Do your homework before taking that first step into a dealership
A car salesman once asked me in a negotiation: “How much do you want to spend for this car?”
The correct answer, it seemed, was obvious. “Nothing,” I told him. “I’d like you to give it to me.”
Stunned, he let out a nervous laugh, shuffled some papers on his desk, looked again at the invoice sheet for the car and waited for a real answer. The one he was not going to get.
Not then, not now. Not ever.
Because it was a dangerous question, maybe the most dangerous question in any negotiation. He knew the bottom line on the car -- the lowest price he could sell it for -- and I didn’t. I had an idea. But as a buyer, I wanted him to give me a number to work with. I was not going to give him one.
The scenario came to mind last week while I was in the Freeport, N.Y., showroom of Hassel Motors. Steve Jaworski, a likable guy with the cool title of “motoring advisor,” had just asked me how much I hoped to get on a trade-in of my 1999 Jeep Wrangler. He tossed it into the conversation -- a casual, almost offhand, curiosity -- and waited for an answer.
I had gone to Hassel for one reason: to inquire about a 2003 Mini Cooper S, the supercharged version of the bulldog retro sports car whose forebears stood the automotive world on its ear in the 1960s.
The idea was to find a version I liked, see what I could get on a trade of my Jeep, then walk out with a new car and some cash to pay a bill or two. To do this, I had to know some numbers, do some homework.
The first thing to determine may be the most difficult: What kind of car or truck do you want? And with what options and in what color? Narrowing your choices to two or three vehicles -- or one specific model -- is the best first move you can make. It makes it easier to comparison shop.
You can check out everything from crash ratings to list prices by checking online with consumer and trade publication sites, manufacturers and government sites.
For me, the choice was simple: The Mini Cooper and Mini Cooper S were the only cars on my list after I considered price, quality, options, styling and fun factor.
I then wanted to know what I could get for my Jeep. I went online to the Kelley Blue Book, which lists the trade-in and “book” values of used vehicles. I looked at the make, model and year, and concluded I wanted about $9,500.
That gave me an idea of what I could shoot for -- and, if I got it, what I could spend.
I next went to the Hassel Web site, which I found at Google .com. Most manufacturers and dealers have sites, and many allow potential buyers to choose a model, then “build” it on screen.
I sat for hours “building” Mini Coopers. Then it was time for a test-drive. And to negotiate. I brought the title to my Jeep, other personal information and a credit card, in case I wanted to make a down payment.
After much deliberation, I chose a car to negotiate for: a yellow and black Mini Cooper S. At $24,715, it was $3,000 more than I had hoped to spend. But it was loaded. And available. To order a custom car might take two months. I wanted mine now.
I was less than enthusiastic about the first deal Jaworski offered: $362 a month for 39 months at 15,000 miles a year. I also was less than pleased with his first trade-in offer: about $8,500.
I explained I had checked prices at Kelley. He told me the dealership did not use Kelley. I said: “Too bad.” He excused himself and met with the financial officer. They crunched numbers.
By the time we shook hands, he had offered me $9,400 for the Jeep and had structured my lease to reduce the payments from $362 for 39 months to $288 for 36 with the same mileage allowance per year, which was a big victory for me. And he had thrown in car mats and a CD case.
I had gone to buy a Mini in British racing green, electric blue or dark silver metallic -- all of which I loved on the computer screen but did not like as much in real life. Which is why you should never order a color combination until you’ve seen it.
The most important thing is to be prepared. Do your homework. Know your options. Only then can you make decisions that work for you. It certainly pays to be prepared. And flexible. I picked up my car Friday.
