Need Help (New Car Buyer)

[_jonny_depth]

Hello,

My bronco finally arrived at the dealer this morning after waiting 701 days. This is the first brand new car I've ever purchased, I bought a used car back in 2014 that I still have today and will be trading in. For those that have been through this process often, can you please help me out on what to expect, what verbiage to look for, what I need and don't need, all of that!

I don't want to walk about feeling ripped off, with buyer's remorse, or a sense that I could have done something differently and locked into a massive car payment for the next coming years.

This I have:
-I have already contacted my bank and they said they can offer me 2.84% APR on a loan
-I downloaded the checklist from the forums on what to look for when picking up my bronco
-my budget is set up for the car

Questions I have:
-Do I get an extended warranty?
-What addons are good, what are bad
-What should I keep an eye on when dealing with the dealer


Any and all advice or tips are extremely welcomed.

Edit: I don't have a parental figure in my life to help me learn these decisions. Thank you to all that come here to help!

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[E. Davis]

Johnny, take your MSRP from the window sticker and add you state's sales tax rate. Dealer fees are going to vary, but assume roughly $600 doc fee plus tag fees. If your out the door price is more than 5% higher than your MSRP, take a photo of your purchase agreement with all line-item fees and post it here. Dealer-installed options are another way they make money. Look for things like nitrogen tire fill, dealer installed tint, protective coatings, etc. You don't need any of this from the dealership. Lastly, you do NOT need to buy a warranty on day 1. Or even from the dealer. Skip the warranty for now and shop around later if you want it. They will pressure you to buy it. Just keep saying "no thank you" over and over as many times as it takes. Sometimes they will slip it in without asking you, so review everything before you sign. If you see fees or line items that you don't understand, ask questions. If it is something you don't want, simply say "i don't want that". Good luck and let us know how it turns out.

 

[TX_Bronco77]

My best advice to you is listen to your gut, and don't let your excitement get the best of you. Be prepared to walk away even after such a long wait if the numbers don't "add up right". Buying something that puts you in a bad spot for years to come is much harder to deal with than missing out on a cool truck you waited a long time for.

I can't comment on extended warranties because I have never bought one.

I'd say any add-ons are questionable, I have never bought a car that needed anything added on to it at the dealer before the purchase. And especially not for some crazy prices.

 

[Skott]

I personally spring for the Ford extended service plan (ESP) from Granger. If you search the forum, you'll find the thread where Zach is offering all ESP for $50 above dealer cost for any plan you purchase through them. That is a deal.

I purchased the ESP for my WildTrak since we're in the first couple of years of this new model, and even with tested engines, things happen. The basic/built-in warranty you'll get with your truck is 3 year/36k miles. I purchase a plan that makes my warranty 8 years/100k miles, and it was $1,805.

I added a couple of add-on protections to my ESP for enhanced rental car, interior/exterior lighting, and key service.

An $1,800 ESP seemed worth it to protect my $50k+ truck.

Buying an ESP really depends on your risk tolerance, and mine is pretty low.

 

[_jonny_depth]

Johnny, take your MSRP from the window sticker and add you state's sales tax rate. Dealer fees are going to vary, but assume roughly $600 doc fee plus tag fees. If your out the door price is more than 5% higher than your MSRP, take a photo of your purchase agreement with all line-item fees and post it here. Dealer-installed options are another way they make money. Look for things like nitrogen tire fill, dealer installed tint, protective coatings, etc. You don't need any of this from the dealership. Lastly, you do NOT need to buy a warranty on day 1. Or even from the dealer. Skip the warranty for now and shop around later if you want it. They will pressure you to buy it. Just keep saying "no thank you" over and over as many times as it takes. Sometimes they will slip it in without asking you, so review everything before you sign. If you see fees or line items that you don't understand, ask questions. If it is something you don't want, simply say "i don't want that". Good luck and let us know how it turns out.

are those added things stuff they will include before even messaging me? I'm afraid they will sneak in the window tint etc when I don't want it. If they did, am I SOL?

 

[_jonny_depth]

I personally spring for the Ford extended service plan (ESP) from Granger. If you search the forum, you'll find the thread where Zach is offering all ESP for $50 above dealer cost for any plan you purchase through them. That is a deal.

I purchased the ESP for my WildTrak since we're in the first couple of years of this new model, and even with tested engines, things happen. The basic/built-in warranty you'll get with your truck is 3 year/36k miles. I purchase a plan that makes my warranty 8 years/100k miles, and it was $1,805.

I added a couple of add-on protections to my ESP for enhanced rental car, interior/exterior lighting, and key service.

An $1,800 ESP seemed worth it to protect my $50k+ truck.

Buying an ESP really depends on your risk tolerance, and mine is pretty low.

Can you finance the extended warranty from Granger or is that a paid-in-full only?

 

[Silver-Bolt]

Know the value of your trade before sitting down at the dealer. Do not buy any extras from the dealer. Nothing, nada, not a single thing. All "extras" paint protection, interior protection, security engraving, nitrogen in the tires, are nothing but straight up profit for the dealer. Extended warranty the only one worth anything is the one offered by Ford. Take in the discounted price that you have found on this site and ask them to match it. If they won't, don't buy it.

 

[E. Davis]

are those added things stuff they will include before even messaging me? I'm afraid they will sneak in the window tint etc when I don't want it. If they did, am I SOL?

It depends on the dealer. Here's a role play to help prepare you:
Let's assume they added "Protective coatings" (or whatever) for $700.
You have every right to say "That was not on my order and I am not prepared to pay for that".
They may say "We add this to every car that leaves our dealership."
Push back again and say "I did not agree to that when I ordered my bronco and I don't want it. Please take it off"
Dealer: "It is already installed there is nothing we can do at this point."
You: "I did not purchase this, what can you do to help me out here?"

At this point the dealer is either going insist that you pay or give you a discount. Be prepared to accept the discount, but not before pushing back as much as you can.

Also, because of the market and the times we are living in, if you decide to walk, be prepared that they may want you to do just that. You walking away from your order means they can make a bunch more money on it with ADM. Just saying this as I would negotiate for as long as it takes for you to feel like you've got an acceptable deal, vs walking too soon and losing the Bronco. Negotiate calmly, professionally. Giving them any kind of attitude will only harden them.

 

[ChrisB351]

are those added things stuff they will include before even messaging me? I'm afraid they will sneak in the window tint etc when I don't want it. If they did, am I SOL?

If they try to add them in, tell them you dont want it. If they say its already done, tell them you ordered the truck how you wanted it and didnt ask for anything extra. They will either remove it or not charge you. As a service writer Im pro extended warranty. Theyre relatively cheap compared to the cost of repairs. You dont have to buy it now, but if you do it will be financed into your payment. You can wait up until your factory warranty is about to run out then pay out of pocket. Either way I always recommend manufacturer warranties. Stay away from anything you see advertised on TV or social media. Stick to your guns and dont be afraid to get up and walk away. If theyre a good dealer they wont let you go once they get you that far.

 

[Crusher]

For any dealer add-on's this is what you say, nicely "Can you show me on any contract that I've signed that I agreed to that?", they can't, so they can't charge you for it. Don't ask for the sales manager, ask to talk to the finance manager and ask the same question.

 

[Julz670]

You're probably already aware of this one, but just in case since I don't think anyone else mentioned it, there is a destination delivery fee that gets added on, I believe it was $1,495. This is totally normal for custom orders.

Don't get any of the add-ons from the dealer. If you are interested in anything they offer, just shop around later, unless the only way you can afford it is to roll it into financing but if that is the case its probably not a good financial decision anyway lol.

Can't really speak to extended warranties because I've never had to file a warranty claim before, but I will say that I was talked into one and kind of regret paying for it. The way it was explained to me made it seem like it covered a lot more than what the Ford warranty covers, even things that were totally my fault. They specifically mentioned dents from off-roading. So, it seemed like a good idea for the price. But I recently tried to file a warranty claim for a broken roof rack mounting stud and they said that if Ford doesn't cover it, they won't either. So I'm not sure what the point of that additional warranty was...

 

[frdfan]

On your trade, know what its worth before you go in. Research it using multiple sources (NADA, Edmunds, KBB, if you have a Carmax in your area, get a quote from them to buy your current vehicle, and even places like Carvana, Autotrader.com will quote a "buy" price..if you average them all together, you'll likely be in the ballpark of what the dealer is going to offer you. Alot of dealers are paying premiums on used right now. Having a true value of what your tradein is worth will speed up the negotiation process.

If you are paying MSRP or higher, i would suggest getting GAP coverage. No one knows where the value on cars will be heading.

 

[_jonny_depth]

On your trade, know what its worth before you go in. Research it using multiple sources (NADA, Edmunds, KBB, if you have a Carmax in your area, get a quote from them to buy your current vehicle, and even places like Carvana, Autotrader.com will quote a "buy" price..if you average them all together, you'll likely be in the ballpark of what the dealer is going to offer you. Alot of dealers are paying premiums on used right now. Having a true value of what your tradein is worth will speed up the negotiation process.

If you are paying MSRP or higher, i would suggest getting GAP coverage. No one knows where the value on cars will be heading.

What is GAP coverage?

 

[frdfan]

GAP stands for Guaranteed Asset Protection. It's a stand alone policy that will step in to cover any balances owed in the event your vehicle is totaled and your insurance company doesn't pay off the difference of what you owe vs what your vehicle is worth. Say you owe 40K 2 years from now, and the bottom has dropped out of the Bronco values...you get in a wreck, and it totalled. Your insurance says, it's only worth 25k that's all we're paying. The GAP policy kicks in and covers the remaining balance (after deductible). Here's some additional info:

 

[Skott]

Can you finance the extended warranty from Granger or is that a paid-in-full only?

I believe Granger offers a couple of different financing options.

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