Buying a New Car

[BrianR]

How much does a dealer make on a new car anyway?

I am very close to making my deal now, say two more weeks.
I will have to order what I want and the dealer will either trade for it or get it from the factory.
My trade in is worth around $17,000 according to KBB.com.

[glatt]

We're probably going to buy a used car this weekend. Haven't chosen it yet, but once we do, how do we negotiate price?

We're looking on cars.com at mid-sized sedans that are recommended by Consumer Reports in the $6K to $8K range. These are going to be cars from around 2003, give or take, and have in the neighborhood of 100K miles on them.

Do I just randomly ask for $500 less than the price they are listing the car for? I'm not sure how I could find out what they acquired the car for, presumable when someone traded it in. It's not like I can get dealers competing against each other, because the supply is fairly limited. Whatever car I decide I want, there are going to be no other cars just like it on the market in my area. They will have different mileage or different options.

I assume the price tag on the used car will be negotiable. I'd like to negotiate from a position of at least a little knowledge. I won't have anywhere near as much knowledge as the salesman who knows what they paid for the car and what they will take.

[xoxoxoBruce]

Originally Posted by BrianR

How much does a dealer make on a new car anyway?

I am very close to making my deal now, say two more weeks.
I will have to order what I want and the dealer will either trade for it or get it from the factory.
My trade in is worth around $17,000 according to KBB.com.

If you're buying new, you can go to Consumer Reports (Consumer's Union) and pay $12 for the dealer's cost, shipping, wholesale on options, rebates, incentives(kickbacks) to dealers, and any other pertinent information. For a month you can log in and check for changes, which happen more often than you would think.

Now you know exactly what the dealer pays, which can keep you from getting raped, but don't be a dick. The dealer has to make a profit, apart from what they make on financing and selling your trade-in, or they won't be around long. You want them there, and on your side, if there's a problem.