Scams to Look For When Purchasing a New Car

By Roberto beiro

Purchasing a new automobile can be a stressful pass time, especially with the added pressure of pushy car salesmen. It is common knowledge that you can negotiate down the price of any vehicle at a dealership, but there are many scams out there that are not so well known and are designed to separate you from your hard earned money. I have listed 6 of these scam below for you to be aware of next time you go and buy a new car.

1. This scam deals with etching the vehicle's VIN# on the window. There are dealerships that will try to charge for this added feature, saying it is a requirement by a lender. It's not! No lender will require you to pay for any extra options that you don't need. The truth is they only care about is whether or not you pay your instalments on time.

2. "Subject to loan approval" is a common phrase on car loans. Some dodgy car dealers will try to scam you by mentioning this phrase, with a view to squeezing more money out of you. They can charge finance fees of $1000 up and and added $50 to you payments if you have a bad credit score. Those with good credit needn't worry so much. The best thing to do to avoid this scam is to get a loan from a bank instead.

3. One of the most common scams is the credit score scam. The car dealership will try to give you a higher finance rate by informing you that your credit score is lower than it actually is. Dealerships will try this scam regardless of you credit score. The best way to deal with this greediness is to bring a copy of your credit report with you when you go looking to buy a new car. That way there is no dispute.

4. The warranty scam is one that involves the dealer selling you a $2000, 3 year warranty, saying that you need oit to qualify for financing. NOT TRUE. A car warranty is optional and hs no influence of getting a loan.

5. The dealer prep scam is another good one. It involves an adiitional $500 fee for doing basically nothing. Ther is no preparation as the car usually arrives at dealership ready to be purchased and driven straight of the lot. Avoid paying this or visit a dealership that does not charge this fee.

6. The 'dealer mark -up fee' is another scam. This fee does nothing but boost the dealers profit margin. Greed is the purpose of this fee, plain and simple.

As common as these scams are, there are also quite a few reputable dealerships out there. Dealerships that will give you a good service and sell you a car at a fair price. You just have to look carefully for them.

About the Author:

Roberto Beiro has collected together many other great car articles at his website. He is also the author of many original articles like tips on buying a used car.