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From: klein@ucbvax.ARPA (Mike Klein)
Newsgroups: net.auto,net.books
Subject: Re: Informed Car Buying
Message-ID: <9695@ucbvax.ARPA>
Date: Mon, 5-Aug-85 22:56:27 EDT
Article-I.D.: ucbvax.9695
Posted: Mon Aug  5 22:56:27 1985
Date-Received: Tue, 6-Aug-85 17:16:07 EDT
References: <1522@trwrba.UUCP>
Reply-To: klein@ucbvax.UUCP (Mike Klein)
Distribution: na
Organization: University of California at Berkeley
Lines: 45
Xref: ucbvax net.auto:5801 net.books:1825

In article <1522@trwrba.UUCP> glippert@trwrba.UUCP (George A. Lippert) writes:
>... all serious car shoppers should read the book:
>
>   "Don't Get Taken Every Time" (subtitled: "The Insider's Guide
>                                             to Buying Your Next Car")
>  by
>    Remar Sutton, Viking Press, 1982, 381 pages.
>
>I would like to thank Mike publicly for his advice.

Thank you very much, George, but I in turn am really only passing on advice
I got from this net group a while back.  I wish I could remember the person's
name who originally recommended this book.  It is worth many times its price.

I finally got my chance to try out Sutton's advice about a week ago.
My wife and I decided to buy a VW Jetta GLI.  This is a car that,
sadly, is apparently imported in very small quantities (dealers have
said 20 per month into California), and the dealers take advantage of
this as much as possible.  For instance, the mfr's list price of the
car we bought is about $12,600 and the dealer's sticker price was
$16,100.  Ridiculous.  So some heavy negotiating was required.  It was
interesting to note that it was almost as if the salesmen were
following a script that Sutton had written.  So I knew what they were
really doing and was not fazed by their various arguments.  Eventually
we were deadlocked: I was offering $12,000 even, they were offering
$12,400, and neither side would budge.  Finally, the salesmen (I had
been working with two) came up with a deal where they put in $200 of
their own money (they would get lots more than that in commission) if I
would raise my offer to $12,300 which they felt the sales manager would
accept.  I finally did so and it was accepted.  So I essentially paid
$12,100.

It was rough going, and I was exhausted, but I had earned approximately
$1000 an hour (it took about 4 hours in two stores total).  Sutton's book
prepares you for all the tricks the salesmen pull and gives you the
knowledge and confidence to convince them to deal with you honestly.
With car models in more supply, I think you could do even better than this
inside of half an hour.  The thing to realize is that any salesman would
rather have you buy the car than not, and will keep negotiating if there's
the least chance that you will buy.
-- 

		-Mike Klein
		...!ucbsim:klein@ucbvax.uucp
		klein%ucbsim@berkeley.arpa