No financing. Brand new. I hate to haggle over price, I’m not the haggle type. How much you save by haggling anyway?

Also, what if you buy 2 vehicles from same dealer, get a better deal? That is a possibility. Also got vehicles to trade in with the new ones, I cannot be bothered selling the old vehicles to retail individual buyers either.

Sounds like you are going to make a car salesman very happy soon.

I’ve fallen into the same mindset.

I deal with people who I usually have done business before. They tell me what they can do on a vehicle and if it’s a good time or better deals will come up.

I negotiate the new car first and then discuss the trade.

You can find better deals sometimes in a vehicle that has been sitting on the lot for awhile, end of year deals, etc.

All depends on what you’re looking for and what your need is.

I’ve ordered the last few so it’s just what the price is.

I’m probably going to get on his nerves, sells people like to haggle. My plans is to ask for a price, let them know I’m not going to haggle, shop different dealers/makes, and go with best option. Buy from existing inventory.

Thats my plan, got a better idea?

Easy answer to the question: Call David Dryden at Platinum Toyota of Texoma. We have bought two Camrys from him in recent years. I had everything done by phone before leaving home, with one of those transactions being a trade. We were in and out as soon as he showed my wife how to do everything on that "screen" I guess you call it these days.

Deal with the either the Fleet Guy or Internet Sale Manager, I wouldn't waste my time with a salesman off the floor.

Of course don't discuss how you will pay until you have the deal completed

Some places if you use the fleet sales manager he will just take the check from you and you will be done

If you use the internet sales manager they will still try to send you thru fiance where they will try to tack on BS like undercoating, paint protection, etc.

If you know exactly what you want you can get a lot done over the internet. Send an email to all your local dealers detailing what you want. They'll have the internet sales email on their site.

From there it's a lot easier to negotiate. Give them all a chance to beat the lowest quote you get. It's a lot easier to haggle when you aren't in their dealership on the clock.

That's all you gotta do. In 2008 and in 2016, I negotiated new trucks over the phone. Here's what I want, here's what I'm willing to pay for it. I am not going to waste my time at dealerships. In 2008 I bought from Glen Polk in Gainsville. He called when the truck was at the dealer. I drove over the next day, and was out of there in 10 minutes. In 2016, I bought from Hoyt in Sherman. I went into Hoyt, signed the papers, put my money down, and the next day they brought the truck to my house.

My son's 1/2 ton burned up. Buying new, the guy I bought my 3/4 ton from wouldn't give him the time of day. Internet sales manager worked his butt off and sold my son a new truck. IF, I ever buy new again, that's the way I'm gonna try.

I think it all depends if the vehicle you want is a popular seller or not. Also i think the best buy tips are not hard and fast rules year after year. Too many variables change the buying power to be consistent every time.

One example right now dealers could care less if you pay cash vs finance. They say they get there money either way. I was in the market for a tacoma for a year until i finally bought a used one 4 months ago. Buying new was an option. Paying cash was my purchase power, or so i thought. Also trying to buy a new leftover tacoma when the new generation hit the market failed to get me any deal

You can reach out 300-500+ miles to various dealers if you like. That's what I've done for the past several vehicles. It was pretty much all done when I got there. I spent more time with a service person training me on the vehicle.

Also I walked in with my own pre-approved financing.

They will be popular. New truck, F150, TRD, …New car, Honda, Toyota, their top sellers..

After brief introduction, I handed the internet quote to the finance manager and politely stated that if the final number does not match this highlighted out the door price, then I will be departing. It was good to get that out of the way immediately. None of them seemed to be very happy about that but it's business.

Let your fingers do the walking.

Internet does save a lot of time

If you want zero haggle and an okay price, a lot of places you may already be a member of have pre-negotiated discounts with manufacturers. Costco, AAA, etc. You can go check their website, fill out a form or two, and take it to the dealer. You can usually do better but that's quick and easy. The company I work for gets employee pricing with all car manufacturers, so I usually go through that as a start. If that discount is more than the dealership wants to go, then they'll try to make up for it on the trade....you're just essentially pushing the fight somewhere else.

My experience on my last few purchases has been that they are willing to go cheaper if you finance than if you pay cash. They get kickbacks from the finance company/banks on every loan they sell. Sometimes it's a couple hundred dollars and not worth the hassle and I'll just pay cash, but I've seen the difference as high as $1000 and I'll finance it and then pay it off when the first payment comes. The dealership doesn't care if you do that, they've already got their money.

Way back in the day I found 3 identical trucks at 3 dealerships in the state. I got all the internet sales folks on a group email and told them to start bidding. They kept trying to drop the other 2 and talk to just me but I'd just add the others back in. One bailed out pretty quick but the other 2 actually got pretty competitive and I got a great deal on the truck.

Costco will provide a price on the vehicle of your choice with a dealer that participates in their program. I have done this on two new Toyota purchases. The price they provided was lower than dealerships other than the Costco referred dealership would do. You may be able to negotiate that price down some, but it tends to be pretty firm. The only real negotiation is your trade-in value which usually can be negotiated up from their initial offer.

I'd like to see the stats on how many people are late making car pmts these days. At these rates, the only way the fin co makes much money is by collecting fees. You gotta collect a lot of fees to get to $1000.

The last two new cars I have purchased have been most online. I determined exactly what I wanted, including color. I find a VIN for a vehicle that matches what I want and send it to every deal within 100 miles.
I make it clear that I want a drive out price and when I come to pick it up, I will walk if anyone tries to upsell me anything.

Some dealers will not respond (they know they will not be completive). Some will ignore what you want and send ad pricing on whatever they have. A handful will be serious.

For both of those purchases, a dealer recommended by The Car Pro show beat the pants off the others. We bought the wife a new Kia Shortage this year and the differences in pricing was almost $2,300 between highest and lowest.

When I bought my Taco, I walked out of the chosen dealership because they started on the aftermarket packages. I was not off the lot before they called me back and offered another $400 off If I would come back.

stay strong lots of BIG discounts out there now. 2025's are on their way and the dealers need to move inventory badly. Tell them what you'll pay and stick to it. Dont fall for "add-ons" F those.

If you have the title on your trade, selling to an individual is no problem. Meet them at their bank, sign it over. Roll any taxes into your asking price.

oh yea, dont tell him you are paying cash. If you finance, you can negotiate this too.

Some Food for Thought on Buying a New Car - Along the journey, I’ve done some analytics along with internet sales and service AI bot builds for the auto industry, along with a few dealers and dealer groups, and while I can’t share specifics, I can offer some general advice. It’s important to understand that dealers often make more money on the back end of a deal than on the front end, so being a cash buyer might not always work in your favor. In fact, signaling that you intend to pay cash usually limits the kind of deal you’re offered, as sales managers typically are required to hit a specific gross margin per vehicle.

Breaking Down the Front end and Back end

• Front end: This is what the dealer earns based on the vehicle's cost from the manufacturer and what you pay before financing and insurance (F&I).
• Back end: This includes profits from financing, insurance, GAP coverage, aftermarket add-ons, warranties, and any trade-ins.

Salespeople are often just cogs in a bigger machine. Most of them receive a small, fixed transaction fee regardless of the final sale price. Their main role, along with internet sales bots, is to qualify you as a buyer and ensure the dealership hits its gross margin target. As soon as they hear certain qualifying words, they put you into a specific transaction route. With 8 million people now in DFW, they know someone else will always walk through the door.

Consider the Big Picture

When negotiating a deal, think beyond the sticker price:

• Taxes: Are you better off trading in your current vehicle to reduce sales tax, or selling it privately?
• Opportunity Cost: Could your cash work better for you elsewhere if you can secure zero or very low interest on financing?

Because of the back end profits, sometimes financing can actually lead to a better deal. You might consider financing and then paying it off after a few months, but be cautious of any early payoff penalties. Financing could also be a strategic move if you’re looking to build credit for a family member, like a daughter.

Personal Experience with Financing

I only finance vehicles when I get zero or near zero percent interest, or when it makes for a better overall deal. Rich overlords borrow trillions each year from the Bank of Japan at near zero interest and put into the US market and US assets so think outside the box when it comes to free money. Also don't forget about my post about following the JPY as an indicator for the next market crash.

The one back end item I always opt for with new personal vehicles is the longest extended factory warranty possible—because I tend to keep my cars for much longer than most. I try to negotiate this upfront, knowing it’s something I want. This is usually a high-margin item for dealers, so there’s often room to negotiate.

Hacking the Car Buying Process

To get the best possible deal, you need to understand the above so you know how the dealer operates. Here's a hack: When negotiating, don’t show all your cards upfront. Instead of leading with the fact that you’re a cash buyer, start the negotiation as if you’re open to financing. This keeps the dealer engaged and may lead to a better overall price on the vehicle, since they’re hoping to make money on the back end. Once you’ve secured a solid deal, you can then decide whether to follow through with cash or financing with the option to pay off the loan early, provided the terms allow for it without penalties.

Another tip: Research the typical backend products (like warranties or GAP insurance) that you're likely to be offered. Decide in advance what you might actually need and negotiate those items upfront as part of the overall deal, rather than as afterthoughts in the finance office.

By hacking the car buying process this way, you can better control the transaction and maximize your savings. Eventually bots will take over much of this process so enjoy the experience with the sales guy as it might be the last time you ever do it -

Good Luck and Enjoy the New Rides!

Got an unsolicited text from dealer wanting my 19 F350 for a trade in yesterday. Replied not interested.

I`ve used Truecar.com several times and save me quite a bit of money. Fill out the information and they email, text and call you with many offers. I`ve had the call me in less than 10 minutes before. My advice it to ignore all of them for at least a week or two unless you just get a hell of an offer. I had one salesman text and call me for 3 months before I reached out to him and finally bought a vehicle from him. The deals will usually get better because each salesperson thinks you are negotiating or at least talking to another dealer if you aren`t answering the emails, texts or phone calls.. Also see what Carvana, Carmax or one of the other internet dealers will give for your trade. Dealers can find that information out also and they will know you aren`t just a tire kicker. I had several unsolicited dealerships email me with offers in 2023 after contacting Carvana and Carmax. I used that as leverage to get 1000 more on my trade last year.

On my last new vehicle I got 13% off a 53K vehicle by haggling in person.

If anybody would know this guy does, he buy's lots of stuff

I go in and tell them to make me an offer. If I think it is fair, I will take it (so maybe they left $$ on the table). If I think it is too high, I will walk (so they priced it too high). I tell them I negotiate all day and don't want to do it in my personal time. I had a salesman tell his manager this one time and it totally seemed to blow his mind. He told me that's the way things work in this business.

I like that style, Never heard that one before, I bet the salemans are floored when that happens

I shop around on the Internet until I see a deal I like and then go get it. Recently bought a RAM 2500 @ 22% off sticker and picked up a Jeep a couple of weeks ago @17% off sticker, those were the posted deals.

Lots of good info

If the guy I deal with has to leave and go talk to the sales mgr or guy behind the glass I don’t want him. Internet or fleet has been my best luck

And just because I’ll never forget, F Grapevine Ford and the Acura dealer in Grapevine

Grapevine ford is and will always be the worst.

Been doing it like this over 10 years. send the info on what im looking for and what is their best price, I even tried to give a guy my business but he couldn't match the price of the other dealer. Go in sign the paperwork give them a check and leave.

Bill Fick Ford was the easiest purchase I’ve ever made. They drove the new one to me, signed like 4 pages, and they took the old one with them. Only place I’d deal with on a Ford.

You'll get a better deal by financing over cash. You can pay off the balance after a couple months. Buy them together and trade together. What you have and what you want makes a big deal too.

I've found the best dealers who give the best prices in vehicle forums. Go figure.

One-way plane ticket is a no-brainer to save $10k.

Yep, we have purchased our last two vehicles from Bill Fick.

I don't haggle per se, but I definitely shop around online before buying a truck or car. I find what I am looking for and then reach out to dealerships asking for their best price and then once I get the best price, I send a text/email with the quote that has the best price to the other dealerships and then keep getting the best "new" quote and send that to all the ones that were above that quote and see if they can beat it, which the usually do. Repeat process until I get the best possible price at a dealership for the vehicle I am looking for.

I hate doing stupid things like that but…I guess not many people “game” their business model like that, or else it would be a losing money business model. You would think they would at least put some early termination clauses in the financial T&C’s.

The games. That's what I can't stand about dealerships. And they think they're "cutting edge" "Captains of Industry."

But a Tesla if you have the funds, I understand there is no haggle pricing

Get a truck and wrap it.

You really want to piss them off? When I bought my truck in June, they had it marked $14,000 below sticker. I told them I’d trade my truck in. I signed an agreement to their price of the truck, but when they brought the agreement for the trade in, I reneged on trading it in. The finance guy said that price was with trade in. I said nope, I read the fine print, that was sales price. He walked off, didn’t see him for an hour.

Now to be fair, the internet ad did say that price was with trade in, but the agreement I signed stated nothing of the fact, so I got one over on them, much like they always do on buyers.

I don’t negotiate, I find what I want at a price I’m willing to pay and I buy it, I don’t have time to listen to their [censored].

When they introduce financing and trade in, they now have a 3 piece shell game they can play.

Yep, lots of great advice to be found here. Good luck, and I don't envy you. I HAAATE the stereotypical dealership song & dance. (And like BIL said - because I remember, i will never set foot in another Clay Cooley dealership for any reason.)

My advice: Walk away at least once.

(Like BrotherinLaw said) if they have to go talk to their manager - walk.
If they say any nonsense like "this is below our cost" - walk.
Lowball on a trade-in - walk.
Excessive tacked-on fees - walk
Frankly, no matter how good a deal they make you - walk.

It never ceases to amaze my wife that either the sales manager or the finance manager always call with better deals, sometimes before we're a block away. I've walked offers on 4 trucks, 5 SUV's, a sedan, and a Can-Am Defender HD10...and they ALL called with better deals. (Well, all but one Cadillac dealership in Frisco, but I think we got profiled coming in wearing beat up jeans & boots with horse poo on 'em.)

Best wishes on your purchase/s.

Last two vehicles I purchased I only got sent to fiance guy, other time salesman took payment and gave me a receipt for vehicle, that was better, they never tried to do any upsales thru the finance guy.

Walk in the door and tell them what you want your monthly payment to be.

You joking right? That’s funny, I hate when they say that, “how much a month you want to spend”.

My standard reply is always '$0/month, and may I have another salesman, please.'

Yes it’s like waving an I’m a sucka flag.

Dang, found all the used F350s; they're hiding at Bill Fick.

Research the hell out of what you want to buy. Look for the best deal you can find on exactly what you want. Sell your vehicle private party...do not trade it in. Walk on the lot when you've found the vehicle you want to buy...never speak of paying cash for a vehicle when they ask.. and they will you tell them you definitely want to look at financing options.
When the sales man walks out you can take one of two routes, 1.) mess around with them for 2 hours haggling over price waiting while they drink coffee and talk about how Dak threw an interception in the 4th to lose the game in the back office then finally come to a price and go see the finance guy or 2.) when the salesman walks out tell him you will only deal the person who has the authority to accept or decline offers and if that’s not him point you in his or her direction. Now after you choose your option and settle on a price go into the finance department and have them run the numbers blah blah blah....get an agreed upon TTL price, tell them you've changed your mind and are going to pay cash, write the check have them call your bank to verify funds and drive away.

^...RIF

Get the price you want and Just pay cash

That's the way Holiday Chevrolet rolls , they want to finance it so they get a kick back from the bank . Pay it off in a few months . I feel like i'm scratching there back for them

Why 3 months? Is this that their minimal payment period? How much interest do you have to pay for those minimum payment periods and what are the upfront loan fees and other loan fees? This would off sets the additional discount you get off retail price of the vehicle. It is a lot of work/transactions for nothing, someone loses here, is it the bank that loses? It’s not the dealer I’m sure, since it seems like they encourage this behavior, they get a fixed kickback if loan is paid off early or not (what it sounds like). Either the consumer loses in the shell game or the bank. It would not surprise me the bank takes a loss on customers that just pay the minimum payment period, and make it up on customers that don't. But they are not dumb, they set those minimum payment periods and fees to minimize losses, at least break even.

My BS meter just goes off with this kinda nonsense.

I had the finance guy ask me to wait 3 months before paying my wife’s new vehicle off. We financed to get an additional $1k off the price. He read me well. Except the part about me waiting…..😁

Also remember the Fed gets involved with any cash deal of more than $9999.99. Not a big deal for most people that have that much cash but it is a thing.

When I bought my truck in 2020 they had a $5000.00 off deal if we used Ford Financing. Put 80% down and financed something like 20% and paid it off the next month. We also put the maxim amount on a credit card to get the points.

That's for someone that walks in with a suitcase full of cash? I’m sure the feds are all over that.

I never said I’m going to pay cash, I said I’m not planning on financing it. I hardly ever deal in cash, it is rare that I write a check.

I put everything on CC if possible, unless they charge a fee to use CC. If the bank pays the dealer a fixed kick back that does not change for early pay off customers, they are taking it in the pants. If the kickback is adjusted, probably still not a loss for the dealer as long as $5k off is profitable.

Dealerships aren't really negotiating on high demand/low inventory vehicles. Pick a vehicle that gives you negotiating leverage.

No ... a check is considered cash when buying a car.

A man's gotta have some walkin' 'round money.

That’s more than the normal “folding money”!

Had a young guy come in and buy his girlfriend a car and paid cash. Took the finance guy an hour to count it twice. All cash from one’s to hundreds.

Sometimes you just have to play the game with the Stealerships, same thing happened to me last October when I bought a new truck, they would not give me the same price to pay by cash/check, I wanted to get it done fast and did not have time to waste, they had the truck I wanted and I drove an hour to get it, they would not deal over the phone unfortunately.
I got there that morning tried to buy it, said for that internet price I had to finance, no big deal, I financed it, out the door with the truck in an hour, they asked me to wait 3 months to pay it off, lol, paid the loan off a few weeks later before first month was due. Doubt they got their finance kickback but if they wanted to play stupid games with pricing a vehicle I can play too.

Just play the game to get the best deal.

^ my daughter did something similar when she bought her MDX. She has no patience with car salesman.

If haggling isn't your thing, you’re not alone. How much you save by haggling can vary, but people often knock off a few hundred to a couple thousand dollars depending on the dealership, the vehicle, and how motivated the salesperson is to close the deal. It’s all about timing, the car's demand, and how desperate the dealer is to meet their monthly quota.Trading in your old vehicles is convenient, especially if you don’t want to deal with the hassle of selling them yourself. You won’t get as much as you might from a private sale, but it saves you time and effort. If you’re trading in multiple vehicles, you might get a bit more flexibility on the trade-in values as part of the package deal.

An approach that I read many years ago in Consumer Reports has always worked well for me. Basically, the goal is to get salesmen from different dealers to bid for the sale and the key is to make it obvious one of them is going to sell you a vehicle. Find a vehicle at each dealer and tell them you want their best price up front. No do-overs or using one quote against another to haggle over. Each salesperson has one honest chance to make a pending sale and earn a commission. You'll find out quick who has no intentions of working with you, who wants to play the haggle game, and who is serious about selling you a vehicle. I've always used a percentage discount off the list price based on a "drive off" offer to make it simple to decide. But again, the key is being honest at guaranteeing a sale to the person who offers you the best price up front with zero haggling. You'll come to enjoy saying "bye" to the ones who tell you to bring them a price to beat. And you'll also likely learn which salesperson knew at the very beginning they were making you an offer no one else would beat.

Not for an IRS Compliane form, It would be required of 10K cash, Not for check.

My dealership wouldn't let me use my Credit Card for purchase, they would let you put like a few thousands but not entire amount

Pay cash to Enterprise Vehicle Sales, or something similar. No haggling, get one transported to a city with one of their dealers for a fee. Go drop them a check, sign off and pick up your vehicle when it arrives. Easy. 1000% less stress and wasted time than dealing with a dealership.

I can't stand being lied to, is the main thing for me. If you're rich enough that your Lexus dealership has a starbucks and some kind of boutique, that's great and this isn't a concern for you. But lots of us watch our pennies! I'd say the overall stress of my purchase experience was about equal to picking up a used lawnmower off craigslist. I invested a bit more time on picking out the particular truck, but that was kind of fun. I understand that the trucks are often mostly used by management with Enterprise, and there weren't even scratches on the bedliner.

I've bought cars the old fashioned way, fully knowing every trick of the tongue and the calculator being pulled, and still had a horrible, stressful, stupidly slow experience. I've had dealers park behind me so I couldn't leave, try all sorts of nastiness, manipulations and mind tricks. Never again.

My experience: I worked alongside GM's Lemon Law claims processing/Arbitration, that sort of thing. I've studied thousands of sales documents and seen tens of thousands of repair orders. I wrote and taught a training program for my arbitration guys/junion legal agents on how to forcefully compel dealership staff to cooperate. I've been in contact with hundreds of dealerships' staff and watched many legal proceedings. I would never buy a new vehicle regardless, because I hate to burn money needlessly. I'm handy enough to figure out most of my own car issues so far, so no paranoia about having a car with a few thousand miles on it to start. I got a truck with under 11k on it through Enterprise three years ago and it's been the fastest, stress-free purchase experience, and best vehicle I've ever had.

This is only my alleged experience, I would never presume it to be representative of all dealerships.

^^Great recommendation and info. I've often wondered about Enterprise. Thanks!

I have heard that Enterprise is pretty good.

So if you have ever been a GM tech, you would not just avoid buying and Enterprise car, you wouldn't RENT one. Nice try. Not me.

We had Enterprise as surveillance vehicles. They were low mileage but ran 24/7 365. I would never buy one.

Yeah definitely, for the love of all that was ever cute when it was a baby, never willingly buy a surveillance vehicle at fair market! I can't speak to non-trucks or other experiences of course. You've got be carry your own water when picking the vehicle. Dig in to the vehicle a bit and get dirty checking for wear, repairs, bumps, misalignments, codes, bad fluid/lubes, to the extent of your knowledge/tools. While the oil filter is in an evil location, nary a mechanical hiccup yet, other than a visor piece that broke loose.... Going on 90k in this photo from last month. She ain't fancy but somehow she is just right for me in my dotage.

aint nothin wrong with that remo

3 more endorsements that Enterprise rocks! I'm more in than ever. The crazy and the Dodge guy cinched it.