There used to be a time when buying a new car meant a lot of negotiating on the price. There was a constant haggle over everything from the sticker price to the add-ons. The haggling has always been a frustrating part of car prices, but that appears to be changing.
The truth is, the car industry is changing, focusing their attention on getting people into cars, rather than driving them away with pushy salesmen. What companies are doing is taking some of the issues out of negotiating.
They have started this process simply by getting more information out to you, the consumer, about what the price of the car should be. With so many resources available online that will tell you what the manufacturers suggested retail price is and even allowing you, in certain circumstances, to find out what the dealership markup is, car sellers are playing by the book and giving honest prices. This is giving the customer a level playing field with more buying power, and is helping car retailers gain the trust of consumers.
Another thing that is being changed is the add-ons. For years automobile add-ons were a negotiating tactic of the seller; they would offer to throw in packages for free in order to close a deal. But, but those days are no longer. In today’s market virtually every car maker is including traditionally add-on features as part of the standard packaging. Things like GPS, an MP3 player hookup, and certain safety features are all standard, leaving less room for the seller to up sell and a lot less power in the negotiation.
What the car companies are hoping for is a spike in the sales of their product. Even the used car market has been trying to take the haggle out of car buying in efforts to boost the industry back where it belongs.
Fall is here, folks. The days are starting to get shorter, the nights longer, and there is a slight chill is in the air. It also signals the start of the season to move sheet metal. From now until the end of the calendar year, automakers and car dealers will be throwing mad incentives at car buyers in an effort to sell their remaining 2010 model-year inventory to make room for 2011’s shiny new crop of autos.
