how well can you negotiate out dealer

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installed accessories? stopped by a few Honda dealers in my area. they all had 2nd sticker with dealer installed add ons like sealant , striping , door edge guards. one even had a dealer prep charge. dealer prep one was odd as the factory pays them to do it.

Some of these add ons added $1 to $2 k on to the msrp. seems like they add it universally to every car. when i asked the sales guy about it he said that once its added it can't be removed. but of course it can be negotiated on.

i know this is just padding on to their bottom line. So what strategy can be used to knock it off in negotiation?
 
No doubt Honda is a good car, but there are other good cars available. Shop with your wallet, look at alternatives. Is a Honda Accord really $5-9k better than a GM or Ford, or Subaru, or Mazda ? I looked really hard at a Honda CRV, Rav-4 and other models: I ended up with a Ford Escape because it had far better towing, did not have a CVT, more power and a host of other reasons, and in the end it was less expensive. No way was I going to trust a CVT when towing Waverunners. You could look into one of the buying services like True Car- it will not be the ultimate best deal, but it will get you pretty close.
 
I loudly state that such addons are a huge turnoff while standing in the middle of the sales floor. I've never bought a new car with dealer adds but then I've never bought a Honda. Sometimes salesmen state that's so they can give me a bigger discount. To which I bellow "how stupid do you think I am? Loud and disruptive might not help but it certainly makes me feel better.

I also email offers stating I'll pay $x for your car. Take money off the top and add it all you want, it'll just lower my sales tax but the check will be for this amount.
 
Having sold cars I can negotiate quite well with dealers. The short story is get up and get out if you think they're playing games or playing you for a fool. They have one shot at making a deal with me, I do my homework first and have no problem walking out on them.
 
+1
That's been the strategy that my father taught me as a young man/car shopper. I have left dealer showrooms often when I've felt that my intelligence has been insulted. I quietly let them know that as well. I am seeing less of the addons today but, they're still there. I am also experiencing less sales person insulting comments & tactics that were once so prevalent in my earlier car shopping/buying years. And I am experiencing less of these practices from women and more from the men.
 
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Originally Posted by rubberchicken
You could look into one of the buying services like True Car- it will not be the ultimate best deal, but it will get you pretty close.


I didn't know what I was doing when I got the wife's new prius last summer (first ever new car) so I used Truecar for pricing and went with the only dealer who sent me an actual dollar amount. And I think I did better than I would have otherwise.

Notably, signing up for true car blats your name, email, phone number to dealers within a large radius who will hound you incessantly.

Said prius came with $750 worth of port-installed accessories, so the dealer was partially correct in that he couldn't take them off. It was dumb stuff like door bumper guards, trunk mats, and a "bumper applique" (bumper sticker.) I made him give them to me for free at the already discounted truecar price. One should understand the relationship between manufacturer, importer, (shady) regional distributor, and dealer.
 
One should understand the relationship between manufacturer, importer, (shady) regional distributor, and dealer.


You must also understand that services such as Truecar charge the dealer a fee. Last I heard it was somewhere between $300.00-$500.00. They are making that fee back somewhere!

From the TrueCar FAQ page

Is there a fee for using this service?
We do not charge you any fees for using the services. We ordinarily receive fees from our Certified Dealers in connection with the services. In some instances, we also receive fees from automobile manufacturers and/or third-party service providers.
 
Stop worrying about line items. Just focus on out the door price. The dealers do this all day everyday day except Sunday. They know some people come in all indignant about the add ons. They got you. Once you get emotional they win. Sure, they'll remove the add on fees and knock $2000 off to make you happy and think you won. Focus on the bottom line. I think they put in some line charges just to distract you.
 
The other big salesman turnoff:

"How much a month to get you into this car?"

Why would i borrow to purchase a depreciating asset? All this discussion just reinforces my belief that my future purchases will continue to be cash for Hertz.
 
Lots of excellent advice so far. Edmunds used to publish cookbook methods to car buying but I am not sure it is still available. They focused on finding the true cost (not sticker invoice) that dealers pay. As stated above, you do LOTS of homework beforehand and determine the out-the-door price before you put YOUR offer out. There is very little, if any negotiating. One of the key components is to know that beyond the public incentives, the manufacturers often have hidden/secret dealer incentives to move cars. This means that a dealer can sell some cars below what they paid for them and still make money. It doesn't work as well with very popular models.

Here's just one site that talks about determining dealer true cost: https://www.autocheatsheet.com/new-car/customer-rebates-incentives.html ....As stated above, you tell them the out the door price and let them finagle the numbers any way they want to meet that number. On my last purchase, they figured out a way to give me an employee discount. It was bizarre what they could do. Remember to be a little flexible and that the salesman needs to earn a living. Like many here, I bought my cars via email/phone and only entered the dealer showroom to inspect the car and sign papers. There's always one salesperson out there that is hungrier than the others.
 
Just email them and tell them what you are looking for model / trim wise, with or w/o dealer accessories. This is what I did almost 14 years ago when I bought our Odyssey. The dealer said he had one just arrive off the train and would reserve it before they installed accessories.

I personally won't consider new today. Too many good used options in the 3-4 year range (my opinion). I'll let someone else finance the depreciation
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All it takes is homework - how have to be prepared and knowledgeable BEFORE walking into a dealer - if not you have little idea of what can or can't get. And you have to be willing to walk away. You can't fall in love...you have to realize that "your" car is available, it just might be somewhere else.

You need to know inventory and price in your area. You need to know if there are other vehicles without dealer add ons...the price, the difference and if they can be taken off.
 
I've told this before and will repeat. IMO, the best way to negociate with a dealer is to STAY AWAY FROM THE DEALER. Figure out the car you want, email with your requirements, options you want and ask for a quote. Do this with 3-4 dealers, take lowest quote. Separate the financing from the price of the car. That is a separate deal (unless they have some type of factory incentive).

Dealers hate this becasue it takes the emotion and the chance for the salesperson to do add ons or mess with financing etc. I did this on a Honda Accord back in 2013. It was easy and I know I got a good price.

Any dealer that tries all these "add-ons" is out. Simple as that.
 
Originally Posted by WhyMe

i know this is just padding on to their bottom line. So what strategy can be used to knock it off in negotiation?



Just shop at a different dealer that doesn't do that. Either drive far enough away to find another dealer that doesn't do that, or don't but a Honda. I would not even consider buying a car that has dealer add ons.
 
Originally Posted by rubberchicken
No doubt Honda is a good car, but there are other good cars available. Shop with your wallet, look at alternatives. Is a Honda Accord really $5-9k better than a GM or Ford, or Subaru, or Mazda ? I looked really hard at a Honda CRV, Rav-4 and other models: I ended up with a Ford Escape because it had far better towing, did not have a CVT, more power and a host of other reasons, and in the end it was less expensive. No way was I going to trust a CVT when towing Waverunners. You could look into one of the buying services like True Car- it will not be the ultimate best deal, but it will get you pretty close.


Is it worth $9,000 more for that Honda or Toyota? No, but it might be worth paying more for a higher quality brand.

Years ago I purchased an Accord over a similarly priced Chevy Impala. The Impala had more options and was a couple grand cheaper - it really made me wonder if it was worth paying extra for that Accord - and maybe if I kept the car a couple years and only 30,000 miles, yes it would have been wiser to go with the Impala, but if you're keeping it long term?? Oh man, it would have been HUGE HUGE mistake.

That Impala (as I later learned about them because I later became a GM tech) was a money pitting nightmare. Intake manifold gaskets every 40,000 miles. Power steering racks. Struts. Crank sensors. Evap leaks. Alternators, power steering pumps, water pumps, condensers, radiators, steering shafts, rust, interiors falling apart, air bags, electrical. Meanwhile I drove that Accord to almost 300,000 miles with basic repairs/maintenance. Sold it with 289,000 miles on it, still running pretty darn good. No major component failure. Meanwhile that Impala would have needed to rebuilt three times over at that mileage.
 
I'm a Costco member. I've found that if I use the Costco program to purchase a car, many dealers will try to beat the Costco deal. That seems as good a method as any to eliminate the "dust n rust" protection upcharges.
 
One other thing to remember is that any time you're in a sales office alone, perhaps while the sales person is talking to their "manager", somebody is listening to your conversations on a bug. I've always found it valuable to lay on comments like "if they don't get down to XXXXX dollars, we're gonna walk out of here and go back to (insert name of another dealer here)".
 
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