GusMoe

I found my car, but it is at a dealer 400 miles away in another state. The right price, 4 miles on the odometer, it's the one! I plan to work the deal and pick it up this weekend but.... I'm clueless on making this deal remotely.

Any areas I should be concerned with?:
o Out of state transaction?
o what I need from the dealer before I put a down payment on my credit card ?
o any insight to how I might get screwed on this deal?
o regulations - taxes - lemon laws? (Colorado -Kansas are the States involved)

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

btw - I plan to fly out and drive the car back

ElMedico

The dealer will handle everything for you other than the trip to your DMV, though they may handle that as well.

Do everything on your credit card until you actually take delivery of the car. That offers a good deal of protection.

You will only be responsible for taxes in your state. It is still considered a new car (untitled, manufacturers cert of origin) so lemon law applies in whatever state you are registering in. Any issues with the car itself are not a dealer problem - they are a manuf problem.

You need the dealer to fax you a signed Purchase and Sale Agreement prior to signing anything. Make sure that all the numbers are what was discussed and that there are no surprises. Buying a car from a dealer in another state is no different than buying a car from the dealer next door.

Here in Mass, the only issue is emissions. We cannot register a car here that does not have California emissions if it has less than 7500 miles.

Good luck and go for it! I buy cars off eBay all the time from out of state, sight unseen. Never had a problem. I bought a new Corvette a few years ago in Atlantic City, did everything via fax and flew in to pick it up.

GusMoe

Fantastic! Great advice. I feel much better about this deal already.

Finman

I purchased my GTI in New Jersey at a time when I was technically 'homeless'...but intended on registering the car in Arizona. Initially, I believed I would pay no sales tax at the time of delivery, but would have to on registering in Arizona...and the dealer thought the same thing...until that day arrived when they had found out from Arizona DMV that Arizona tax must be collected by the dealer in New Jersey...strange, I thought. Worked out fine, but when I registered in Phoenix I found myself paying an additional $500 'tax' of some sort ("loss of revenue" tax, or something)...that was a lot of tax for a cheapo car!

Bottom line is that each state is different...a simple solution would be to call your state's DMV and ask them how the tax is handled...and how registration is handled.

Good luck, congratulations...

April

car in the state, you'll need to pay state sales tax. When you register the car in your home state, they may levy sales tax based on your local rates. Make sure there is a reciprical tax agreement between your state and the one you're purchasing in. I did a few deals where we delivered the car to the Nevada state line, had them sign the contract there, and they then drove away on a one way trip permit.

RLG

For instance, I just bought a car in South Carolina, where I was charged $300.00 in sales tax on the vehicle.

When bringing the car to California and getting the paperwork done at the DMV, I was charged a California state tax on the car, MINUS the $300 I paid to South Carolina.

Not sure if this happens in all states, but should defintiely save your paperwork documenting any tax paid, just in case.

GusMoe

From the State of Kansas tax code:
Exceptions: These transactions are not taxed:
1) Vehicles or aircraft sold to a bonafide resident of another state, provided the vehicle is not registered in Kansas and is removed from Kansa within 10 days of purchase.

So it looks like sales tax won't be an issue. Any thing else?

btw - thanks guys, i really appriciate the help!

4.2ASix

Think about customer service too...

HooosUrDaddi

1. Dealers are always happier when they service what they sell
2. You save the price of a plane ticket
3. I wouldn't want to break in a new car with a ong road trip.

If these don't matter to you, there should be no apprehension from buying from an out of state dealer.

good luck

TTopJohn

And with 4 miles, sounds like all trips to the service department are going to be under warranty for a while.

Breaking in a car on a road trip, while not ideal, isn't that bad. Just vary your RPMs and speed a bit.