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Howdy,
I am going to be purchasing a car within the next 6 months and was going to put down a substantial downpayment to do so ($15,000-20,000). I wanted to use Amex Auto Purchasing program for the downpayment, pending a couple more credit limit increases. Has anyone used this service Amex provides to put a down a downpayment on a car? I'd like to know about the process than the generic info Amex provides about the program. Was it pretty easy to go to a dealership and put down your downpayment using your Amex card? Or do you have to jump through hoops?
Thanks!
Don't do it!
I never made it as far as even making it to a dealership to see how much of a down payment they would put on an Amex, or if they would honor that "Guaranteed Savings". Amex uses TrueCar.com, which is what Sams Club and a bunch of other CCs use. Once you select the Make & Model new car you want, Amex & other CC companies provide your contact info - Name, address, phone # & email - and TrueCar.com blasts that out to every dealer for that Make & Model in your area. Within minutes your phone will be ringing off the hook and your email inbox inundated with emails from dozens of "Internet Sale Managers" from different dealers. It took me weeks to get rid of them, even after lying and saying that I had decided on a different make of car.
I was so put off from the experience I refused to go to any of the dealers who tried to hustle me. And putting a down payment on a CC is never a good idea, and if a dealer was willing to take $15-20k (doubtful) he'd jack up the price somewhere to cover the several hundred dollars he's loose on processing fees. And I don't buy that "Guarantee Savings", the bottom line on how much you pay for a car is always based on how motivated the dealer is to make the sale and how good your negotiating skills are.
It actually worked out for me being so put off by the experience. Instead of buying a new Mazda CX-3 I found a 1 owner 2016 model with only 18k miles at a Honda dealer and got it for at least $10k less than buying new, Very happy with the car and my deal.
@DaveInAZ wrote:Don't do it!
I never made it as far as even making it to a dealership to see how much of a down payment they would put on an Amex, or if they would honor that "Guaranteed Savings". Amex uses TrueCar.com, which is what Sams Club and a bunch of other CCs use. Once you select the Make & Model new car you want, Amex & other CC companies provide your contact info - Name, address, phone # & email - and TrueCar.com blasts that out to every dealer for that Make & Model in your area. Within minutes your phone will be ringing off the hook and your email inbox inundated with emails from dozens of "Internet Sale Managers" from different dealers. It took me weeks to get rid of them, even after lying and saying that I had decided on a different make of car.
I was so put off from the experience I refused to go to any of the dealers who tried to hustle me. And putting a down payment on a CC is never a good idea, and if a dealer was willing to take $15-20k (doubtful) he'd jack up the price somewhere to cover the several hundred dollars he's loose on processing fees. And I don't buy that "Guarantee Savings", the bottom line on how much you pay for a car is always based on how motivated the dealer is to make the sale and how good your negotiating skills are.
It actually worked out for me being so put off by the experience. Instead of buying a new Mazda CX-3 I found a 1 owner 2016 model with only 18k miles at a Honda dealer and got it for at least $10k less than buying new, Very happy with the car and my deal.
Thanks for sharing your experience. I've looked at the Amex service but didn't bite as it looked like it would take much more time than I wanted to deal with. I kinda got the feeling that they'd shotgun my info and I don't want anymore useless emails than I already get...let alone my phone ringing off the hook. I'm getting ready to purchase a new hatchback within the next couple of weeks so I can stop dumping so many miles on my Yukon...plus I want something cool to toy around with. Still trying to decide between the Civic Si or the Focus ST.
That isn't what I was expecting of the program, for sure. And I don't want random calls from pushy dealership, either. It is safe to say I won't be using the program. Thanks for sharing!
A tip on buying a car: The end of the month is the best time to buy, because most dealerships have monthly sales quotas and they're much more motivated to make a deal at the end of the month to meet their quota.
I went in & test drove my car in mid August. I liked it and offered $18k to their online posted price of $18,800. They wouldn't budge below $18,500, so I thanked the salesman for his time and walked out. Over the next 10 days they lowered the online price to $18,500 and then $18,300. So I went back Thursday afternoon Aug. 31 (also right before the long Labor Day weekend), with my pre-approved loan from my local CU. Since they'd lowered their price by $500 I lowered the price I was willing to pay by the same amount.. I started at $17k, took 45 minutes, but I drove home with the car for $17,500, a thousand less then they were willing to take mid month.
Local credit union.
@Loquat wrote:
@DaveInAZ wrote:Don't do it!
I never made it as far as even making it to a dealership to see how much of a down payment they would put on an Amex, or if they would honor that "Guaranteed Savings". Amex uses TrueCar.com, which is what Sams Club and a bunch of other CCs use. Once you select the Make & Model new car you want, Amex & other CC companies provide your contact info - Name, address, phone # & email - and TrueCar.com blasts that out to every dealer for that Make & Model in your area. Within minutes your phone will be ringing off the hook and your email inbox inundated with emails from dozens of "Internet Sale Managers" from different dealers. It took me weeks to get rid of them, even after lying and saying that I had decided on a different make of car.
I was so put off from the experience I refused to go to any of the dealers who tried to hustle me. And putting a down payment on a CC is never a good idea, and if a dealer was willing to take $15-20k (doubtful) he'd jack up the price somewhere to cover the several hundred dollars he's loose on processing fees. And I don't buy that "Guarantee Savings", the bottom line on how much you pay for a car is always based on how motivated the dealer is to make the sale and how good your negotiating skills are.
It actually worked out for me being so put off by the experience. Instead of buying a new Mazda CX-3 I found a 1 owner 2016 model with only 18k miles at a Honda dealer and got it for at least $10k less than buying new, Very happy with the car and my deal.
Thanks for sharing your experience. I've looked at the Amex service but didn't bite as it looked like it would take much more time than I wanted to deal with. I kinda got the feeling that they'd shotgun my info and I don't want anymore useless emails than I already get...let alone my phone ringing off the hook. I'm getting ready to purchase a new hatchback within the next couple of weeks so I can stop dumping so many miles on my Yukon...plus I want something cool to toy around with. Still trying to decide between the Civic Si or the Focus ST.
Civic. Hands down.