Who’s involved? – New and Used
Dealerships
What is it?
- The four-square scam is a common tactic used by dealerships to
convince you into making a bad deal. The
trick is, they do all of this right under your nose. With a single sheet sectioned into four
squares, they can manipulate you to the point where you are paying them exactly
what they want, maybe more and you come out thinking you’ve gotten everything
you’ve asked for. By breaking the sheet
up into the four sections (value of trade-in, price of new car, down payment
amount and monthly payment) the salesman can get a good gage for your concerns
and re-work the numbers to reflect this.
If you’re worried about over paying monthly, they’ll find a way to
adjust this to your liking, but sublimate this price on one of the other three
squares. They play this game in rounds,
constantly taking the “new” numbers back to the sales manager for
approval. In the end, you’ll be locked
into a contract and you’ll feel good, but you will have been squeezed like a
Florida orange on a Sunday.
How to avoid? – If you walk into a dealership that
uses the four-square method, you should highly consider walking out. Even if you play the game, there is too much
time and effort spent and not nearly enough result. If you really must play, the best thing is to
start by leveling with the salesman.
Tell him you know how the method works and then lay out the price you do
want. Make him work around you, not
pretend to. You won’t get the exact deal
you want, but you can find common ground.
Either way, make sure you pay attention as the salesman powers through
his routine. Don’t let him act as if he
is there to be your friend, he’s there to make a deal.
Terms & Trigger words to avoid? – “Let me take it to
my manager” is the primary trigger term to keep an ear open to. When a salesman says this, they don’t have to
take it to their manager because the manager already knows. It’s a shadow game and the manager is the one
calling the shots from a back room. They
already know what you want and what they’re going to give you, it’s a matter of
you taking control back without them realizing.
Take it from One Stop Motors. Don't let them play their mind games on you, your pocketbook will appreciate it!
