Many used car dealers are honest and reputable business people.  However, some are simply manipulative liars.  Consequently, there are few considerations when buying a used car as important as the credibility and reputation of the dealer.

Carsala’s technology accesses millions of listings on a daily basis and our professional negotiators have negotiated hundreds of deals.   We’ve worked with some great dealers, while others have earned well-deserved spots on the Carsala blacklist.  Here are a few stories:

The “Clean” Clunker

You Never Want to See This!

Even if a dealer describes a car as “clean” and the price is right (or lower than “right”), be careful!  Carsala had looked at over 200 cars for a very kind woman in her late 40s.  In order to get her the best price possible, we called close to 20 dealers to negotiate the price.  We always ask the dealer about the condition of the car, look at the car’s vehicle history report, and then arrange a mechanic inspection (if instructed by our client).  In this case, the dealer conveniently omitted any indication that the car he was trying to unload for close to Kelley Blue Book retail value was a total clunker: salvage title, odometer rollback, etc.  Though vehicle history checks aren’t 100% foolproof, they are generally a good indicator of car quality.

On another occasion, a dealer offered Carsala a sweetheart deal (so it seemed).  The problem was he only provided a 16 digit VIN in the listing.  That just might be a red flag (read: sarcasm) given that VINs are 17 digits.  Sure enough, the car had been wrecked.  Minor oversight?  Could be.  You be the judge.

The Botox Beater

1 Owner Looks Good; but Look Deeper

There’s no fountain of youth for used cars, despite what the odometer may say.  We were looking for a Hyundai Sonata for a local school teacher.  One deal stood out – it exactly met the client’s requirements, was a great price, and even had a clean CARFAX report (with 1 owner).  Luckily, Carsala’s technology raised a flag that the CARFAX mileage was notably different than the mileage in the listing itself – 30,000 miles.  Not only was this suspect because of the large difference, but also because the listed mileage was such a round number.  Our professional negotiator asked the dealer for written evidence that the car had 30,000 miles and had not been subject to a rollback.  The dealer subsequently acknowledged that the odometer had a “discrepancy” he couldn’t explain.

The Sleezy Saleman
We were negotiating a deal for a graduate student who was willing drive a long distance “if the deal was right.” So we put Carsala’s technology to work, found a number of good opportunities, and our professional negotiators hit the phones.  The #1 deal was just a steal – perfect car, clean CARFAX, etc.  But something didn’t sit right with the negotiator.  Normally, we get the deal in writing from the dealer after the customer selects a car.  In this case, because of the negotiator’s intuition, we opted to request confirmation in writing before presenting it the customer.  When the negotiator called the dealer back, he was informed that the salesman he’d been communicating with had been fired earlier in the day and there was no way they could honor such a low price from a clearly disgruntled former employee.  Virtually anyone without such extensive experience in the auto space may very well have driven 300 miles to buy a car for an imaginary discount.

Carsala can help you lay all these concerns to rest.  Our technology is world-class; our negotiators are even better.  Or if you are a true do-it-yourselfer and don’t want to turn over the whole process to Carsala, stay tuned for product announcements!