<p>Has anyone used this and what has been your experience? Do you get as good, or better, deal through the referral program than you could negotiate yourself?</p>
<p>I checked it out on two different occasions and found it was a good program however I did better on my own. What I like to do is work with the fleet managers and not internet departments (which is who you will work with through the Costco program), usually getting a “first price” from one that I don’t expect to purchase the car from. I then use that price when negotiating with the dealer/fleet manager I DO want to purchase from and you have to be prepared to buy “that day”. My last car, purchased a little over a year ago, was a Honda Civic at $1,000 BELOW invoice w/ 2% financing. Much depends on the time of the year and/or day of the month, plus the popularity of the make and model and the corresponding inventory on-hand of that vehicle.</p>
<p>I went through Costco (and AAA) to get quotes on a car but I was able to negotiate a better deal myself by going through the fleet department of the dealership. I avoid dealing with the normal sales people as they usually are incompetent, i.e. I usually know more about the vehicle than they do, and they almost always pull the same tired car salesman tactics (of ‘having to check with the manager’ and having the ‘manager’ come out t negotiate the deal, etc., adding on costs, bait ans switch, etc.).</p>
<p>One thing I didn’t like about these programs is that they don’t actually give you a direct quote - they refer your name/contact info to a participating dealer and then that dealer comes to you with the quote. It’s then more difficult to get them to lower that quote (although it can be done sometimes if you’re persistent) than if you contacted them directly.</p>
<p>I’d do the Costco/AAA/other thing over just talking to a normal salesperson though. I hate dealing with the salespeople. Before going that route though, you can just usually use your computer to email the fleet departments getting their ‘internet price’ and negotiate from there. The only time you should need to walk into the dealership is to pick up your car and finalize after you’ve done the deal from the comfort of your home. The difference between the Costco price and the internet price you negotiate isn’t likely to be large though - maybe a few hundred dollars at the most most of the time.</p>
<p>My experience (posted on a previous thread):</p>
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<p>USAA is my automobile insurer. This gives you an idea of what’s out there.</p>
<p>Why would a fleet manager talk to an individual buyer rather than only to someone seeking to purchase a fleet of vehicles?</p>
<p>Why would a fleet manager talk to an individual buyer rather than only to someone seeking to purchase a fleet of vehicles?</p>
<p>Because they would rather sell one car than NO cars and a one car sale to an individual can potentially lead to a company fleet sale the next time…</p>
<p>We recently purchased a car through the Costco program and were very happy. We bought a 2011 Infiniti right after they were released. Our local dealer wouldn’t give a dime off of sticker price. Through Costco we saved over 5K, didn’t have to negotiate (I HATE negotiating!), got discounts on service and accessories. It was a painless experience and we love our new car!</p>
<p>Does Costco provide referrals on auto leases? </p>
<p>I have never used their referral service for buying cars, but years ago purchased a few from an online quote service.</p>
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At one thime they were called ‘fleet’ because that’s what they dealt with but with people researching and buying cars via the internet and email now most dealers have made the ‘fleet’ department one and the same with the ‘internet’ department so it’s the same thing. the bottom line is that they base most of their sales on price quotes without a lot of negotiating and generally no wasted time (on their part) going on test drives, negotiating for hours, etc. I’ve purchased a number of cars this way (Ford, Dodge, Toyota). They’ll generally appreciate any sale that’s made even if it’s a ‘fleet’ of 1.</p>