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Smart Shopper Purchasing Strategies - Questions & Success Stories
3884 messages, Last post on Apr 08, 2009 at 1:08 PM
You are in the Smart Shopper Forum. Your Hosts are kirstie_h & tidester
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Replying to: kyfdx (Feb 14, 2005 8:26 am) Problem is, not all dealerships are like this; how do you find one? How do you know it when you walk in the door? On the other hand, this straightforward approach probably works best no matter who you buy from... |
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Ask people you know for a referral. You can even ask people you don't know. If you are in the market for a new Dodge Caravan and you see someone getting ot of one in a parking lot you can ask them! " Excuse me...I see you just bought your Caravan from ABC Motors...can I ask you if you would reccommend that store?" People will usually be happy to share their experiences both good and bad. Or you can even call the store and ask... " Which of your long term salespeople would you reccomend? I want someone easy going that isn't pushy" I get a lot of business that way.  Now that isn't always the best way, especially if the person answering the phone is dating the worst salesperson there! |
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Replying to: isellhondas (Feb 14, 2005 8:24 am) I think you made several good points , but why would I leave my kids at home? They will be riding in any vehicle that I purchase , so I will need to see how the vehicle functions with the whole family aboard. I suppose you would need to make the test drive separate from the negotiations. When we purchased our Chrysler T&C 2 years ago I went in ready with what I felt was a fair price and was ready to deal that night. After my wife gave the van the Ok after the test drive I gave them my offer. Well, 2 hours later the deal is not done. The kids loved climbing all over the Jeaps while we waited. We left with no deal. Sales manager call that night and gives us another offer. Still not good enough. Finally he calls me the next day at work, and offer $200 more than my original offer.I accepted it because I like the green pea salesman we were working with. I just think that if dealerships wanted to they could speed up the process. Next time you are right we will be keeping test drive and negotiations seperate. Lesson learned. It just should not have to be so hard.
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| Buying a car is not that hard if you know what you are doing. | |
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Please EAT before you come in. Especially if your plan is to grind us for the last possible dollar and ESPECIALLY if you bring your kids! guss, it doesn't have to be that hard but if you are absolutely determined to wring out the last possible dollar be prepared to spend some extra time! |
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but when they were 3 and 4, I wouldn't take them to a nice restaurant, out of respect for the other patrons and the wait staff. I wouldn't take them into the bank when doing a home loan, or even when I got a haircut, esssentially making someone else watch them while I was busy. It's very important to see if kids fit a vehicle, no doubt, but as parents, we should know how big our kids are, and maybe bring a stroller or car seat to make sure the trunk and rear seats work for you. My biggest peeve about kids is that when mommy and daddy and negotiating and signg up for a $30,000 vehicle, mommy and daddy need to be paying attention - it shouldn't take 10 attempts to make a car deal happen, but if junior has all of your attention, it likely will. I love my kids, but they don't belong in the middle of a business transaction, even as (now) teenagers. Get a sitter, or grandma, or drop them off at the movies. |
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I have learned to do my preparation here online. Saves a lot of time at the negotiation table(or desk). Alot of great information to be learned from the regulars that post here. Of course I don't expect anyone to watch my kids when I am out. They are well mannered enough to sit there while I sign a few papers. I disagree about not bringing them to a test drive. I am 6'6 . I put the seat all the way back. With car seats kids sit up higher. Guess where their little feat end up? Right in the middle of my back. There is no substitute for them actually being in the car and testing it out in real world conditions. |
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Just don't bring your dogs for the same reason!
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| I think there is some advantage of having the kid on a test drive. However, after the test drive, there is no reason to have the kids there. Instead, the kids should be taken home or to a sitter. | |
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