Hard Did you Say car shopping is hard.You should be with my hubby.He wants a new ford truck,Do I want to go into this???II AM SOOOO TIRED OF LOOKING AT TRUCKS>This weekend we went to ford dealer,chevy dealer,dodge the damn car automatically turns into these places,pull up turn around go back ,look again oh but theres a black one no I like my red one oh but look at the brown.Next week all over again.One time we pulled in dealer they had a red,blue,black,green,gray,he drove away next week they were alll gone.I want to scream every time we pull in there..

DH and I have been talking about getting a new car...but the more we look, the harder it is to decide. I liked it better when there were just a few models to choose from. Now, so many models look alike, and the prices are absolutely crazy. To compound the problem, we normally buy GM vehicles, but when GM was in trouble, they closed so many dealerships (and reduced others), so we now must travel 20-60 miles to a dealership. I don't want to have to go 60 miles to a dealer to have maintenance done on a car.

So, for the first time in our lives, we considered buying a foreign car (Honda, Toyota, etc.)--but they have closed those local dealerships also.

Guess we'll keep what we have a while longer.

It's totally stressful. I don't like dealing with car sales people at all. Luckly our local dealer is a great guy.
We finally pulled the trigger in Feb. and will hopefully be seeing our vehicle sometime in April. It's like waiting for Christmas and dread all at the same time. I keep second guessing myself. Is this the right one for our family? Gas milage, towing questions etc. I'm worried about keeping my car nice for trade in too. Will the incentives be active when it arrives? Car shopping is tough!

LOL Bulld -I feel your pain. My husband has been actively car shopping for....two years! He can NOT decide. Or should I say, he'll decide and then BAM a friend will say "Bad choice" and he'll freak and start ground zero again. It's maddening and I go numb when he starts the conversation again. But...I also know that the "hunt" is ingraned, and once he buys a car, he'll be on to the next conquest. A boat, most likely - for the next two years.... :)

I know what you mean. We've been looking on line for the two month to get a feel for what's out there, reviews, etc. We decided, because of the gas prices to downsize to a smaller, 4 cyl. car. It's exhausting and prices are outrageous - sticker shock all the way. We usually drive our cars until they begin costing too much to repair which is the case with DH's old Buick. And he spends $65/week in gas so getting a smaller commuter car will save a lot...but it has to meet our needs. We wanted an SUV - like a Honda CRV, but they aren't gas friendly and cost too much.

But, making the decision is so difficult especially because we're used to mid-size, V6, certain comfortable style, and mid-status manufacturers (not Kia, Hyundai, and not BMW, Audi).

I think we might just have to sink the $$ into the old Buick car this time so we have more time to choose wisely. Currently inspection is due in May. There's just nothing out there within our means that says buy me -- even if it's one or two years old. So, yes, car shopping is hard especially when we're clueless on what manufacturer we even want to downsize to(we're used to Buicks).

I've never had trouble buying from private individuals, but my experiences with car lots haven't been great. I hate that whole, "I'll go talk to the manager" thing. I sound like a broken record, saying, "I am willing to spend $XXX, and that has to include tax and any fees ... period."

Plus, I have a personal rule that says that when I'm buying a big-ticket item, I must leave the showroom and then come back later. Even if I just take a five-minute walk to clear my head. Sales people hate that, though I always go back to the sales person I was talking to, if I decide to buy.

Good luck with the car buying! But I have to put in a plug for my personal favorite brand, Mazda. They're just fun to drive.:)

We ( I ) tend to keep a vehicle for a long time. Hubby traded every year until he retired. The last new one for him he debated for awhile on what he wanted. Ended up with a nice truck and he really likes it. Being retired he doesn't put the daily mileage on it. My vehicle is almost 10 years old and has 75,000 miles on it. It is a small SUV and is perfect for me. It was funny when I bought it. My hubby had traded for several years and mine was 11 years old. I told him before he traded again I was getting a new one. I had one in a week and I got just what I wanted. The color, Wildfire Red!!!!!!!!

Our daughter just bought the new Chevy Traverse. A "huge" vehicle... Glad I'm not paying that car payment..

What troubles me more is having to buy something different. I prefer to keep a reliable vehicle going when I feel I know what I have. But occasionally you have to get something different. The last one I did something a bit different. I bought a lease return. Couldn't be more pleased. Still go through the same as buying a used vehicle - check it over, but I saved $18k over buying new and it sure doesn't bother me that it was 2 model years old with 20k miles. With reasonable care and reasonable luck, this should last me a long, long time. I can't see myself ever buying a new car again. Although I don't like dealing with car jockeys, I know that they're bottom-feeders. They seldom last long at one dealership. I know their games and don't play them. I know that they're not doing me any favors and I don't owe them a thing. I was buying a new vehicle about every 15-17 years so they know I'm not a repeat customer and although I have brands I prefer and brands I dislike, I'm not a brand-snob. I look for value and a vehicle that will serve my needs. These days reliability is comparable pretty much across the board for the most part. I also look for features and I look for potential troublespots. I also go with the attitude that I'm never going to find the "perfect" vehicle, just like you'll never find the "perfect" house. So I refuse to stress out over something like a vehicle purchase. What's the worst case scenario? Don't like it? Lemon? Yes you can get a lemon in a new vehicle or a used one. So then you sell it and get something else. Big deal.

Relax. A vehicle isn't worth stressing yourself. There's plenty of other things to cause you stress, many of which are far better.

We got a new one last year...In fact, I was in Florida and I had a feeling hubby would be buying...The only thing I said, I wanted it to be silver...And he kept saying, he didn't want all those fancy gadgets! Well, it's loaded and silver...And it also has Onstar which we have had the funniest experiences ever...You know the darn thing talks to you....The 1st time, hubs was trying to do something with the radio, a voice came on and said, "read the manual".....I often say, old people like us should not be allowed to buy cars with too many buttons.....

I absolutely detest car shopping! For 20+ years I leased a car thru my company and that meant shopping every 2-3 years. I so hated that job. This past year I shut down the company and had to buy a car so I decided to look for a nice use vehicle that I could pay for in cash and not have to worry with it. How does a sales professional not understand $10-11,000, SUV with 4WD ..... MUST HAVE LOW RANGE, paying in cash? Why show me a $13,000 Rendezvous? This happened at every single dealership, I would see a car online or in the paper and when I asked about that car I got a 'you don't want that' response.

Is it any wonder that car salesmen have the reputation that they do? The first one that didn't BS me and that showed me what I wanted got my business. And I did spend more than we originally talked about, BUT that was my idea, it was something I saw on the lot.

I don't know how I'll choose a new car. I'm happy with a car that's been discontinued! It's a 2005 Jaguar X-Type VDP, bought with 2700 miles on it and a 6-year warranty. The decision isn't imminent -- I hope, since the warranty just ran out! It only has 19K miles on it, but some things just 'age out'.

I have had a hard time finding a smaller car with 4-wheel drive and a well-crafted, non-plastic-y interior. I think Jaguar stopped making this model because it cost them too much and it didn't do what they wanted. It was meant to be an "introduction" to drivers who would then buy their much more expensive models. I actually did the opposite, turning in a 10-year-old, low mileage XJR. The 2006 XJ6's didn't excite, and I couldn't justify a big car with my short drive times.

So...who makes a similar small car w/nice interior? Nothing on the road takes my eye.

Hi again Joanne ... I see that you're a very perceptive lady!

There's a story about my '88 Mazda 323, stick-shift, with about 165,000 mi. or so ... that I've intended to tell here for days, but won't clutter up this thread with it.

Mazdas don't have the high profile that some of the more easily recognizable names have ... so often cost much less, when bought, what is that term that has replaced the four-letter one used earlier - "pre-owned", or something? Plus a reputation for durability.

If you're willing to settle for a stick shift ... even more savings.

I don't like to sink more than about $2,500. or $3,000. into a car ... whose job is solely to take me from here to there and back, without a lot of hassle.

ole joyfuelled

I buy cars once in a very blue moon and last time I was down to 3 models when I went looking, so it was not too awful.
Pammyfay, it sounds like you are pretty far along in the process - but the tool below might help someone who is early in the process.

Here is a link that might be useful: Which car is right for me?