Cougar, I got my Dad to cosign the loan at our bank and I had a special rebate from Ford for the problems associated with my 95 Mustang so I got $4k off a new car and finally settled on the Cougar cause it was $50 a month cheaper than the Mustang with cheaper insurance and looked like nothing else Ford had.

When all was said and done I got the Cougar for $10,200 with TT&L, basically what a Focus would have cost without the special rebate. The "sit downs" with the salesmen were agony though, and I got pissed off on more than one occasion, cause I knew they were trying to screw me even though I knew I was screw proof.

If your credit is decent you might want to consider just walking away from the WRX. My dad just stopped paying the loan on our old house over 10 years ago, cause we were moving and he couldn't sell cause it was a crappy area, and he took a test drive of a Evo 8 a while back and the dealer said he had great credit. Financing would be tough for the next few years though. Tough call.

 

I dunno who to beleive here.

 

P-51 don't feel too bad, they're all like that anymore, especially when trying to sell econoboxes. When I got my ZX3 in may 00 it was so simple. When I went into the dealer in '04 trying to trade it for a closeout brand new '03 SVT, I got about the same treatment that you got, and this was the dealer who originally sold me the ZX3, I was a return customer.

Hell, I got our '03 Explorer from one of those F-you-in-the-A-hole turnover used car lots (not affiliated with ford) and had better luck. I still had to wheel and deal. That whole store was a bunch of slick willies, and I had to fight tooth and nail to get the numbers where we wanted them, but at least we finally got in the zone and practically stole an SUV in the process. The down-side is the APR, but we're gonna pay it off early so it's not that big of a deal.

 

Can some one with some more insight explain this eight year loan. i just dont unerrtand where that comes from. i dont have good credit at all but i got my normal terms.

 

Can some one with some more insight explain this eight year loan. i just dont unerrtand where that comes from. i dont have good credit at all but i got my normal terms.

I understood his message.


He was offered 2 loans.

One was to pay the new car off.

The second one was to pay the balance of the "upside down" Subaru balance.



How were the interest rates P-51?

 

Correction

One is to get raped on a new car

the other is to get raped on the old car because he's 'upside down'.

 

Deep breath. OK, here goes... my take on buying a car:

IMHO, where a lot of people run into trouble is trading in their car at the dealer. It's easy to just let them take it off your hands... but usually (always) that means you are losing money somewhere. I don't care how they massage the numbers, you are getting less for it then if you sold it yourself.

Of course, I have no knowledge of how things work in Canada, it might be different.

But, what you are doing when you're trading in is working two deals at once (the new car price and the trade in). That's where the 3 card monty game begins. Then figure financing and that is another set of numbers to throw in the mix.

I don't care how savvy someone is, unless you've worked for a car dealership they have the upper hand. They do it 12 hours a day, 6 days a week. You have to go in lean and mean.

I realize that different situations preclude all these luxuries every time, but I try to:

1. Not be upside down. Obviously easier said then done, but I usually put down at LEAST 20%. That should usually keep you ahead of the curve after first year depreciation.

2. Sell your old car yourself. Yes, it's a hassle, but you will almost always get more for it.

3. Have financing in place. Usually from a local bank or credit union. If you need to go through the manufacturer's finance company (because of a special rate, etc.) do a pre-approval online to streamline your time at the dealer.

4. Know exactly what you want and have all the wholesale prices before hand. Have an exact number in your head that you will not go above.

5A. Deal with the Fleet manager. Put your requirements and offer on paper and fax it to 4-6 area dealer's fleet managers and see who calls you back. If they don't then you know they are sharks and see you as too much trouble for too little profit. The good/honest ones will call and ask for your business.

5B. If you have to work with a salesman... you can ask around and get recommendations on a good one, or narrow down a decent dealership and go in and case the place You want a professional, not a newbie. And not a slick rick. Just a solid guy that wants to sell cars and values your repeat business or referrals. This can sometimes be difficult, you just have to be able to read people. Visit the dealer a few times and find your guy/gal.

6. Come in prepared and be assertive (but not an a-hole). Let them know that you know about the car and don't need their hand holding. If I find the person I think I can deal with I'll say, "how'd you like to sell a car to me today"? "I know what I want, and I won't waste your time. I have a cashier's check in my pocket and we can wrap this up in under 20 minutes".

At that point they'll be taken a bit aback. I say "Let's cut out the back and forth, give me your best price on that car right there". They will of course have to go to the Sales Manager. They always do.

They will return and will give you a price higher then what you've told yourself you will pay. They always do. Explain to them that you've run the numbers on the car and you understand the concept of dealer holdback, etc. Then tell them "THIS (your number) is what I'm willing to pay. If you're willing to sell it for that you can write it up right now and I'll be on my way".

Now, please be aware. You can't be giving them some asinine lowball below their cost, minus dealer holdback BS price. You have to give them a valid price.

9 times out of 10 they will not take your deal. They will say it is simply too low. At that point I thank them for their time and hand them my business card. I tell them "I understand, if your Sales Manager has a change of mind, please give me a call. I will still be interested at that price".

I did these very same steps when we bought my wife's VW. I told her how it was going to go down. We were within a few hundred dollars of the price we wanted to pay.

But I walked out. My wife was in tears. She said, "why couldn't we just have paid a little more". She REALLY wanted the car. I said, "don't worry" they'll call us in the next couple of days.

Later that night, 15 minutes before the dealership closed, the phone rang. "I got the Sales Manager to OK your deal" our salesman said. "Thanks, we'll be in tomorrow" and I hung up the phone. Mission Accomplished.

 

GAP insurance is wonderful, total it... then you're no longer upside down! jk, but seriously

 

6. Come in prepared and be assertive (but not an a-hole). Let them know that you know about the car and don't need their hand holding. If I find the person I think I can deal with I'll say, "how'd you like to sell a car to me today"? "I know what I want, and I won't waste your time. I have a cashier's check in my pocket and we can wrap this up in under 20 minutes".

I agree with this 100%. When I bought my SVT I went up to the salesman and told him that I had already been pre-approved for the loan and had a check in pocket for $3000 for the downpayment. The SVT was sitting in my driveway the very next morning!! Not bad for a 19 year old with no credit history buying his first car. lol

Jason

 

If your credit is decent you might want to consider just walking away from the WRX. My dad just stopped paying the loan on our old house over 10 years ago, cause we were moving and he couldn't sell cause it was a crappy area, and he took a test drive of a Evo 8 a while back and the dealer said he had great credit. Financing would be tough for the next few years though. Tough call.

Did you actually just give this as advice?:what: :lol:

I really hope you are kidding and honestly can't believe someone hasn't said something before me.

 

I agree with this 100%. When I bought my SVT I went up to the salesman and told him that I had already been pre-approved for the loan and had a check in pocket for $3000 for the downpayment. The SVT was sitting in my driveway the very next morning!! Not bad for a 19 year old with no credit history buying his first car. lol

Jason

I gotta give you props. Indeed, very good for a 19 year old. I somehow don't think I was that savvy when I was that age. :lol:

 

Did you actually just give this as advice?:what: :lol:

I really hope you are kidding and honestly can't believe someone hasn't said something before me.

Um... yeah :lol: not the best advise.

 

I can't echo the Fleet Manager angle enough.

I've helped a half dozen people buy cars at prices well under invoice (hondas, toyotas and even a GM) working that angle.

Persistance pays off, don't jump at the first hook. My wife when she bought her Celica they had one they were really lookin to move for like 17K and we said "nah..." to that price... they chased us out of the dealership to go for $16,400.

Done deal. Best part was: It was all cash. So they didn't get their incentive for financing either.


I'm thankful that I've got some great friends at dealerships, Allan @ Barber Ford / VW / Subie and Dana formerly of ford, now of Mini who can set me up there if need be... cuz dealing with sales scum is difficult at best.


Know this: When dealing with a fleet manager you need to be specific and direct in your initial fax.

What you want, EXACTLY, down to the options, and the floor mats even.

What price you want to pay exclusive of tax, title and license. But thats it no more.

99.99999% of the time you'll get counter offers. They'll have something close, or something with an option or two more than you want. (6-disc changer instead of single disc, Moonroof, something like that... not an automatic when you want stick). Don't expect them to go lookin around for a car to suit your needs... they'll counter, and more than likely the additional expense will be straight up invoice price added.

They want to sell you the car, and they don't care too much about markup at that point.



Sorry to hear about your craptastic experience. But you'll find the right one

 

There was a pretty good thread on here a wile ago on the best way to buy a car, it might be a good idea to look that up.

 

I gotta give you props. Indeed, very good for a 19 year old. I somehow don't think I was that savvy when I was that age. :lol:

Thanks! I'm now a seasoned 20 year old. lol

Jason

 

My last boss had his truck repossesed and he said it never went on his credit. My dad told the bank we're moving, he had already bought the land and house in cash to where he's at now, and said he's not making the payments anymore, and now his credit is spotless. The Mitsu dealership wouldn't let him test drive an Evo 8 without running his credit and after the checked they really tried to get his business.

Of course there was a 10 year gap in between those two instances so I wonder if that would be too long a wait and if credit laws have changed much in the interim. Just wondering.

 

96 months. What a ****ing joke! This place should be shut down.