Car sales....behind the scenes

[BuickMike]

My wife worked in finance for a ford dealership for a couple years. They tried to get you to add on lots of Chotchkies to get more money out of you. I've gotten the extended warranty twice, but only because it was at cost. My wife and I bought a 2000 F150 at her dealer one day. It was the end of the month and the owner told the employees that they could combine all rebates and discounts. We got that truck cheap and the platinum 100k warranty was $800. I broke even on it, but it would have worked out for the best if I kept the truck past 60k miles. Normally those warranties are up to 3k.
I hate being 4 squared. I had a dealer refuse to give me cash price on a Titan. My wife said to give her the interest rate they were pitching in the 4 square and she will work it out. Then she asked for a calculator and the salesman said they did not have one. So she pulled out a pen and paper and made him sit for almost an hour while she took her sweet time. Then we 4 squared him right back lol. In the end we got up and started to walk out, but he chased after us and offered the truck to us for our original number.

 

[INEEDAGN]

In the city, all people care about is what it costs per month. Sales price, trade value, interest rate don't mean shit and i'm not sure half of them even understand it all. They walk in and want the nicest thing they can get for X dollars per month. Biggest part of being a car salesman is sweet talking banks into financing someone. Probably half of car sales are lost because of bad credit. Out here in the sticks it's not too bad with the credit issue but we rely very heavily on repeat business, so we can't rake people over and expect to keep the doors open. We have a much smaller buyers pool than the cities. We got 2" of rain here this week which is a godsend for the farmers in july so we will sell the living crap out of new trucks this fall/winter when they all figure out their tax situation.

People talk down on dealers and some dealers deserve it, but it's really a shitty business to be in. There's good money in it when done right, but there's huge risk and huge overhead costs. How'd you like to have millions in inventory in an open lot where anyone can show up and vandalize, rob spare tires/tailgates etc. Then the hail storms. Yes its insured but there's $1000 deductible on every car on the lot. I do PDR on the weekends and I'm still the first person there packing vehicles in the buildings when there's an imminent hail threat, because I know it hurts. Cars damaged in shipping, good luck getting that sold without knocking a bunch of money off it. Every new car dealer rents those signs out front. Can't be bought, have to pay rent. Endless $$$$ in special tools show up at your door via fedex with a bill attached. One rogue employee can ruin your whole life in many different ways but I suppose employees carry the same risks no matter the business. Regardless, there's better ways to make a living IMO. Yet here I am, and I will go back tomorrow, and someday when they tell me I can buy in to the place I'm going to tell them to go F*&$ themselves. I drink too much already.

 

[kidglok]

Im a Finance manager for a Nissan store, I average 60% warranty sales on all cars i deliver (80-100 per month). Average gross after all the smoke clears is less than $2000 per car (new and used combined) for any store. I dont lie or "jam" people with products or beg for the sale. I simply offer options and let the customer make the decision. I have selling techniques that ive devolped over the years, but ive saved customers thousands over the years when they had claimed that have paid out more than their policy had originally cost them. If you think making $2000 on a 20-50k car is taking advantage of people...get out your calculator- our cars have a 7% markup all in, and that t-shirt you just bought at the mall has a 100-300% markup

 

[Mike T]

Car sales are not the only thing that has gotten tough. I have been in the auto repair business (body & mechanical) for a long time and these days they both have very low profit margins. A couple of my friends who are also in these types of business tell me that if their buildings were not paid for they could not keep the doors open.

 

[GNRick]

Car sales are not the only thing that has gotten tough. I have been in the auto repair business (body & mechanical) for a long time and these days they both have very low profit margins. A couple of my friends who are also in these types of business tell me that if their buildings were not paid for they could not keep the doors open.

This shocks me. Local shop marks up the parts 2-3 times retail (and they get a discount off retail) plus charges $85/hour per "book time". I live in a smallish town so I think they all charge the same and don't try to undercut each other. And don't get me started on "shop supplies". I think body shops might charge less per hour, like about $60/hour, and depend on marking up the parts for additional income.

 

[Mike T]

These are all small independent shops that I'm referring to. Our main business is body repair and in our area the insurance companies pay on average about $40.00 per hour. The overhead has become such that we could expect to clear around 6%.

 

[GNRick]

Around here if you walk into a body shop, the owner asks if it is insurance or personal. He can charge the insurance companies more than he charges individuals. $40/hour is cheap. Next time I need body work I'm coming to you.

 

[SloGN]

So......freaking....true!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I had some friends ask me and my wife how we live so well. My wife replied stating that if they want to let that cat out of the bag we can talk. They were confused. We started asking them about credit card debt, car loan interest rate, etc. We were blown away at the money they threw away in interest. I worked my ass off for years having two jobs to pay everything off but the mortgage and that got us ahead of the game. Now when we buy new cars, we either have cash or end up financing for a a few months if we are a few grand short. I recently decided that I wanted a brand new F150 Ecoboost FX4, so we de-modded the Flex and Titan, sold one, traded the other, Craigslisted all the leftovers, sold a bunch of tools I don't need, and now I own a brand new truck free and clear. I'll own my house outright in 5 years. At that point, anything I move into will be worth the same or less. No mortgage for the rest of my life.

Ok, off my soap box.

I'm in the same boat right now......work like hell to pay everything off...I don't even have a credit card at all.

I know that a credit card can be useful but I don't care to pay fee for something that is will very rarely use.

My plan is to have my house paid for in another 2-3 yrs. If I didn't have the money pit gn it sure would abbr been paid off ..........

Damn buicks .....

Posted from the TurboBuick.Com mobile app

 

[BuickMike]

There are still benefits to keeping a credit card around. Mainly it is just to keep your credit score high. I've even been told to keep an account or 2 open, but leave them at zero. We have 1 card like that, and a Costco Amex that we use for big purchases. My wife goes in and pays it off within a few days of making the purchase. Another good way to keep the credit score high is to sign up for special financing on appliance purchases and pay it off way before the term is up. We also typically go through finance on new cars because it seems like we can cut a better deal. Sometimes there are rebates too. As long as there are no pre-payment fees, we will finance for a couple months and pay it off. Right now our credit scores are about as high as you can get them. It can be a risky game though. You have to have a lot of self control. Lucky for me, my wife has way more than I do and keeps me in check.

Posted from the TurboBuick.Com mobile app

 

[Steve V]

I'm in the same boat right now......work like hell to pay everything off...I don't even have a credit card at all.

I know that a credit card can be useful but I don't care to pay fee for something that is will very rarely use.

My plan is to have my house paid for in another 2-3 yrs. If I didn't have the money pit gn it sure would abbr been paid off ..........

Damn buicks .....

Posted from the TurboBuick.Com mobile app

Credit cards don't cost you any money if you pay them off every month. They do help your credit. Now you have to be discipled though.

Bodyshop charges $46per hr

Service Dept $125

GM Dealer. I average 85-95hrs every two weeks and make not even a quarter of that $125

 

[bison]

There are still benefits to keeping a credit card around. Mainly it is just to keep your credit score high. I've even been told to keep an account or 2 open, but leave them at zero. We have 1 card like that, and a Costco Amex that we use for big purchases. My wife goes in and pays it off within a few days of making the purchase. Another good way to keep the credit score high is to sign up for special financing on appliance purchases and pay it off way before the term is up. We also typically go through finance on new cars because it seems like we can cut a better deal. Sometimes there are rebates too. As long as there are no pre-payment fees, we will finance for a couple months and pay it off. Right now our credit scores are about as high as you can get them. It can be a risky game though. You have to have a lot of self control. Lucky for me, my wife has way more than I do and keeps me in check.

Posted from the TurboBuick.Com mobile app

Having a good credit card with a credit union for a long time and never missing any payments or having any hits on your credit is very important for purchasing power. Long-standing credit card and having high percentage available is very important. I never realized how shitty peoples credit really is in this country. All most look at is the monthly payment


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[SloGN]

There are still benefits to keeping a credit card around. Mainly it is just to keep your credit score high. I've even been told to keep an account or 2 open, but leave them at zero. We have 1 card like that, and a Costco Amex that we use for big purchases. My wife goes in and pays it off within a few days of making the purchase. Another good way to keep the credit score high is to sign up for special financing on appliance purchases and pay it off way before the term is up. We also typically go through finance on new cars because it seems like we can cut a better deal. Sometimes there are rebates too. As long as there are no pre-payment fees, we will finance for a couple months and pay it off. Right now our credit scores are about as high as you can get them. It can be a risky game though. You have to have a lot of self control. Lucky for me, my wife has way more than I do and keeps me in check.

Posted from the TurboBuick.Com mobile app

The discipline is not a problem. I try and live every week on a set amount of money and the rest goes into the bank..when I have to use my bank card I get upset at meself thinking I have over spent on useless things unless it's a emergency thing ....

I'll look into maybe getting g a credit card. I just thought there was a monthly charge on having that credit line open regardless if it's being used.

Posted from the TurboBuick.Com mobile app

 

[GNRick]

Best cards I've found are: American Express- $75 yearly fee but you get 6% cash back on groceries and 3% on gas all year round....Chase Freedom and Discover-5% cash back on different categories which change each quarter. 1% on all other purchases, up to $1500 for that quarter in purchases. No yearly fee. They frequently give 5% back on gasoline which we have to buy anyway, right? Restaurants and hotels are also on the list, as is home improvement like Lowes. You just wait for that quarter when you can use it.

 

[Steve V]

I learned along time ago to use someone elses money for free with credit cards. I also only have no fee cards and cash back cards. I regularly use Lowes 18mos same as cash. The key is pay those cards off every month. And pay the same as cash cards off before the promo expires.

 

[bison]

Best cards I've found are: American Express- $75 yearly fee but you get 6% cash back on groceries and 3% on gas all year round....Chase Freedom and Discover-5% cash back on different categories which change each quarter. 1% on all other purchases, up to $1500 for that quarter in purchases. No yearly fee. They frequently give 5% back on gasoline which we have to buy anyway, right? Restaurants and hotels are also on the list, as is home improvement like Lowes. You just wait for that quarter when you can use it.

10% off Lowes in change of address envelope at usps. Just go online and put your info in


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[GNRick]

Target red card gives 5% back but I don't shop there much. I just booked a flight on United and got their card thru Chase. They will give a $50 statement credit and 20,000 points which is enough for a free r/t flight. Must be nonstop and <700 miles each way.