. Gee, what a difference a dealership makes...
I headed out this morning to the local Honda dealer. They weren’t the lowest Internet price given to me via email among the half dozen dealerships I’d contacted, and I WAS prepared to drive 45 minutes out of my way to one of two other dealerships that had more or less tied for lowest price.
But the spread in prices among the 6 dealers I'd contacted was really not as big as you might think for such a big purchase ($437), so I figured I’d try the local dealer first. I was already armed with Kelly’s Blue Book and Edmund’s ideas of a “fair” price, and so I only needed to get the dealer to agree to come down about $200.
He began by explaining that their “Internet price” was a non-negotiable, no-haggle price and the lowest they could go. After I ignored that statement and explained that I needed him to come down $200 more (to be in line with the KBB price), he agreed without any fuss. (Maybe I could have gotten more off, who knows.)
I got the window visors I wanted and $1,000 for my 14-year-old Honda so the total cost to me was $19,970 (including the window visors, sales tax, registration fees and my trade-in) for a 2013 HF sedan (auto transmission, cruise control, remote entry, radio/phone controls on the steering wheel, CD player, low tire pressure sensor) which gets 41 mpg highway (This is approaching hybrid mileage without the hybrid price tag.) The total price was exactly the price KBB indicated was a "fair" price.
Plus, I had applied for THREE new rewards credit cards last weekend, hoping I’d have them in time to use for partial payment of the car. (Taking a tip from Monkey Mama, I think, I made sure to apply for all 3 at the same time to avoid being turned down because one credit card company interpreted the other recent card acquisitions as evidence I'm desperate for money or something.)
I got one of the new cards yesterday, an Amex Blue Cash Every Day card, and that was really the only reason I went out car shopping today instead of next week. By using it for the deposit, I was able to earn an immediate $100 cash back from Amex in that single transaction, and if I get one of the other two cards in the mail by next Thursday, I can earn at least another $100 back by charging another $1,000. (The max they would let you charge is $2,000.) The dealer said I’d have to pay for the rest of the car with a cashier’s check, but that’s ok.
The other 2 cards I’m waiting for are the BankAmericard Travel Rewards card (get $100 back after spending $500 in 3 months) and the Chase Sapphire Preferred card (get $400 back after spending $3,000 in 3 months). Now I never thought I could spend $3,000 in 3 months with the Chase card, but if I charged the $1,000 for the car next week, I’d only have $2,000 more to spend in 3 months, and there was a time once before, I believe, where I was able to hit a $2,000 spending target in 3 months while being unemployed. Now that I’ll be working, starting next week, I should be able to spend more money on things like gas, definitely. We’ll make it work. I can always buy a ton of food. Hey, and I forgot! I can charge my new car insurance on the card!
The question is, will I get the card in time to use it Thursday? I applied for it online last Sunday and instead of an immediate approval like I always get with new cards, I got an email saying it would take some time and they'd let me know in 30 days by mail if I was approved. Maybe they had a problem with my self-employment income? Not sure.
But then when I was looking at my other Chase accounts online, I noticed the Chase Sapphire Preferred was listed there with a $12,000 limit! But I still don't have the card. Rep said it takes 5 to 10 business days and by Wednesday afternoon, and given the holiday, only 7 business days will have passed. I suppose I could delay the car pick-up one more day, til Friday, but if I didn't get the card in the mail Thursday afternoon, I'll just have to pay using the other credit card I was approved for, assuming I also get that one in the mail by then. If I wind up not using the Sapphire Preferred card for the partial car payment, I would probably just cancel it becus that's a pretty tough spend target without the car payment and there's a $95 fee after the first year. So might as well not hang onto it.
I could have taken the new car home today, but I’m delaying it til next week on account of those credit cards rewards, plus I want to see how much I can get the insurance quotes I got down by raising the deductible from $500. And I also have to wait to get a cashier’s check too.
I start the new job Tuesday, and had already arranged to work only Tuesday and Wednesday of the first week so I could wrap up loose ends. So I’ll have Thursday and Friday off next week and can pick up the car and take care of that. They said they’d remove the kayak rack off the old car. At first, I was going to have them install it on the new car, but he wasn’t sure it would fit and then I started thinking I’d probably not want to scratch up the new car with a kayak or even just installing the rack, so for now, I’ll take it home with me and keep it off. But then that means I can’t ever go kayaking unless I go with someone else who has a truck or rack themselves.
Hmm.
I’m pretty well satisfied with the car purchase and was amazed how different this experience was from the Ford dealer. The sales rep was super laid back and very easy to deal with, not pushy/aggressive in the least.
Leveraging Bonus Reward Credit Cards with a Car Purchase
May 25th, 2013 at 07:39 pm
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While I don't know where your new car ranks on the preferred theft list, I can see the value of having police, appropriate agency or DIY etch VIN on window for long term protection. I wonder if It might be a premium reduction point for auto insurance. We've always had Roadside assistance and Auto rental included as a line item on policies.
You didn't mention the 'bells and whistles,' will you truly miss those or perhaps just not mentioned.
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May 26th, 2013 at 10:54 am 1369565677
The only bells and whistles that really appealed to me were the heated leather seats in the Ford, but after 14 years of driving the same old car, there were a few "standard" options in the Honda that will be new to me and that I'll know I'll enjoy, like the remote entry and audio/phone controls on the steering wheel. And, years ago, I used to have an Accord with cruise control so it will be super nice to have that back.
Thanks, Snafu, for the reminder about using credit card numbers without the actual card in hand. If needed, I can call the credit card issuer and check on that, although I know you always have to "activate" the card before you can use it.
May 26th, 2013 at 02:49 pm 1369579796
I know you'll be super busy and tired when you start your new job but please keep checking in and letting us know how it's going.
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