Overhaulin'

Can I use my Visa to buy a car?

I have the cash to buy a car. i want to get the "points" on my Visa. Can I make this big purchase on my Visa?

Public Comments

1. Depends on your credit limit...
2. They won't let you do it...they will let you put the down payment tho. Maybe up to $5000
3. if u have the money to.
4. Typically, a car dealer would limit the amount you can put on your Visa. Reason? The credit card company charges them a % for the transaction. They let me put 1000 on the card - the rest was a banker's check (no, I did not take it on 5 years loan - i paid with cash)
5. most places wont let you, simply because they have to pay 3 or so % on the purchase, which they wont be willing to do on such a large purchase.
6. Yes you can. Although most dealerships will have a max limit as to how much you can put on the card. I think the average is around $1500. This goes for if you were going to make a down payment on a car you were financing too. My opinion, buy it in cash, don't worry about the points, even if you can pay the card off right away.
7. Yes, it depends on your credit limit. You also have to consider if you will be able to pay off all of the charge to your card when the bill comes in. Most interest rates on credit cards are much higher than a car loan through a bank would be. In the long run you would end up paying way more for your car if you charged it on a credit card.
8. Within your limit. Some dealers will not allow it because they pay a percentage of the transaction in fees, but I bought a jet ski with a visa just to get the points and paid it off when the bill came.
9. Yes, you can -if your limit is high enough. Heck, I've got an idea to get past the limit thing. Send a check today for your car to visa like you are paying off a balance. Visa will register you as having a credit balance! Then you can use the Visa card even if the car is more expensive than your limit because it won't hit the limit because Visa "owes" you $. Sadly, the car salesman has to pay a percentage of between 3 to 5 % of all transactions when you pay with credit card, so they will likely limit the amount you can put on the card or CHARGE YOU for the %. (They probably have a % on the high side like 5% b/c they probably don't do that much in sales on card to bring the percentage down).
10. Most car dealers may only allow you to pay up to $3000 towards your car via your credit card. Unfortunately for them they have to pay the credit card company as much as 2%-3% of the cost of transaction as a fee, and most dealers don't like to waste making that money. You are better off getting a loan from a bank or the dealer to pay for the remainder of the car price. Good luck! As for the mileage points, may be some other time. Mind you there are some automotive credit cards specifically to gain points to buy a car. You may be able to purchase a car with those credit cards. Check with the car manufacturer.