Excitement and Fear

That was my plan all along.

 

Get a solid price on the car right now. Don't wait, do it today. In no way would I have even started a transaction with the dealer without having the final price including tax and license. It is good that you haven't gotten a loan commitment or purchased anything related to the vehicle because if the price the dealer gives you is bad you can walk with no risk involved. All deposits are refundable even when they say not. They cannot keep a deposit for services not rendered.

Before an insurance company will insure a vehicle they will need the VIN number. The dealer should be able to provide you the VIN number days before the car actually arrives. Toyota communicates these details to dealers on a regular basis. After you have the VIN number you can get the car insurance ball rolling. The insurance company will need to know the exact pick-up date in order to provide you coverage when you pick-up the car. You might even be able to use the insurance start date as a leveraging point to keep the dealer from forcing you to take the car before you want to.

I have dealer financing through Toyota Financial. It was a pleasant experience and at the time the interest rate I got beat all of the local credit unions. Maybe my experience is the exception, not the rule, but I will say that financing through the dealer through Toyota Financial is a straight forward process. TF will also debit your checking account directly either on a recurring basis, or on a one-time demand basis. TF also has a wonderful web site. I was able to take advantage of the recent college graduate program because I had just graduated from grad school a little less than 2 years before I completed the purchase (I got this rebate just under the bar). So, don't sell off dealer financing through Toyota Financial. Toyota Financial is a very sophisticated lender and I have been happy with their customer service.

Nearly all of your car buying transaction will occur in the F&I office. The dealer will be the one that hashes out the price of the vehicle with you, but after that it is handed off to F&I to finalize. You will end up signing state licensing documents, new car odometer disclosure, purchase and sale agreements and possibly a few other documents. If you were to finance through the dealer's connection to Toyota Financial you would have to sign a note and security agreement for the loan. Most dealers have pretty aggressive F&I operatives and as such they will push various extra services, starting with extended warranties and moving onto expensive scotch guard, expensive wax jobs, and so forth. Avoid them all. If you want an extended warranty get it here at Priuschat. Everything else they offer is overpriced, if not outright snakeoil.

As for your credit union. When they approve you for a loan most credit unions are conservative enough that they don't just hand you a blank check. They will want, on paper, the final and total price or the total remaining due on the vehicle so they can generate the check to the dealer for the exact amount. Some credit unions will deliver the check to the dealer themselves at a time before or after the signing of the purchase paperwork, and they will work with the dealer to release the car to you when you go to finalize the purchase. Others will hand you the check written out to the dealer and will let you finalize the purchase on your own.

A few national car lenders are using the blank check system which means that you become approved for a maximum loan amount. The lender sends you a blank check that you write to the dealer when you make your purchase. The check get cleared and the dealer gets paid and the amount of the cleared check becomes your loan amount. Ingenious system, but much more risky until the lender receives title to your vehicle. It is possible that your CU may do business that way, but I think it highly unlikely.

Most importantly, get a solid price right now and try to get a VIN right now.

 

Hi Olends,

Study http://www.carbuyingtips.com/scams.htm and especially study the "scam" section. Role play with someone if you have to so you feel more confident when you're at the dealership. I did that with my parents when I bought my first car MANY years ago, and now I'm like a pit bull at the dealership.

The most important advice that was given to me that I'll pass onto you is....always be willing get up and leave if you feel you aren't being treated fairly, or the dealer starts getting pushy, or you sense that the dealer is trying to get one over on you.

the website I mentioned above is fantastic and will empower you with information so you won't be taken advantage of.

Good luck!

 

Lots of good advice here.

1. You really NEED to know, ASAP, whether this dealer is going to sell to you for MSRP, $3000 over, $5000 over, whatever it is. Whoever you're dealing with may tell you on the phone. You don't want, nor need, to pay above MSRP (BTW, tell us if you don't understand something one of us says ).

If they say it's above MSRP, I'd make ONE negotiating attempt ("I know I can buy one at MSRP, so if you won't sell to me at that price, please refund my deposit").

2. Immediately after determining MSRP or not, ask if there are any "dealer add-ons", such as "paint protection" or "fabric protection" mentioned above. If they say "yes", ask if it's an OPTION or "mandatory". If the latter, I'd also ask for my deposit back then, too. Unless, of course, you WANT them. But they're high-profit, next-to-worthless things (IMO), and most people can't even tell if they've been DONE!

3. You need to have an understanding with the dealer, if you want the '06 tax break, whether the dealer will hold the car for you until 1/2/06 if it comes in Dec., and, if so, for how long. Many will hold a car for a few days---maybe up to a week. But they're in the business of "moving the product". So IF they say they won't hold it if, say, it comes in the day before Christmas, your next question is, "then do I keep my place on the order list for the first one that arrives in January?" They may tell you you "have to go back to the end of the line"! Then, again, I'd walk.

Chances are, if you've talked with them for any length of time, they sense your newness to the car-buying process, and it'd be a miracle if they didn't try to take advantage of you in some way. It would be understandably hard for you to be able to react quickly and firmly enough with them if they do. Is there a relative or friend who's been through it (preferably more than once) who would accompany you the next time you talk with them (or even listen in on an extension phone, and give you a signal if something "bad" comes up---at which time you could simply say, "I've got to go---can I call you back, or come and talk with you personally?").

4. They don't call the Finance Office the "cooker" for nothing! It's designed by them to be a one-on-one experience, where they often take advantage of first-time buyers, sometimes with all sorts of last-minute surprises. If I were you, I'd have someone with you on this occasion, too.

5. If your cash flow permits, I'd pay cash at the time of paper-signing for as much as you can: floor mats (if they charge for them---usually $186), documentation fee (should be under $100), license fee, even sales tax if you can swing it. I've never understood why people are willing to pay interest for 5 years on these things. Try to finance just the car itself!

6. If you want a vanity plate, tell the dealer BEFORE you go in to get the car.

7. This is just me now, but I'd buy---not from the dealer---either a black vinyl front-end "mask" (some say "bra") OR an applied front-end "clear coat" shield within 48 hours of getting the car. If you want, PM me and I can tell you where to buy and how much it would cost. This will be important if you're serious about keeping the car a long time.

8. Do you know how to check tire air pressure and check oil? If so, do it right before or right after you pay. If the oil is overfilled, or the tires improperly inflated, ask to have them "made right" before you leave. If you can't do those things, again, take someone with you.

Good luck. Post follow-up questions if you want.

 

I live about an hour south of you..

I would go to an online source & check their rate. I have done 2 loans through Capital One. They give you a check that is good for 45 days, that is at a certain rate, with a minimum & maximum loan amount. You have the ability to close the loan anytime for the exact amount you chose (within the approval amount).

It is very convenient! Apply online, they mail you the check & loan package, even overnight mail for a fee. While you're online, get some auto ins quotes at Geico, Progressive, Amica... LowerMyBills.com is a great place to look.

 

If you already have a policy with an auto insurance company, call and ask what their policy is regarding new car purchases - many have a grace period and will let you drive the car off the lot and inform them of the particulars later.

Many banks and credit unions will wire the funds to the dealer's account. Again, ask.

 

I have a Verbal commitment from the Internet Sales director for MSRP

I haven't asked this, but i assumed that it would be itimized on the bill of sale, and i could just refuse them at that time.

Since the expected arrival date of my car was 12/31, should it actually arrive on time the sales person said that they would hold it until the new year.

Unfortunately i am going it alone, but for some reason, the internet sales guy fears the power the Priuschat. I think he knows one bad word from us would really cost him alot of business.

My plan was to say no to everything. If possible I was wondering if i could get a transcript of what may happen in this cooker.

Using the Excel sheet given here at Priuschat I calcualted that the car after tax and tags would be 30221. I from the get go, had planed to put 6k down on the car, and that has not changed. the loan i planned to get was a biweekly paid, for 104 payment. or 48 months.

I'm just happy to get the car

I never liked Car bras, If i was ever to take it off, i'd have one clean strip and the rest a dirty car.

I would say, Duh, college graduate. but then again, I dont know how to buy a car.
but yes i do know how to do thoes things.

I looked at eloan and capital one their current rates for perfect credit is 5.65%
i'm a bit young so my credit is not as established as some others are. my credit unions current rate is 4.90.

Maybe someday after i get the car, we'll have an Upstate club meetup?

I will be required to get a new policy before I buy the car.

I will ask the Credit union, I just didnt want to seem like a car loan moron and have them decide i was too stupid to loan money to.


I want to thank you for all the information you have given me, and I do hope you continue to heap it on, This is most excellent, and i thank you all again.

 

Go to the Consumer Reports website http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/home.htm and read their excellent advice on car buying.

It may be too late for you, but realize that it is very expensive to borrow money to buy a new car.