Overhaulin'

How do I pay for a new car in full and get the best deal?

I plan on buying a 2007 Pontiac Grand Prix GT. The cost is $23,000. I was planning to walk-in with $19,000 and take it off the lot. Is this possible or not realistic because of my amount is too low and the dealer would be hell-bent on financing. What's a realistic amount then? I'm not trying to come off as arrogant, but I don't want to deal with financing and paying interest on a car and car notes. I have a strict, well-disciplined saving strategy at my age 24. I've been able to save up money from my job, to pull this off and still have a security blanket of money left for worst-case scenarios.

Public Comments

1. Buying a new car is a bad investment decision to begin with. You'd be better off buying used and making payment, using the balance to invest or pay down any outstanding debt.
2. dude that's impossible. you have to pay properly or they will kick you out of the store!
3. From what I understand about buying cars is that you will still have to finance the other $4,000. This will definitely cut down how much interest you pay on the financing, but this is my understanding. Good luck with that and congradulations on being able to save money. Just remember it doesn't go with you when you pass on to the next realm....
4. your getting advice from clueless people with no $$. money talks folks, i usually get about 25% off any price off a $1000 plus cash purchase... your roll in there with cashm they'll be creamin... but i do agree, buying a new car is a bad investment, unless you know it's something you want to hold on to for 10+ years , which you dont want to for a car of this low caliber...
5. You need to let them know that you want the car for $19,000 WITHOUT letting them know you plan on paying up front. If they know you are paying outright, you will have a much harder time getting the best deal. The sales person can not determine the price, so he/she will keep consulting with the floor manager, or whoever has the ability to raise and lower the price. Act like you know what you are talking about. Get the internet price minus the processing fees the dealers are charging...those can easily be dropped and that is about $500-$800. The sales person really needs to make the deal, so get him/her in your corner. They will want you to finance the car, because they make the most money on those deals, but in the long run they just want to make a sale. They make horrible money without selling anything, so they really don't want to waste time with someone who is going to walk out the door. You may also want to get a few dealer prices so that you can let them know you have other options. knocking $4,000 of the price of the car is not completely unrealistic, but you may not be able to knock off the whole $4,000, especially if you have no trade in. What you may be able to do is get them to knock of $2,000 or $3,000 and throw some options in for you at no extra cost. I used to date a car salesman who in learning the business used to complain to me about all the horrible points of being a car salesman. In the process I learned the psychology of the dealerships pretty well and even managed to knock the price off an accord Hybrid down almost $2,000 not including my trade in. This is when they first came out and reports everywhere stated that you could not get a deal on these because they were so rare. Your nitch is that the salesperson does not want their time wasted and the dealer does not want the car on their lot longer than it needs to be. In the hybrid situation I actually picked up my cell phone and called my friend from the salesmans desk to see if he could get me the car. I told the salesman that I would get back to him in a few days and he actually chased me out the door and knocked the price off to what I was asking for. I even left at that point and called back the next day to tell him I would take his deal. Your not being unrealistic, and you need to keep that attitude so that you get what you want. Also you are in there on a really slow day, or week, you may get a better deal. Buy a car on the day of a blizzard...the car salesman were forced to come to work for some reason...the dealer is wasting money by having them there if they sell nothing.
6. First of all, congratulations. I never finance autos either. You will find that the first and last Monday of the month are great times to buy with cash. Bills are on the way, sales are slow and salesmen know that they will get their commission, in cash, that day. If one Monday doesn't work, try the next one. I don't know if you will be able to get the number you want, but I do know you are going to do significantly better than the asking price. My motto is "Just Ask", what are they going to do to you? We don't live in a muslim country. They won't cut your head off. If you live near a large metropolitan area you will have more flexibility as well. Small towns get all butt hurt sometimes and hold grudges. Large cities HAVE to compete. One other thing, look on the manufacturers website for discounts, rebates and other offers to support the price you want to pay. If they are already offering $2,000 off, what's another $2,000?
7. here's a link on ebay motors all NEW cars starting bid $100, goes up from there. I don't know of a better way