It is no secret that teenagers are often thought of as naive and immature. Perhaps we are not as developed as some adults, but we are extremely capable, and by no means unintelligent. As my friends reached their sixteenth birthdays, they were so excited to look for their first car; a moment every teenager dreams about for years before. However, many of my friends experienced difficulties with car salesmen. Many car salesmen look to financially prey on young people, as they believe they can get younger, more immature people to pay higher prices. Let’s make sure that you won’t get taken advantage of at the dealer with this advice:

My first piece of advice is to be confident. You have to act like you know what you’re doing, like you are the boss. Establish dominance over the salesman, as it might get him or her to cut you a little slack. Also, when you first go to look at the car you are interested in, look for any damages to the car. Anything from a dent to the tiniest scratch. Look under the car, at the engine, look for rips in the seats, or scrapes on the rims. You should look at the tires, paint, and windows. Also, you should turn things on in the car to ensure that they work correctly. Use the horn, headlights, windshield wipers, air conditioner and heater, ect.. If you happen to find something wrong with the car, something minor that won’t keep you from buying it, you should bring that up when discussing the price, as it may be a factor that helps to lower the price.

Another piece of advice I have is to be personable with the salesman. This might not help depending on the person, but it could push the dealer to shave off a couple hundred bucks. Make jokes with him or her, be very kind and interested in his or her job or life. You should also restrain yourself from acting too excited with the car before you buy it. You don’t want the salesman to think you like the car too much, or else he or she might hike the price. The more you fall in love with a car, the more likely you are to buy it at outrageous prices, and the salesmen know that.