Advantages/disadvantages?
Thank you.
If your not much of a negotiator you will probably at least get a fair deal through Costco.
You would have to very good at negotiation to beat the Costco deal.
Where I live Costco has an arrangement with Ford dealers. I can get up to $5000 off the list on a loaded truck or SUV. Since I did not want a Ford, I did not take them up on it. But you can save a good deal by using them.
Someone that actually tried the service could give you an informed analysis. The rest of us are giving you our best guesses. Here’s mine: check edmunds.com or other similar websites, input the requested info, and get the true market value.for the vehicle. Go to Costco and start the process and see what price you get. You could also check with a dealer yourself after you see the Costco offer and ask them if they can give you a better price. Good luck…
I have tried the Costco service, it was years ago so unless they changed their procedures, it works like this. You select the make and model you want. If it is in the Costco system, Costco will issue you a number or code and send you to a selected dealer. You present the code to the sales manager who will look up the pre-negotiated price in his Costco agreement and give it to you.
I suggest that you get the Sunday paper in your area and scour the ads. sometimes you might see the vehicle you want listed for a good price. If you do, take this with you and if the Costco price turns out to be higher, report it back to Costco.
You might also try getting quotes through the internet through sites like edmunds or even cars.com and compare those prices to the Costco price. I have not tried using the internet yet for this. I don’t buy cars very often, I keep mine till the bitter end.
Easiest new car I ever bought was through the credit union. They sent you to a participating dealer. Wrote up the car, added $150 to the dealer cost, and deal done in about 30 minutes.
Never tried Costo…but a similar program through Sam’s club.
I was able to negotiate a better deal on my own. I guess it depends on where you live.
Sam’s club also had a deal on rentals…This was before I was going a lot of traveling…their deal was very very restrictive. Must be between tues and Sun…Mid size or larger only.
Check the prices on truecar.com and edmunds.com; those are very close to what you can get in your area. You can then try costco but at least you know what you can get otherwise. I usually send emails through those sites and get quotes and then call and let the closest dealer know if they match the lowest quote, I will be there.
I have read mixed reviews for costco. It is a per-negotiated price, but since you don’t know what it is, you can be taken advantage of with add ons or other stuff. It is as always, buyer beware, more so since you are dealing with car dealers.