Best haggling strategies

Mishomeister

I will be looking at buying second had car for about 20k. Any tips on getting the price down, thst worked for you?

Eg. taking out the finance (would be repaying it asap, but obviously dealer doesn't need to know).

paul_c123

Be polite

Be prepared to walk

Arunmor

You won't get that much movement on secondhand cars or dealer backed finance deals. How old will the car be? Price up new deals if for no other reason than it gives a base price.

Do your research so you will know a good deal when you see it. Have a couple of brands/models up your sleeve if possible. Be flexible if you can.

marlot

Research the market. Know what a good price looks like. There are some extensions for chrome which tell you how long a dealer has been advertising a car, and it's previous prices.

I'd been looking at one model of car. Dealers up and down the country were advertising it for £28-29k. I'd tried negotiating, but it was hard work - despite some of them having stock in for several months.

A new listing popped up at £24k. I was on it immediately and booked in with the salesman for 8:30 the following morning (despite it being 100 miles away). I did a deal at the full asking price. It was a fabulous car.

PTP123

Pay a bit too much for the right vehicle off the right people

Buy cheap, buy twice

Bigwheels1111

The best deals I’ve seen recently are on new cars.

I’ve helped 3 friends in the last 6 months.

They were all looking for second hand at first, but I found the cars they wanted for a couple of thousand more.

Used online brokers price as a base line.

Then called dealer after dealer to get a price match, or better price.

This worked 2 times, the third time auto trader listed the car wanted, a pre reg with 10 miles and 4k cheaper than new.

leosayer

Don't ignore new cars... There are some great discounts to be had at the moment.

Don't muddy the water at the start with finance or part exchange discussions. Get the price you want before negotiating those topics.

forgotmyname

Things are not the same for car dealers, overheads have risen considerably over the years and the bargains
are harder to find. Many dealers list the cars at a price they just cannot budge on unless it's the type of
dealer than will say your problem when a car has faults then blocks you.

Grumpy_chap

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6655278/best-haggling-strategies

It will vary a great deal what you mean by "2nd hand car for about £20k".

That could be a very nearly new car, in which case new might even work out more favourably. https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202508285827600

It could be a high-spec, few year old mass-market family car. https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202601159172356

It could be something exceeding rare and special. https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202601299516109

It could be something classic. https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202408082680200?

All would have very different tactics required.

Mishomeister

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81884192#Comment_81884192

Honestly, brand new are double the price. Looking at 5-6 yo

Mishomeister

It is Rav4