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Buying a car for the first time is the second most important purchase decision, apart from buying a home, in a person's life. And since it also qualifies as a milestone, the experience should be as efficient, effective and positive in every sense.

But as much as we hope it would be, this is not always the case. Because of the underlying intricacies of the acquisition process, the poor buyer is usually left perplexed, confused and helpless.

What was forethought to be a smooth and successful outcome, now becomes a source for great remorse.

Let's get through a few quirky decision filters or tips to avoid common car-buying mistakes and the associated contrition.

1. Resist the urge to buy on first visit

It goes without saying that for every first visit to a shopping center, fresh food market, or a mobile phone reseller, always resist the urge to buy upon first sight. The same with car dealerships.

A car salesman has his target for the day, and that is to keep his ideal customer in the dealership's vicinity for as long as he can, until he turns that prospect into a closed sale. He will do his best to exert those subtle influences on you until you submit to a purchase.

Even if you've made up your mind on your way to the car dealership that you're ready to buy, talk your mind out of it. It's better to be armed with considerable information from your research, than to be without and end up being coerced into an immediate purchase.

Unless that particular vehicle you want qualifies as a hard-to-find model, then your decision may be justified. But understand this, it will still be there if you walk away for more research.

It’s all about finding the best deal for the car of your choice, at the same time not spending more than what you bargained for.

2. Take two test drives

It is highly recommended that you ask the car dealership for two test drives; first to be accompanied by the salesman. Second will be on your own.

The logic is this, the first test drive with the salesman is to answer any queries you may have about the car.

The second, on your own, is to give you a peace of mind, plus allows you the freedom to do your own private, independent assessment of the vehicle in detail, so you can decide if it's the car for you.

By all means, stop and check the vehicle in and out, talk in private if you brought along your spouse or a friend, while visiting a mechanic if you are purchasing a used car and you've notified the car dealership beforehand.

This private, lengthy test drive promises enough time to discuss among your purchase influencers - provided you brought them along - if what you're seeing is exactly what you want.

3. Make sure the car is passenger-worthy 

Notwithstanding that this may sound like a no-brainer, one way or another, it's worth mentioning, as an extension to the previous point.

While you're in the process of buying your first car, always ensure a family member or a close friend is present to be your passenger at some point, before you pen the final paperwork.

If not during test drives, then at least have some potential passengers on hand to occupy the back seat of the car. Their job is to tell you the comfortable level of the vehicle and if their knees are hitting their chins, or if the USB ports and cup holders, for instance, are within easy reach in any case.

4. Take your tunes along

There are few things that make or break your decision to buy a car, and one of them is audio equipment.

This being said, try to take your music CDs or audio file with you when going for a test drive, or to settle the purchase of your new car. Because most often than not, the sound quality of the audio equipment tends to be the significant difference between quality and low-class.

5. Consider insurance rates before purchase

Learn to be wise and try to avoid the mistake of taking a new car home, and then calling up your insurance provider to add your new purchase to your policy - only to find yourself pulling your hair out because the monthly insurance premiums are more like Hulk than Spiderman.

Nothing pricks the fun balloon of a new car purchase faster than discovering that the monthly insurance premiums are way greater than your budget.

Moreover, car insurance rates usually vary in terms of vehicle size and model, engine size and type, safety ratings, and potential for theft, etc.

6. Read reviews online

Do yourself some justice and read reviews online about the car you intend to buy - from professional car dealers, to actual car owners, to just about anyone who has a thing for vehicles.

While going through the reviews, obviously you will come across patterns of an unknown problem which you might have not known before, with specific vehicle make and year, and the same for engines, trims or excessive recalls.

This type of information is worth more than a thousand kina wasted on a low-class car.

Another good reason for reading these car reviews is that you're bound to come across new insights such as equipment packages or highlighted features which you may have never heard of.

7. Get answers

In contrast to the basic understanding about sales people and car dealerships generally, it is also in their best interest of sales people that you must be as informed as you possibly can before buying your new car.

This group of professionals aren't only in the business to serve the purpose of making profit, but also to educate their customers on the range of products they have on offer. Because they know very well that a well-informed consumer is often a repeat customer.

This is why it's important to have a list of questions on hand when you make that first visit.

8. Make sure it’s the car of your dreams

This is a tricky one, and may even qualify in the "It Goes Without Saying" category, but it's truly worth mentioning.

After all that's been said and done - researches, test drives, and other quirky vehicle assessments - you will end up with what you're looking at.

This is when you have yourself to consult, if this is exactly what you’ve been dreaming of, or as close as possible to the car of your dreams.

In essence, there is a reason you see one- and two-year-old cars on dealership lots — people simply bought the wrong cars for their needs, and they had to unload them (at significant losses) to get the vehicles they really wanted.

Final thoughts

All in all, these simple tips can be considered as quirky decision filters, and will go a long way to help you keep car-buyer’s remorse at bay. 

While many people are likely to employ these when they are in dire conditions, they can be a great tool to allow you to make more sound decisions.

These quirky decision filters/tips will allow you to sieve anything that does not add to your future happiness, or undermine your budget plans.

Disclaimer 

The articles provided by Marketmeri are wholly intended for general informational and educational purposes only. All information on this site is provided in good faith and is not a substitute for professional advice. Accordingly, before taking any actions based upon such information, we encourage you to consult with the appropriate professionals.