Woman and man have nothing to do with it. If you are knowledgeable about cars in general, confident you can handle price negotiations and dickering, then there’s no reason not to do it yourself. If you feel better with someone else along, perhaps someone who knows more or is better at some aspects, then bring them. Gender is irrelevant.

 

 

 

 

Oh and by the way… If you don’t like the games, and don’t want to take the major depreciation when you drive it off the lot, try CarMax. I’ve done 5 vehicles with them now. Recommended.

I often bring my husband along when I take the car in for mechanic work, even though I know more about cars than he does. I think it cuts down on the tendency of certain mechanics and technicians to try to find themselves extra work to do on things that may not need immediate attention. I do think I’ve found a mechanic who doesn’t play such games, but there’s going to be the occasional other visit to get smog done, tires changed, or other specific things.

As for buying cars, I’ve only done that once or twice. I will definitely bring my husband when test-driving, because a key consideration is whether our two very differently proportioned persons will fit in a given car and be able to see and reach everything.

When I shopped for my current car (which I bought new, but years ago now), we knew another couple who was also shopping for a car at the time, and we went as a group, the four of us.

We didn’t tell the salesperson a lot about exactly who was buying the car, or even who was married to whom. It changed the dynamic considerably. It also meant we got the report from the back seat in every vehicle we tried. I don’t think there needs to be a man involved to get that sort of result. Any group of two or more friends could go test drive cars.

The other thing I’d strongly suggest is separating the test driving process from the buying process. You can tell the salesperson on the way in that you’re still deciding and will not be buying a car on the day of the test drive. If you’re planning to buy the car with a loan, get approved for that loan separately through a credit union or bank, and then negotiate for the car on price rather than monthly payment. (If the dealer can offer a better interest rate than the credit union, go for it.) Figure out exactly what you want, find out the availability online as well as the MSRP and invoice prices, and then ask for the best price by phone or email from multiple dealerships in the area. You can travel to someplace an hour away if it saves you a couple grand, and invite a friend out to dinner in exchange for helping you out. If you can contact the internet or fleet salesperson, you can often bypass a lot of the sales floor