WHEN MY SON STARTED graduate school seven years ago, we enticed him to save money by living at home. The catch: He’d need a set of wheels. Lori and I offered to help, provided he was open to a used vehicle. He agreed, and off we went to the nearest Honda dealership.
We were greeted in the parking lot by an enthusiastic salesperson. He invited us inside to chat, and promptly asked us what monthly car payment we were seeking. I looked him square in the eye and simply said, “Wrong question. Let’s start over.” The first item of business would be to find a car that fit my son’s needs.
We chit-chatted for a while about Hondas, and I nostalgically mentioned my love for the 2005 CR-V model with the built-in picnic table. A car like that would be perfect for my son.
The salesperson exhibited visible dissatisfaction as he now grasped that our goal was a used vehicle. He frowned as he realized his commission would be more akin to cubic zirconia than diamonds.
I could read his thoughts. “Do I look like a used car salesman?” he was no doubt muttering to himself. “Was this sucker”—meaning me—”really looking to purchase a 12-year-old car?” Nevertheless, he humored us, and punched in CR-V and the year 2005 into his database.
To everyone’s surprise, an elderly couple had traded in a vehicle matching that description earlier in the week. The owners were meticulous in their recordkeeping, and the car was in amazing condition. It had low mileage, was complete with original owner’s manuals, and had custom protective floor mats to boot.
We went for a test drive and my son immediately fell in love. Sure, it could use a new pair of shocks, but the engine purred like a kitten and the steering was remarkably smooth. More important, we discovered the original folding picnic table hidden in the trunk. Within two hours, I plunked down a wad of cash—actually a paper check—and we drove that puppy home.
My son was impressed with how I handled the entire process. It was a shared financial experience that bonded us in an unpredictable way. I followed up with a lesson on insurance coverage and another on basic car maintenance.
The title was registered in my name. My son sent me monthly payments for a while, and also contributed to the insurance costs. I never held him to that obligation, realizing that he was living off a small student stipend. Besides, we planned to give him the car after graduation. I did insist, however, that he pay for repairs, tires and general upkeep.
Fast forward seven years. My son is now gainfully employed and talking about getting a newer car. That 19-year-old CR-V has traveled more than 150,000 miles of roads, potholes and highways, not to mention collecting its share of well-earned parking tickets.
Admittedly, change is hard for my son. I could tell it was painful to think about giving up his beloved wheels. He’s generally nervous about the entire car-buying process and hesitant about possibly spending too much on a vehicle. I asked him if he’d like to go for a test drive, with me in tow, to ease his trepidation. He jumped at the opportunity.
His head was filled with new models, all of which could be purchased for five or 10 times more than we’d paid for his current set of wheels. I suggested we once again look at used cars, as we might benefit from their previous owner’s care, along with the steep depreciation from the original sticker price.
Once again, our quest began at a Honda dealership. An energetic young fellow made a beeline for us in the parking lot, inviting us inside to talk turkey. The first question he asked was how much we wanted to pay per month. Some things never change. I looked him in the eye and just laughed. Let’s look at cars first, I said, and then decide on financing.
Using a similar strategy that worked all those years ago, I asked if there were any used cars available. Perhaps something in the all-electric variety. Now, it was the salesperson’s turn to laugh. We both knew that Honda’s fully electric vehicle would not arrive at the showroom before next year. Nonetheless, he humored me and typed “electric” into his database.
I guess lightning can strike twice. A 2023 electric Chevy Bolt corporate trade-in arrived earlier that week. We test-drove the car and my son immediately fell in love. The list price was less than 60% of the newer version, and it came with a full 100,000-mile protection plan, including an eight-year warranty on the battery.
Add in the tax credits for buying electric vehicles and the price was too good to be true. One small glitch: The charging cord and owner’s manuals were missing. But they were already ordered for delivery early the following week.
We began the paperwork, ran a credit score on my son, and haggled over the trade-in value for his nearly two-decade-old “emerald status” CR-V. We settled on preliminary numbers.
The sales fellow went in search of final approval from his manager, only to come back crestfallen. Unfortunately, the dealership’s policy was to not sell electric cars without a functional charger. Furthermore, 12 people had already expressed interest in the car, four of whom were calling daily to see if the ordered charger had yet arrived.
Time to think outside the box. I asked if we could purchase the car if we had physical proof of a charging cable. He chuckled but ran the idea by his manager anyway. The manager said yes, that would work.
I spent the next 25 minutes calling dealers, auto parts stores and even the Salvation Army (that was a wrong number). There were no chargers in stock anywhere in the city, although we could order one for delivery. My son and I were visibly disappointed, not to mention a bit peeved at the time we’d spent haggling over pricing.
The salesperson took note. He excused himself, saying he had a quick call to make. He returned five minutes later with a Cheshire cat grin. His friend had a second charger he could bring to the dealership, provided we returned it when the one on order arrived. His manager agreed that this workaround met the house rules.
It took another hour to complete the transaction. There was some paperwork finagling involved since the trade-in CR-V was in my name, and the new car was solely in my son’s. But in the end, we left the dealer as happy campers.
Later that evening, I shared another financial lesson with my son, teaching him the benefits of accelerating payments to avoid most of the loan’s interest. My hope: This has become a tradition—and my son will invite me to join him the next time he goes car shopping.
Jeffrey K. Actor, PhD, was a professor at a major medical school in Houston for more than 25 years, serving as an academic researcher with interests in how immune responses function to fight pathogenic diseases. Jeff’s retirement goals are to write short science fiction stories, volunteer in the community and spend time in his garden. Check out his earlier articles.
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Has anyone purchased a vehicle through Costco’s auto program? If so how did it work and what was the experience?
I asked that question here:
https://humbledollar.com/forum/best-worst-deals-at-costco/
You can find the answers near the bottom of the thread.
Highly entertaining, Jeffrey. Thanks for that contribution.
Great story, next time also show him how to save a couple thousand more dollars by selling the CR-V himself on Facebook marketplace.
We have done that 3 times in the past 5 years and made at least 2K more than the dealer best offer for trade.
Good point about selling the car. In this case, the dealer offered us a fair trade in value.
Rayan, have you had success buying any cars on FB Marketplace? I’ve always been curious.
We had this really awesome car consignment shop in our town called CarLotz. There was no pressure. It was just an outlet for average Joes to sell their cars. In 2019, we bought a 2015 RAV4 at one of their locations, then a few months later a 2004 Tundra at the other local store. It was great. Sadly, CarLotz is no more. Two years ago, my neighbor sold us a ’99 Camry for a song. I know one day I will have to go back to a dealership. I hope to hold out as long as possible. We do have CarMax nearby, but I have found them to be more expensive than the haggle places. I have never gotten the how much do you want to pay a month question, but I have heard of some who have.
My recent experience at Car Max was such a relief. No haggling required, no attempt to get me to finance or etch the VIN or any of those tricks!
Absolutely brilliant practices and article. Thank you. For a bit more on the last stop in the dealership before you take the keys, known as the finance and insurance (F&I) office, I offer this article for your “bewareness”. The website is, “American Prospect”, which I am not a member of but the article was from a link in a daily financial newsletter I receive.
https://prospect.org/power/2024-07-08-car-dealership-fee-financing-scams/
I don’t remember encountering the “how much are you looking to spend question”, but it’s been a while. Seems to me the appropriate answer is “as little as possible”.
Excellent article. Something similar with my son, but we did our shopping on the honda website which had the inventory of all the certified honda used cars in our area (all dealerships). We found what we wanted. It was such a good deal that when my son went to the dealership with the info on the car he wanted, but it took them over 30 minutes to “find” the car, and then the keys. They kept trying to have him look at other cars. But he persisted and they did sell him the car for the listed price (which was really an excellent price). But I think they’d have preferred to sell it for a higher price. So for someone looking for certified used cars, the honda dot com or toyota dot com sites are not a bad starting point.
Great suggestion. I always wondered if the cars shown on the site were dealer specific, or if there was a network of shared used cars. If networked, they may have to retrieve inventory from another dealer, making it more difficult to test drive.
I’m the original owner of a 2005 Honda CR-V. I agree, it’s a terrific vehicle (and I’ve used the picnic table on many occasions). With only 141,000 on the odometer, I plan to keep driving it for at least another 10 years.
I respect that. I have a 2010 Honda Civic with 170K on the odometer (humble brag). I won’t get rid of it until there’s a catastrophic engine failure, whether that’s a year or ten years from now. I love not having a car payment and I would get nothing for my trade-in value when purchasing a newer vehicle.
Some updated safety features would be nice, but on balance I can’t justify the huge expense for replacing something that’s not broken.
My previous Civic was 23 years old when it finally bit the dust. Fond memories, but it was time to move on.
Jeff,
Thanks for another excellent post!
As best as I can tell from your story (and the other comments below) Car salespeople are pretty much the same wherever you live in America.
There must be a hidden cloning facility somewhere ….
Having taught him the lesson of frugal car buying I guess you’ll have to hope you’re still around in 2043 when that one comes of age!
( Yes I know that life can change a lot in the 30s so he might need to trade earlier).
The ” how much are you looking to spend” question always drove me nuts with car dealers as it made it clear it was always about their financial advantage. As a result the last 2 cars I bought were from a no-haggle “pick your own” car supermarket. And yes I tested the no-haggle point to my satisfaction.
Can I take you with me next time I go car shopping? (Although I didn’t do too badly last time. In 2007.)
Only if you marry into the family. 😉
Many businesses make much more from financing and extended warranties than they do from the product sales price. Unfortunately, this results in high pressure sales tactics by sales personnel who know that their commissions and evaluations depend on their ability to sell these high profit products.
Agreed. In fact, I had the most “fun” when we went to complete financing paperwork. I taught my son to question every line and dollar amount before signing. We actually saved quite a few bucks by not accepting the first value given to us. There are always alternative options!
Great story! Interesting that there have been several articles and forum pieces about automobiles lately.
Thanks. I bet we all have great car stories we hold close to our hearts. Some frugal, some humbling.
Jeff, great story. When I bought my 2014 Accord, I had a smilier experience with a young salesman. He kept asking what monthly payment I wanted. I focused on the car and a price. When I thought we had agreement he left to talk to the manager to OK the deal, but came back again asking about the monthly price. I explained I wanted the car, and at what price I was willing to pay. He went back and came back and said they couldn’t complete the deal without knowing the monthly price I was willing to pay. I replied that I would buy the car for this price, and pay cash. He didn’t know how to handle a cash transaction. It was a frustrating experience, but he was new and I gave him the chance to learn.
I’ve found my Rule #1 on car buying and really in most major purchases, perhaps starting at the home appliance level, to be that at any time you feel you are being managed by the seller, they aren’t listening to you or your gut plain old isn’t feeling right, you must be willing to walk away. I’ve made it clear with car dealerships right up front that I’m not “buying” any vehicle until we go thru the entire process to determine the end-game cost once I determine the vehicle I want. You likely will hear a lot of reasons why they can’t do that which is all a bunch of baloney.
I’ve actually told a slimy car salesman—as I was walking out—that I’m actually willing to pay more for a car if the salesman is honest. He lost the sale because to me, my satisfaction is higher—even if I pay $500 more—when dealing with someone who is honest and ethical.
My tax person told me that in many cases you can get a better price on a vehicle if you do the financing because of kickbacks the dealer gets from the banking source. Then, payoff the vehicle asap providing there are no stipulations for doing so.
I had a similar experience with the last car I purchased. They couldn’t (or wouldn’t) believe I was writing a check.
Rick, You are probably more patient than I would have been. IMHO, car buying works in favor of dealers when the frustration quotient is high for the customer. Unfortunate, but likely true.
I do wonder why the whole nauseating performative dance/ pantomine/ charade still dominates this far into the 21st century. And what consumer satisfaction really is.
For what is pretty much a known value item there still is far too much “salesmanship”/ outright lying/acting and time consumption on ritual. It really needn’t even exist in the internet age.
Jeff, you’re a kind and patient buyer. I hope the lesson wasn’t lost on the young salesmen.
Ed, Indeed. The salesman learned a valuable lesson that day! Rewards can be found if you work kindly with your customers.