How to negotiate used car price

I'll add that I successfully negotiated a 30% discount on the extended warranty. I buy them on used cars from the dealer.

I have never suggested a price first. Ask the seller if that is their best price. Let them start. It may be lowere than what you were going to start with.

Know your comps first. Go to Edmunds and Kelly Blue Book, plus other car sellers.

Do your research first to see what a reasonable amount would be. Figure out what the blue book value would be (factor in mileage, extras, condition of tires, etc). If there are things wrong with the car, point those out and ask if they will reduce based on those things. If they can't come down in price, can they throw in free or reduced service maintenance (or tires at "cost" for example).

Pam

It will depend on where you get the vehicle. I work for a dealership. People still think we put thousands into our pricing. We don't. With internet shopping today- we can't. With one click you can see where we fall in the market and we have to stay relevant.

IF the car is new to that dealership, there is probably a little wiggle room. IF it was a trade- probably a little more. I can say that it is very rare in my store that we would be able to give you the pricing you are looking for as stated.

Our was very accurate and very little wiggle, we paid cash so we got some but not more than $800 off. we did get a lot of extras after the fact service wise that we loved and had value.

We have bought two out of our last three cars from carmax. There is no haggle which we love. The price on the sticker is the price of the car. No running back and forth to the manager. My husband researched to see what the cars were worth and selling for other places. The only reason we didn’t buy the third car there is because we bought it new for reasons the older models did not have the features the new models have.

You have some good advice here. My two cents is to be prepared to walk away. Offer a fair price and if you don’t like how the transaction is going, walk away. We’ve avoided some problem cars that way and gotten money knocked off of other cars.

I'm getting read to buy a new used car for DH.

I started by going to ebb.com, Kelly Blue Book, and pricing the model I wanted in several years and mileage brackets. Then I went online to the various dealers and checked what they have in inventory. One has a the model I want with the mileage I like for the low end of KBB's recommended price. The dealership puts the VIN on the website and they have it set up so you can pull the CarFax up at no charge. I've bought 3 cars from them before, so I know that the online price is the lowest they will go.

When I go to see the car, I'll let them know I'm willing to pay the internet $ and taxes tag and title, but no dealer fees or junk fees. I'm paying cash and there's plenty of inventory at all the dealers, so if the sales guy plays games, I'll walk. I usually buy the warranty since we always seem to need it, but I'll push hard on that and will end up paying $50 to $1000 less than they originally quote me.

The best strategy is to go informed. Start by knowing what the actual value of the car is, and it's much easier to negotiate.

You want to see maintenance records - no records means you'll either want to pay less or you'll want to negotiate that the bring all the maintenance up to level. If the car is at 100k miles, insist that they either provide documentation that the 100k tune up was done or that they agree, in writing, to do it free of charge asap. I take a legal pad with me and make notes of anything the sales person and I agree to or discuss and then I take out my pad and go over my notes, very obviously, when I'm going over the paperwork.

Take a coin and check the tires. If the tread is low, ask for new tires. You might not get free tires, but you may get a discount. Again, get it in writing.

Our best deal ever was when the dealership offered free tires and oil changes for life when you bought a used car. We got new tires every year and oil changes every quarter for 9 years. LOL If someone hadn't hit that car, we might still be getting free oil and tires.

Marcy

       Hertz rental car has a dealership that sells their used cars, there are several located in Southern California, at least 2 in my immediate area. We did have to replace the tires shortly after purchased, because the car had more that 40,000 miles on it, and they did need replacement. Mechanic inspection went well. My cousin had worked for Hertz and felt they took good care of the cars.  And I have bought a car through an auto auction before, so I am aware of the difference.