anyone used the car shop or the car people

carol9uk

thanks, any good or bad experiances

DavidHM

No, but if you have a deal in mind, post it and I'll see if it's cheap or not.

Whatever you do, don't buy there and then... take time to look at all elements of the deal - part exchange, finance, cost of the car, warranty and so on and see whether you really need them, and whether the price is competitive. These businesses thrive on making it "easy" to buy a car, i.e., you get everything in one place, quickly, before you've had time to shop around.

saintjanet

DavidHM wrote:

No, but if you have a deal in mind, post it and I'll see if it's cheap or not.

Whatever you do, don't buy there and then... take time to look at all elements of the deal - part exchange, finance, cost of the car, warranty and so on and see whether you really need them, and whether the price is competitive. These businesses thrive on making it "easy" to buy a car, i.e., you get everything in one place, quickly, before you've had time to shop around.

Yes you are right about this and often the salesman may have been selling mobile phones or electrical goods in another life and not have a good knowledge of their cars,they are often paid low wages and high commission,so are desperate for a quick sale!!!

mirrorimage0

so is there a right or wrong place to go and buy a car from or just a right or wrong deal, we are going to start looking for a car next week, part exchange so any tips would be gratefully recieved.
thankyou

Optimist

Yes have used the Car People in Wakefield. Bought the OHs car there. Was a good experience, the salesmen don't hassle you and only come when asked. The price we got for the new car was was good and so was the part exchange price. The don't (or didn't) haggle though, not to any significant extent you might get some mats in but that's about it

DavidHM

Personally I'd say there's just a right or wrong deal - the thing is that with some places you'll be looking harder and spending more time finding that right deal than with others.

The best way to approach it is to know what you want and what you can afford.

First of all, if you want to get the most money for your car, sell it privately. If it's about to blow up, consider scrapping it - there's no point in getting £1,000 for your old car if you've paid £2,000 more for the new one to do so. If you can't/don't want to sell privately, know exactly what a fair price is - both so you can spot when you're being ripped off and when you're getting a "hidden" discount.

Secondly, if you have to do finance, know how much it should cost. Look at http://www.moneysupermarket.com/loan to see what you can afford. Focus on the APR rate (not the "flat rate" for finance). Don't take out the finance for longer than you intend to keep the car. Salesmen might not like it if you are a cash purchaser (with your own money or the bank's) but at least then you can compare cars based on their purchase price and know there's nothing that will bite you further down the line (interest, credit protection insurance, etc.)

Thirdly, know what you want in your next car. You might know that you want a four-door car with lots of space and good economy, or a stylish two-door with good performance. Find out which cars meet those criteria. Bear in mind that if you drive fewer than 15,000 miles per year, a diesel is unlikely to work out more economical overall. Get an idea of which cars are likely to be reliable. Get a shortlist of three or four cars and be willing to buy any one of those based on which is the best deal.

Finally, look at the cost of a warranty through http://www.warrantydirect.co.uk If the dealer's warranty isn't cheaper and better than this, don't buy it. The chances are that you can do better than the dealer's offer. Simialrly, consider whether you need GAP insurance and what it actually offers - i.e., does it only ensure you get the car's market value (which your own insurer has to offer you anyway) or does it give you the difference between what the car's worth and what you paid, if it is written off. If the latter, consider having it but make sure that you don't pay an excessive premium to do so.

carol9uk

thanks for all your relpies, didint have time to go to them today but went to a peugeot dealer and was offered a 5 door auto 107 for £7145 that included £500 for our old car, (would only get that if we sold it private). i ve done some research and that looks a good offer, am in wrong?

DavidHM

Is it brand new?

Is that £7,145 + your old car or £7,145 less £500 cash for the old car?

Are you sure the old car is only worth £500? What is it? Are there any faults? What mileage and colour is it, and what is its general condition? How much tax and MoT?

What's the finance deal like or doesn't that apply to you?

Does the 107 meet your needs - is it big enough? Refined enough on a long journey?

http://www.drivethedeal.com has it for £6,795. If you sold your car privately you could do the change for £6,295 and the monthly payments over three years, for you to own the car outright, would be £192 with a low-rate loan.

Even better, what about a Fiat Panda? £6,095 including the semi-automatic gearbox from http://www.fiatsupasaver.com - bigger and more spacious and with very high customer satisfaction ratings in the latest TopGear survey. The monthly payment works out at £171.

carol9uk

hi davidHm yes it is brand new my old car is a m reg 3door toyota manuel and it has 119, 000 on the clock. its got no faults but has rust patches. the figure included the 500 for the car. its red, the tax is april and mot till october.
it not on fiance. i would be paying cash

the peugheot is also metallic paint

DavidHM

the figure included the 500 for the car

Sorry, I still don't quite understand what you mean by that, i.e., whether the price is £7,195 to change or £6,695 to change with £500 paid for the car.

If it's £7,195 to change, you're better off scrapping your car and buying through the broker, even if you can't stomach a private sale.

If it's £6,695 to change then that's a more competitive deal; depending on how rusty it is, you may or may not get £500 for the car. If it's a clean Corolla with minor rust then £600 is a realistic private sale asking price; if the rust is serious then I'd say £500 is a generous p/x offer and you should seriously consider taking it, after going back armed with the broker price and seeing how far you can push them.

I take it the 107 is the kind of car you're after? Have a look at the Panda - it's not necessarily better but it's definitely worth a look.

carol9uk

the £714 is the price with them taking the car, the rust is getting quite bad. the list price they first give us was £8,295 plus £350 for the paint.