I recently read something that made me cringe and if it doesn’t give you the same feeling, call me when you’re in the market for a car. Please!
“Chrysler Looks to Offer Fiat 500 Shoppers a No-Haggle Experience “ was the headline of the Bloomberg article.
It quotes the head of Fiat in the US as saying, “Chrysler Group LLC wants dealers to avoid haggling with shoppers over the price of the Fiat 500 when reintroducing its parent company’s brand to America, betting that will make young customers more comfortable in showrooms.
Sure, that’s exactly what every car dealer wants to do. They want to make you as comfortable as possible with free coffee, popcorn, and shiny new cars waiting for you to crawl inside and fall in love.
That doesn’t mean you have to feel that way when you walk into a dealership. Even if you do feel comfortable (soak your head in cold water if you do!), any time you’re on a car dealer’s lot, it’s a business trip for you and they’re going to take your money!
What does “no haggle pricing” mean to me? Let me translate: The car manufacturer, along with the dealer decides how much profit they’ll take on every vehicle they sell. In other words, they decide how much money they’ll take from you and you don’t have a choice.
Not only do they take as much money as they want; they also work much less harder to do so. You either buy the car at the price listed or not. No more offering a lower price and having them go back to the “manager” to see if they’ll accept the price.
The Fiat 500 is the car that Chrysler (owned by Fiat) is running this scam, I mean running this program with. The 500 is also a car targeted to be sold to the younger generation. Evidently, they feel that young people don’t care how much money they spend on automobiles
“The pricing is the pricing,” said Laura Soave, head of the Fiat brand in North America. “The younger generation doesn’t haggle. They don’t feel comfortable with it. They hate the experience.”
Well, isn’t that nice. Sparing the “Younger Generation” the pain of actually negotiating a fair price on a car because they hate the experience and don’t feel comfortable with it.
I think its Fiat/Chrysler who doesn’t feel comfortable with it and hates the experience, because they couldn’t otherwise charge what they’d like!
If you don’t mind being taken for an expensive ride, then buy one of these “no haggle” cars. If you’re like me though, do your homework on the actual cost of the car and negotiate until you get the deal you deserve!
If you’re in the market for a car and want an expert to haggle the price for you, contact me at ProAutoBuying.com or 401-965-3822, and I’ll get you the best deal possible.
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Certified Pre-Owned Cars
Certified Pre-Owned, Good as New?
Not quite but, it could be the right alternative for you when a new car’s cost is just too much and you’re concerned about buying a used car with problems.
Certified Pre-Owned or CPO’s for short have actually been around since the late 1980’s and began as a way for luxury vehicles most often leased, to be sold again with a lot of miles to go.
CPO’s have moved into the mainstream now so you’ll see the Camry’s and Accord’s as well as the Lincoln’s and the Chevy’s being re-sold as CPO’s.
What is the difference between a CPO and a used vehicle?
The first thing to know is that they’re both used vehicles but, the biggest difference is that the CPO car typically has a factory or dealership warranty that guarantees the vehicle in case you have mechanical problems.
A CPO vehicle depending on the manufacturer, goes through an extensive check up when it comes back to the dealership. Some manufacturers advertise that they have 150 point checks for these vehicles.
The standards for the condition of parts such as brakes, belts, clutch, etc. are pretty high on CPO’s. The rationale is that the manufacturer would rather have something replaced when the car is at the dealership rather than having the car break down on the road.
Also, if the car were to break down on the road as a CPO, the driver may lose faith in the manufacturers’ products and when the time comes to replace the CPO with a new car, the driver may look elsewhere if they’ve had issues with the CPO.
Certified Pre-Owned vehicles are more money than an equivalent used car with similar mileage and in similar condition. The reason is that the warranty (insurance) costs the dealer and/or manufacturer money and since they’ve repaired the car and backed it up with a warranty, you end up paying for that.
CPO’s are usually no more than 2 to 3 years old and have low mileage. The dealership would have to pay more to insure (the warranty) the car and the chances are greater that there will be problems the older the vehicle is and the more miles it has on it.
So is it worth paying the extra price for a CPO? Like most other considerations, it depends on your current situation. If you want the peace of mind that comes with having a “like new” used vehicle that’s warranted and you can’t afford a new car, then yes it’s probably worth it.
If the car is for your college aged son who likes to tinker around with the engine and other parts of a car, it may not be worth paying the extra money, especially if the student is basically driving to and from class once per day.
If you decide that a Certified Pre-Owned car is right for you, do some research on the vehicle you want, go to some dealerships to see what they have available, and negotiate the price of the vehicle.
In the end, a used car is a used car but, with a CPO you’re getting a vehicle that’s been thoroughly checked and is backed by a warranty. So enjoy the ride!
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If you're in the market for a new, used, or certified pre-owned car, contact us at ProAutoBuying.com and we'll help get you a great deal!
Not quite but, it could be the right alternative for you when a new car’s cost is just too much and you’re concerned about buying a used car with problems.
Certified Pre-Owned or CPO’s for short have actually been around since the late 1980’s and began as a way for luxury vehicles most often leased, to be sold again with a lot of miles to go.
CPO’s have moved into the mainstream now so you’ll see the Camry’s and Accord’s as well as the Lincoln’s and the Chevy’s being re-sold as CPO’s.
What is the difference between a CPO and a used vehicle?
The first thing to know is that they’re both used vehicles but, the biggest difference is that the CPO car typically has a factory or dealership warranty that guarantees the vehicle in case you have mechanical problems.
A CPO vehicle depending on the manufacturer, goes through an extensive check up when it comes back to the dealership. Some manufacturers advertise that they have 150 point checks for these vehicles.
The standards for the condition of parts such as brakes, belts, clutch, etc. are pretty high on CPO’s. The rationale is that the manufacturer would rather have something replaced when the car is at the dealership rather than having the car break down on the road.
Also, if the car were to break down on the road as a CPO, the driver may lose faith in the manufacturers’ products and when the time comes to replace the CPO with a new car, the driver may look elsewhere if they’ve had issues with the CPO.
Certified Pre-Owned vehicles are more money than an equivalent used car with similar mileage and in similar condition. The reason is that the warranty (insurance) costs the dealer and/or manufacturer money and since they’ve repaired the car and backed it up with a warranty, you end up paying for that.
CPO’s are usually no more than 2 to 3 years old and have low mileage. The dealership would have to pay more to insure (the warranty) the car and the chances are greater that there will be problems the older the vehicle is and the more miles it has on it.
So is it worth paying the extra price for a CPO? Like most other considerations, it depends on your current situation. If you want the peace of mind that comes with having a “like new” used vehicle that’s warranted and you can’t afford a new car, then yes it’s probably worth it.
If the car is for your college aged son who likes to tinker around with the engine and other parts of a car, it may not be worth paying the extra money, especially if the student is basically driving to and from class once per day.
If you decide that a Certified Pre-Owned car is right for you, do some research on the vehicle you want, go to some dealerships to see what they have available, and negotiate the price of the vehicle.
In the end, a used car is a used car but, with a CPO you’re getting a vehicle that’s been thoroughly checked and is backed by a warranty. So enjoy the ride!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you're in the market for a new, used, or certified pre-owned car, contact us at ProAutoBuying.com and we'll help get you a great deal!
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