Celica Forums General Discussion General Anyone ever use a broker?

Like the topic says, has anyone ever gone through a broker to buy a new car? They claim to get you deals that you couldn't possibly get yourself- plus they take the headache out of it all. Do they really live up to the promises, or not? (Billy, your dad owns a dealership... do you have any first-hand info here?)

I found once place a while back that would locate a car for the lowest possible price, workout all the paperwork, give you the dealer's contact info. Basically, all you had to do was go to the dealership and sign the papers.

Rev - it's still about everyone's profit margins.

The dealer, the broker...everyone but the end customer. Rules of economics dictate that the more people involved in the transaction, the more people that each need to make a profit to substantiate their existence. Whomever this 'broker' contacts needs to maximize their own profit, regardless of who they are selling to. Pre-internet days, the use of a broker might have made sense as an alternative to scouring the car lots on a Sunday afternoon, typically many miles or towns apart.

Seems to me the simpler the transaction process, the better negotiating leverage we have as the consumer. The internet has shifted the whole car-buying process in favor of the buyer, but we still have to be diligent and keep ourselves informed and educated. The bottom line - the exact car we want in our garages or quonsett huts , and more $$ in our pocket for nachos and drugs.

It also sounds like the broker is a hands-off kinda deal. They might find you the cheapest one, but that may not be exactly what you were looking for. There's no replacement for personally going out to the car, test driving it, etc.

It's deff worth going and finding the car yourself. Test drive it, and haggle the sales people. There's no one who can pick a car for you. THEY CAN ALWAYS GO LOWER THAN THE STICKER PRICE!!! I know a bunch of car dealers from different dealerships, they all say the same thing. You can also ask to see the invoice for what they paid for a car. Search the internet and find a general price average for the car you want. Go from there.