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Common Questions
- Don't I have three days to return a car I bought and don't like?
NO. There is no period in which you can return the car. Once you have signed
your name on the contract, the car is yours with a few exceptions. If
you purchased a used car from a dealer and purchased a return option,
you may return the car within two days.
- The salesman sold me an "extended warranty". Is that like the manufacturer's warranty for a new vehicle?
NO. When the salesman says "extended warranty" he
usually means a service contract. A service contract just
means that someone will try to repair the vehicle if it breaks
down. If it can't be repaired you do not get a replacement.
The car may be in the shop for weeks. The service contract
does not give any time limit on how fast the car has to be
repaired. Generally a service contract is no better than
the dealer selling it.
- The salesman said the car was inspected before they sold it and that they cannot sell a car that is not in good repair. In California the horn, brakes, lights must work and the car must have had a smog inspection certificate. That does not cover the engine, transmission, alignment, and inspection as to whether the vehicle has ever been in an accident. There are some very expensive components that should be checked by an outside mechanic. Do not believe everything you hear.
- The dealer has to charge you more than the manufacturer's suggested retail price because you are a first time buyer, a member of a certain ethnic group, etc...
Wrong. Go to another dealer.
- You have to buy the car today because they have other
people waiting to buy it, the great deal won't be available
tomorrow, etc. Wrong. There is always another deal.
- You have spent five hours at the dealer's negotiating. After making such a time commitment you have to go ahead with the deal even though the car ...isn't exactly what you want, or... you are spending more than you can afford, or ...you don't like the color, or ...you don't like the dealership. GET UP AND WALK OUT, even if you have to walk by the car they have now decorated with balloons and your name is written across the windshield in bold white letters. Until you sign the contract, you have the power NOT to buy the car.
- The salesman promised - to repair the car, that the
car was owned by just one person, to take the car back,
that it was in perfect condition, etc. Can I make him
live up to his oral promises? Probably not, unless he
wrote it down on the contract or another piece of paper.
If he
makes a promise, tell him to write it down, date it, and
sign his name, and for you to keep the original copy of
his written promise.
- Can I can turn in a leased car in any time I want without paying anything more?
WRONG. You have to buy out the lease. You will be paying penalties and the value of the lease. The lessor and the dealer make money from leases.
- Does a lease cost less than buying?
Not usually because people do not understand leases. A lease is just another form of financing except you have all the obligations of ownership (must make payments, must keep insurance on the car and must maintain the car) but you do NOT have all the privileges of ownership (you cannot sell the car without buying the lease out first; you cannot drive it as much as you want without paying extra for each mile over the designated miles per year). At the end of a lease, you have no equity and you may owe money. Leases are complicated. Be sure you read and understand the lease document.
- Are dealerships owned by the manufacturers?
NO. They usually are privately owned businesses. In fact,
when you buy or lease a car you may be dealing with many
different corporations under the manufacturer's name
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