Buying a car is one of the most important financial decisions that people will make in their lifetimes. Finding the right car for you is like finding a pair of shoes that fit perfectly. It should be comfortable and fit your lifestyle perfectly. Are you more of an old-fashioned, “back in my day” person? Then maybe you want a 2007 Jetta. Are you a new-age tech lover? You should look at a 2016 Lexus NX200. Do you have to commute down the QEW from Oakville to Toronto for work? You live in Canada…make sure you get something warm. No matter what kind of car you’re looking at, here are some tips for buying a car.

Do Your Research

It’s extremely important to know what you’re getting into before walking into any dealership. Have an idea of what car you want, what the price should be and any offers that are going on at the time. If you’re buying used, research resale prices for the car you want. Going into any sort of negotiation with extra knowledge can only help you.

Shop Around

There’s no reason to commit to buying from the first dealership you walk into, especially when it comes to used cars. Every dealership has different cars at different prices. There are over a dozen Toyota dealerships in the Toronto area that sell used cars. Each one of those dealerships will have different specials on different cars.

Negotiate

Car dealerships are not like Wal-Mart. You don’t walk in, look at the price written on the car and head to a cashier to pay that price. The price is completely negotiable. Whether it’s the payment period, interest rates, or even just what kind of free stuff they’ll give you, everything is negotiable. If you don’t ask, you won’t get.

Avoid Impulse Purchases

Buying a car as an impulse is never a wise move. You might realize too late that you can’t afford the car or it’s not exactly what you expected. As mentioned above, do your research. Know what you’re getting into before you end up diving into the shallow end.

Always Test Drive

Let’s say you’ve done your research online. You decide you want a gorgeous Mercedes you found online. You’ve checked prices online, compared different stores and polished your negotiation skills. You walk into the dealership like a boss and negotiate the heck out the purchase. You’ve just purchased your car. You get in your new car to victoriously drive off the lot…and you hate it. It handles funny, and the seats feel weird. If you had test driven the vehicle, you would’ve known about this before and not gone through with the purchase. Enjoy the next five years of back pain.

Do Your Research

This is so important that I’m mentioning it again and making it bigger. Knowledge is power.

But we’re very nice. So we’re going to help you with your research. Check out some of our articles about cars including your favourite brands like Toyota and Lexus.