I'll be heading to the dealer soon.

What advice would you give a newbie like me? Any tips and tricks?
What are the things to watch out for? Do I have any room to negotiate (I assume I won't)?

Purchasing a new custom ordered '23 SuperCrew 2.7 Ecoboost.

Thanks for the help in advance!

 

Do as much of the transaction as possible online and don't be afraid to travel several hundred miles to buy. Go and kick tires locally to see what you like. Then get online and see what is available within 200-300 miles and contact dealers who have what you like.

 

If you are "Purchasing a new custom ordered '23 SuperCrew 2.7 Ecoboost." then it sounds as if the vehicle has arrived and any opportunity for negotiation is past.

Else, as has been stated already be willing to travel several hundred miles. Can easily mean thousands of dollars. "I will come to you if you have the right price." Demand out the door pricing, don't let them forget taxes or preparation fees.

Arrange financing in advance. Dealers either have to pay up front for "manufacturer's special finance rates" or they get a commission on higher rates than you could get from a bank who knows you. When you already have financing and are sitting across the desk from the sales manager, he will be drooling inside. He smells the possibility of a sale Right Now, not next week sometime. Tell him if he has a better deal on financing then you'll take that. That everything is on the table.

Try sites such as Consumer Reports and Edmunds for supposed, "fair pricing" estimates. If dealer is not initially beating those prices then if those are prices you are willing to pay it is totally fair and honest to beat the dealer over the head with whatever CU or Edmunds says. You can honestly play dumb, "I don't know any better but they say this is what I can buy this truck for. If you can't match this price then I'll have to spend the next month finding someone who will."

If the dealer is $1000 high just remember how long you have to work to earn $1000. You might as well "work overtime" finding a dealer who will meet your price.

 

Just know the dealer will try to sell you ten thousand dollars worth of useless crap, and be firm when saying "NO!" Assuming you have your financing already figured out, or be ready for ANOTHER round of crap from the dealer's finance department. Remember, they make money or points on every transaction they complete. And don't hesitate to say, "no, no...I am not going to give you a five star rating...fawk off", it REALLY gets their attention because Ford is **** about this. No five star rating, no bonuses for the dealer and the salesperson. On the other hand, if they DO treat you well (doubtful), then you CAN reward them with the 5 stars.

 

They will try as hard as possible to deal based on monthly payment. Don’t do this.
Each thing is it’s own transaction.

Negotiate purchase price (they aren’t moving as much as they used to). Also one would assume if you ordered the truck that price should already be figured out.

Negotiate trade in value separately than vehicle
purchase price.

Dont get sucked into talking APR% or monthly payment with the salesman out front. It’s worthless.

Only vehicle Out the Door price and trade in value with the salesman.

Don’t stop negotiating once you’re in the back office.

Again, don’t deal on monthly payment.
The finance person will try to sell you tons of crap. Each of these is negotiable, and they have tons of markup. Even slight pushback will save you hundreds of dollars.
Also, know your credit score. They should be able to tell you this as well, as they will check it. Negotiate the interest rate. Any markup they give you over what they were quoted they can keep. So you might qualify for 3% and they will quote you 4.5%, because they get the extra 1.5%.

Ask the finance person what your ‘buy rate’ is. They can’t withhold this, and you should not pay any more interest than that. It’s possible to negotiate below buy rate.

 

Welcome..
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What they said ,I got sucked in on extended warranty ,I thought I was getting ford warranty but no it was some aftermarket crap I guess they make more money selling
I never buy stuff like that but they sucked me in saying all the computer crap on these new vehicles can get expensive so they sell u 100 thousand miles coverage but I was dumb and bought it then I thought I already get 65 worth so it's really 35 thousand miles extra, o well water under the bridge now. You can always get more from Ford later if you so desire

 

It is a good idea to go into negotiations knowing the terms of Ford's extended warranties. And knowing there are dealers who will sell you the policy remotely and after the initial sale of the vehicle for much less than MSRP.

Then during negotiations you can offer to add a Ford extended warranty to sweeten their pot. Even if the dealership doesn't make much on the sale they get Brownie Points for adding stuff to your sale.

 

Advice is to not ask for help the day before going in to pickup a custom order.

 

Be aware that it's not uncommon for one person or entity to own several dealerships in the same general area. You might think that you have dealers competing against each other but they're really all the same one. Especially when it comes to selling new vehicles.