Just got pre-approved for an Acura TL type S

They told me I still have to come in to figure out down payment and monthly payments etc......
does this "pre-approval" mean I'm set, as in I HAVE the car, just need to figure out the details of the contract? Or can I go over there and they basically tell me "sorry charlie!"??

I'd call and ask but it's late and I'm sure no one's at the office at this time
I tried online chat on their website but they weren't much help either.........

Another thing the car is around 25k, it's a 2007 with around 40k on the engine....any chances I could lower the price? by how much? any tips?

This would be my first dealer bought car

thx guys

 

Sounds like you'll get screwed.

Check the internet for the going rate for car loans, then shop around to find the best loan you can get, get approved for the loan, then go look at cars. at that point your monthly payment will be worked out BEFORE hand. Down payment means nothing, its just another #s game.

car is listed at 24K? check out the local car market but if it was me and around here Id aim for 21 OTD and wouldn't give anything more then 22K OTD

My bank as of right now is 4.5% for new or used up to 60 months and 5% new and used up to 72 months.

That should be the best you'll find outside of special promos offered by dealerships like 0%, or 1.9% if you use their banks and get those low rates they WILL NOT lower their price much of anything if anything at all.

Never go into a dealership find a car and work out payment options you will get screwed everytime.
and never answer the question, how much a month are you looking to spend.........

 

I went to BECU got my loan, then did it from there.

 

having worked in new/used car sales, i would go with jeffies advice.

DO NOT tell them how much a month you are looking to spend, tell them how much you are willing to give for the car.
dont be suckered into any dealer added shit, anything that they are trying to charge for, other than the actual car, tell them first hand to throw it out their ass.

it really is best to get approved financing through your own bank, and then just talk sales price with dealers, not financing.

they are asking 25? you offer 21 out the door, as stated above.
they say no? you tell them that you will go elsewhere and find somebody that will give you the price you want. theres always somewhere that will give a better price. they will start to let you walk, but then when they see you are serious their manager will conveniently "find the room to make it work."

but, the beauty of having your own financing ready, is that you can always find the same car, same condition, same mileage for MUCH cheaper from an individual. no dealer bullshit.

before you buy anything, have a trusted mechanic check the car over.

 

i'll hop in here for some advice too since ill prob be buying a car soon too. if you get a loan approved through a bank, does that mean you have to take it? like say you get 25k approved 5% for 60 months. can it wait in "approved" status until you go check out the dealer in case they give you a better finance rate? or do you just take the money, then pay it all back immediately if the dealer has a better rate?

also if your banks rate is better, and you work out a price for a car at the dealer. do you just cut the dealer a check for 25k (or whatever price it is) and then pay the bank back over time? also what is a good buffer to get on the loan? like if the car will be 25k base price (before warranty/accessories/tags/title/etc), should one take a loan for 30k to cover the other stuff?

just curious how all this works.

 

no you dont have to take it.


first, you work out your pre-approval with your bank, do all of the numbers there: total you can get financed for, down payment, percentage rate, monthly payments at the highest you can afford to pay. some banks will give you a check then and there for the full loan amount. some wont.

thats just getting approved, next you look for the car.

dealer: you go, look test drive, get fingered in the ass by some dipshit salesman who knows jack dick about cars.
find the car you want, let them fuck you around on the price, you know "my manager says we cant go any lower than this" "this is the lowest we can go, we're not making any money off of this car" "this is bottom dollar, they wont go any lower at all. "

they are all bullshit. take the price of the car, and subtract AT LEAST 25% and thats about what they have in total cost.

so, you already know all your numbers and how much you want to spend.
the car is 25k +ttl, and whatever else bullshit "special paint and interior protection" or their $100 wheel locks. whatever.

tell them you will give 22K out the door. that means total cost, you will not be paying over 22k at all. no matter what.
they'll say no. you walk out.
somebody somewhere will give you the price you want. remember that, it may take a bit longer, but its out there.

once a deal is struck, they will take you to their finance office. you already have your financing lined up, they will show you what their financiers can give you.
if you like your numbers better, call your bank, let them know who, what, when, where and why, they will fax over the proper paperwork.

done. dont let them try to bullshit you into any other special deals, and demand a full tank of gas.

Find a car on craigslist that you like?
go see it, talk numbers, have it inspected by a trusted mechanic.

then call your bank and let them know you found a car. go to the bank with total amount needed and get done. remember you still have to pay taxes too, so dont forget that. its usually easier to have the cash already in hand for buying from an individual, gives you more negotiating power.


at least, thats how i have seen it worked down here.


theres a lot of negotiating power in buying used cars.

go in there knowing what you are willing to spend, what you want for your trade in, and everything in general.

do not let them tell you what can be done, tell them what you want, and you will do nothing more. you name the price, you name the terms, you name all numbers. if they want a deal, they will make it work. if not, somebody somewhere will.

 

You get a preapproval from your bank, it will be a letter stating they are willing to give you 20-30-40-50K for a car, that shows the dealership proof that you do have money and they will allow you to take a car home with that info knowing that once its done the bank will write out a check for whatever you agreed to pay, at that point you pay the bank like any other loan, your agreed monthly payment.

If you go to any random dealership they might get the loan with BoA or any other major bank, dont think of a bank loan as any different then a normal auto loan, they are the same.

No you dont have to buy anything, it juts shows that you're good for the money.

Doesn't work that way, a new/used auto loan is NOT meant to be used on an individual seller, it is for use at a true legit business dealership. Rates for individual seller loans are different and will be a higher rate.

 

I like to demand a factory service manual for the car instead. And that they don't put their little 'Joe's Auto Barn' advertising stickers on the back. That one's a deal breaker for me.

 

great thread full of what looks like great advice - subscribing so i can read it vs. skim it later.

 

will they really do this? like, REALLY? id take a manual over a tank of gas

 

yes....

bank loans are usually good for 60 days. you can extend if you are still looking. if you let the loan terms expire, you will have to reapply and could lock in a higher rate due to dealership credit checks.

90% of banks will only give loans for cars that are from a dealer and/or less than 5 years old. it keeps you from being immediately underwater on the loan or from buying a lemon.

 

My dealership wanted to make me pay 15,800 when I first went to them. First visit, I came in with my own bottle of water, and declined anything other than a price/build sheet. I asked them what they had on the lot non-chalantly, but then changed my mind on colors just to keep the kid thrown off. I refused to talk price the first visit. I had the dealer so uncomfortable that he had to call over another manager, because he didn't feel like he could handle me. The important part is to show disinterest, so they don't get a good read on you. I may have said this before, but read all the HUMINT and counter-intel training you can get your hands on.

I then went to three other honda dealerships in the area, all telling them what I wanted to pay $14,000. I got all the three to fight each other, then when they all finally decided that 13,9 was the lowest they could go, I took the price that dealership gave me, then went back to the first dealership, and said "this is what I can get it for at this place, and two other dealerships. Let's play ball."

The dealership said 13,9 out the door was insane, so I waited two days before calling them back. The dealer called me, and said they could do 13,9 out the door, with tags, title, and all taxes. I said OK.

When I came in to talk price, we'd already agreed on price, I was just coming back to tell them what else I wanted. I wound up getting 6 free oil changes, but I asked for just the filters instead, which they gladly gave me. I told them that I have no problem walking out, and going to another dealership if they don't play, and they did. I got my car for exactly what I told them, and I've come back to that dealership to get parts, and to get my extra keys cut, just because they did a decent job with me. I didn't feel ass-raped, and I got exactly what I wanted.

When my dad drove my car and decided that he wanted a Fit too, guess where we went. Guess what kind of a deal he got. I went back to that dealership with a coworker, and went to the same sales guy, and I got him a killer deal on an accord too. And they didn't even put that stupid dealership sticker/decal on the car on his either.

 

Any dealership that wants to play the #s games with me pisses me off and I'll tell them straight up to not waste my time and clearly we cant make something work so lets not waste each others time going no where. You want to sell a car here's the money make it happen, I'll drive off today in it.

Too many people want to play the "buying car game" if you get into that game then you're price isn't low enough. and you're spending too much time there.

I'll say this much, I've owned my benz for maybe 8 months now, and could easily sell for a bit more then I paid from the MB dealership.

On the dealership side of things, its much better to have someone come in with a low price and walk away within 5 minutes with no car then it is to have someone come in for 2 hours and debate prices then walk away. Being up front with buying that day and paying that day = them really wanting to get a freebie so to speak.

Calling back 2 days later can hurt you, you're telling them that even though you said there's another car you're looking at or that you're not ready to buy, you really do want THEIR car.

 

Managers will talk to anyone almost every time a person feels they might have someone hooked.

For me, one of the first things I do if the sales guy seems like hes trying to pitch anything to me, I ask him for his manager and talk directly with them. Again, it's not about debating prices, it's about giving them just enough money that they know if they want to move a car they can right then and there.

 

I dunno how to read it then. The sales floor guy was definitely uncomfortable.

 

Ive never had an uncomfortable sales guy, when I say I have money and want to buy today, it tends to make them happy and they will do whatever they can to move the car, same for the managers. And if not, they are always nice on saying no, again, they're thankfully to not waste a bunch of time on a lost cause.

Sounds like he was iffy since you were trying to play him in your getting the price down game.

 

the key is research. know what you can reasonably get with your money. know exactly what others have paid and what you should expect to pay.

be pre-approved. it's like walking in with cash.

conversation should be pretty simple. " I want car X, in X color with X options. Do you have it?"

if they do, "i will pay $xx,xxx out the door. i know this is reasonable. can you do it. i have cash ready to go".

and if they can, then you are golden, if not go somewhere else or readjust your expectations.

remember, the more time they waste on you, the less they spend selling to someone else. i would rather make 2 sales in that period than 1 sales with the person nitpicking every $1000.

 

awptickes, what dealerships did you go to? and which one did you settle on and buy from? since you are in the same area as me (im in Chase, right down rt 40)

 

I'm screwed either way my credit it shot to the ground I tried shopping around regardless but just kept getting denial after denial so I'll have to go the dealership with some Vaseline and see if they'll go easy on me

 

are you actually in a position to purchase a car and not have issues making the payment?

chances are you just got a mass mailout from a dealership saying you are pre-approved.
its just a bullshit scam to get bodies in the dealership, and hopefully move some units.