A FORMER car salesman has revealed the three questions dealers hate you asking as they will guarantee you the best price.
Ray Shefska from Car Edge took to YouTube to share the handy tips with viewers looking to keep costs down at the showroom.
GettyAn experienced car dealer has revealed how to get the best bargains on your new motor[/caption]
YouTube / CarEdgeRay Shefska explained how three vital questions could save you hundreds[/caption]
Ray, who sold motors for 43 years, said: “I’m here today…to help educate and inform you to become an empowered shopper as to how to best save money when you’re trying to buy your next car.”
First of all, Ray urged drivers to always check the out-the-door price (OTD) of the car they’re trying to buy.
This is the price of the car combined with any taxes or other fees you need to pay, such as VAT.
Knowing the OTD allows you to assess the deal you are being offered without being stung by extra costs and to better compare the headline figure between multiple dealerships.
For example, some showrooms might appear to offer a car for cheaper than others, but they may make back some of their losses on extra fees.
Ray suggested always trying to negotiate and get the OTD down, especially by checking if all the fees are really essential and if they can be reduced at all.
Remember, dealerships are competing for your business so are likely to prefer making some reductions to losing the sale altogether.
Next, any drivers looking to trade in their pre-loved motor for a newer model should always be sure to try and maximise its actual cash value (ACV).
The ACV is the amount that the dealership would pay you to take the car off your hands and is different from a trade allowance, where a dealer gives you credit on your next purchase.
The former can often be more than the later so always check the ACV to make sure you are not losing out by trading the car in rather than selling it for cash.
You can use online comparison sites to see which brands and dealerships will give you the best ACV for your car.
As long as it’s higher than the trade allowance, simply ask the salesman to subtract the ACV from the OTD instead, plus any tax savings.
The last piece of advice applies to buying a vehicle on finance rather than outright.
According to the Finance and Leasing Association, car finance debt ballooned by 263% between 2019 and 2022, with £41 billion of Brits’ hard-earned cash locked up in vehicle agreements, making this top tip more vital than ever.
Ray emphasised the importance of being on top of the details of any finance agreement, including getting a clear understanding of the annual interest rate on the loan and how that affects your payments.
Dealerships are able to buy the loan from a bank at a lower rate that they then sell it to you for, but this can be negotiated.
It’s unlikely that they will sell the loan to you at the same rate they got, as that eliminates their profit, but dealers may be flexible on reducing the markup and possibly saving you hundreds every year.
Likewise, if you can afford to shorten the term of the loan you will end up paying less overall.
Extending the term may ease the monthly payments but it means you will be paying interest on the money for longer, effectively adding to the cost of the car.
Some dealers will also enforce a pre-payment penalty to prevent you from paying the loan off early, so make sure you know how much you can pay off and when.
Ray also advised motorists to check the costs of included products like insurance perks or extended warranties to make sure you aren’t overpaying.
He said: “They’re just going to want to pack it into your payment.
“You want to understand what their charging you so you can understand how it affects your monthly payment.”
Social media commenters loved the helpful tricks.
One wrote: “Really good information for most new car buyers.”
Another added: “This is great information: quick and concise.”
It comes after an expert mechanic revealed a hidden button that should make you think twice about selling your car.
Meanwhile, a luxury car dealer explained how he managed to sell a £200,000 Ferrari in a nightclub.