Biggest Car Buying Mistakes And How To Avoid Them

You’ve fallen in love at first sight with a car and you’re determined to get it? Take a deep breath and let the emotions cool, you may be committing an irreparable mistake. When buying a car you must be prepared, well-informed and capable of reasoning calmly about the purchase. Rule number 1: Preparation. Investigate before you buy so you can judge correctly when dealing with opportunistic salesmen. The BuyingAdvice team did some research and has prepared useful automobile buying tips ranging from car financing to negotiating with your card dealer. These are the top 10 car buying mistakes and how to avoid them.

• Not knowing your credit history – Most people will look for a new car before inquiring about their credit status. Unless you will be paying cash for your new car, your credit history will play a major role in your automobile financing options, interest rate and bargaining leverage. You are legally entitled to have a free credit report from each one of the 3 major credit bureaus every year. To get yours, contact Equifax, Transunion or Experian; or visit Annual Credit Report. This way you can also make you’re your information is accurate and correct any mistakes that could lower your score.


• Not looking for alternative sources of auto financing – Before you go shopping for a new car, go shopping for financing. Don’t think only auto dealerships can finance your new car. Credit unions, banks, and online auto financing have competitive options you can look into. In some cases you can even negotiate the interest rate for your dealership financing. You should be able to know what you can afford before you set out the door for your new car; in some cases it may even be better for you to lease a car.


• Window-shipping at the dealership – Going online and searching for your new car new car you like is easy and highly recommendable. If you step into a car dealership without knowing what you are looking for, you may easily fall into the tricks of cunning salesmen. There is a wealth of free information and reviews on the Net, take advantage of this.


• Showing emotion in the showroom – Yes, it’s exciting to find the perfect car but if you display your excitement the dealer will get the upper hand and the new car price won’t be going down. This love at first sight may keep you from having an open mind when seeing other options and it decreases your bargaining leverage.


• Not knowing how much the car really costs – With all the online resources available, there is simply no excuse for ignorance. Compare the car’s local prices and the dealer’s invoice prices online so you can start negotiating at the invoice price and never go beyond the average price.


• Not knowing how much car you can afford – There are two numbers to keep in mind. The final price and the monthly price. Above all, always keep the final price in sight. Once that is settled you may start thinking what the monthly price is going to be. As a rule of thumb, the total car payment (for all cars you own) should be no more than 20% your total net income.


• Talking trade-in too early – The new car price is determined by the amount of cash a dealer can bring in on a certain car. Don’t start the conversation mentioning you want to trade-in your current car. If you do so, you may get a great deal for it but that’s simply because the new car’s price will go up proportionally to the deal their making for your used car.


• Doing it alone when you need a helping hand – - If haggling is not your thing, recruit some help. Auto buying services are available online to help you get the best quote from dealers in your area. Whoever you call for help, make sure they are armed with plenty of automobile buying tips.


• Falling for expensive add-ons – The final moments of a car buying experience may be the most crucial. Before you sign the final contract, the dealer or financial manager may bombard you with add-ons like extended warranty, satellite radio, roadside assistance and other services that may be useful but overpriced. Don’t jump into any of their offers if you have not made your research beforehand. Remember be prepared and compare prices in advance.


• Buying the wrong car – If you follow our car buying tips this shouldn’t happen, unfortunately, many customers fall victim to selling tactics or buy the new car they like instead of the one they need. Focus at all times on what you need. You are not obliged to buy anything no matter how long you have been discussing buying a particular car. You can always walk away and compare at other car dealerships.

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