… are giving both honest ones a bad name!!!

Wife needs a newer car, AT LAST, so we started a search a couple of weeks ago. It’s surprising that #last on our original short list has jumped to a very high position. That is until what just happened.

This AM we went to a Nissan dealer on Rte 46 that had an advertised price of $19K. With bs charges and fees (are you sitting for this?) total… $26K!!! That’s $7K in bs. So, I asked for an itemized print out of the transaction they’re proposing. This shows $4k for ‘Certified…’. The details of this comes out to be: they’re selling me the remaining portion of the Mfr original warranty (that’s included FREE with the car) that stays with the car. The rest of this $7K bs charges inc. $900 ‘documentary fee’ (clerical bs); $340 Registration. Balance is $1600 sales tax and misc. tiny mandated stuff.

Any thoughts?

run away!

This was my last experience buying a used vehicle a year ago. An advertised price is not the actual price, as so many fees are removed from the advertised price. In some cases the advertised price didn’t include a predetermined down payment. 

If this was used, the documentary b.s had already been processed when the car left the lot. I hope you countered with an offer $20 + tax. And tell 'em to just transfer the registration from the present car to the "new" one.

Better yet, I hope you just walked.

New adventure today.

Went to another dealer; they use CPO as an another term for an extended warranty.  So $20k became $23K (those are NOT the actual numbers.  I forgot the real ones) plus other ad’l add-ons.  CPO is listed with the purchase price NOT listed with optional items.  I said an extended warranty is an option and I don’t want the optional warranty.  Lots of other bs charges and fees(over $1K).

I objected to the CPO and a bunch of bs fees.  The ‘closer’ came over and we talked then he went to check with the ‘boss’.  $3K CPO, an integral part of the price, was cut in half, several bs optional items were dropped immediately.  They don’t want to negotiate on $1k  doc fees.  

This dealer refused to give me a printed copy of any working papers.

I walked.

Next stop --- when you meet with the closer, summarize what experience you had and that you have walked from two purchases. The objective is to let them know that you can and do "walk."

I showed the closer the printed work sheet from the first guy and commented, “I’m here today…not there”

I gave up on used car sales through dealers a long time ago because of this BS.  Doc fees, add ons that can't be removed, mysterious charges that can't be removed and general disrespect towards me.  Route 22 Toyota sold me a used Saab with brakes that wouldn't work, so the car wouldn't pass inspection. It was just young enough that NJ law required them to sell me a car that would pass inspection or be responsible for the repairs to make it pass.  They stonewalled me for over a month until I threatened to report them to the AG and then suddenly they were willing to pay the Saab dealership down the road to fix the car and inspect it.  

Spend a sec on FB marketplace or Craigslist and see if you can find the same car in similar condition from a true private seller(lots of dealers try to list as private sellers through both platforms).  See what the discount is over the dealer, and if your comfortable with the risk for how much you'll save. So much of the CPO programs amount to nothing, the only thing that has teeth is any factory warranty that remains and is transferrable to you. Then take it to a trusted mechanic for a pre-purchase inspection.  Once you get the report from the mechanic, you'll be in a good place to negotiate.  

If you can find an original owner selling his or her car, that is your best bet. Just make sure the original title is in their name. this will save you thousands of dollars over at dealership.

Some more follow-up:  I was mistaken about what happened at dlr. 1.  Let me explain-

We started our search looking at Hyundai Kona,  Hyundai has a 10 yr.  100K mi. power train warranty.  I didn’t adjust my thinking when we were at Nissan.  They have more common 3 yr. 36K warranty.  So dlr. 1 was trying to load on the extended warranty as “CPO” just as dlr. 2 did.  Not dishonest just wildly sleazy.  All else is the same.

Today:  just received a call from dlr. 1.  We have another appt. with dlr. 1, this time with sales mgr.  They consistently have among the lowest prices listed (with the hope of a high add-on factor).  

Let’s see what happens.

jeffl said:

If you can find an original owner selling his or her car, that is your best bet. Just make sure the original title is in their name. this will save you thousands of dollars over at dealership.

yes, but make sure you have a good mechanic lined up to give the car a once over.

Out here in Ohio, I bought a used car last year, and it was generally a good experience. I dread car shopping, partly because I suck at negotiating, but I found a dealer that was very low pressure and I got a good deal.

Apollo_T said:

… are giving both honest ones a bad name!!!

Wife needs a newer car, AT LAST, so we started a search a couple of weeks ago. It’s surprising that #last on our original short list has jumped to a very high position. That is until what just happened.

This AM we went to a Nissan dealer on Rte 46 that had an advertised price of $19K. With bs charges and fees (are you sitting for this?) total… $26K!!! That’s $7K in bs. So, I asked for an itemized print out of the transaction they’re proposing. This shows $4k for ‘Certified…’. The details of this comes out to be: they’re selling me the remaining portion of the Mfr original warranty (that’s included FREE with the car) that stays with the car. The rest of this $7K bs charges inc. $900 ‘documentary fee’ (clerical bs); $340 Registration. Balance is $1600 sales tax and misc. tiny mandated stuff.

Any thoughts?

Avoid Springfield Nissan, they added all sorts of crazy fees AFTER we'd agreed on a price. Fees they claimed were mandatory were absolutely not. Pushy and dishonest.

Komarovsky said:

 Then take it to a trusted mechanic for a pre-purchase inspection.  Once you get the report from the mechanic, you'll be in a good place to negotiate.  

This sounds like a great idea but, having been through this a year ago, I never found an owner selling a used car privately that would allow me to take the car to my mechanic for a pre-purchase inspection. Not a one. I offered a deposit to be held until the car came back from the mechanic. Nope. I said that THEY can take it to a mechanic. Nope. 

This is a nice idea but alas a dream. 

ETA: as I mentioned here on MOL at the time, I had a very good experience with Hudson Honda in West New York. It's a mostly Spanish-speaking dealership but I was treated very well and got a very good deal on a used CRV. A year later, I'm still happy with that experience and with the car. 

The_Soulful_Mr_T said:

Komarovsky said:

 Then take it to a trusted mechanic for a pre-purchase inspection.  Once you get the report from the mechanic, you'll be in a good place to negotiate.  

This sounds like a great idea but, having been through this a year ago, I never found an owner selling a used car privately that would allow me to take the car to my mechanic for a pre-purchase inspection. Not a one. I offered a deposit to be held until the car came back from the mechanic. Nope. I said that THEY can take it to a mechanic. Nope. 

This is a nice idea but alas a dream. 

ETA: as I mentioned here on MOL at the time, I had a very good experience with Hudson Honda in West New York. It's a mostly Spanish-speaking dealership but I was treated very well and got a very good deal on a used CRV. A year later, I'm still happy with that experience and with the car. 

I've passed on good looking cars for that very reason, and also bought three cars that each owner has allowed me to get a private inspection in advance of the sale, and passed on two based on the results of the inspection.  Maybe because these were "enthusiast" cars the owners were more willing?  

How to Get a Great Deal on a Used Car

I’ve had a little, mostly good, experience with private sellers.  In the past I got my leads from Star-Ledger classifieds, but I don’t even know if they still do those ads. Other than that I have no idea where to look.  Seems that a few folks want to sell their used car for used dealer asking price.

I don’t know what Facebook is.  Heard of it but don’t understand what it is.  Whenever I’ve for an explanation people say it’s social media.  What’s social media? Reply: It’s like Facebook.  Would it be a trustworthy source?  Have you used it to find a good deal on your used car?

Apollo_T said:

I’ve had a little, mostly good, experience with private sellers.  In the past I got my leads from Star-Ledger classifieds, but I don’t even know if they still do those ads. Other than that I have no idea where to look.  Seems that a few folks want to sell their used car for used dealer asking price.

I don’t know what Facebook is.  Heard of it but don’t understand what it is.  Whenever I’ve for an explanation people say it’s social media.  What’s social media? Reply: It’s like Facebook.  Would it be a trustworthy source?  Have you used it to find a good deal on your used car?

Facebook marketplace is the digital version of those old classifieds, people will post cars they have for sale with pictures, a description, their price and their location(and anything else).  You contact them through facebook and then it's just like negotiating any other private party sale.

The other option is Craigslist, which is less popular these days, but still has plenty of cars for sale on it.

All the rules for dealing with people on either platform are the same, get their name, phone number and an address to meet them at.  Check to see the address is legit before you go anywhere and tell someone where you're going.  Make sure they show you a legit title with their name on it, no one else's and that the VIN and car details match exactly.  Run a carfax and an autocheck if you see the car and like it and of course, try and arrange a pre-purchase inspection with a mechanic.

ril said:

Avoid Springfield Nissan, they added all sorts of crazy fees AFTER we'd agreed on a price. Fees they claimed were mandatory were absolutely not. Pushy and dishonest.

They’re all the same.  We went to a different dealer with a low advertised price.  Sleazy slime balls!  Tried to add on $5k in bs fees, just like the other 2 scamsters.  They all refuse to provide anything in writing when I aksed for a print of their proposal.

Quite frankly I don’t know why the AG hasn’t prosecuted some cases as bait and switch. Any MOL lawyers to give their insights will be greatly appreciated.

I went to Honda of Madison to shop for pre-owned vehicles.  The salesman tried to sell me his own car.  Such a sleaze.