Monday, July 20, 2009

How to Buy a Car and Not Get Screwed.

Repairs on our 2001 VW Passat were getting more costly, and it seemed pointless to waste money on repairs when we could put it towards a new car. So we took the plunge and went looking for a new family truckster.

Eric found this video on YouTube called "How to buy a car and not get screwed." We both watched it, agreed that it was pretty smart advice, and psyched ourselves up for car shopping.

Five tips for buying a new car:
1. Allow yourself two full weekends to buy a car.
2. Test drive at least three cars.
3. Get competitive bids from 8 to 10 dealers.
4. Sell your used car separately.
5. Don't buy any extras.

So what did we do? We went out last Saturday, test drove two cars (Ford Fusion & Nissan Altima), negotiated one price, traded-in our VW Passat, and bought a new car with an extended warranty.

Oh well. So we didn't stick to the rules. It was fun. And very low-stress, unlike most car-buying experiences. Plus, our sales guy was really nice. His name was Kevin. (I know 4 or 5 Kevins - all very wonderful fellas.) I highly doubt we got "screwed" on our purchase.

Introducing our new 2009 Nissan Altima. Wanna go for a ride?