Don't Get Taken Every Time: The Ultimate Guide to Buying or Leasing a Car, in the Showroom or on the Internet

A Day in the Life of Killer Monsoon1Chapter 1What's Happening to the Automobile Business?17The Bad News17The Grim Reality No Buying Service Wants You to Know24Is There Any Good News Out There?34Want to Stop Other Sites from Tracking You While You Explore the Brave New Automotive World (or Anything else) Online?35Part IForearming: So You're Determined to Skip the Dealership Entirely and Buy or Lease on the Web?39Chapter 2Inside the Dealership Family41Killer and His Family41Who's Who Inside the Dealerships46Who are the People Behind Those Web Pages and Online Services?57Dealer-Controlled Sites and Buying Services57"Independent" Internet Buying Services58"Prospect Aggregators"59Manufacturer-Related Sites60Sites That Deal Exclusively in Used Vehicles60Sites That Offer Only Financing or Loans60Information-Driven Rather Than Product-Driven Sites61Chapter 3Where's the Money? Understanding Automotive Sales Tactics and Realities62Well, Just How Honest are Car People?65The Salesperson's Greatest Talent66The Salesperson's Favorite Targets68Profits, Not Profit69Supply and Demand71Killer Monsoon's Favorite Selling Techniques71"Will You Buy a Car Today at Some Price?"72"If I Can,... Will You?"73The Sincere Salesman-in-a-Contest Ploy74The "I'm Salesman of the Month" Routine74The "I'm a Trustworthy Salesman" Ploy75"Setting You" on a Car: The Demo Ride75The Old Confuse-Them-and-Control-the-Sale Ploy76Justifying the Sale77The Ploy of Bringing You to Their Reality78The "Other Customer" Ploy80The Old "Lease 'Em a Car Instead" Ploy81The Return of Balloon Payments82Chapter 4Dealerships' Favorite Selling Systems on the Showroom Floor and on the Web83The "T.O." System83The Four-Square System84The Note System86The Tower System87One Price, No Hassle Systems87"YoYo" Selling or "Spot" Delivery89"Credit Doctor" Scams91The Advent of Major Dealerships Designed Solely for Subprime Borrowers93Welcome Centers96Getting a Deposit96"What 'Unauthorized' Credit Report?"98The Raise100Lowballing101Chapter 5A Look in the Mirror: Know Yourself102"In the Bucket" and "Dipping": The Problem with the Chases104Singing the Blues: The Trouble with the Allgoods107The Newest Toy: The Problem with the Estrums111Facing our Foibles: The Problem with All Car Buyers112How Naive Are You Really?113Are You an Impulse Buyer? Impulse Buyers Are Favorite Targets113What Should You Buy?114Need Versus Want114What Can You Really Afford to Pay Per Month?117New Versus Used: What's Better for You?119American Versus Foreign: Is There a Meaningful Difference?125Will You Be "Trading Down"?126Things that Impress and Terrify Salesmen: Traits You Can Cultivate127Taking Control and Staying in Charge127Wariness on the Web129Indecision129Lack of Enthusiasm130Non-Romantic Attitudes131Patience131Impatience131Steel Boots Prevent Shot Feet131Chapter 6Know Your Present Car132Do Three Wrights Make a Wrong?132The Previous Sections of This Book Haven't Exactly Added to the Romance and Mystique of Auto Transaction134The More Things Change the More They Stay the Same135Doing It Right in the Brave New Automotive World135Making Your Current Car Worth More136Is Your Old Vehicle a Popular Vehicle?138What's Your Car's Mileage?139Computing Your Old Car's Wholesale Value139How to Determine the Wholesale Value of Your Car142Shopping for Wholesale Value the Wright Way143Become a Road Hog for a Day145Options for Shopping Wholesale Value on the Web146Individual Dealer Web Sites146Established Used-Vehicle Market Guides Online148Other Automotive Sites That Will "Appraise" Your Vehicle149Car Depreciation Calculators149Calculate Your Equity in Your Car's Wholesale Value150Why Fool with Your Old Car? Give It Away as a Tax Deduction!150Should You Retail Your Car Yourself?151How to Retail a Vehicle158Your Hour on the Stage163Chapter 7Dollars and Non-Sense: Or, What You'd Better Know About Financing, Even If You Pay Cash164Could This Really Happen to You?177Is The Car Business Really This Relentless in Ripping Every Penny From Even the Poorest Customer?177Won't Financing on the Web Save Me from This?178Some Other Creepy Realities You Need to Think About180Your Credit History Isn't What You Think It Is180What Are Your Financing Sources?186Uncle Festus or Aunt Bea186Cash Value in Your Life Insurance186A Home Equity Line of Credit186Credit Unions187Brand Name Prime Banks192Online Loan Companies and Services193The "Captive" Sources194New Dealerships Discover Buy Here-Pay Here198Stand Alone Buy Here-Pay Here Used Car Operations199Title Loan Operations200I've Decided to Pay Cash and I'm Using a Web Service201Should You Buy Credit Life or Disability Insurance?201Okay, Let's Find the Cheapest and Best Loan204And a Poke in the Eye, Too206Chapter 8How Much Car Can You Afford?207The Concept of "Available Cash"207Test Time!210Auto Sellers Want You to Look at the Money Differently211Developing Your Available Cash Figure Based on Your Own Budget and Assets214How Much Money Should You Finance on a Particular Car? What Down Payment Is Best?216How Much Down Payment Is Enough?217What Is the Minimum Down Payment Possible on a New Vehicle?217What Is the Minimum Down Payment Possible on a Used Vehicle?218Determining Available Cash for Different Buying Situations218If You Plan to Buy a New or Used Vehicle and Have No Trade219If You Plan to Buy a New or Used Vehicle and Have a Debt-Free Trade219If You Plan to Buy a New or Used Vehicle and Owe Money on Your Trade220Next Steps223Chapter 9The Big Fantasy: Automobile Advertising and Sales Events224The Many Moods of Advertising: What's Your Fantasy?225Did You Hear the Funny One About Truth in Automobile Advertising?228The Special Millenium Edition Auto Advertising Parlor Game231Now to the Parlor Game232Do Car People Ever, Ever Have Real Sales?237Is There an Easier Time to Buy?237So Are There Any "Best Times" to Buy a Car?239Part IIBattle Time241Chapter 10Battle Time or Dueling with Killer, a Moral Tale, Sort Of243Chapter 11Shopping for a New Car the Right Way Whether You Plan to Buy at a Dealership or Online255What Do Vehicles Really Cost?256Dealer Invoice256Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price (MSRP)257Dealer's Sticker257Choosing Dealerships for Shopping, Buying, and Service259Tips for Choosing a Dealership259Why Can't I Skip Dealerships and the Web Entirely?261Does It Make Sense to Order a Car Rather Than Buy From Stock?262Ordering at a Dealership262Ordering a Vehicle Online263What About Buying "Demos," "Demonstrators," "Executive," or "Program" Cars?263Thinking About a Truck or Full-Size Van?264Researching Vehicles That Fit Your Budget264Are You Planning to Buy on the Web?267Dealership Shopping If You Plan to Buy a New Vehicle268What Do Those Pretty Rides Cost the Dealer?270What the Dealership Actually Paid270Chapter 12Shopping If You Plan to Buy a Used Car or Used Truck at the Dealership or Online273Preparing to Shop274Money! Why All This Work Is Worth It277Why Buying Used Is Harder277Five Discomfiting Variables277The Importance of "Loan Value"278Used-Vehicle Sources: From the Internet to Aunt Wilma and Her Neighbor280Used Vehicle Sources on the Web283Other Offline Sources285Using a Telephone "Service" to Locate Your Car288Checking Out a Used Vehicle288Researching Specific Used Vehicles That Fit Your Budget and Needs290Chapter 13Negotiating for a New Vehicle at the Dealership293"Just What Is a Fair Deal? How Do I Know When to Say Yes?"293Handling High-Pressure Techniques295Your Hour Upon the Stage: The Importance of Play-Acting300Doing It by the Numbers If You're Buying New300Here's the Scenario301Dealing with the Store304Chapter 14Negotiating for a Used Vehicle at the Dealership308"Just What Is a Fair Deal? How Do I Know When to Say Yes?"309Handling High-Pressure Techniques309Your Hour Upon the Stage: The Importance of Play-Acting311Doing It by the Numbers If You're Buying Used311Here's the Scenario312Dealing with the Store314Chapter 15Negotiating Online for a New or Used Vehicle318A Tangled Web318How to Buy a New Car, Click by Click, on the Web327Negotiating for a Used Vehicle, Step-by-Step, on the Web333Chapter 16Leasing a Vehicle338The Good and, oh, So Bad of Leasing342Just What Is a Lease?343What Happens When You Buy?343Leasing the Same Car344Enter the Real World344Who's Making the Big Profits Here? The Leasing Companies or the Dealerships?345Lease Terminology Adds to the Budget Carnage347The Deliberate Lack of Understandable "Back End Clauses" Compounds the Carnage347Then There's "Flipping"348"Assuming Leasing Can Still Be a Good Deal at Times, How Do I Know If It's Made for Me?"349Are There Tax Advantages to Leasing?351Are There Many Leasing Companies out There?351Are There Different Types of Leases out There?352Leasing Terminology353Leasing the Right Way357What About Leasing Used Cars?365If Your Present Car Is a Lease Vehicle365Chapter 17Lomax367Endnotes371Appendix377How to Figure Loan Cash From a Payment377Using the Chart to Determine Payments379Automotive Manufacturers Web Site Addresses379Web Site Addresses for Captive Financing Companies382Warranties, New and Used382What About New-Car Service Contracts383Used Car Warranties from Best to Worst385A Note on Deposits387Used-Car Service Agreements387Negotiating for Vehicles in Other Buying Scenarios388Cars Rented by Major Rental Companies394Glossary395Checking Out a Used Car or Used Truck398Personal Used Car Checklist398Index405

\ Ralph NaderRemar Sutton is without peer in presenting the lures, pitfalls, and price packs that are now part of so many car-dealers' practices.\ \ \ \ \ Clarence DitlowDon’t Get Taken is...a superb and witty how-to book...of the Web...on your privacy, your safety and your pocketbook. —Center for Auto Safety\ \ \ Patricia SturdevantDon’t even touch your computer before reading this extraordinary expose on the new schemes and scams in the...world of automobile sales...\ \