James May wants his shirt back

1-I sold my car. 2-how bad was it ? 1-I sold it to Ed 2-im so sorry

I got a free car. On the test drive the seller was driving and the timing belt broke. I didnt need the engine since I had a swap for it. I only said. Well I dont think I could do 1k now. He said . i will sign the title. Just take it. Beat that Ed 😂

Its always fun lowballing, until it happens to you... 25 times a day....

Ed could walk up to anyone and manage to buy their house with the money in his pocket

I'm going to use this strategy next time I ask out a girl because I'm essentially low balling her

There's the car, there's the title and there's the money. Nobody gets to have all three. Best car buy advice ever. More people should listen to it.

This 100% works for buying cheap cars off FB and CL as well. It's the same way I've been doing it for years. If the seller has your word that they'll never hear from you again after you've driven away, that's worth $$ to them. Keep in mind you have to seem trustworthy and be persuasive.

Bought a 66 mustang a few days ago using similar strategies, guy was asking 8500 and would absolutely not take 7k for it, after shrewd negotiations we met smack dab in the middle at 7k

Step 1: Do not message a complete stranger with an offer of 40% what they're asking without ever even looking at the car.

4:30 "After some negotiation, we met right in the middle at my orignal offer." Golden

I would pay to watch Ed trying to buy and sell his car to himself.

You just gave away almost 50 percent of exotic car hacks info that they charge for and he’s the sponsor lmao

I'm Ed Bolian, and this is my MasterClass.

If you have any other questions that I didn't address here, feel free to ask and I will do my best to answer.

I just bought my first car. I shrewdly negotiated a 1959 Morris Minor from $999 to $500. It's my dream car and I now own it.

Shrewd Negotiation is the sworn enemy of "no lowballers, I know what I have"

Being friendly, approachable and most of all, flexible, will get you into many great deals. I went once to pick up an RX-7 and as I was loading the car on my trailer noticed a motorcycle in the garage and asked about it. "Oh, you like bikes?", he said. "I don't ride anymore. You can have it." Not the first time!

All the dislikes are from people Ed has purchased cars from

You had me at “Don’t listen to this”

I love how ed grew up as a utter hooligan but turned into the calm cool collected man we see in front of us today...gives me hope for myself

How to lowball: Say you have money in hand, and meet them ASAP

Last time I was this early Ed still held the Cannonball Record.

Lowballed a svt lightning for 6k, lowkey felt bad but god damn driving back with 3k extra in hand felt like a victory

"DONT USE THIS ADVICE TO BUY A REGULAR USED CAR" Me: Turns back around from car max :'(

Ed has mastered the art of faking sincerity

Step 1: There are no lowball offers, only shrewd offers from here on out.

All in all that's what I'm doing, I'm trying to get dead electric smart EVs, as they are my hobby. But I seem to be the only guy who knows about the problems they are going to have: • Last year a owner was insulted after I told him it's going to have a problem and there won't be any replacement parts for it as it's the generation made by Tesla. Asked about it a few weeks ago again. As he told me, it broke a few weeks after I called him and he then scraped it as there where no replacement parts.. • An other smart EV (3rd gen) I tried to get, the dealer was furious about my offer. Even tho he's trying to sell a smart with a dead HV battery. I told him what it's worth and he laughed at me. That's been 3 months ago. He's still trying to find somebody who's offering more than I did.. So what is the right thing to do after I qualified myself, told him that I know everything about it and am still trying to get it. They think I'm a jerk who knows nothing and ignore me.

Tune in tomorrow to see what our panel of KZfaqrs and car experts would buy for a theoretical budget of $35k

Last time I was this early, truckers had rules to follow.

Finally, some of the shrewd negotiating tips are being shared with the masses.

Ed being himself for 13 minutes straight

Any time I see a VinWiki video that has Ed in front of the camera 1 question enters my mind: "how many times am I going to hear the word shrewd?"

I think you linking the RUF is actually a perfect example to those who are new to your car buying stories. To those of us who have watched those videos the whole time, we already kinda knew it because most of it was either directly stated or just basically evident from all your stories, but RUF story is the perfect example for those who are new to this. When you called you already knew what exact RUF it was, that it was at the dealership for a long time, what hurdles they had with dealership, how RUFs are rare and nobody knows about them and what can and will go wrong in a car that wasn't touched for so long, additionally you managed to talk the seller into removing the listing, which ultimately gives you the leverage as if other people would be calling him he might have heard a higher offer. So if you're new to Ed's car buying stories and tips, I'd definitely recommend giving RUF video a watch.

Ed's gonna be the greatest grandpa ever. Think of the stories he'll be able to tell his grandkids.

Ed is lowkey a sales psychologist

I sold my e46 m3 in 2020 for $8k and this video fits the transaction to a T. The car was a 6MT coupe with 110k miles and no mechanical issues but was developing a few cosmetic problems and I had a problem getting title issued so I was really worried about selling. The buyer did the exact things in this video- named all the known problems, eased my fears, made an offer and stuck to it. At a time when these cars were going for 20k I was happy to let it go for 8k because I felt at ease with the buyer and knew the car was going to a good home.

I was always taught when buying cars especially you show up with cash as soon as someone sees that money in hand they'll tend to accept a lower offer

If I cross my eyes I can see a Lambo in Ed’s shirt.

I’ve been in the business for 15 years and this is the best negotiating tactic for a specialty car I’ve ever seen given...then again ed could sell ice to an Eskimo

For the budget videos, what if you did each person’s “dream three car garage”

This is absolutely how I buy cars. I just bought a beautiful El Camino for 50-60% of what I could turn around and immediately resell it for. Combine a bad listing from a seller that's not knowledgeable with all the tips Ed put in this video and you get yourself a deal. Like he said, it's always a risk. I drove two states away to buy a car with a transmission that's slipping. When I got there the car was even better than described, looked better than the ad pictures, and had good upgrades the seller hadn't mentioned. But I already had my lowball offer accepted by the seller before driving 4 hours. "I'm planning on driving the car home tomorrow if you'll sell it for $XXXX and if your pictures and description describe the car halfway accurately. I've got cash in hand and a ride lined up, if the price is right." I got an awesome deal and it turned out all the car needed was a quart of transmission fluid. But even if it needed a whole new transmission, my offer accounted for it and the seller knew that my offer was based on worst-case-scenario. In the world of cars or other junk you're buying from facebook marketplace, the words the seller wants to hear are "I have the money in hand and I can leave to come buy it in the next ten minutes." Then you throw in "if you'll agree to a price of $XXXX." If they've been dealing with a lot of no-call no-shows or bad lowballers with no commitment, you'll get your deal more often than not.

What you do is an art Ed, I will probably never have a need to use this technique but its fascinating to see how you do it. I'd love to see your ideas on more practical negotiation.

I'm amazed - I'm doing these things when shopping for a car even thought I'm not in the car business of any sort.

Completely agree. The thing a seller hates the most is someone low balling you from behind a screen having never seen the car. The commitment to ask questions online or through phone first, Ask to see the car, arrive on time and being thorough In the inspection put the buyer at ease and shows you're serious. Once that lowball comes they welcome it with open arms

ED with the ol ‘If I can will you’. The commitment is everything. When looking to buy cheap used cars the most powerful thing you can say is ‘ I will come get it right now for x” but you HAVE to mean it, and you have to be ready.

I'd retort by saying this is good advice for any car deal. It works. Liability is any seller's bane. Look at it, know the problems it might have and tell the seller about the problems and repair costs most of which the seller probably doesn't even know, tell them "I'll buy this today for X$, and I understand if it has issues or breaks on my way home and I commit to that risk. Hey, it's a used car right? That's my problem and not yours. I'm buying this for myself and I will fix those issues and treat it well. I do the work myself anyway so I'll enjoy the project if it needs to be done. We can go to my bank and get cash in person if you'd like." and the seller will often agree to getting a little less cash today rather than letting who-knows-who drive their precious vehicle on a test drive tomorrow.

Beat tip for buying is you have friends call the seller up and pretend to be interested and not show up or they show up and make stupid low offer, the seller after a while gets so annoyed that when you show up later with cash in your hand and make a decent offer he says sure, “I just want to get rid of it!”. Worked great for me

"Regardless, they aren't going to hate you for it. And that's what's all about" words to live by

Thanks ed. This is the perfect video for me to watch being im going to a dealer to buy a local subaru thats been around for awhile. Its listed for 12,960 but im paying 10. Wish me luck.

I mean that's fine and all but I've found this system to work best for me. D - DEMONSTRATE VALUE E - ENGAGE PHYSICALLY N - NURTURE DEPENDENCE N - NEGLECT EMOTIONALLY I - INSPIRE HOPE S - SEPARATE ENTIRELY

Love all the stories you and your guest tell!

Ed, would you be willing to do a video on how you do your research to prepare your low-ball offer? I've had mixed results in researching "What are the likely things to go wrong with car 'x' when it has 'y' miles on it". I'm betting that you know about a wealth of resources or methods for finding out about a given car that you decide to look into. Thanks for considering it and thanks for all that you do for the car community!

This reminds me of the D.E.N.N.I.S system from Always Sunny in Philadelphia.

Surprising I haven’t seen an ad with “P.S. Ed, don’t bother calling” at the end

I think a good idea for a show/ series would be to record the audio of a real transaction and then transcribe it in a video for us. Kinda how Doug DeMuro did for his OG GTR Carmax video. We all want to hear exactly how a shrew negation goes down from one of the internets best.

Bang on, Ed. Great advice, and not just for cars. I've done the same with bicycles, kitchen mixers, power tools-- anything where you can acquire and leverage knowledge in solving common problems.

works great for rare/weird cars. did the same for a lotus elise in the fall even with a dealer, we did a trade (the car was one of the dealer's employees personal cars so basically person to person) and pretty much came down to "you dont complain about little things you find in my car after purchase, and I wont complain about things I find" had a solid deal even after giving a super low ball and walking away, got called back and bought the car. Im happy with it and they sold my car quickly, and the lotus has increased in value so Id say my first "exotic" purchase could have been worse.

I just did this with my new used bmw. Except I paid his full asking price because I already felt like it was a deal. He threw in new tires, a weighted shifter and lasagna with his family as a thank you for not attempting to talk him down on price. I love it and I'm glad he didn't sell to anyone else.

Important theme to this, like Ed explained in beginning, this is really for cars out of warranty, probably older German cars or exotic (ferrari, lambo, bentley, aston etc.). Most dealers (I've worked in exotic retail for a decade now) typically only have 10 year old cars or less due to being able to sell them with a warranty. the whole negotiation would stop right away as I would just be like "it is certified dude... you're good"

I do the exact same things when buying electronics to repair and resell. A lot of the sellers I've dealt with were more interested in getting things done quickly with no BS and similarly someone who knows what they are talking about. Always a few people who had unrealistic expectations and refused to budge on price but I always kept an open offer for when it sits for a month or two and inevitably just want to get rid of it..

A lot of people don't really care lmao. I had my mustang for sale and the guy low-balled me and I just said nah dude I ain't going that low and he gave up and paid me right about what I wanted.

this is brilliant! My pal wanted a 911 for a deal but wanted an inspection and the guy to take it to them etc... if your offer is low it needs to be the least hassle for the seller!!

I would love to hear how to deal with an insurance company that low balls you on a total loss. Currently going through this with the thieves at Safe Auto. Ugh

"This is how I buy cars and that's what you asked me to talk about." Indeed my friend!

I think everyone should hear this as I have learned it. The law in Indiana as it pertains to used vehicle sales is this: "All motor vehicle sales in the state of Indiana are as is where is unless otherwise stipulated by contract or warranty". Meaning as soon as you sign the title it's 100% your car, your problem, and your responsibility. This does not however apply to dealers which must get you to sign a contract that specifically says "as is". Other states may be different I don't know but this is something many people struggle with thinking they have recourse after they suffer from buyer's remorse.

This is incredibly useful for our Managing Editor who desperately wants an E38 7-Series...

Qualify yourself Your competing with dealerships and wholesale values To qualify yourself your gonna explain other cars you've owned like this, the issues you know are common on these cars, the service nightmares, the timebomb issues, all the thing they're already worried that somebody might know that would keep them from being interested, but your saying what those are and asking very specific questions to let them know you know what your doing your the right person the give the best deal because everything else is going to become really really easy A key part of qualifying yourself is disqualifying everybody else You do that by extenuating the fear that all used car seller has That when they sell this car inevitably even know they're just representing it as is, and they believe its a good car and they're selling it in good faith, that the things just gonna break and that somebodys gonna get really mad at them and ask them to pay for something after the fact that's not really there fault So your gonna let them know that fear doesn't belong in this transaction with you Everybody else forsure that's going to happen because you know this this that and everything else is gonna break on this car and the offer you made reflects that so your ready for it you're okay with it and your not gonna have it come back on them Obviously this works better and this whole strategy works better when the car is in bad condition when people are kinda scared to sell it or they know that something about the car like a blemished title or some bad history or the current condition of the car is imparably going to alienate most buyers so your qualifying yourself by saying i know all these things and i'm still here im still okay with it i want the car but i need it to be at this price Part of qualifying yourself is qualifying the fact that in this deal the only variable that you want control over is the price everything else is on their terms Now you gotta protect yourself you gotta do a deal in person pay get car get title manage all that safely but the only thing you care about is the price that you have already figured out the car is worth As your make your offer explain why so not only are you qualifying yourself but your explaining why that's the right price that yeah that's sky high retail so this is probably what a dealer would wanna pay but their gonna wanna make sure it doesn't have this this this this this all these thing that your car probably needs and i'm okay with it needing so i need to pay this which is way back of wholesale but it's gonna be quick easy again the only thing i care about is if you'll accept that i'll do it right now Volunteer commitment Now when someone is selling a car whether they’re a professional used car salesman, new car salesman, or just a private seller, they’re out fishing for that commitment, and they don't expect to find it, because if you want to be able to negotiate you don't commit to an offer you say “eh might do this, might wanna do this, I need to probably get it checked out” i've got all these things but that's not how we're doing this Your going to immediately say “i will pay this for this car” You'll have already said why you believe that it needs to be cheaper than what they’re asking, but when you say what you will pay don't say “I'll probably do this, or you know if this all works out, and we get to the same page, and we check this car out then I would do this”. No, “I will pay this for that car” That way they know okay at least i know even if i'm insulted i have their full commitment And they may believe that now is an invitation to start negotiating and meet right smack dab in the middle between those numbers but no, you've made an offer on purpose, you've decided what the car is worth, if you pay anymore than that its actually charitable Eliminate your outs When somebody sells a car they expect someone to want to look at it to test drive it to take it to a mechanic and get an inspection to sleep on it overnight to ask their wives Your not doing any of that, again, the only thing you want to do is get your price Because you've padded that price by the worst things that could happen in all these other things, now you could go through all those steps and if you need to to have peace of mind thats fine but that means their gonna have a lot more time invested in your transaction and it becomes alot less interesting relative to letting a dealer look at it drive it around go back and fourth make you an offer and leave with a check, your not asking for that, your asking for the full retail buying experience Now of course this involves a ton of risk You are gonna buy cars that need a lot of repairs Everycar i buy needs a lot of repairs But i know what repairs are likely and i'm kind of gambling with that I know that I bought the car well and I might not have to do all of those repairs Close quickly If you need financing, its okay, it’s a little bit harder to get a great deal but your going to go into this already having that prequalified, you’ll have already called whoever you wanna to use and your gonna know exactly that you can pay this number and all the steps that are gonna have to be taken for this deal to consummate If they are gonna have some payoff, you know how thats going to happen, you know what will make you comfortable, and thats again part of the offer, to say alright this is what im paying and this is how we close Again its not asking for other things to happen, we’re not saying “and now we’re gonna go get a compression check” Your just talking about how the whole deal is going to consummate Theres the car, theres the title, and theres the money Nobody gets to have all 3 You can take the car and give them the money, and then they have to send you the title, because if they dont you can get a bonded title that gives you some protection If they have the car and they have the money, then you take the title, if they dont give you the car you can say it was stolen your insurance will pay you back If you have the money, and they have the car and the title well then you haven't done a deal yet, so until you switch places the car is not yours yet But the goal is to do that as quickly and effectively as as possible The other reason for that is you wanna limit your competition You wanna let them know as soon as you start going through this process I want you to take all the listings down I want us to have a very honest, good faith discussion about what I'm going to buy your car for and that's going to conclude very quickly Do not complain You have eliminated your chance to learn more about the car The moment where you make your offer you stop asking questions you stop checking the car out, you dont bring up any other things, you can ask him something about an option, but it has to be clear that his answer to that will have absolutely nothing to do with whether the deal you have proposed will consummate If you'll accept my offer your not going to hear from me or my lawyers regardless of what happens Anything bad can happen, and as long as you didn't explicitly lie to me about something we’re good And honestly even if they did lie to you you dont have a ton of leverage if its a used car and you drive it away Again those are the risks you take, but the risks are why you get the good deal You dont get to have your cake and eat it too Get the car checked out, make sure its as perfect as it can ever be, then get the most screaming deal It might be better, it might be cheaper in some circumstances to do all those things but again this is how I buy cars and thats what you guys asked about Shrewd negotiation tactics Accept all the risks and just get the deal As long as that deal is good enough you can have a lot of the risks manifest badly and your still come out ahead

Couldn't agree more. This is what I have learned from when I was a kid buying cars with my dad. Still use the same tactics to this day.

I did this recently to buy my used Porsche , I knew it was a rare car but told the salesman I’d pay xxx for it not a dime more. After 2 weeks of him proposing deals, showing comparable cars that weren’t really comparable, and me ignoring him he finally called and said ok yep we can do it.

I just watched this video after buying R129 SL600 and got an amazing deal -- and wow, did this match exactly what I did.

Of course, one thing you have to keep in mind is that you'd better have that "buffer $X amount" in the bank AFTER you purchase this vehicle. Just in case you need it. For example, you're looking at that R8 and the seller wants "not one penny less than 75k" and after your negotiations you commit to 65k because of that clutch that costs 5k and those 3x other things that potentially cost another 5k. IF IT ACTUALLY NEEDS THESE ITEMS, you had better have that 10k in the bank to spend on it. Ed's tactics are sound, but you also have to be ready for those expenses that you said you told the seller you were ready to do. But, the do diligence Ed was talking about with "knowing everything about THAT CAR (meaning VIN)" becomes vital because you can fairly guesstimate what that exotic MAY or may not need, which the seller is afraid of you knowing.

That’s how I bought my cayenne turbo with 100k miles for 5k

Never saw this video before but, I've always lived by this. I NEVER leave money on the table, or pay any more than I should. I do my home work on a car, look up the VIN, know EXACTLY with the miles what the car is worth and it's feature set with service history, I will go in about 20% off what retail market value is. This is on my daily driver. Let's be real. I like a nice daily driver, I want the best I can afford. I have been driving Lexus LS series cars now for almost 20 years, never got one new. My last deal, that I am driving now, and loving. So I am on AutoTempest (yea,. it's a very useful site), saw a car I wanted bad, with no picture, I looked up the VIN, knew all the service, knew Every feature, and it was EXACTLY what I was looking for. The car bluebook value was about $29,000, it was listed for $24K with no details. I emailed, and back and forth a little. I found out because the mileage was a little over 100K, the were going to send it to auction. I got the on the phone with them the VERY NEXT morning very early(a very respected large dealer), and we went back and forth, about 5 times with the commitment that I would drive the 2 hours to put a large deposit down. They finally accepted my offer of $18,500 (It's a steal, even if I drove it off the lot and it got totaled, I would make about $10K on it from insurance). I left work drove right there 2 hours and 15 min to get there, Took the car for a test drive, inspected it right there. I took the deal and actually paid for the car fully that day. They delivered it a few days later and I love it. A few minor things that I was expecting but, it is my dream daily driver and I got an incredible deal... like my last 3 cars :) With watching your videos, Maybe in a few years if I can my salary up a little, I might start hunting for a fun weekend car... oh...I would love that :)

I basically did this on a 2017 RS7 that had originated in Canada (gray market) from a dealer in Georgia before and during the Pandemic. I gave them a firm written CASH offer for my price which was basically high wholesale or $5K below their ASKING price. They did not accept... initially. Sometimes the dealers will sell a car to someone else for the number they are "hoping to get". No issue and they SHOULD get what they wanted IF the market supports it. In this case this dealer delayed until after COVID was occurring and then tried to come back with a number "in-between" to which my answer was the same. $72K cash out the door for a '17 RS7 Performance edition with 18M miles I didn't hear from them that day or the next or ...but about a day AFTER I had bought another car and nearing 3 weeks into COVID, they called me up AGAIN wanting to "do a deal". Even though I had already bought a very similar car (but not a performance model), I listened and asked "So, your accepting the $72K and I'll be down there in a day" to which they answered, "Well no we still need $2K more than that" to which I stated, "you obviously don't understand what the offer was". I told them I was done with their sales games after nearly 3 months and that ...by the way I already bought another car but was still willing to have also bought this one IF they would have honored the original offer at the TIME I had made that offer. C'est La Vie

I bought a 2014 C7 in 2017. I worked the guy for a week. Got it for $35,700, found out he owed $41K. We did the deal he paid the difference. He was a medical student struggling to keep a Vette. I drove it for 6 months, put about 7K miles on it and sold it for $38,500. Pretty much paid for Insurance, interest, tag, title ant tax. It cost me gas money basically to drive it.

One other step. If they decline your offer, you can always tell them the offer stands and they know where to find you, so in a few days, weeks, whatever when they want to sell it, they should give you a call. Have had someone offended by the exact same sort of lowball you mentioned call back a few weeks later ready to make the deal.

"We met right smack dab in the middle, at my original offer..."

Mr Bolian never dissapoints tons of expertise and tons of style

Excellent analysis Ed. I'd been negotiating locally on a specific vehicle for over a year and got nowhere. With all my finances correct I decided to expand my geographic area in the middle of this pandemic. Long Island, NY had the exact vehicle in the exact color, a 3 year old leftover with 19 miles. Of course they were asking similar money as my local dealer but offered them exactly what I had offered the local dealer. "Call you back in 5 minutes" they said, and we closed within 7 days, right in the middle @ my initial offer(23% off). Empty plane to NY later and rode it back to Florida. Is it wrong of me to order parts from the Florida dealer who still has his in inventory? ⁉️

A full commitment’s what I’m asking for.

Just just bought a large SUV with significant savings from a larger dealer out of state. I did all that Ed mentioned and it turned out to be a great deal money wise. However, getting the vehicle shipped to me is another issue. I never knew how difficult it can be to have a car shipped from a neighboring state. If I am lucky, it might be picked up today - about 6 days after I wanted I picked up. This would be a good topic to hear Ed or someone on VINWiki talk about. What is the most reliable way to ship a vehicle, safely.

Another quick tip from my experiences. Money talks. When you go to make a lowball offer. If you say you have cash for said offer, the seller will be more likely to take the lower offer because they won't have to deal with financing or any other things after the fact. Once its paid for and the paperwork is signed. Thats it

Gotta love Ed. So enthusiastic.

The only problem I have with *Low Balling* , is you have to be very careful sitting down. You haven't felt pain until you sit on your assets accidentally. You ROCK Ed. Keep 'em coming sir.

I bought a CBR600RR with 1,600kms on the clock, after hearing how the seller had a nightmare with kids rocking up wanted to test ride it all the time, I just said straight up don't even worry about starting it up. I gave it a quick visual inspection (it was mint and garaged 24/7), gave him a low-ish offer that he couldn't say no to, done deal. Price was more than 45% off the RRP of a new bike.

Just bought 2 cars this month, from the same seller using these techniques, they work. Paid 50% off retail on one and 30% on the other.

That "Car,money,title" thing got me!

While it's not a car, a bunch of years ago I was in a scenerio where I wanted to buy the smallish business that I worked at. My offer was exactly at market price. It was an unfortunate situation where the current owners had overpaid and wanted to recoup those costs. I was quite essential to the business and close to the owners and was told "Sam I'm sorry, I know that's what it's worth. But I can sell it for at least 100k more". And he was correct, the new owners bought it at the inflated price and closed 2 years later losing 300k. Luckily I had jumped to a major corporation and made much more money than I would have owning that store. The point of my comment is that while knowing exactly the value and issues with something you're trying to buy doesn't always work. Most buyers are happy to sell to people who completely misjudge the value and know there are idiots that aren't able to assess the situation properly.

This should be named: "How to buy a worn out Rare Car"

Being nice, polite, and understanding works way better than trying to prove yourself. Always arrive early, clean, and make sure you bring a coffee. Trust me been doing this for ten years. Own a couple house and a nice fleet for myself all by flipping. Be nice, be cool and be willing to accept no. Everything Ed says can work to your advantage just use discretion as to when to use them.

These are some great tips. I used most of these a couple of weeks ago for a few bike. Got about 30% off asking price.

I've been waiting for this forever. I actually did this recently when I bought a little shitbox commuter in between nice vehicles. Cut 700 dollars off of a car at a mom and pop dealer. Paid 4k cash lol.

Ed - I wish I was able to use you to buy my cars for me. I would have saved so much money on previous purchases if I had.

I got my 97 volvo V70 that way, i had like 1300 bucks to spend but the dealer wanted 1650. I told him what could go wrong and that people could come after him thru the consumer protection agency if the engine had issues or the gearbox failed. I said i would pay 1200 and not come after him for any repairs. At the time it was way below what the car was worth on the private sellers market. But he agreed to the price to just get the car off his lot and not deal with any issues.

I bought a used BMW exactly this way from a dealer that just took in on a trade. I told them I'll give them $500 over their trade-in value, and I'll take the car, no question asked. sales manager came back about 10 minutes later with the keys and I was outta there. fastest purchase from a dealer I've where had.

Ed must be a cat. How else can he get "The deal of a lifetime" "So many times"?

As a used car dealer myself I can say this is a good advice.. If you're going to low ball somebody at least do it the right way - not just pick up the phone and offer 30% less than the asking price.. 😠 However, if it does work don't forget you are still assuming those risks and if you're not careful that great deal can go downhill pretty quickly.. lol I agree with that feeling of victory though when you get a great deal.. There is nothing like it. That's why those wholesale car auctions are so addicting. They are kinda like casinos - you only remember the wins, not the losses and they keep you coming back for more..

This is pretty much how I picked up my 99 540iT. Seller 3 hours away was asking 3200 and had been listed for sale for about a month. Told the seller for $1000 I'd drive 3 hours one way to come pick it up, no test drive or anything. A couple weeks later they said that if I'd come get it they would sell for $1000.

Wow I could’ve used this yesterday shrewdly negotiating for a G550 from a dentist