How To Negotiate A Car's Price With Car Salesman

In order to get a decent ride that won't break your pockets, the ability to know how to negotiate a car's price with car salesmen is key. These guys are in it to make money. They want you to believe they have your best interest at heart, but the truth is the majority of them are paid by commission. They're trying to move product so they can survive. They'll try to dazzle you with numbers and other very aggressive sales techniques. It's not about them anymore. It's about you. Negotiating a car's price comes down to how well your b.s. matches up with theirs. Let's learn the proper negotiating skill sets for a car's sale price.

1. Blah Blah Blah. A good car salesman knows how to talk the talk. This is universal in the negotiation over any car's price. They'll be able to maximize the plus sides of the car you're interested in while greatly minimizing the lesser aspects of the vehicle. Just listen to them, because they will be talking... A lot. Your job at this stage of your potential car's pricing negotiation is to catalogue what the salesman is saying while formulating the questions you want answered. Don't shy away from asking questions about the vehicle. It's your money on the line. If you don't squeeze the salesman or you may end up with a lemon.
2. Don't seem too needy. This is arguably the most important element to successfully negotiating a car's price with a salesman. Act as if you're just slightly interested. Make them work for your business and lower some of that cost in the process.
3. What to ask. They may not say this, but car salesmen pay attention to your reactions. They're trying to size you up as a customer by what concerns you have with the car. If you appear to know a thing or two about cars, they are less likely to try pull on over on you. The successful negotiation of a car's price centers on your ability to match the salesman's understanding about the vehicle in question. Some important things to know about the car are total mileage of the vehicle, how many previous owners of the car, total car upkeep, and the year of the vehicle.
4. Total car upkeep. We need to discuss this in more depth. This is very important info to have when negotiating a car's price. You want to know just how well the car's been taken care of. Not just oil changes. There's a lot more to preserving the functionality of the vehicle than just oil changes. There's a handful of fluids (trans fluid, break fluid etc) and maintenance (tune ups and what not) that need to be regularly handled. Total mileage (if a used car averages more than twelve to fifteen thousand miles on it a year, stay away). Accident info is another biggy. Tire rotation, tire changes... The list goes on and on. Make sure you're well versed in such things because they won't talk about it if you don't. Be as thorough as possible.
5. The time of year. The best time to get a car is during the non-peak sales periods throughout the year. The colder months are good. Salesman are more likely to be flexible with costs when their overall sales are lower. These guys gotta eat too.
6. Shop around. It's all about the info you can gather on the model car you want. It'll give you ammunition against the salesman. If you can argue that you can go down the road and pay two or three hundred bucks less for the same vehicle, you put pressure on this guy to play ball—on your field, with your rules. The trick to successful negotiations is to know what you're talking about and being able to read through the salesman crap. The more knowledge you have, the better.