Insider tips: "How I Inspect a Car Before Buying It"
(The Dealership Checklist)
When I first got my dealer's license, a well-seasoned veteran shared her wisdom: "Anyone can sell a car, but it takes real work to know how to buy one."
It starts with homework that leads to research and that research leads to educated judgment calls on specific units to bid on (if you're flipping) or best recommendations for customers (the bulk of my business).
Having always wanted to sell cars, I wanted to find out why it was so difficult to purchase, and why the typical dealer experience left people frustrated. That answer's simple: The car business is full of risk, and every vehicle has a different margin. That's why the same car by brand and mileage, has a different price at different dealerships.
The differentiator is condition, and how much that dealer is willing to disclose. And each dealership chooses how they do business. Are they in it to sell volume? (that's the most lucrative way but rarely builds customer loyalty) or are they looking for long-term relationships, where customers gain trust, don't pinch pennies, and come back to purchase again.
I chose customer loyalty. And it's paid off since over 60% of my sales come from repeat customers. I have one guy who's bought 14 vehicles for home and office, and multiples in the 3-6 range with an interesting development: They bring their kids to me for their first time auto purchase experience. And those repeat customers are great referral partners.
Now as far as how to inspect them before purchase, I have industry tools and my own approach. For auctions, I stick with Manheim since they carry large inventories and they provide condition reports that tell me the car's current condition.
For trade-ins I have an OBD (Onboard Diagnostics reader), a hand-held device that checks engine performance and tells me if the engine is running correctly and if the car will pass emissions.
What about accidents? I use a paint meter, that measures paint thickness. It’s a battery operated device, that you can hold in one hand and yo walk around and press it against each body panel. If it reads "0" that's bondo, or plastic body filler, or over 9, that means a repaint which then tells me the vehicle has been in some sort of accident. For me I look for consistent paint thickness in the 3 to 7 range. Factory paint applications come from robots that apply paint evenly.
Body shops use technicians to do it manually and thus paint is applied in thicker amounts. Once I see a thicker paint reading, I will typically decline a trade-in unless the repainted body part is fairly contained. It if goes beyond a couple of panels, that tells me it was a harder hit and there may be structural issues beneath the repaint. So I pass.
As I launch this monthly newsletter, my goal is to share what I've learned, and encourage you and your contacts to reach out. I'll share tips of the trade, opportunities for buying and selling, and prove either through this format or a no obligation live conversation, why I only put people in cars I'd put my family into.
Tony De Feria has enjoyed two very different careers: Visual Journalism, and car sales as owner of his own Car buying service. Two different businesses with one thing in common critical for success: Honesty and passion. Visit www.execautobroker.com where "Tony puts people in cars he'd put his family into."