Talk of The Villages Florida - View Single Post - New car Documentation fee.
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Old 11-13-2017, 09:40 AM
retiredguy123 retiredguy123 is offline
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Originally Posted by villagetinker View Post
retireguy123, you seem very knowledgeable in this area, so do you know of any reliable websites that would provide the "dealer cost" I have access to: consumer reports, AAA, and AARP, but have not checked on them for accuracy. Or should I rely on KBB, TrueCar, or something else?
I used Edmunds.com and kbb.com to calculate the fair value for the car and for the trade in value. The price I paid was about $2500 less than the initial price the dealer gave me when I first visited the dealership, on a $25000 suv. I came back a few days later and presented my "take it or leave it" offer. They accepted the offer and my personal check and I drove it home. I also believe in being polite and honest with the dealer. I told them upfront that I would be trading in my car, paying cash, and using edmunds and kbb to calculate a fair price, and would not include anything for dealer installed options, documentation fees, or anything else not included in those websites. I presented my offer directly to the sales manager and made it very clear to him that I was leaving in 15 minutes and that I would not haggle about the price.