"Ad absurdum per aspera" > wrote in message
ups.com...
>> http://www.fightingchance.com
>>
>> HIGHLY recommended. Also, make a trip to your
>> bookstore and buy some books on how to buy a car.
>>The best one I know of is "Car Buyer's and Leaser's
>> Negotiating Bible" by William Bragg.
>
> Don't forget _Don't Get Taken Every Time_ by Remar Sutton. The latest
> edition(s) are worth a look even if you read it back in the day --
> there's an interesting new chapter on how dealers as well as consumers
> use the Internet. It also goes through scenarios that describe how
> different personality types and demographic groups get ripped on the
> individual deal and get permanently upside-down over time.

I have this book also; should have mentioned it. Thanks!

> Sutton is also very big on private-party sales within your network of
> family and friends and neighbors as a good way to pick up a quality
> *used* car. The catches, of course, are that you have to be flexible
> about make/model/year and the timing of the purchase so as to take
> advantage of what's available, and that it'll often have to be a cash
> deal. But I must say that I've gotten the most satisfactory deals in
> this manner.

More excellent advice.

> If after doing your homework you decide you wouldn't find it amusing
> and rewarding to sally forth and try to best the car sharks at their
> own game, you might try auto brokers -- independent ones, services of
> the warehouse shopping clubs, whatever. (Don't forget to perform due
> diligence on them first, of course.) The broker has to make money out
> of this somewhere, so you won't get the rock bottom price that you
> yourself could hypothetically extract by using well-honed negotiating
> skills upon a hungry dealer. But if the broker is reputable and
> talented, it should still be a substantially below-sticker price and a
> low-hassle experience.

One technique to use on sales hawks also works on brokers: the old 20/80
rule. 20% of car sales customers generate 80% of the profits. So tell
them that they'll make a sale but not a huge commission. If they want to
move a vehicle today, they can do it with you--they can make a lot of money
with their next sales. If they balk, don't argue. Just say "Okay," and
walk away. Then watch them chase you back into the booth to make the sale.

> Another important way to keep both cost and hassle to a minimum is to
> have in place your own financing arrangements through your own bank,
> credit union, or whatnot before ever making contact with a dealer.

Shopping within a specific budget and the money in your pocket (and outta
sight of the sales hawks)--yet more excellent advice. Joe, you rock.

> Best of luck,
> --Joe
>