Getting Me Retail Numbers
Before you begin to negotiate, you need two sets of numbers or prices.
Me Costs You See
The first are the prices listed on the window sticker-officially called the Vlonroney sticker. This sticker is required by federal law to appear on all cars sold in the U.S. It must show the following:
1. The manufacturer's suggested retail price for the car and the factory-installed options
2. A transportation or destination charge for shipping the car from the factory or the port of importation to the dealership
3. EPA city and highway fuel-economy estimates
At present the law does not require dealers to put a Monroney on vans, four-wheel-drive vehicles, and light trucks. However, most do so voluntarily. If they don't, you might be well advised to steer clear.
Supplementall or "Pack "Stickers
In some cases you'll find a second sticker listing optional accessories added by the dealer or services like rust proofing that he has performed. In far too many cases, dealers use these supplemental stickers as a means of adding more profit. For example, in one lot we visited we found a supplemental sticker reading:
Dealer Delivery and Handling $199
Auto Protection Package (Paint Sealers) $249
Pin Stripe $99
Since the Monroney sticker already showed a transportation charge, "Dealer Delivery and Handling" is labeling sleight-of-hand that the dealer is using to add a few more dollars to his profit. If one of -'today's vehicles needs a paint sealer, you might want to find out why and what kind of sealer they are talking about. Possibly if you live under an acid rain shower and don't intend to wash your car but once a year this might be a worthwhile investment. Only the pin striping appears to be a legitimate charge. By the way, an educated guess suggests that of the $547 of pack prices, the real cost to the dealer probably amounted to something less than $50. Clearly, this is nothing more than another means to squeeze some additional money out of the buyer.
Advertising Fees
Some dealers will add a separate charge for advertising. Their excuse is that the manufacturer charges them a fee on every car to help defray the cost of reaching you with their ads and commercials. You might respond by saying:
"Since I never see any of your ads I guess I won't have to pay the fee. "Or you might suggest that since advertising is a cost of doing business, it should be built into the profit. If they insist on adding the fee to the price, make it clear that since you are shopping, the additional cost could put them at a disadvantage against the other dealerships you plan to visit. A statement to this effect will not be lost on a salesperson. If the dealership will not budge on the advertising fee and you decide that, all other things being equal, this is the dealership where you'd like to do business, try and use your agreement to pay the advertising fee to win a concession on another point.
Destination Charges
All manufacturers charge their dealers a destination or transportation cost, and this number is shown on the Monroney. This is a standard pass-along fee and one that they will not negotiate because there is no profit for them in the charge.
