It has seen a lot of wear and tear and western PA winters, so the structure of the car was not so great. I’ve had to replace a lot of bearings and things related to the shocks. (Look out for all my technical terms.) Something near the trunk got loose (I guess) and thumped when I drove over bumps. And it made a weird grinding sound sometimes. Oh, don’t forget the time it got stolen and was in a few fender benders, and the time that some jag merged into me.
It was time to start looking for a new car. Well, a new-to-me car. I didn’t want to have a big monthly payment, and I didn’t want to get a cheaper car that would need a lot of maintenance (again). So - I decided to look for a recent, used car. Something no older than 3-4 years, with less than 20,000 miles.
I’ve had some money left to me by family members saved in an account, accruing interest, since I was little. So now was the time to start the wheels turning to access that money. Not easy. It took a few weeks to get signatures from me, some bank people, and send it back to the investment people. This brings me to tip #1 - know what kind of money you want to spend, and be sure that you have it all in order before you start seriously searching. I knew that I didn’t want to cover the whole cost of the car with that money, and nearly wipe out the account. So, that meant I would have to finance - either with a loan directly from a bank or through a dealership. *Le sigh* A monthly payment.
I met with two different bankers about loans. The banks I went to both had similar rates, both higher than most dealerships will offer. Tip #2 - when thinking about a bank loan, ask what the monthly payment is, not just the rate, since the monthly payment is what will have the most effect on your everyday life.
I know slightly more than nothing about cars. I know that my old car made noises I didn’t like, and it was big and boat-like, making it difficult to parallel park in my neighborhood. I know that it cost me a lot of money to fix it over the last three years and so much gas. So, I wanted something that solved those problems. Is that so hard, Mr. Car Salesman?! Just give me something that will fix it! (Hint: it is not that easy.)
I took the boyfriend with me for moral support. He knows slightly more than I do about cars. The thing J is better at than I am in this whole stupid game is negotiating. I have never negotiated anything in my life. He has also purchased a car on his own, so he had some tips. I went to a no-haggle car dealership, and it did live up to that expectation for the most part. Tip #3 - It seems to be a trend to take the hassle and haggle out of car buying, so try to find yourself a dealership that will put the whole price on the sticker and doesn't make you pay extra for power windows and silly things like that.
We decided to start with this dealership because it boasts cars less than three years old, all makes and models. I thought it would be a great place to test drive a whole bunch of different cars and have a chance to compare. I test drove a total of four cars the day I bought my car. Tip #4 - Drive aaalllll the cars. I drove two cars after I drove the one I ended up with. I was pretty sure I wanted it, but it’s always good to know your options. Extra bonus - it lets the salespeople know you’re not just going to settle for the first car you like. Make them do a little work!
I picked a 2012 Ford Focus with just under 13,000 miles on it. In car years, that’s practically new. It is the right size for parallel parking in Pittsburgh’s narrow streets. It gets almost 10 more miles per gallon more than my old car, and it has a lot more power to get up these steep hills in the city.
My final tip (Tip #5) is to know what you want to (and can!) spend and stick to it. My dealership had extra protection packages which really ratcheted up the monthly payment or added an extra year to my financing. In that kind of ‘up-selling’ situation where they want you to just spend a liiiiittle bit more to get so much (questionable…), you can walk out of there if they’re not working with you. Ain’t nobody got time for that. I just stood my ground and said ‘no’ to the extras and just bought the car that I wanted without all the other crap on top. And I LOVE my car!