If You Know Their Rules ...
You Can Play Their Games

11. Glossary of Terms

"Prices Below Blue Book Value." They may be below Blue Book, but they could be well above the Black.

Bump The effort by a salesperson to raise a customer's offer.
The Close The process of finalizing the deal and signing the order.
Closer A person in a dealership-whose primary job is to get you to sign the buyer's order.

Demos or Demonstrators Cars used by the dealership to provide customers with test drives. Frequently these demo cars are driven home at night by salespeople and other dealership employees. If you buy a demo, treat it as a used car. Most dealerships will try to convince you it's somewhere between a used car and a new car, in a class all its own.

Dealer Hold-Backs This is money that the manufacturer "holds back" from the dealer until after the car is sold. This usually amounts to two or three percent and was begun so that dealers could, if necessary, show their invoices to customers to prove "how little we're making on your deal" without revealing the additional money that will be collected after the sale.

Difference Buyers People who are primarily concerned with the amount of money required to span the gap between what the dealership "allows" on the trade-in and the price of the new car.

Equity The amount of money that the owner can expect to take out of his or her trade-in once all outstanding payoffs are made.