| Debra Vaughn is a stay-at-home mother to three girls. She is a freelance
writer in her spare time. Debra Vaughn also edits and publishes The Family
Budgeteer.
|
About 2 months ago my family grew by
one more. When we had our baby, the reality that we could no longer
fit our family into a car hit us. Our back seat simply would not fit
2 car seats and a carrier car seat. So off to the the dealership we
went to buy a mini-van.
After browsing several dealerships in
one day, I found two vans that I liked at two different dealerships.
Here is how I got a van that is practically brand new, though the
year of the van is 1996, for $8,999.00. The best part about it is,
you can do it too!
First, my husband and I went to 3
different dealerships. We found three vans that we loved. At the
last dealership, I fell in love with a particular van. The van was
marked at $13,995. I mentioned to the salesperson that there was a
van that was practically identical at the dealership right across
the street that was priced at only $9,999. I told my husband that
maybe we should just go across the street and see about getting that
one. I did this intentionally, right in front of the salesman, loud
enough so that he could hear me.
Within two seconds, maybe less, he
chimed in with, "Let me talk to my sales manager and see what
we can do for you." I agreed. I was expecting him to come back
with a price that matched the dealership across the street. To my
amazement, he came back with a price of $8,999! That was a full
$5,000 LESS that the original price with NO trade-in and nothing
down! We jumped on that offer and signed the contract within 45
minutes. We did insist that they give us a 30-day dealer warranty
with no deductible. They agreed.
Being the "savvy shopper"
that I am, I immediately drove my new van off the lot and took it to
my father, a mechanic. He gave the car a good evalutaion and gave me
a list of everything that was wrong with it. On my way home that
night, my service engine light came on, six hours after I signed the
contract. To say I was upset would have been an understatement!
I got up the next morning and
purposely got myself all worked up and ready for battle. I waited
for one hour after the dealer opened then drove my new van back to
the dealership. The trick here is to not call ahead of time and go
to the dealership at a busy time, usually on the weekends.
One thing that dealers count on you
not knowing is that, by law, you have a 72-hour cooling off period
to take any major purchase back to where you got it and return it
for no reason. So knowing this, I went back.
As soon as I pulled into the lot, I
was approached by another salesman. His first reaction to me was to
ask me how I was. I replied with a simple, "Not good!" He
asked what was the matter and I told him and gave him a list of
everything that was wrong, including a cup holder that was missing.
I let him know that no matter how much I liked the van, I had no
reservations about giving it back, after all, I was within my legal
limit.
He immediately went back and got the
sales manager, I vented to him, in front of other customers. He took
back my keys and put my van into the shop immediately to save face
in front of the other customers. He gave us a loaner van to use in
the mean time.
After two days, I still didn't have
my van back, so I called the dealership and told them that unless I
could get another 72 hour cooling off period, he could keep my van.
I was obviously not going to be stuck with a van that I only had for
6 hours! He agreed.
My van was returned to me that day.
My cooling off period was extended, I had the 30-day dealer warranty and
the repairs were made. Curious as to what needed to be fixed? Here is
the list: the catalytic converter, several sensors, the
transmission, the alignment was out, two tires were worn, it needed
an oil change, the gas cap was missing, and my cup holder was broken.
By the time my repairs were done, my
$8,999 van was worth a total of $15,127! I got a practically new
van after all the work was done! Then 2 days before the dealer
warranty was up, I took it back in and got a new belt in the motor.
I got a lemon and made lemonade, you can too!
Hint: Check out Carfax.com to see if
your vehicle has been in an accident or anything else has been done
to it. Most dealerships subscribe to this service so you should get
it for free. If they don't subscribe, ask if they have an internet
access you can use to check for yourself, for free, while at the
dealership.
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