And I've been looking to purchase a used car. Dealing with used car dealerships is hilarious.

In order to test drive any car, all they usually need is a photocopy of your driver's license ("G" only acceptable in Ontario). If they ask for your phone number, it's certainly for the purposes of trying to call you later.

My advice is that any used car should be purchasable with at least 15% off list price, and certainly no less than 10% off list price.

The trick, as with any negotiation, is to be willing to walk away, and not to emotionally commit oneself. Luckily with cars, there are (almost) always more cars exactly like the one that you're negotiating for, so be willing to walk away. The dealer will always try whatever they can to wring a few hundred out of you, but remember: Although you may be desperate to buy, they're definitely desperate to sell. If they don't sell that car to you now, it sits on their lot, costing them money in whatever they had to pay to buy the car, but the car is losing value each and every day as well. When the sales rep said to us that he'd like to sell us a car today, he wasn't lying. 

If you're able to do it, try to do your used car dealership buying during the week, on days with crappy weather, there just aren't many buyers on these days, so you get more attention and focus. As psychology goes, you're more likely to get a good deal on a day where the dealership has had few sales, rather than on a day where they've already made several good ones. The acceptability chart certainly applies here, going home with nothing is worse than going home with one bad deal. 

Buying a Used Car: The Starting Offer

If they ask you what you're willing to pay, offer around 20% off list, err on the side of offering less rather than more money. You should know your market and what is a good price or not. For all you know, they're very desperate to sell, and could accept your lowball offer, so take that chance (but be careful, see below). Some dealerships have consistently high pricing, so more bargaining may be perfectly reasonable.

If they ask you how much you've been researching, always say "for a few weeks", and you should have had done at least enough research (ie: a few hours' worth) to fake that level of knowledge. 

Buying a User Car: Your First Offer SHOULD be Rejected

Now, of course they're going to reject your first offer. They laughed at me (and I found it harder to not laugh at them for this silliness). Remember, it's all a game, they're only pretending to be insulted by your offer, but it's just a game. If they don't scoff at your offer and immediately move toward closing the deal: get up and leave, you're probably getting a bad deal. 

Used Car Negotiating Tactics

Our sales rep decided to play almost a "good-cop bad-cop" game, going back and forth with the manager of the dealership. This is a good sign, it means you've made an offer that the front-line sales rep can't accept without getting higher-up approval. Chances are they'll come back and say that the manager refused your offer, but they're just trying to wring more money out of you. 

Our sales rep decided to give us a piece of paper which said "This is the MSRP, you and I are miles apart, write down what your offer is and I'll bring it to the manager". Be careful with these, it could be contractually binding, so make sure all other details are settled first. We ultimately decided to walk away at this point without writing any numbers down.

Good Used Car Prices Come to Those Who Walk Away & Wait

15 minutes after leaving, I get a call on my cell phone, as I had left them my number when they photocopied my driver's license (always give you your cell number, not your home number!).Their new offer, which was their first actual counter offer: Just $200 more than my original offer that they laughed at. Maybe they already forgot how insulted they were?

Again, we saw this as another attempt to wring out a few hundred extra dollars, so we denied the offer and told them to call us when they wanted to accept our offer. If the car doesn't move in a couple days, I think they'll be calling us. The person bringing cash to the table should always be the one in control!

Web Sites for Finding Used Cars in Canada:

There are four websites I came across in my search for a used car:

Kijiji - Probably 50/50 between dealers and private sellers. Prices appear better than autotrader, selection is more limited. Don't forget to search areas around your city, not just your city/area itself. 

Craigslist - Not as popular as Kijiji around here, but still some sellers. Also a good place to put up a free WANTED ad. 

Ebay.ca - Actually, I found very little in terms of Canadian sales on Ebay, but it may still be worth a shot.

Autotrader.ca - Lots of dealers, lots of selection, some private sellers too. Search stinks (using the special keywords "leather diesel" without the quotes will match "leather diesel", but not match "leather seats and diesel" ugh)

Carpages.ca- Appears to be a site for the Used Car Dealers Association members. Worth a shot, but you won't find any private sellers it seems.

Don't forget to check up on title, emissions, liens, accident history and safety, among other things!

Have your own story about used car negotiating Tactics? Post about them here!