Sometimes it can be very difficult to find the exact vehicle when you are looking to buy a new car. When a customer is determined to have a certain model, options, color and trim level the only choice the car dealer has is to do what is called a “Dealer Locate” or “Dealer Trade”.
Years ago you could order a new car to your exact specifications, but today things are done differently. Today the manufacturers build cars in several configurations or bundles based on what sells in that particular region or area. You can only select vehicles that are built in the available configurations. Most car makers do a good job of matching the configurations to the sales. However there are times when the color and options are not available at your local car dealership, then the dealer will do a dealer locate and dealer trade so they can sell you a car.
The Answer is the Dealer Trade or Dealer Locate
The Dealer Trade and locate is exactly as it sounds. The car dealer will trade a similar car for the car you want with another dealer. No matter how big a car dealer they may be, they will never have every car that the car buyer requests. The answer is to locate the car and then do a dealer trade. The car dealer would get on the computer and login to the manufacturers portal where they can see if the desired car is available and where it is located.
Dealer Trade Miles to Dealer Location
Once they find the car they are looking for in the dealer system, they will call the other dealer to see if the car is still available and if they are willing to trade it for another car. If they can work out a trade with the other dealer they would drive the car to the other dealer and drive back the one they dealer traded. I have seen dealer trades that were only ten miles away and I have seen some that were 450 miles away. This is an important consideration when it comes to buying a dealer traded car. If you are willing to accept the extra miles on your new car to get exactly what you want than everything is fine. If the miles put on a dealer traded car are unacceptable to you the dealer could probably get the car brought back on a trailer, but it will cost you.
Avoiding the Dealer Trade and Dealer Locate
The last resort is for a car dealer to order the car you desire. Provided you are willing to wait up to 8 weeks to get your new car. The car dealer wants to avoid ordering a car for you because they are afraid that you might change your mind by the time your car arrives. In fact they would rather not do a dealer trade or dealer locate because it keeps them from selling a car NOW!
Only if the dealer has exhausted all efforts to get you to buy a car that they have in stock and fear losing a sale will they do a dealer trade or locate. Your car salesman is trained to sell from stock. They might tell you that the car you desire is not available or they will offer additional discounts to buy a car that they have in their inventory. A common question that the car salesman may ask is “Can I make you color blind if I can get you a great deal of a car we have in stock?” This line will actually work on many customers. However a customer that pushes the issue will get the car dealer to do a dealer trade and still get the same price as something from inventory.
Buying a Dealer Traded and Dealer Located Car
Many car buyers purchase a dealer traded car and are very happy with their purchase. Having a car dealer do a dealer trade to get you the car that you want is not a car dealer scam, in fact many car dealerships do this every day in order to sell cars. The most important step to buying a dealer traded car is to work out the deal in advance. Work out the numbers, payments, terms and all the other details before you agree to a car that will be dealer traded. Make sure that there are not any extra charges or transportation fees on your dealer trade car and all the numbers should be worked out before agreeing to purchase the car.
Protect Yourself When Buying a Dealer Traded Car
If you can negotiate a deal to buy a car that will be dealer traded the car dealership is going to require a deposit. Before you pull out the checkbook there are a few things that you need to do to protect yourself from any car buying scams. First thing you want is a buyer’s order that includes every detail of your negotiated deal in writing. The buyers order should include every detail of the car being purchased which includes the color, options, trim level and even the VIN number.
Yes, even the VIN number. The dealer can get the VIN number from the manufacturers web portal when they do the locate. It should also include the amount of down payment, trade-in amount, payments, dealership financing, term and time frame to locate car. Any dealer trade fees should be included in your deal and not an extra charge. There should also be a statement that says you are not obligated to buy the car unless it is exactly as written and that your deposit is refundable in the car is not as described.
The last step is to give the car dealer your deposit. Your deposit should be the minimum that the car dealer requires to locate a dealer trade for you. Most dealers require anywhere from $500 to $1000 deposit. Then your deposit should be paid to the dealer on a credit card. If there are any problems or funny business on the dealer’s side you can always contact your credit card provider and they will get your refund. If you write a check for a deposit it can be very hard to get a refund if there are any problems if you are working with an unscrupulous car dealer. If for any reason the dealer refuses to write up a buyers order with all the details for a dealer trade car take a pass and go to another dealer. There are plenty of car dealers around that will put all the details in writing on the paperwork when you willing to buy a dealer traded car.
Car Dealer Tricks Related to the Dealer Trade and Dealer Locate
Most car dealers will be happy to sell you a car that is dealer traded and have no reason to subject you to any car dealer tricks or car buying scams. However there are some dealers that may try to pull some of the following car dealer tricks. A trick that car dealers use is to take your deposit for a dealer trade and then call you in a few days and tell you that the car is not available. They will then tell you that they will sell you a car from stock at the same price. They didn’t even check, they just want to sell you a car from stock. This is also called “Taking You Out of the Market” They feel that after you left a deposit you will not visit other dealers to find the car you want.
Car dealers may also want you to put down a much larger deposit on a dealer trade so you will feel more committed to waiting for the car and not check to see if other dealers have the car you are looking to buy. In the business we call this “The Glue” because it is the glue that holds the deal together until you take delivery. Most car buyers use some measure of emotion when buying a car. The more emotion they use the more potential for extra dealer profit. Treat the purchase of a car like a business transaction and leave the emotion at home. When you do that you will always get a better deal. Looking for a particular car that you want Click Here NOW! Yahoo! Autos and get four quotes from dealers that have your car in stock and the you won’t need a dealer trade.