how to shop for a deal on a new car (kim’s way)

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So the old yellow car is gone… and in her place is this spiffy new blue one! I could go into the details of how our new car buying experience was anything less that ideal, but Mr. M has already gone on that that rant, so I thought I’d share things from a different angle. I’d like to share some tips on getting the new car you want for the best price you can… who knows if we got the bargain basement deal of the century or not, but I do know that we got the car to a price we liked and that was what mattered in the end!
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Tip#1 – Price out every version of the car you want to buy on the manufacturer’s website. Go and add the things you want/don’t want and see what MSRPs pop up at you. In our case, you couldn’t get a navigation system without buying both the upgraded speakers, towing package and rear lift gate. Strange, but that’s how it goes. So a feature you think would only be a small cost increase ends up being bundled into a bunch more. Special colors can also cost more, and some models of the cars can’t be upgraded the way you want. You’ll also walk into the dealership WAY MORE knowledgeable about available features than the car salesmen on the lot. They deal with their inventory, not the entire stock of cars that exist in the country, so be the expert in the situation and know all the ins and outs of your model!
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Tip#2 – Scope out what the invoice and dealer costs are for the car. There are quite a few places on the internet that allow you to find information on the invoice and dealer costs of certain cars. MSN Autos has an easy to use invoice price option for specific cars and options, as does Yahoo!Autos. The easiest to use system that we found, however, was TrueCar.com. Enter in your make/model and options along with your zip code, and you’ll get a nice distribution graph of what the GREAT/GOOD/OVER priced options are based on the sticker, invoice and dealer prices! They even have a great little button where you’ll be shown the BEST PRICE option for the car you’ve selected and dealers willing to confirm that price for you! Also, visit the forums at edmunds.com and see what others are paying for the model right now.
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Tip#3 – Walk in with your firm price, knowing you can go elsewhere. Go into the dealership armed with the price you want and know that if they can’t beat it that you’re walking away. With all of your research, you’ll know by this point what you want to pay, and you’ll know of other dealerships that will give you this offer. Sadly, this doesn’t work if you live in an area w/only one dealership, but it’s perfect when you can travel up a few hours for the right price!
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Tip#4 – Research what the past incentives have been, ask about incentive periods, and see if it’s worth it to wait. Our new car is financed through payments, but as a completely risk averse person, I wanted to make sure we got the best rates we could. In other words, 0% financing was a must for any car we wanted to get. It didn’t matter if another model was “cheaper” in sticker price if we were going to end up paying more for it in the long run. Ask about their incentive periods and most dealerships will be happy to tell you when they are. Most have annual promotional periods that run in the same months every year, and some sales are centered around holiday weekends and such. It doesn’t hurt to ask!
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Tip#5 – Buy the car when it hits your comfort zone. Just like any sort of price negotiations with big purchases (i.e. homes?!?), you’ll never know if you got the perfect price. When you’ve got all the information you can at hand, and you decide on what’s a reasonable price for you, go with your gut and do it.

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I drive Mr. M crazy with my financial purchase indecision at times, so for this one, once I had done all my research and had my comfort price, I let him take over. It was much easier than having me fight for pennies while signing papers, and he didn’t have to stress along with me. And thanks to him, we have a shiny new car. Phew.