Quote:
Originally Posted by frinxor
whats the best way to figure out how much to pay for a new/used car before going to the dealership?
New car you can go to Edmunds and check out the invoice price. But just send emails to the local dealers asking for the best price and compare those prices. Internet pricing is super competitive and many times we lose money to sell a new car. Look in the newspaper, if they are advertising a new car special that's always the loss leader, and it's way under invoice. If you want a car with more equipment then just ask them to match the discount, and pay for the extra options. Most dealers will do this
Used cars can be a little more tricky. Go kbb.com and look at the trade in, private party, and retail values. The dealer will want retail, but they took it in for around $500 under trade in value. Try to be somewhere in between those values. If you can buy the car out the door for under retail you are getting a good deal. Shop around online and have comparable cars, don't be afraid to show the salesman the other cars. We want to sell you a car, without you going to look at the others, 90% of people that leave never come back. Let them know your going to go look and they will try to keep you there.