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The internet has completely changed the way we buy cars. Twenty years ago, if a person wanted to research new and used cars, he had to schlepp down to the library and pore over back issues of Consumer Digest magazine. There was no leisurely cup of coffee while perched behind a computer for guy that couldn’t decide between a Chevy, Ford or Toyota. No, he had to go pound the pavement, visiting dealer after dealer, being subjected to sales spiel after spiel. No wonder drivers used to keep their cars a lot longer: who would want to go through that rigmarole just to get a new family sedan?

The arrival of the internet has changed the way car dealerships work. Nothing is secret anymore – with a few clicks of a mouse a consumer can find out trade-in value, the MSRP (Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price) on the new vehicle, the best dealer, available rebates and more:

• Know how much the trade-in is worth. Because any used vehicle’s trade-in value is so subjective (due to varying conditions, equipment, mileage, pay-off amount, or even color of the vehicle) it’s easy to be taken advantage when it comes time to trade a car. Prior to the internet, it was almost impossible to get a valuation on a vehicle without going to a car dealer. Today, websites such as www.kbb.com or www.edmunds.com help keep consumers informed.
• Figure out what sort of payment the budget can handle. Before there were loan calculators, like the one found at www.bankrate.com , the rough rule of thumb was that for decent credit, a buyer would pay back about $20 a month for every thousand borrowed, and a person with poor credit would pay back about $25 per thousand. However, using this rough rule of thumb was just that: rough. A visit to this website allows consumers to plug in different factors, such as loan amount, length of loan, percentage points in order to find the payment most comfortable with.
• Know how much car qualified for. If you currently have a preferred bank, visit that lender’s website to pre-qualify the loan. If not, go to www.lendingtree.com where one simple application will be reviewed by several different lenders, and all will make loan offers. Research the lenders and make a decision as to which loan will cost the least amount of money.
• Looking to buy pre-owned instead of brand new? Websites such as www.autotrader.com allow consumers to see the cars dealers have for sale and classifieds sites like www.craigslist.com allow consumers to find cars for sale by private parties.  Recently, sites like this website (iSeeCars.com) provide a search engine like Google that lets consumers easily search for car classifieds posted on thousands of car sites, saving users time and helping them find great deals.
• An invaluable website that will assist on the mission of used car buying is www.carfax.com For a fee of $39.99, Carfax will run checks on the VIN (Vehicle identification Number) of an unlimited number of vehicles. This will give all sorts of information that the dealer would rather remain hidden: was it a fleet vehicle, how many owners has it had, what sort of repair work has been done, what is the true mileage, has it ever been water-damaged or in an accident.
• The website www.is-it-a-lemon.com will inform consumers if the make and model of any vehicle has a bad history. There are also links on this website to assist with insurance, extended warranties and more.
• Go to www.nhtsa.gov to check any vehicle to see if it has ever been involved in a recall. This is also a good precautionary check for used car buyers, simply to see if there might be inherent problems due to a previous recall.
• *Just how reliable and honest is the dealership you’re considering? Check out www.ripoffreport.com for comments about the business. This website gives a forum for customers to sound off about their bad experiences. Granted, no dealership is perfect, and there will always be disgruntled customers for one reason or another. However, if there is comment after comment, or if there appears to be a trend as to how a certain place treats their customers, perhaps it’s time to check out a different dealer.

So go pour a cup of coffee, turn on the computer, skip the hassle and buy your next car.

If you have a question you’d like our experts and community to answer, please ask your question at http://forum.iseecars.com.  To start your car search, visit http://www.iSeeCars.com to find over 2 million cars for sale across more than 11,000 websites.

By Ali Koomen, who spent over a dozen years in the car dealership busines, provides her expert insights

“I know what you paid for that vehicle. . . ” or “Why don’t you dip into your holdbacks?”

There’s no other business where a buyer feels it is his right to know what the seller paid for the merchandise. Telling the dealership that it makes enough money on the holdbacks is just as presumptuous. Holdbacks help pay for costly advertising, and for flooring (interest paid to the manufacturer to have the vehicle on the lot) and other operating expenses.

Giving an ultimatum on price may come back to shoot you in the foot. The vehicle you just grandly offered to pay $200 over invoice for could be new to the lot and will most likely sell at MSRP or close to it, due to its desirability. On the other hand, you could be looking at a unit that has been there for months, the flooring on it has killed any chance of a good profit and all the dealer wants is to get the albatross off the lot. In a case like that, the manager may dip into the holdback, just to get rid of the vehicle.

Instead: Wait to see what the salesman’s response to the first offer is and take it from there.

“My payments cannot go any higher than $_______”

Payment shoppers are a salesman’s dream. It’s very easy to fit a vehicle to a payment by offering a different trim level, requiring more money down, changing the length or the terms of the loan, changing it from a purchase to a lease.

Instead: Don’t shop payments, shop the price of the vehicle. Go to www.bankrate.com and plug in terms, interest and price in order to find the payment desired; this will give a good indication of the price of the new vehicle you should be searching for. In other words, don’t look at a $30,000 truck if you need your payments under $300. . . .

“I’ve done my research!”

Most salesmen hate this declaration. So you’ve ‘done your homework.’ So what? The top three vehicle evaluation websites cannot agree on prices on identical vehicles. Besides, there’s a lot of misinformation on the internet, but a lot of people that have ‘done their research’ take it as gospel, when it should simply be points to ponder.

Instead: Don’t ever go into a dealership ‘unarmed’ , but keep in mind that not all information garnered online is correct. Use the info as a negotiation tool, not as something written in stone.

“I don’t have much time.”

A salesman might look at this as a challenge to keep you there long past your ‘deadline’. Or he may simply mentally dismiss you: why waste time talking to this guy when that couple over there looks ready to buy?

“I don’t have much time” is marginally better than the ubiquitous ‘I’m just looking’. No one goes into a dealership to while away the hours, everyone there is either gathering information with eventual intentions to buy, or wants to buy that day.

There is no ‘express route’ through the buying process. The salesman knows that it’s going to take time to show several vehicles, take one or two test drives, give his sales spiel, have the trade evaluated, negotiate the deal and put you into finance.

Instead: Let the salesman know that you’re there comparing his vehicle to a similar one in a different make, and there is no way you’ll buy until you’ve had a chance to test drive both. However, if you go with his vehicle, you will buy from him. Remember, vehicle salesmen work on commission only, and as long as he thinks there’s a chance he’ll get you to eventually buy, he won’t begrudge the time spent assisting you.

“I see that $30,000 vehicle there and I am willing to offer $18,000 on it” (or some other such ridiculous quote)

The salesman’s knee-jerk reaction will be “Don’t waste my time!” and he is right. Starting the negotiations at an impossible price just lets him know that you’re a jerk, or that you haven’t done even the slightest bit of research beforehand. Either scenario is going to start you off on the wrong foot.

Instead: Serious buyers should visit www.edmunds.com to get the TMV (True Market Value) and use the price given there as a negotiation tool. If the TMV on that $30,000 vehicle is $28,100, offer $27K. You’re not going to get it at that price, but a sound offer will correctly get the negotiation ball rolling.

If you have a question you’d like our experts and community to answer, please ask your question at http://forum.iseecars.com.  To start your car search, visit http://www.iSeeCars.com to find over 2 million cars for sale across more than 11,000 websites.

By Ali Koomen, who spent over a dozen years in the car dealership busines, provides her expert insights

A CPO vehicle is not brand new, but it is in such immaculate condition that it is really a misnomer to call it used. While there are many different guidelines as to what qualifications a used vehicle needs in order to be considered as a CPO, the three main characteristics are that the vehicle must be in great condition with low mileage and have original factory warranty remaining.

A ‘dealership certified’ pre-owned vehicle simply means that the place selling the car has checked it out and says it is a good car. A ‘manufacturer certified’ vehicle has gone through a vigorous check-up set by the manufacturer and covers everything from tires to interior to the mechanical components, brakes and more.

“Certified” has a completely different meaning from “guaranteed” but there is a common misconception that a certified car carries a guarantee. However, this is often not the case. Most CPO’s will offer the balance of the new vehicle warranty, which is nothing spectacular as most vehicles with remaining factory warranty transfers those rights to the new owner. Some CPO cars come with a limited satisfaction warranty, above and beyond the standard manufacturer’s warranty. Some may offer free loaners or rental reimbursement on repairs that take longer than one business day. Some CPO’s come with a roadside assistance program, and some dealerships offer special financing on certified vehicles.

So is a certified vehicle that much better than one that is not? That depends. First of all, the price on a CPO will range $500 to a couple thousand (depending on the vehicle) more than an identical vehicle that is not certified. For that, you’ll get peace of mind that comes in knowing the car has been thoroughly checked out, and there may be other perks as mentioned above.

Do keep in mind that it is possible to buy a non-certified used vehicle and have it turn out to be a wonderful car. Sometimes the mileage is just a little too high to qualify. Some vehicles may have too many minor things wrong to make certification. Occasionally the vehicle deserves certification but needs repairs that the dealership cannot afford. If a dealer paid too much on a trade-in or auction unit, there’s less wiggle room on the possible pricing when it comes to reselling the unit. In other words, if a vehicle up for certification was found to need a major brake overhaul that would cost the dealer $500, but it had only allowed a $200 get-ready allowance, the extra $300 would come from the profits made when the unit is sold. At this point it is a judgment call from the dealer whether the work should be done so that the vehicle can get certified and be worth an extra $500 or so, or if the vehicle should be left as is so the dealer doesn’t have to come any more money out of pocket.

Since all manufacturers and dealers have different guidelines for certification, be sure to research CPO vehicles just as carefully as you would a brand new vehicle.

If you have a question you’d like our experts and community to answer, please ask your question at http://forum.iseecars.com.  To start your car search, visit http://www.iSeeCars.com to find over 2 million cars for sale across more than 11,000 websites.

By Ali Koomen, who spent over a dozen years in the car dealership business provides her inside perspective on the car buying process

1. Asterisks and fine print: If the advertised price seems too good to be true, check the asterisks and fine print. Read closely– the price is good only after rebates (such as owner loyalty or college grad) that many buyers can’t qualify for. Or the price is the cost before ‘mandatory’ add-ons such as extremely overpriced Scotch-guarding and paint sealcoat. Or there’s only one unit available at that price. Or. . .or. . .or (Tip: Read all fine print closely.)
2. Trade-in taken hostage: You want to leave but suddenly it’s impossible to get your own car keys back. Common ‘excuses’ are. . . “Our appraiser is backed up”, “Our lot boy accidentally took it to the detail department”, “We’ve temporarily misplaced your keys”. Then the inevitable, “While we’re waiting, let me show you the numbers on the new car.”(Tip: Don’t give up the keys until you’re ready to work the deal.)
3. Undervalued trade-in: dealerships jockey the numbers to give the illusion of a great deal. Don’t be wowed by the $5,000 the new truck is ‘discounted’ if the trade-in worth $6,000 was only valued at $2K. (Tip: Sell the trade outright)
4. High pressure to buy that day: If a salesman says that the price given is ‘only good for that day’, he is lying. The only reason a price would increase in 24 hours is if there was a rebate situation ending that very day. (Tip: If he won’t let you think on it, take your business elsewhere.)
5. Puppy dog close: Once that adorable puppy is taken into a home, there’s no way he’ll be returned to the pound. The same with that new car. The dealership may offer to put the car on a BCA (Borrowed Car Agreement). The salesman knows that once you’ve taken the vehicle home and see how it looks in the driveway, you’ll be loathe to return it. (Tip: Don’t fall for the BCA unless you are serious about the vehicle.)
6. Iffy deal let loose: Similar to a ‘puppy dog close’, this tactic involves high emotion. The deal is worked out, the papers are signed and you’ve taken the car home. Then a few days or even a week or so after buying the car, the F&I department calls to say the original deal didn’t get bought. He’ll need another thousand or two down, or the deal needs to be reworked, meaning much higher payments. By the time the F&I guy calls with the bad news, the neighbors have all seen the new car in the driveway, friends are all envious and your family is in love with it. You’ll probably do whatever possible to keep it and avoid the embarrassment of having to return it. (Tip: Refuse to take possession of the car until the loan has been confirmed.)
7. Higher interest rate than merited. If the finance guy gets the loan ‘bought’ at 9% but tells you the best he could do is 9.75, he’s just made more money on the deal and raised your payments by about *ten bucks a month, or $600 over the life of the loan. *Based on a standard 60 month, $25,000 loan (Tip: Secure financing from your own lender ahead of time.)
8. 2.9% financing! No interest charge for one year! No payments for six months! Each and every one of these fantastic financing and payment options have a major caveat: only those with exemplary credit (scores in the 800’s) can qualify. (Tip: This is a way to get buyers into the store. If you don’t qualify—and few do—beware of the actual terms offered.)
9. Add-ons: Don’t let your guard down once the deal is worked out, because unless you’ve pre-secured your own financing, it’s time to face the dealership’s F&I department. And if you thought the salesman was pushy, just wait until you meet the finance person. He’ll push costly disability insurance policies, life insurance policies, extended warranty deals and more. The dealership makes big money in the financing process and the F&I guys are pushed to sell, sell, sell. (Tip: Tell the F&I guy that you know he has to offer all such policies but you are not interested in any of them.)
10. The dreaded T.O. The salesman is not the enemy. He’s just trying to sell cars. The manager, however, is evil personified when it comes to removing cash from your wallet. He seems like a nice guy, too, which is why there’s a middleman between the salesman and the manager, the T.O. person. If a deal cannot be worked with your salesmen, the manager sends in the big gun, the Turn Over guy, the Closer. The Closer wins more than he loses, and if you though the salesman was a bit pushy, you haven’t seen anything until the closer is let loose. (Tip: If you see the Closer headed your way, run!)

If you have a question you’d like our experts and community to answer, please ask your question at http://forum.iseecars.com.  To start your car search, visit http://www.iSeeCars.com to find over 2 million cars for sale across more than 11,000 websites.