On buying a new vehicle part II

Or more appropriately, a funny thing happened today at the car dealership....

So now I've had the thrill of driving a brand new vehicle off of the dealer's lot. Just not the vehicle I was intending to buy.

I had my sights set on a 2006 Nissan Xterra, lousy gas mileage and all, but one kick-ass looking vehicle. Instead I ended up with a 2006 Nissan Sentra. Don't get me wrong, the Sentra is a nice car and will serve me well but certainly not what I had in mind.

What finally made me change my mind?

Financing.

I had some credit card problems a few years ago, after I got separated from ex-Mrs. Green. These problems have not entirely gone away, and my credit rating has suffered because of them. It's kind of ironic because, the majority of my working life has been in the credit and collections industry, and I knew going in how important credit was and is. Knowing the credit problems other people have had, (because I've tried to collect on them), I vowed never to have those same problems myself. But then if we knew on which roads our lives would travel ahead of time then we could have called ahead to get a map or at least better directions....

What also didn't help my situation was the fact that I NEEDED a car.

Today.

So my options were limited. Hindering my efforts was the fact that I had no trade-in and that I also had no cash for any kind of down payment. The final nail in the coffin was financing. The Sentra, obviously, is not quite as expensive as the Xterra, which made it easier to finally get the loan approved that I needed.

As the Sales Manager and I were talking about other options, I knew what his end game would be and reluctantly I had to agree. He wanted to sell me the vehicle I wanted and was going to but I told him that at present I just couldn't bite, chew and swallow the accompanying payment. I also asked Mr. Sales Manager about other older used cars, to which he reminded me that with an older car I would lose much of the potential trade in value that comes with a newer car.

What the Sentra does for me is this: it gives me a reliable vehicle that I can use to help rebuild my credit rating, by ensuring that the payments will be made on time. If I do this for six months or a year, not only will I have improved my credit score but also will have a car that will have excellent trade-in value. Small cars like the Sentra are valuable to a dealer as a trade-in because they are in demand as used cars and thus, sell quickly.

Plus, when, not IF, I get a better job (read: higher paying) I'll have the opportunity to have some cash for a nice down payment.

Depending on how things go come February, I can call him up and say, "Lets place a factory order for a 2007 Xterra with exactly the specifications that I want." He informed me that he'd have no problem ordering something and that these special orders take about three months to arrive at the dealership, from the time the order is placed. So the new goal is May or June of 2007 before I can get the vehicle I really want.

The major disappointment for me today is that I fell into the trap that 95% of new car shoppers do. I didn't have the proper numbers in front of me in order to bargain effectively. I focused all of my price research on the Xterra and had not a clue what the MSRP vs. dealer invoice price actually is for the Sentra. So I probably ended up paying way more for it than I would have if I had done my homework on that car as well. But honestly, how could I have known?

Since tonight is rainy, I'll post a few pictures of my new ride at the earliest opportunity.