4 Lies Car Salesmen Tell

In the last 20+ years, the Internet has revolutionized the way we invest, buy travel, read, and a million other things. Man, what a time to be alive. And yet, we’re still buying cars the same way we were 50 years ago.

You still have to show up at the dealership, haggle with a salesman, and hope you’re getting the best price. I’m actually pretty impressed the model has survived all these years.

Don’t kid yourself; this model is good news for the folks that sell cars and bad news for everyone else. Because the industry doesn’t have up-front pricing, customers are getting ripped off. It’s that simple.

Car salesmen know the system is rigged, and do their best to exploit it, including outright lying to customers. Here are four of the worst lies car salesmen tell you.

Pricing

I’ve heard of buyers who are content with going into the dealership and paying whatever the sticker price is for a car. Folks, I cannot stress enough how bad of an idea this is.

The fact is there are many factors which might affect the price of that car. It depends on how long the dealer has had it in inventory, or the price paid for it originally, or whether you’re looking to make a cash deal or if you’re financing your new wheels.

The big issue is that you’ll never get the salesman to actually disclose any of this information to you. The last thing they want is to put themselves in a bad negotiating position. So they’ll pretend like everything is hunky-dory, even if they want to get that car off the lot badly.

Trade-ins

“Oh yeah. I can get you a great deal on your trade-in.”

Car salesmen always make sure to let a prospective customer know that they’ll get a good value on their trade-in. After all, if the trade-in gets a good price, car salesmen can convince you to buy a more expensive car. This is one of the more insidious lies car salesmen tell.

Often, there are a whole multitude of factors that affect the trade-in’s value. Plus, car salesmen often wait until you’re in love with your new vehicle before telling you how much you’ll get for the trade-in. They know that the customer is already hooked at that point, and is likely to take
whatever is offered. They just want the new wheels.

Remember, if a dealership can lowball you on a trade-in, it can make even more money selling that car to somebody else. They’re not really motivated to give you a good deal.

Bait and Switch

Often, customers have their heart set on one model, and will ask several salesmen to help them get that one. In theory, it’s supposed to pit salesmen against each other.

Some salesmen respect the customer’s wishes and not call them until they’ve got that particular model in stock. Others pull the old bait and switch, phoning the customer and letting them know the model is on the lot. When the customer shows up, the car will be magically gone, but lo and behold, the sales guy has another great deal on a similar car.

Financing

There’s a reason why I continue to advocate going to a bank or a credit union for financing before you ever step foot in to a car dealership. Because it’s really easy for the company to fudge the numbers on the financing. Many customers are easily taken in by things like financing fees that add just a few more dollars per month to the price of the car.

Plus, if you go in there with the ability to write a cheque, you’ll likely get a better deal, since you’re practically the same as a cash buyer. Dealers love cash buyers since they’re a quick sale.

Don’t let these lies car salesmen tell cost you more than you want to pay on your next car. Do the research and go in prepared to get what you want.