Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with cardealers

Are dealer maintenance departments for suckers?

gompa — Thu, 28 May 2009 19:33:31 -0800

Are auto dealer maintenance departments for suckers? I've got a 2003 Honda Civic, and it needs a new timing belt, a new windshield and a new radio antenna. While it was under warranty, I had everything other than oil changes done at the local Honda dealer, but the warranty's now expired and I own it free and clear.

I'm under the vague impression (from, among others, George Costanza) that dealers charge more for this kind of routine stuff than an independent repair shop would. Anything to this or is it just prejudice and superstition? Any reason - quality of workmanship or reliability, say - to go to a dealer instead of an indie? (I live in western Canada, if that matters at all, and I'm pretty clueless when it comes to anything more complicated than checking the oil.)

Will I be affected because my car dealership closed?

FlyByDay — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 11:37:36 -0800

My car dealership closed and filed for bankruptcy. Will this affect me or my year-old car? I've tried Googling, but didn't see anything relevant...I am in MA, but bought the car in OH last year because my parents knew the owner of the dealership. I did end up getting a great deal, and love the car. I tried to contact the dealership last week (because I've been getting a lot of "your warantee is about to expire!" calls and cards, though it isn't), only to find their phone # and website gone. My stepfather did some research and found the linked article stating that they'd filed Chapter 11. So they went down big. Will this affect me or my loan? I now go to a local dealership for service, because obviously I'm not going to drive several states for that, but I'm just wondering about the financial and/or credit aspect of this. Thanks in advance.

Should you buy a 2 year old leftover car

Mr_Chips — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 05:45:59 -0800

Is there any down side to buying a 2006 leftover vehicle? With gas prices continuing to climb, I figure now is as good a time as any to get rid of my 10 year old gas guzzling SUV for something that is more economical at the pumps.

Normally I buy used, but it seems that there are some great warranties and incentives on new domestic cars right now. i was looking at '07 leftovers since there are some pretty aggressive deals to be had, stumbled accross a lot that still has a brand new '06 that they are willing to sell for about $11,000 below sticker. (Sticker is $38k)

I can't think of any downside to buying a 2006, except maybe that the fluids may all need to be replaced due to it sitting so long.

Have any of you ever bought a new veichle that was two or more years old? did you have problems? Is there a downside to doing this?

Advice for buying a cheap used car in NYC?

BT — Fri, 25 Mar 2005 07:34:22 -0800

I'm in NYC/Brooklyn, and we're looking to buy a cheap used car for the first time. Advice? We've done plenty of price/quality research into makes and models online, but we're looking for some advice from the experienced on how to get this done efficiently and wisely at the low end of the market.

We've only got 5-8K to spend, and we're looking primarily for a small-to-midsize reliable sedan or wagon (we're looking at mostly late-90s Toyotas, Hondas, Nissans, Mazdas, using Consumer Reports as a quality baseline). Buying through craigslist or local classifieds would be the cheapest route, but we're not seeing that many cars we like, and have started looking into going to a dealer. There is the additional problem of transport to go shopping: we have to borrow a car to get to almost any place that sells them (and may need to get babysitting as well), so we want to make the most of any excursion. Visiting individual after individual who has a car for sale and several potential offers on it is pretty difficult. All of this pushes us toward driving to someone who stocks several models that look feasible, and hoping to find one we like in a single day.

Does anybody who's done this -- particularly in this area -- have particular recommendations on what to do or not? Avoid the dealerships altogether, or pick the most respectable-seeming? I don't know if New York is a special case with regard to car dealers. More generally, I have some sense about how to negotiate price with an individual, but not a sense of how to approach the used car guy. Also, with an individual one can make the sale contingent on a mechanic's checkup, but is that even possible with a dealership? We seem to be below the price threshold for "certified pre-owned" cars.

Want to buy a mini-van sans-car-dealer.

sacre_bleu — Mon, 07 Jun 2004 17:12:08 -0800

Buying a mini-van, and with the help of Ask Mefi, Edmunds and Kelley Blue Book, I know I want a Toyota Sienna LE. Got all the cash. Want to minimize the notorious hassle of running the car dealer gantlet. (More inside.) Specifically, what's your best strategy of getting to the bottom line "best price" quickly? My ability to cut a check at the drop of a hat helps me. But the Sienna is a popular model, so it's not hard for dealers to move them.

I can walk away; it's not like I need this van next week. But I don't think I can make it until the 2005s show up and they want to move the old models.