Hassle-Free Buying: Leave the Haggling to Someone Else

If you've ever bought a used car, you know how painstaking the process can be, from searching endless listings, driving from dealer to dealer and -- the most painful part for many people -- haggling to get the best price. Carsala, a new used-car buying service, does the dirty work and may save you money.It works like this: Call or log on to the Web site and enter the make, model, year range and so on.

By Jessica L. Anderson

published 1 June 2010

in Features

It works like this: Call or log on to the Web site and enter the make, model, year range and so on. You can search just in your area or nationwide. Carsala will then send you a report listing cars that fit your description. It removes any damaged vehicles (wrecked or flooded) and cars from dealers with bad business practices. Carsala's system also gives every car a score based on how low the price is, the value relative to other prices for the same vehicle, and how long the car has been on the dealer's lot (a measure of how willing the dealer may be to lower the price).

You can select up to 20 cars for Carsala to negotiate for you, including vehicles you have found on your own. Professional negotiators take over to haggle and get the final deals in writing. You get another report with the negotiated deals and can go for a test drive and complete the transaction.

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The cost is 20% of the savings off asking price, capped at $300, for up to 20 vehicles. So if the asking price is $15,000 and Carsala negotiates a price of $14,000, you pay $200 -- 20% of the $1,000 difference. Until October 1, 2010, Carsala is offering a $99 flat fee to Kiplinger's readers for negotiating up to five deals. Use coupon code KIP1E.

Anderson has been with Kiplinger since January 2004, when she joined the staff as a reporter. Since then, she's covered the gamut of personal finance issues—from mortgages and credit to spending wisely—and she heads up Kiplinger's annual automotive rankings. She holds a BA in journalism and mass communication from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She was the 2012 president of the Washington Automotive Press Association and serves on its board of directors. In 2014, she was selected for the North American Car and Truck Of the Year jury. The awards, presented at the Detroit Auto Show, have come to be regarded as the most prestigious of their kind in the U.S. because they involve no commercial tie-ins. The jury is composed of nationally recognized journalists from across the U.S. and Canada, who are selected on the basis of audience reach, experience, expertise, product knowledge, and reputation in the automotive community.