|
When I bought my car in June here is what I did:
1) Looked at all the cars I wanted to get printed out all the information I could on them from edmunds, kbb, etc. and then went to the dealership and drove them. If one of the dealerships told me I couldn't drive the car, I figured they didn't want my money so I left.
I told them I was starting the process of looking at cars and needed to drive them all. When they asked for a timeline I said somewhere around 2 months (I had started looking in late April, early June).
2) Once I had narrowed down the cars to around 3 I went and test drove them all again and then talked numbers with them. I told them I was getting closer, but had some more looking to do. One of the dealers told me that buy his car was different from other cars - so I left - and was down to two cars to choose from.
3) The last two cars I looked at on the same day one right after the other. I drove the first car, got a price from the dealer and told him I had to drive the other car. If the other car wasn't what I wanted I would drive right back to him and buy it. If not I would call him and tell him my choice.
4) I bought a car the same day I drove the last two.
If you feel uncomfortable or ignored at a car dealership - leave. It is a omen as to how they will treat you once you buy the car and try and get work done on it.
As far as payments and such, I paid a little over 1/3 of my car's price after TT+L, I think most sites recomend paying at least 20% upfront to avoid being upside down in a loan.
If you have no credit or very little credit, try and get one of your parents (if they have good credit) to co-sign w/ you so you will be able to get the lowest APR possible.
With insurance, call everyone and get a price.
|