Car Dealers have numerous ways to scam a potential buyer. Let's continue examining a few of them so you know what to look out for when making your next car purchase:
3. The Credit Score Scam
This scam is ridiculous at best. This is when the finance manager tells you that your credit score is lower than it really is so that they can get you for higher interest rates.
This scam is pulled on everyone; good or bad credit. This scam is easy to avoid. Just get your own copy of your credit report from Equifax.com, and bring it with you. It is really difficult to lie to you about your credit score if you have your own copy of it. If your paper and theirs doesn't say the same thing, go somewhere else because that dealership is lying to you. Don't forget to let them know it too because it'll be nice to watch them squirm.
4. The Forced Warranty Scam
This is when the finance manager tells you that you are not eligible for the loan by the bank unless you pay an extra $2000 for a 2-3 year extended warranty.
This scam just doesn't make sense. Basically the finance manager is telling you that the bank won't trust you to pay the $20,000 loan for the car, but they will trust you if you pay even more money. That's just stupid.
You can avoid this scam if you can force them to put it in writing that you "have" to pay the extended warranty in order to get the loan. That way you can bring a copy of the contract to your local State's Attorney's office to verify that the deal is valid. I can bet that the finance manager will change his tune pretty quickly.
5. The Dealer Prep Scam
Let me first let you know that cost is not only legal but very much common practice. I still refer to it as a scam because it is just another way for you to end up paying more money for the car.
Basically the dealer will tell you have to an extra $500 to cover the labor costs of the dealership's 5-point inspection. You are paying for the time it took for the dealership to make sure that the car wouldn't explode on you in the first week of owning it.
This check up that you are paying so much money for is for the dealership to remove plastic from the seats etc, vacuum the car out, and making sure that all of the fuses and fluids are ready to go. When factories deliver the new cars to the dealerships the cost of delivery and prep is already covered, so basically you are paying the dealership for work that they haven't really done.
I swear they could get the car in perfectly ready to drive condition and put everything right back in it just so that they can make you pay the fee again. You can avoid this scam by simply asking the dealership to add an extra $500 credit to the deal to make sure you do not have to pay the money. If they refuse, you can then decide if the car is worth the money. If it is fine; buy the car, if not; go to another dealer that will remove the dealer prep costs.
Mia LaCron is the founder of How-To-Buy-A-Car.info - http://www.how-to-buy-a-car.info - devoted to helping individuals buy the right car for them at the absoulute best possible prices.
