(no subject)

[inahandbasket]

I hate cars.
Anyone know of a cheapish reliable car for sale? Wagon or hatchback that can fit an upright bass strongly prefered...
Used car dealer recommendations also hereby solicited.

/me sighs heavily and heads towards craigslist

(Silver lining? Now we can get a car that fits my wife as well as my bass for gigs...
And we were considering buying this year anyway but it appears that our hand has been forced.)

Comments

[secretlyironic.livejournal.com]

Well at least you'll be able to haggle aggressively...

If you don't drive a lot, MPG won't matter much, and you can get an *incredible* deal on SUVs right now.

[inahandbasket]

I don't drive often, but we take trips to NYC and Philly fairly regularly, so highway MPG helps a lot.
And I don't want to own an SUV frankly. heh.

[inahandbasket]

speaking of haggling agressively...
what makes you say I can? and have any tips on it?
I've never done this before. heh.

[krues8dr.livejournal.com]

Everyone's pretty desperate to sell in this market. Unless you're buying something that's in high demand (i.e., a hybrid), they'll be begging you to take it off the lot/their hands. Just say that you're poor, and you have a baby on the way, and that you only have (blue book - 30%) to spend (to start). :)

[inahandbasket]

right, lying is the path of true value!
^_^

[krues8dr.livejournal.com]

Lying is the path of arbitration. The whole point is to take advantage of those who would take advantage of you. :)

[inahandbasket]

indeed!
do onto them before they do onto you.

[secretlyironic.livejournal.com]

Now, speaking as someone who has never bought a car, but has spent an odd amount of time researching vehicles and the purchase process, here are my thoughts:

* Car prices are generally negotiable, and in tough times they are even more so. This has been just about the worst 3 months ever for car sales. New-car sales joints are still trying to move '08s; repos and job losses mean there's a glut of used machines on the market, and nobody wants to buy unless they're sure they're going to keep a job. And they're not sure -- hence Hyundai's new campaign, offering to buy the car back if you lose your job.

* On haggling in general: (See NYTimes this week... even department stores are apparently open to haggling).

* If you're going used, you can use CarFax or whatever to get a history of that specific vehicle so you know it's not a lemon.

* If you can avoid it, don't finance. Or get 3rd party financing from a bank rather than from the dealership -- at the very least, at the financing stage of negotiations, you can show them the bank's rate and make them beat it.

* It will take at least twice as long as you think it should, so be patient. They want you to get impatient and just get it over with and overpay.

* If you get a "certified-pre-owned" vehicle, make sure that both the dealer and the manufacturer are backing the guarantee and the certification, not just the dealer.

[beah.livejournal.com]

If you want to know about haggling for cars, ask mangosteen. It's just about his favorite thing in the world, and he will happily do it FOR you (and get you a great deal, by all accounts), if you ask.