I went to a used car dealership since the car I wanted is no longer produced, the S2000. I test drove the one and liked it enough to want to negotiate a price. So when going into the office to negotiate pricing, they immediately asked if I wanted to finance (and how long it would be) or pay in cash and told me the pricing for each. I was sitting there like wtheck, since the price they wanted in either payment was over $1.5k MORE than their advertised price. I asked if that was the lowest they could go and they said "I could take a few bucks off." Is this common behavior for used car dealerships? I left the dealership since it was an utter waste of time. Well luck was on my side, since my sister's friend was selling his S2000 (he is a honda mechanic so its an unofficial certified car for less).

 

since it's an s2000, they're thinking you're drooling so bad you'll pay anything. please don't fall for their lies and manipulation. did you ask them how the price could be above their advertised price?

anyway, hope it works out with your sister's friend!

 

^
What he said. Basically you'll play games at most dealerships. Good advice would be to not appear hungry or dead set on any particular model. Also feel free to walk away. If they are hungry enough, they'll come back after you in the parking lot. Having multiple S2000's to compare and look at also helps, but those will be hard to find. Dealer may get his higher dollar because of that.

 

The story described by Darkdream is common, even for new car dealers. The dealer's job is to make as much money as possible. Unless they have an interest in earning your repeat business, customer service simply does not matter.

 

Though I haven't actually bought a car from them myself, I've had several experiences at Car Max shopping with friends for used cars (some of them also are new-car outlets). It's not usually the absolute cheapest place to get a used car (remember, you often get what you pay for)...but Car Max shops, overall, seem impressive and reputable. Their sales-reps are paid salaries, not comissions by the sale, so there's no incentive to price-gouge. Each car is clearly marked with a price-sticker including the processing-fee (no attempt to hide it).....state tax, of course, is extra. There's no price-negotiation...each car is sold at list, and the list-prices, though not the cheapest, are generally reasonable. There are impressive, large, clean service-facilities that can usually service just about anything they sell. And, after the deal, when it's time to drive home, cars are delivered to customers in the delivery-bay virtually as clean and spot-free as a brand-new vehicle.

http://www.carmax.com/

 

Well the guys at the used car dealership wanted $1.5 more than what they advertised. It was not because of taxes, processing, etc.

Anyways I purchased the car from the honda mechanic.

 

I remember when i first saw S2000 brand new at dealership... salesman told me "dont even think about it, ha ha ha"... then few years later It was my turn to laugh when I was buying new car :-)

 

Congrats! I was looking at an S2000 for a beater car but I couldn't find one for what I was willing to pay in a condition that was acceptable to me. That car is sure a looker!

 

congrats! looks awesome. so how did the price on the one you bought compare to the price (with or without the extra 1.5k) at the used car place?

 

Dealer may get his higher dollar because of that.

 

Used car salesman, lawyers, and politicians old Willie was right let's kill them all lets kill them tonight.

A lawyer died and went to heaven. Saint Peter personally greeted him and said "welcome, welcome let me show you to your new house" on the way the lawyer sees this nice house and asks " is that my new home?" saint Peter says "no, no that's a missionaries home" they move along and he sees another nice house and asks again, "no no that's of a nun that helped the poor" then the lawyer sees this huge huge mansion, he asks "who's house is this? It must be of a saint"! Saint Peter smiles an says "no, this is your new house" bewildered the lawyer says "how can I have a better house than a missionary or a nun?" Saint Peter answers "we have plenty of nuns and missionaries here but you are the first lawyer"

 

Backstory?

I don't get it. What was he implying when he said "don't even think about it?"

 

Price was 4k cheaper than the other with 1.5k extra (it has 15k more miles though). Well it was a honda mechanic's car, whose only reason to sell was his fiancee wanting to start a family. The car is was definitely babied. The big plus is him giving me an unofficial warranty, plus willing to service the car for pennies on the dollar to which the dealership would cost for any maintenance services like replacing the clutch when the time comes.

 

Daughter bought her beater pickup from a mechanic. If you're going to buy from a private source, that's the way to go. Even a halfway decent mechanic wouldn't beat up his DD. The old truck's in great mechanical shape, just looks bad. It helps that he's panting after her like an old hound dog - so repair work is really cheap! She has no interest in him at all, but when a smile can be exchanged for installing a pair of new rear shocks . . . Work it, girl!

 

You did the right thing by walking out. That's sleazy and pisses me off to no end. Idiots like that give us a bad name.