CrzRsn
So long, and thanks for all the fish
- Joined
- Mar 6, 2005
- Messages
- 17,444
- Location
- Motor City, Michigan
- Car(s)
- 13 Ford Mustang GT, 17 Ford Fiesta ST
So as many of you know, I'm going to be trading my car in for a Mustang quite soon. Seeing as how I've never traded a car before, I want to be sure I'm doing it right.
If I were trading my TT for a car on the dealer lot, that would be one thing and straight forward, but I'm not - I'm ordering my car and it will be 4-6 weeks until the factory builds it, and I don't want to get screwed over in meantime.
I got my TT appraised at one dealer, and got a really lowball offer. I told the salesman that it wouldn't be possible and he would have to do better. I then went to another dealer, where they gave me an even lower offer, but "really wanted my businesses". I told them to try to beat the cross-town dealer, but they said they were scamming me and that their offer was the best I could get. The next morning I got a call from the first dealer saying they were willing to meet my requested price, but the 2nd dealer kept telling me not to go there because it was a scam.
What I'm worried about most is them agreeing to give me how much I want at first, but then decreasing the value when I come back to pick the Mustang up in a month or so. They do say the trade appraisal is valid for 30 days, but I'm worried that I'll come back and they will say "Oh, you drove more than X miles, so we're taking $2000 off the trade value". I asked about a contract, but they said there wasn't one, but I call BS seeing as how on a deal where the value is that high, a written contract is mandatory (hooray for taking something away from my 2 law courses!). How do I avoid this problem?
I don't see why a dealer wants to screw me over on the trade seeing as how I don't put any money on the agreement (not counting a $1000 fully refundable deposit that I can get back if the terms change), and I hardly doubt they want to be stuck with a bright green Mustang they won't be able to sell easily.
On a slightly unrelated note - I love how there are at least 10 Ford dealers within a 35 minute drive of my apartment. Probably double that if I explore north or east seeing as how I've only been west and south.
EDIT: Please excuse me if this post didn't make sense. I just got off an 11 hour night shift at the plant and my brain is fried. I've already corrected a few instances where I've gone on and on unnecessarily. It makes sense to me as of right now, but I'll clarify tomorrow if there are any questions.
If I were trading my TT for a car on the dealer lot, that would be one thing and straight forward, but I'm not - I'm ordering my car and it will be 4-6 weeks until the factory builds it, and I don't want to get screwed over in meantime.
I got my TT appraised at one dealer, and got a really lowball offer. I told the salesman that it wouldn't be possible and he would have to do better. I then went to another dealer, where they gave me an even lower offer, but "really wanted my businesses". I told them to try to beat the cross-town dealer, but they said they were scamming me and that their offer was the best I could get. The next morning I got a call from the first dealer saying they were willing to meet my requested price, but the 2nd dealer kept telling me not to go there because it was a scam.
What I'm worried about most is them agreeing to give me how much I want at first, but then decreasing the value when I come back to pick the Mustang up in a month or so. They do say the trade appraisal is valid for 30 days, but I'm worried that I'll come back and they will say "Oh, you drove more than X miles, so we're taking $2000 off the trade value". I asked about a contract, but they said there wasn't one, but I call BS seeing as how on a deal where the value is that high, a written contract is mandatory (hooray for taking something away from my 2 law courses!). How do I avoid this problem?
I don't see why a dealer wants to screw me over on the trade seeing as how I don't put any money on the agreement (not counting a $1000 fully refundable deposit that I can get back if the terms change), and I hardly doubt they want to be stuck with a bright green Mustang they won't be able to sell easily.
On a slightly unrelated note - I love how there are at least 10 Ford dealers within a 35 minute drive of my apartment. Probably double that if I explore north or east seeing as how I've only been west and south.
EDIT: Please excuse me if this post didn't make sense. I just got off an 11 hour night shift at the plant and my brain is fried. I've already corrected a few instances where I've gone on and on unnecessarily. It makes sense to me as of right now, but I'll clarify tomorrow if there are any questions.
Last edited: