A New Car

Well the day is coming soon, my truck is officially for sale. I have listed it on ebay at http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&sspagename=ADME%3AL%3ALCA%3AUS%3A31&viewitem=&item=160124235112 and on Craigslist as well.

Joyce and I bought a black 2007 Honda Civic. Here is a summary of our car buying experience.

Let me just say, dealing with car salesmen is akin to getting a prostate exam. I dread dealing with these leaches and a good car salesman can make all the difference in the world when deciding between cars. After beginning some exhaustive research we narrowed down our choices to four cars, the Civic, a Toyota Corolla, a Mazda 3 and a Nissan Sentra. We had researched each car online and through Joyce’s subscription to Consumer Reports. Since we were both off last Tuesday it was at long last time to test drive them.

We started with the Nissan Sentra. I had made an appointment to test drive one at Continental Nissan in Countryside. I had filled out an internet survey which stated exactly what features we were looking for. The salesman ignored it completely and took us right to the most expensive Sentra he had on the lot. After telling him that we were not looking to get a hand job each time we sat in the thing and were looking for something a little more basic he showed us some other models. We test drove a red one, which had the features we were looking for. It was a decent ride and the price was in our ballpark. But that salesman kind of left a bad taste in our mouths which kind of hurt the Sentra.

After that we went down the block to the Continental Honda on Lagrange Road. We started snooping around the Civic’s when a salesman came by. We told him we would like to test drive one and he grabbed the key and let us go out on our own. (Which as it turns out is a big plus.) Going into our shopping a Civic rated 4^th of the cars we were scouting. However after we each test drove it, we were in a word “wowed.” On top of that, the salesman was really laid back and answered all of our questions. We left the Honda dealership with the Civic as our car. The Toyota or Mazda were going to have to really impress us.

Later in the afternoon, we were off to Oak Lawn Toyota to test drive the Corolla. Now, I had a 1992 Corolla back in the day. I loved the thing. Reliable as all hell and Toyota was a great company to me. They were always friendly and went out of their way to make sure that I was satisfied. So, I was more of a fan of the Corolla then Joyce was going in. Again, we started snooping around and an older salesman approached us. We mentioned we wanted to take the car out and we were off. The salesman was beyond quiet. It was almost like we were putting him out by asking to test drive the thing. The car itself was fine. But, let’s face it, a Corolla is not exactly sexy. Both Joyce and I came away thinking that, the car was nice but we just thought the Civic was a little sportier and it got a little better gas mileage. So, with one car to go the Civic was still in the lead.

The last car we test drove was the Mazda 3. We already have a Tribute and we have had good luck with it. I made an appointment at Oak Lawn Mazda to take one out. We got there and the salesman I made the appointment with, was in with another couple so he pawned us off on a younger salesman. He seemed nice enough, and let us take the car out by ourselves. I must say I really liked the car. It was sporty and roomy in the back. It didn’t get quite the gas mileage of the Civic but both Joyce and I liked it. It was going to be a tough call, that was until we got back into the showroom. We sat down to just ask some basic questions and the hard sell was already on. After telling the guy a number of times we were still in the search process, the young sales guy brings over the original sales dude. That guy turned out to be a complete douche who didn’t so much as acknowledge Joyce’s existence. Sadly that really left a bad taste in both our mouths and hurt the car’s chances.

So, after taking a couple of days to think it over and do even more research our choice became clearer. We both came away liking the Civic the best. So, then came the pricing game. Joyce researched the invoice price and when we went into the showroom we had a ballpark of what we would pay for the car. On Thursday night Joyce and I were off to Continental Honda to begin the negotiation.

I admit this with no reservation. Joyce is by far the better negotiator then I am. So, I left it to her to haggle. They made an offer. She made a counter offer. Our salesmen then, came back after awhile with yet another offer. Joyce stood firm telling our salesman that, if that was the best they could do, thanks but we would not be buying. John, our salesman said to hold on to see what he could do. He then came back and told us, congratulations, we had just bought a Civic. In the end I feel we got a pretty good deal as Honda was offering 4.9% financing so, our payment is very manageable.

We have had the car since Thursday and Joyce really likes it. This thing is going to save us tons on gas. Yes, I am sad to be selling my truck. But, it served me well and it is time for it to move on to greener pastures. It will always have a special place in my heart.