How To Buy A Car

Car Buying Tips for Students

As a student you already are juggling various priorities such as homework, a part time job, volunteering, dating and other activities.   This literally leaves no time for you for anything else.  Buying a car is a very time consuming process.  Below are some tips:

Before You Go To A Dealer

  • Start Shopping Online - You should do your initial research online.  Yahoo! Autos is a great tool to begin with.  Here you can shop for a new as well as a used car.  They have car inventories from dealers around the nation. You can simply fill out "Get A Quote" form and dealers will contact you with their price offerings.    You will be surpirsed to see how much prices vary for the same make and model from different dealers.  This will be a save you the hassle of going to individual dealers and cheking out what their inventory is. 
  • Used Car Dealer Beware -  Unless it is a car dealer associated with a repuated automaker such as Ford or Toyota, you should be careful about  going to a used car dealer.  If you are going to a non branded used car dealer then you should invest some time to learn more about their reputation.  Research online.  You will be surprised to see what you can learn abou them.
  • Car Loan Approval - Get your car loan pre-approved by a third party lender before you even step into a dealer's  lot.  This will allow you not only to bargain on a car price buy also the dealer financing if they have one.
  • Car Insurance Quotes - Get a few car insurance quotes for the makes and models you are interested  in. This way you know what it will cost you.  Dealer may be able to offer you better insurance rates through one of their partners if you have some quotes handy. If not then you have an agent lined up to issue you a policy at the time of the purchase.

When You Are At A Dealer Lot

  • When you go for a test drive, leave the emotion and excitement at home.
  • Take an elder with you.  It could be a parent, your manager at work or a mentor who has experience in buying a car.
  • Go with an objective to carefully evaluate the car and learn more about the vehicle.
  • Be cautious and do not jump into a deal or make comments such as I love it, I want it now.
  • The test drive is an opportunity to carefully evaluate all the features and handling of the car.
  • Ask as many questions as you can.
  • Ask the sales person to show you how each and every feature works.
  • Ask them for any other features you may not be aware of.
  • Evaluate if the seats comfortable.
  • Evaluate if the interior controls are easily accessible and usable.
  • Evaluate if there is enough head and leg room
  • Evaluate pick up of the car
  • Evaluate braking of the car
  • Evaluate steering handling  of the car
  • Evaluate Look, Shape, Dents Scratches etc. of the car. 

How To Make An Offer Once you have found your dream car, it is time to make an offer for it. Depending on the market and demand of the car you may decide to pay below the sticker price, at the listing or above the listing price. Below are some of the tips:

  • Make an offer for the price of the car only. 
  • Do not negotiate taxes, license or any other fees as a part of the price. There is no way around those costs.
  • Negotiate price of the car not the payments.
  • Before you even start negotiating the price, do your homework to see what your payments will be for the car. A lender who has approved your loan can give you the numbers.
  • Negotiate the car price before considering the dealer financing.
  • Once you and dealer have agreed upon a price then call your insurance company to get the insurance started.
  • Lenders do not care who you are insured through.  By Law dealers cannot require you to insure through a particular lender.
  • If you have any doubts or hesitations at all, just walk away. Buying a car is a big commitment. You must be sure about it.