Buying Cars

[steve-in-kville]

I quickly remembered why I don't like car shopping

I despise it.

Glad to hear I am not the only one

There are two used car lots in my area that I am comfortable dealing with: Brubaker's Auto and another on the east side of Lebanon. Last time I bought a vehicle, my wife's cousin came along. I am not a car person and he is.

[Ken]

Last time I bought a used car it was to help my daughter in college replace a car that was totaled when she was rear-ended.

I only had one 3-day weekend to get the job done while visiting her from out of state so I just used CarFax to see what was available, hit all the dealer lots in the region, and she wound up with a Kia Soul bought from a Subaru dealer that she has since put over 100K on so it has turned out to have been a reliable car. Did we get the best possible deal? Probably not. But we got a reasonable deal for a reliable car that didn't have some sketchy history. So it all worked out.

For new car shopping I only do it online and have the deal done on paper before even visiting the dealership. But that was all pre-pandemic when cars were abundant. I would not want to be shopping today when the popular models are all scarce.

[Ken]

I despise it.

Glad to hear I am not the only one

There are two used car lots in my area that I am comfortable dealing with: Brubaker's Auto and another on the east side of Lebanon. Last time I bought a vehicle, my wife's cousin came along. I am not a car person and he is.

Bringing someone else along to act as a contrary voice is a great strategy for dealing with dealers. Even if they aren't a "car person". Just having someone around to say within earshot of the salesman "I don't know, I think we should go back to that other dealership, that car was a better deal and I think you liked it better" can light a fire under them to make something happen.