How do you tell the difference?

To avoid becoming a victim of sneaky car dealers, look at the following auto financing scams.

Yoyo scam

You will be allowed by the dealer to bring the car home as soon as possible. The dealer will take care of the financing, a few days later he will contact you again and tell you that there was a problem with your financing plan. He will tell you to set up a new financing scheme through him which, of course, will be at a higher cost and this will also entail a very high profit on the dealer's part.

Be wary of this trick and avoid it at all costs if you detect it. If you have a bad credit standing, don't have your financing done by the dealer and make arrangements for your own financing. If you ever do avail of the dealer's financing, you should never drive the car back to your home immediately. Wait for at least 24 hours just to make sure that the processing of your financing scheme has been completed already. By allowing 1 whole day to pass by, you are assured that the dealer cannot use this scam on you.

Window etching trick

Window etching is a very common scam. What the dealer will do is to offer to etch the VIN number of your car onto the window of the car for a price. Basically, the price ranges from as low as $300 to as high as $1,000. Some buyers think that they did a good job by being able to talk down the price to a few hundred dollars, but unfortunately for them, a few hundred dollars is still a good amount of money. The best way to avoid this kind of scam is for you to buy an etching kit that you can do on your own. This is available in most auto shops and costs around $20. See how much they profit from you!

Preparation fees

For preparing your car, the dealer will often add an additional preparation fee to your bill. Just to conduct a test drive, replace fuses, or take the car's plastic cover off will have your bill increasing by at least $500! If you visit other shops, you can get the information that these add on costs are already included in the MSRP as set by the manufacturer. Some dealers automatically add it to the buyer's order to make it look mandatory. To take care of this scam, you can ask the dealer to classify it as credit (it should be identical to the amount of the preparation fee) on the following line. If the dealer does not agree to this, you can just simply walk away from the dealership.

Market adjustment

The dealer will convince you that the vehicle you want is selling like hot cakes and very popular. In order to sell you the vehicle, they will do some "market adjustments" amounting to a few thousand dollars. This is usually indicated by a tag near the MSRP tag set by the manufacturer. Even if the car you want is very popular and is very much in demand, if it is in stock you should not be tempted because getting a "popular" car is not worth it if you have to pay a few thousand dollars more. You should never pay more than the MSRP set by the manufacturers. If you do, then you are allowing others to take advantage of you.

Warranty extension

Although this type of scam is old already, it is still being used and there are many who fall for this trick. What happens in this kind of scam is that when you make a loan for the car, the dealer will tell you that you are required to purchase an extended warranty because it is one of the conditions of the bank. There is a simple way of avoiding this scam. Ask the dealer to specify clearly in writing that the extended warranty is required for the loan to be approved. The dealer will most probably find a way to have it excluded. If he persists in including the extended warranty, do not do business with this guy and go to other dealerships.

These are some of the most common auto financing scams that are utilized by some car dealers. Always keep these in mind if you are going to buy a car. If you or a friend were treated fairly by a dealer in the past, consider using the same dealership again. It’s a good indication that they do care about their customers and aren’t just looking for a “fast buck.”

Think very carefully and do not buy on impulse. Good luck to you and go get that car!

If you have an idea on the right car, then a little research on the value of the car in the market to date will be able to help the you when approaching a dealer.

This can be done by checking the internet or looking through the local newspaper before going to the various dealers in the area to make comparisons.

If the ideal car is not available on the lot, the if you tell the dealer about it these people can help by looking for that particular model or offer a similar car similar to your choice.

Since dealers often want to get rid of the cars quickly, it is also possible to get a good deal on what is available as long as it meets your requirements.

Most cars have a maintenance record. The buyer must ask the dealer to see it and if it is not available, then you should contact the dealership or repair shop where most of the work was done.

The buyer has the right to see a copy of the dealer’s warranty. To be safe, you can also ask if a service contract is provided in buying the used car. This contract that is offered by the dealer may or may not provide coverage that is in the manufacturer’s warranty which may cost extra.

Since the warranty usually comes when buying a car and the service contract does not, it is best to ask if you need to avail of by answering some questions;

• What are the differences between the coverage of the warranty and the service contract?

• What repairs are covered?

• Is routine maintenance covered?

• Who will pay for labor and parts if brought to the shop?

• Who is authorized to perform the repairs and where?

• How long does the service contract last?

• What are the cancellation and refund policies?

Just looking at the car will not give information if the car is in good condition. It should be test driven under various road conditions such as the highway or in traffic.

Since most people are not that knowledgeable about cars, it is advisable to bring the car to a reliable mechanic for proper inspection.

The Age Of An Antique Car

A classic car is one that is more than 15-years-old while an antique car is more than 25-years-old and a vintage car is even older than that. Owning one of these cars is not just a matter of pride, but it is also somewhat of a prestige symbol as well. However, you should know that having an antique car is going to cost you more than a new car would cost you because there are many people who are also pursuing this hobby. This is where antique car financing can come in handy.

Financing An Antique Car

If you think that you can afford an antique car, you will need to do some homework to make sure that you know the real value of the antique car that you want to purchase. You should also know how to look for any alterations or flaws in the car as they will noticeably affect the car's value. Of course, you will also want to make sure that the car will be worth more money if you should happen to want to resell it later on. Once you do these things you can turn to almost any lender for financing but you will want to take the time to search for the loan that will best suit your needs.

There are many lenders who specialize in antique car financing. All of them will require that you have excellent credit and valid proof of your income. Of course, this does not mean that if you are self-employed that you will not be able to get financing, but you are going to have to be able to produce income statements in order to prove your income. The majority of these lenders are going to require that you put down at least 10% of the car's purchase price. However, you will want to take the time to look at the terms before you sign any contract since interest rates and down payment may vary from one lender to the next. However, most of the time they will be based upon your own personal credit profile.