‘I’m going to mess this up’
This phrase might be swirling around your head as you sit in front of that white table in that white room, tongue burnt from the scalding hot coffee and the bright lights beating down on you while the unchanging smile of the car dealer eats away at your confidence. Sitting in that negotiation room is nerve-racking, painful and worst of all, unskippable. It's no wonder this is considered by most to be the worst part about the car buying process.
Steve was part of that majority, he was so afraid that he would mess up the deal by either over or under haggling with the car salesman. As he puts it: ‘It would be nice to know how much lower I could go without insulting them and souring the deal by being unrealistic.’ Steve, like any good potential car buyer, has done research on the car, talked to the dealers, went for a test drive and yet, he is still unable to put down a number for the negotiating process to begin. Looking to buy a Mazda CX-5 GT, Steve quickly realised that he needed a solution for his negotiating debacle. Or else, he would have to continue to settle for his 14-year old car that is comparable to sitting in a cardboard box and pretending that it moves.
So Steve did the one thing anyone in his position would do, he took to the internet. After scouring the net and its many forums, digging his way out of comment sections, he found that most opinions on the price of the car were either unreliable or inapplicable to his situation. That is until he came across www.carloop.com.au which provided him with a report on what the market price of the car is and what other Aussies are actually paying for it. This was a huge relief to Steve as the reports showed that his offer was still a little higher than what others managed to get it for. Armed with this knowledge in his holster and his courage in another, he was now ready to walk into the negotiation room and get himself a car.
With the understanding what others paid for the Mazda CX-5, Steve was filled with a renewed sense of confidence and by the end of it, he walked out of the room with a new car. He was able to negotiate himself a deal of $42,000 including the first 4 services (~$1200) and of course, the deal had to consists of those good old floor mats. Not only that, he managed to talk them up to $1000 for the trade in of his 14-year-old car. By utilising Carloop’s services, Steve was able to turn the unanimously agreed upon, worst part of the car buying process into a roaring success.
Therefore, having a better understanding of what other Australian consumer’s pay for the same car, as opposed to the price your dealer offered, will help you gain the belief that you are capable of getting a better deal. As Steve would describe his experience: ‘The Carloop Sold Price Report gave me the confidence to keep pushing for the best price possible. It also helped in knowing what was an unrealistic price to use as a target as well.’