Can I buy a car from a dealership on a credit card?

[riverwed070707]

I was in an accident a couple weeks ago that totaled my 2007 Honda CR-V. Between insurance dragging their feet (at fault drivers, not mine) on getting me a value for my car and used car prices sky high, I'm thinking about buying something cheaper with less features than I would like to replace with and driving it until the market cools down. An 08 Ford Edge popped up at a local dealership yesterday for $4,500 which is 1/2-1/3 the price of cars I've been looking at. It still meets all my non-negotiables (leather seats because dog hair and AWD because Iowa winters). I'm going to see it after my morning meetings wrap up. Curious if anyone knows if I'd be able to pay with a CC for points? It would also be more convenient than making a trip back to my bank for a certified check and driving all the way back out. I don't expect to be able to negotiate much given demand and the already low price point, but any other pointers or negotiables I should be thinking about? I usually buy from private sellers and am quite inexperienced dealing with dealerships.

[james.hendrickson]

Last time I went into a dealership, they weren't too hot on paying with a credit card. They had limits on how much they could pull off the card at a time.

[MonkeyMama]

It will depend on the dealership and may take some convincing. Might rather take the sale than have you walk away. (Or maybe don't care in this very hot seller market).

We personally always pay with checks and have access to our money (our last two cars have been rather last minute purchases). But in this day and age they will let you sign the contract and maybe even take the car. You can complete the sale or pay for it when you have the payment ready.

You don't need a certified check to buy a car. Just a personal check is fine.

[bjl584]

I highly doubt they will swipe your card at the dealership at point of sale.

I'd agree on the deal (which sounds like you have) then figure out the money before you pick up the car.

I've bought from dealerships.
It's always been that I showed up when I got the car with a down payment (always a check that came from my checking/savings) and signed a loan for the rest.

Not sure how they would react to you wanting to buy the car with a CC
I don't even know if they would accept cash

You might have to just write a check and forgo the CC rewards idea on this one.
I'm sure there is a way to do it, just not sure if it's worth all the hoops you might have to jump through

[riverwed070707]

I highly doubt they will swipe your card at the dealership at point of sale.

I'd agree on the deal (which sounds like you have) then figure out the money before you pick up the car.

I've bought from dealerships.
It's always been that I showed up when I got the car with a down payment (always a check that came from my checking/savings) and signed a loan for the rest.

Not sure how they would react to you wanting to buy the car with a CC
I don't even know if they would accept cash

You might have to just write a check and forgo the CC rewards idea on this one.
I'm sure there is a way to do it, just not sure if it's worth all the hoops you might have to jump through

2 issues. 1) There are no photos of the interior since it was just listed so I'm not 100% sold yet and would like to see it before making a decision. 2) I don't have checks. I can go to my bank and have some printed I suppose and take them out just in case I want to purchase on the spot.

[bjl584]

2 issues. 1) There are no photos of the interior since it was just listed so I'm not 100% sold yet and would like to see it before making a decision. 2) I don't have checks. I can go to my bank and have some printed I suppose and take them out just in case I want to purchase on the spot.

The bank will give you a check with your account # printed on it if you go there and ask them for one.

Is this a long distance purchase? Or, can you get to the dealership to look at the car?
I'd consider doing so ASAP
In this market things aren't going to sit on the lot for long

[ua_guy]

They may let you put it on a credit card, but they may also ask you to pay the processing fee (somewhere around 3%).

Other negotiable items include documentation fees, dealer prep fees.

The dealer will likely be less interested in negotiating if you aren’t financing through the dealer. A Ford Edge is a decent vehicle, but at that age (2008) they’re probably looking for a “buy here, pay here” buyer who can ding for the exorbitant interest. On the other hand, if it’s a big-name dealership, that age of vehicle is about wholesale territory, so they may just be happy to get rid of it for anything over wholesale value.

Also; Dealers love buyers TODAY. “If we meet your price, will you buy the car today?” The only commitment that matters is when you sign the purchase order. Sometimes they’ll ask you to sign or initial the “deal sheet” before they ask their sales manager if s/he will let the car go for that price. It’s generally fine. But also, don’t work a deal on a car you aren’t serious about buying.

You may want to get the car checked out if it’s got lots of miles..

[riverwed070707]

Update. Looked at the car. Its decent but it was SO DIRTY inside (UA guy spot on about it being wholesale). Asked if I bought it if they would at least clean it for me and they said they don't do that for wholesale purchases lol. It also has a cracked windshield. Told him I was going to go look at one other car on the other side of town. He called before I left the parking lot and said if you buy now, we'll take $1000 off. I told him I appreciated the offer but felt like I should see this other car. Texted me 5 min later and said they will honor the $3,500 if/when I decide to buy but if I come back now they'll take another $500 off. Thanked him and said I'd let him know by end of day. Drove the other car - it was not good mechanically so I'm going back for the first one this afternoon. Figure at $3-3.5k a detail and a new windshield is a small price to pay and there is definitely nothing else that runs in that price range available right now. Its well under book value even with high miles. If it ends up being sound, maybe it can be DD's first car in a year or so when I'm ready to buy something a little nicer.

To close the loop on the CC question, they will accept up to $3k on a card and personal check for the rest. No fees associated with it so might as well pick up some points! Thanks all for the input and tips!

[james.hendrickson]

I love this. Way to work the options.

[disneysteve]

To close the loop on the CC question, they will accept up to $3k on a card and personal check for the rest.

That's been my experience in the past. They'll accept a small amount by CC. I bought my current car from Carmax and they wouldn't take a CC at all, though, but they aren't a dealership so different policies. They're already selling at a discount relative to the dealers so I can understand them not wanting to eat the 3% fee from the CC.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

that's amazing they took cc. i think we put down $1k to buy our cards used at dealership and drove off while they processed loan.

[MonkeyMama]

He called before I left the parking lot and said if you buy now, we'll take $1000 off. I told him I appreciated the offer but felt like I should see this other car. Texted me 5 min later and said they will honor the $3,500 if/when I decide to buy but if I come back now they'll take another $500 off.

Wow, they were really hungry to get rid of that car. Good job.

[ua_guy]

If you haven’t already signed for it, here’s something else you can ask.

When a dealer takes in a car to resell it, the detail guys might spend 3-4 hours to clean it up. See what kind of break they might give you to do a detail “at cost”. I’m sure if you caught the detail guys on break, they’d gladly make your car look nice for $150 under the table.

same with the windshield. They have people who, no doubt, come to the lot regularly to fix glass. See if they’ll pass that on at cost to you as well. Or they’ll have a relationship with a nearby glass shop.

so many ways to work stuff with used cars