Buying a new car can be a little challenging in today’s world wherein every other day you see some new car being launched with excellent features. So the question is how to buy a car and choose from the wide variety of available choices in the market. Before you visit your nearest car dealer to finalize on a car model, do a thorough homework about car financing options and then calculate the available cash in hand before you choose a model. Once you have decided the model, then check the available deals, customer reviews, model specifications and you would get an answer about how to buy a new car.
How to buy a new car
Before you decide to visit your nearest dealer’s showroom to choose a car, the first and foremost thing that you need to do is to check the car manufacturer’s official website and get an idea of the invoice price of the car. Since the showroom price of a car includes a lot of other prices like transportation charges, discounts for the dealer and other additional prices, it’s usually much higher than the original invoice price of the car. It’s always better to have an idea about the original invoice price of the car so that the dealer also would not be able to charge you exorbitantly high than the original invoice price.
Remember that you should never go ahead and book a car at the first visit at the showroom. Rather you should check the different rates and discounts available at other showrooms, compare them with online offers, and then opt for settling down on the price. Always check and analyze the different customer and expert reviews found on car websites for determining the cost of a new car. In order to strike a good deal at a lower price you can also check the manufacturer’s official website for rebates, which are special discounts offered by the manufacturer to the customers. Sometimes, the dealers might not be aware of these manufacturer’s rebates and hence you should carry a copy of the rebate voucher to be on the safe side. Also verify whether you are entitled to some special organizational rebates offered by some institutions and avail them for a better deal.
In case you are planning to opt for car financing options, try to check your credit history ratings and the currently available car loan interest rates from different banking institutions. In case you choose to opt for car financing from the dealer, you never know that you would end up paying higher interest rates and monthly installments because of the marginal profit that dealers would always have.
Timing too is a crucial factor to consider when you ponder on when and how to buy a new car as you are most likely to get better discounts and deals towards the month-end or year end when dealers are aiming towards clearing their old inventory of car models.
In case you do not wish to spend a huge amount of money, have a look at the pre-owned cars segment and prices for a better deal.
Whether you opt for a new or pre-owned car, make sure you are fully aware of how to buy a new car and don’t commit any of the common errors!
Blue book values for used cars are determined by the standards defined in the globally renowned Kelley’s Blue Book, which is like the Bible for determining the valuation of a used car. The Book which was originally published in the year 1926 as a guide to used car values by Les Kelley, a used car dealer, has now become the international standard for defining and determining the value of used cars. The company releases online car valuations from time-to-time to assist sellers and buyers to analyze the value of used cars.
Kelley’s Blue Book was initially used by Les Kelley and his dealer friends as a guide to determine the value of used cars but following the Second World War, this blue book values for used cars received greater significance when the U.S. government decided to apply an upper limit to the price of used cars. That’s when the government started using the Kelley’s Book as a measuring standard to determine the value of used cares. After 1993, this book was however, published for the general car buying public as a reference guide to get an idea about the used car market and the current market prices of used cars.
The Blue Book assessment quiz is one of the most reliable means to determine the value of a used car as it calculates the value depending on maintenance results, condition of exteriors, interiors and additional accessories, emission testing results, and the mechanical conditions of a car. Depending on the results, the cars are then classified into four conditions namely excellent, good, fair and poor.
In order to be deemed in excellent condition, a car has to be brand new, mechanically perfect, no rust and no repair work required. Additionally, the engine should be in excellent condition, the interiors should have no visible flaws and no leaking fluids. According to Kelley’s Blue Book, “less than 5% of used cars fall in this category” and hence these cars are regarded as good as certified pre-owned cars.
Moving on to the good condition, those used cars which do not have any major technical or mechanical issues or the ones which can be easily repaired fall into this category. No rust or no major dents on the interiors or exteriors of the car, and also if the tires are in a fairly good condition, then the cars can be classified into this category and as per the available data, most used cars can be classified under this category.
Next in line in the blue book values for used cars, comes the cars which fall into the fair condition. These cars might just require a tire replacement, or have minor defects in the engine or minor dents in the exteriors or any other defect which can easily be repaired or changed. Kelley’s Blue Book defines these cars as “in reasonable running condition” and the second highest number of cars belongs to this category.
Moving on to the last category, the poor condition used cars comprises of the ones that have such mechanical or performance issues which is irreparable. Those cars with severe rust also belong to this category.