Why Nobody Actually Enjoys Buying a Car

You did your homework. You read the reviews, picked a model, maybe even asked a friend what they paid. You walked into the dealership feeling ready.

Four hours later, you're still in a small office signing a stack of paperwork you didn't read as carefully as you meant to. You drive home in the car you like, but there's a question nagging at you that you can't quite shake: Did I just overpay?

That nagging question, along with the path that got you there, is the real reason people dread buying a car, and it has nothing to do with the car. Maybe you felt it after your last purchase. Maybe you're about to buy and don't want to feel it again. Either way, this one is for you.

You don't dread the car. You dread everything standing between you and getting the keys.

"I've spent 25 years helping people buy and sell cars through Automall Network, a licensed auto dealer and broker, so I've heard this story more times than I can count," says Viraf Baliwalla, President.

Did You Just Overpay?

It isn't that you weren't smart or careful enough. The way cars are sold makes it hard for anyone to know whether they got a good deal, for three reasons:

• Nothing lines up. You visit a few dealers and get a few different numbers. But fees, add-ons, trade-in values and financing all get packaged differently, so the lowest number isn't always the best deal.
• You're worn out by the time it matters. Anyone who has waited forty minutes for "let me go talk to my manager" knows the feeling. By the time you reach the finance office, you've already taken the car home in your head. That's not the moment to be reading fine print.
• Nobody in the room is paid to look after your side. A dealer's job is to sell cars, and seasoned salespeople are very good at it. But that means the only person on your side is you.

"But I've Negotiated Before. I'll Be Fine."

"It's the most common thing I hear, and I get it. Plenty of people feel confident, and some of them do come out fine," says Baliwalla.

But dealers sell cars every day, and you buy one every several years. Many of the people who tell me "I know how to do this" end up spending more time and money than they needed to, and they only find out afterward.

The Part Nobody Warns You About

What do people find out afterward? In my experience, it's usually a fee they didn't understand, an add-on they didn't ask for, a trade-in value that was less than it should have been, or financing that read differently on paper than it did in conversation or in the advertisement.

Take Bryan, for example, whose previous vehicle was written off by his insurance company and who, after comparison shopping with several dealers, didn't have the energy to fight the $2,000 charge for fabric protection. He signed the purchase contract and left a deposit.

Upon arriving early a few days later to pick up the car, he saw his salesperson carrying out a bucket and a mop to his vehicle, swishing the mop in the bucket and then over his upholstery. When asked what he was doing, the salesperson responded that he was applying the fabric protection.

"$2,000 for that?!" Bryan exclaimed, to which the salesperson answered, "It is a highly concentrated mixture."

"This is the hardest part of my job. People contact me after the purchase, upset about something in the paperwork, and the answer is almost always the same: once you've signed, you're in a binding contract, and there's very little anyone can do."

The time to ask the question was before you signed. That's why the real problem isn't the car, or even the price. It's that most people don't realize they have a problem until it's too late. The nagging feeling on the drive home is the first sign.

What to Do Before You Sign

Since the doubts usually show up afterward, let's get you answers beforehand:

• Take your time. A good deal today is still a good deal tomorrow. If someone is rushing you to do the deal, ask yourself why.
• Ask for the out-the-door price in writing up front. Every fee, every add-on, tax included. If the number on the page doesn't match the number in the conversation, pause.
• Read all of it before you sign. Yes, even when the pen is already in your hand. Take the time to sleep on it and know what you're signing up for.
• Talk to someone before you sign, not after. That's the one that matters most.

Where Automall Network Fits In

Automall Network is an auto broker. We have a full dealer's license, but we don't operate like a traditional dealer. We work for you. Just like you'd hire a real estate broker to help you buy or sell a home, people who hate car shopping hire us to help them buy - or sell - a car.

With our dealer's license, you can have all the privileges of buying through a dealership – financing, trading in your old car, and more.

I can't promise miracles, and I won't guarantee savings. What I can promise is that someone who does this every day will be watching your back, and the unpleasant parts of car shopping will be off your plate. Go enjoy the test drives, leave the rest to us.