Why does buying a new car have to suck so bad?

[thunderchicken]

Mine runs, but I also just repaired the broken air conditioning. It's a Charger R/T. I think R/T stands for rattles/ticks. It's a hoot to drive, but given the (lack of) durability of the front end/suspension, I think it may be made of ramen noodles or balsa wood. I have a love/hate relationship with it. Like a beautiful woman who is also insane, it's a lot of fun when it isn't causing me problems.

I'll not own another one.[

Prolly is what R/T stands for. As a technician, my dodge experience is limited mostly to Chargers, trucks and jeeps. If someone gave me one I'd get rid of it. Chargers have terrible suspension problems. Everything fails on them..struts, ball joints,sway bar links & bushings, lower control arms and tension struts...and I always laugh when I am reminded it's German engineered. Often their brakes suck too noisy ( sounds like grinding even with all new parts). Trucks and Jeeps have their own issues. There's good reason why Chevy guys and Ford guys but each others chops but our dislike of Dodge/Chrysler is pretty much universal

 

[thunderchicken]

Oh and the 3.7 V6 is a pile based on the 2012/2014. We have started seeing them come in with a misfire and have burnt up catalytic converter codes and misfire codes..the problem lies in cylinder head design and they have an extended warranty for it on the 2012s (not sure about the 14s yet). Also the cartridge oil filters fit in a housing/ cooler that bolts under the intake. 2 problems - 1 the coolers leak and 2 sometimes when you take the cap off the filter and slide it out, the little plastic drain back valve breaks and you have to replace the whole assembly. Every oil change is a roll of the dice.

Had a 2012 sent to the dealer with the cylinder head problem and after the 3rd replacement they put a new engine in it under warranty....but they had it for 9 weeks the last time

 

[exodus125]

Buy used... pay cash. You will feel better

Couldn't have said it better myself

 

[42769vette]

Last month I bought the first brand new truck of my life. It was a 2016 GMC Canyon Duramax. I found this place on the net called Laura Buick GMC in St. Louis. They would not budge on price 1 penny at all, but they were 9k cheaper than the next closest place on price so I didn't mind much. I think with the modern internet buying place dealerships dont negotiate like they once did, but you see more of a "real" price.

We have a local guy who rebuilds vehicles we always use, but he was going to be within 2k of what we paid, and Im not rebuilding a truck for 2k. When time comes to replace my truck (2007 duramax with 160k miles so It will be awhile) I will go straight to Laura.

 

[ghitch75]

i buy junk and fix it up.....much more rewarding....

 

[CHCRandy]

Sounds like car prices are about to hit the skids....used market is becoming saturated with prices falling and new cars are in a slowing cycle. Maybe they will offer some good deals before long.


Edit. Hard to believe a 2500HD is $10K more than a Corvette. Never thought I would see a day where you could buy a Vette cheaper than a dam old truck, but it has become quite common.

 

[Tactically Fat]

Last vehicle we bought, I searched online through the inventories of probably 25 different dealerships in Indiana and in "nearby" parts of Ohio.

Once I found a few things we were seriously considering (based on their advertised online price), we stopped at the dealership on one of our normal visiting-family-in-the-area weekend trips and actually test drove the vehicle.

I then proceeded to look up the "online sales guy's" information and dealt with him on the actual sale. I THOUGHT that I had low-balled them on my initial offer. But they accepted it. Should've gone even lower!

So - if y'all hate the hassle - do it online.

 

[Timjoebillybob]

I had a sales person actually use the line "I have to go talk to my manager". Last time I bought a car I used my Ins Co. (USAA) car service, they give you the price and add on prices for a car model so you can figure out if the "deal" is really a deal.

Actually sometimes the "I have to go talk to my manager" isn't a line. I knew a guy that was a new car dealer, and he had a "floor" he couldn't go under. The manager could though. He told me about some young guy that came in wearing jeans and a t shirt and was looking at the new Vettes. The other salesmen were chuckling and figured he was just looking and couldn't afford it. The guy I knew said screw it, I'm not doing anything better and went over to talk to him. The guy asked him if they would take x for the car out the door. The saleman asked him how he was financing, if he had a trade in, etc. The guy told him, no trade in cash. He asked him but how how you financing the balance through us or someone else. The guy said no financing, cash. The offer was lower than he could approve and told the guy he would have to check with the manager. Manager okayed, the guy pulled out his check book, filled it out and signed Dr. so and so. Told him to go cash the check at the local bank and he would be back tomorrow to pick it up.

Another time a salesman told my mom he had to go check with his manager after she made an offer on a used car. She made him a kinda low offer, and told him honestly that was all she could afford and if it wasn't enough she would understand. He came back with a lower price than what she offered.

And what's with all the Chrysler hate? It's not like they are a high point or glock? The one I had I loved, except for trying to find parts for the thing. It was a late 70s van that came out of their custom shop. I couldn't buy a friggen air filter off the shelf, they had to order it. And that was from Napa, Advance, Autozone and a couple of local shops. I could get oil filters, and spark plugs. Everything else was order. And if it was a young kid at the counter... Not sure how many times I had to argue with them that it was factory and not a swap. The older guys knew to look in the books rather than on the computer. The computer only had "standard options", the books had the custom shop. And yes the AC worked.

 

[CHCRandy]

Actually sometimes the "I have to go talk to my manager" isn't a line. I knew a guy that was a new car dealer, and he had a "floor" he couldn't go under. The manager could though. He told me about some young guy that came in wearing jeans and a t shirt and was looking at the new Vettes. The other salesmen were chuckling and figured he was just looking and couldn't afford it. The guy I knew said screw it, I'm not doing anything better and went over to talk to him. The guy asked him if they would take x for the car out the door. The saleman asked him how he was financing, if he had a trade in, etc. The guy told him, no trade in cash. He asked him but how how you financing the balance through us or someone else. The guy said no financing, cash. The offer was lower than he could approve and told the guy he would have to check with the manager. Manager okayed, the guy pulled out his check book, filled it out and signed Dr. so and so. Told him to go cash the check at the local bank and he would be back tomorrow to pick it up.

Another time a salesman told my mom he had to go check with his manager after she made an offer on a used car. She made him a kinda low offer, and told him honestly that was all she could afford and if it wasn't enough she would understand. He came back with a lower price than what she offered.

And what's with all the Chrysler hate? It's not like they are a high point or glock? The one I had I loved, except for trying to find parts for the thing. It was a late 70s van that came out of their custom shop. I couldn't buy a friggen air filter off the shelf, they had to order it. And that was from Napa, Advance, Autozone and a couple of local shops. I could get oil filters, and spark plugs. Everything else was order. And if it was a young kid at the counter... Not sure how many times I had to argue with them that it was factory and not a swap. The older guys knew to look in the books rather than on the computer. The computer only had "standard options", the books had the custom shop. And yes the AC worked.

I got a friend who is one of Andy Mohr's top salesmen, he told me he sells at least 1 $50,000+ truck a week......and 9 out of 10 times it is for cash. That kind of surprised me. If anyone wants a good guy to deal with, let me know and I will pass along his name.

 

[lovemachine]

For me, newer vehicles are so expensive. And you see so many of them on the road, makes you wonder how people can afford them.

I want to buy a used truck, but the ones in my price range have more miles than I want.

 

[CHCRandy]

For me, newer vehicles are so expensive. And you see so many of them on the road, makes you wonder how people can afford them.

I want to buy a used truck, but the ones in my price range have more miles than I want.

I feel the pain. I need a new truck terribly, my F-250 has 345,000 miles. I have to have 3/4 or 1 ton though, and they are just so expensive it is cheaper for me to rebuild my old one. You know, there is a guy in Clayton that will take you to the dealers auction for a small fee.....I have been told you can get some good deals at it. The downside is you have to have cash or financing lined up, because once he bids he has to pay....he can't back out. May be worth taking a trip to Adesa to just watch and see what they are selling for. They get a bunch of lease returns at that place.

 

[CampingJosh]

I got a friend who is one of Andy Mohr's top salesmen, he told me he sells at least 1 $50,000+ truck a week......and 9 out of 10 times it is for cash. That kind of surprised me.

Just for clarity, "cash" to a dealership just means their financing department didn't get involved. If I bring a check from my local bank, the dealership can't tell if I'm drawing from my own checking account or a bank loan.

 

[femurphy77]

Talked to a dealer last year. I told him what I expected on trade and what I'd pay, he said he couldn't do it. I'm still driving the trade and they've called me 3 times since sweetening the deal each time.

No thanks!

 

[femurphy77]

Sounds like car prices are about to hit the skids....used market is becoming saturated with prices falling and new cars are in a slowing cycle. Maybe they will offer some good deals before long.


Edit. Hard to believe a 2500HD is $10K more than a Corvette. Never thought I would see a day where you could buy a Vette cheaper than a dam old truck, but it has become quite common.

Trucks supposedly have a HUGE profit margin. Soccer moms and weekend warriors keep paying the asking prices so they'll continue to be over priced! A co worker of mine has a 4 year old GMC loaded out 4wd that he paid 65k for, when he went in to talk trade last fall they offered him 11k for it! I told him if he was seriously willing to let the dealer spread his cheeks that I'd pay him the trade value for it.

 

[CHCRandy]

Trucks supposedly have a HUGE profit margin. Soccer moms and weekend warriors keep paying the asking prices so they'll continue to be over priced! A co worker of mine has a 4 year old GMC loaded out 4wd that he paid 65k for, when he went in to talk trade last fall they offered him 11k for it! I told him if he was seriously willing to let the dealer spread his cheeks that I'd pay him the trade value for it.

That is insane Murphy, but sadly it don't surprise me. You know, I have often wondered how hard it would be to build an affordable work truck.....there really isnt that much to them. If a company like Tesla would just go in to making true work trucks, that were affordable, they would make a fortune. Of course, once you throw in all the government red tape, that probably doubles or triples the cost of making one.

 

[BE Mike]

I had a sales person actually use the line "I have to go talk to my manager". Last time I bought a car I used my Ins Co. (USAA) car service, they give you the price and add on prices for a car model so you can figure out if the "deal" is really a deal.

USAA will do the whole deal for you, including finding the car you want (new or used). My daughter and SIL just bought a one year old used car and USAA did the whole thing for them, including making them the loan. They say they got a good deal and just had to go to the dealer, sign the papers and drive away. My next car, I'll have USAA do all the work.

 

[GodFearinGunTotin]

Sounds like car prices are about to hit the skids....used market is becoming saturated with prices falling and new cars are in a slowing cycle. Maybe they will offer some good deals before long.


Edit. Hard to believe a 2500HD is $10K more than a Corvette. Never thought I would see a day where you could buy a Vette cheaper than a dam old truck, but it has become quite common.

Are we comparing top of the line trucks to top of the line vettes? Top of the line vettes will run you over $100k.

 

[CampingJosh]

Of course, once you throw in all the government red tape, that probably doubles or triples the cost of making one.

I'm a small-government guy, but I will say that the huge increase in safety we've seen in vehicles over the last 50 years has been driven largely by regulations. Seat belts, air bags, crumple zones, etc. We used to have over 5 deaths per billion miles driven. Now it's barely over 1. (Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_motor_vehicle_deaths_in_U.S._by_year)

We're always willing to pay extra for fancy seats, sun roofs, sound systems, and the like. But humans as a whole are bad about understanding the benefits of increased general safety, and so we don't want to pay for it. But I'm glad we have it.

 

[steve0322]

I hate the process of buying a new car too, we just went through this buying a new car for my wife a few months ago. Internet shopping is a valuable tool, saves you some aggrivation and wasted trips to dealerships. I've walked out of dealerships several times because I didn't like the salesman. One dealership wanted to talk us into leasing no matter how many times we told them we didn't want to lease a car. Some will try to talk you into what ever model car they have on the lot even though it's not even close to what you are looking for.

We ended up buying a car at Stoops Buick GMC in Plainfield eventually and had a very positive experience. Salesman was laid back, professional, and we got a good deal.

I bought my car from Stoops Buick in Plainfield and had a positive experience as well. I was armed with information and my credit union pre-approval. They didn't try to screw with me or anything. It was all very straightforward. My GF and I had another positive experience at Ray Skillman Kia on the west side. We had our info and financing and all that was left was a little negotiating. We got everything we wanted with no runaround. We originally went to Andy Mohr and walked out after dealing with an inept salesperson. That was the 3rd strike/walkout over a 10 year period with them at 3 seperate dealerships. We'll never step foot on their grounds again.

 

[KMaC]

While the shopping and test drives are time consuming, I've never minded buying a new car. The internet has made the educational process a lot easier. If you know what you want and what it should cost, it really isn't a bad experience. Don't take the negotiations as a personal insult, don't be afraid to say no thanks to the finance manager's offers for insurance/undercoating/clear coat. Don't expect to get the best deal in history, the dealership has to make some money. While I will buy guns from internet dealers I wouldn't buy a car sight unseen.