‘No regrets.’
A man is going viral on TikTok after resharing another creator’s story, which he says doubles as a “master class” on how to negotiate for a car.
The TikTok account for @caredge reposted a woman’s video about her attempt to buy a Toyota RAV4. According to the creator, the experience at the Toyota dealership dragged on for hours and ultimately pushed her to walk away and buy a Mazda instead.
@caredge says the woman found the RAV4 she wanted on the lot, but the dealership gave her what he described as the “runaround” during negotiations. Eventually, she left and headed to a Mazda dealership, where he says she landed a better deal.
“That video is actually a master class on negotiating with a car dealer,” the man behind @caredge says before breaking down what viewers could learn from it.
One of his biggest points was to avoid focusing on the monthly payment and instead negotiate the vehicle’s total out-the-door price. According to him, that’s what the woman did, which helped her spot extra charges and dealership markups added to the car’s MSRP, or manufacturer’s suggested retail price. That’s the baseline sticker price automakers recommend before dealerships tack on fees, add-ons, or market adjustments.
“There are some real and practical takeaways from this video that you need to be aware of,” @caredge adds.
He also encouraged shoppers to research dealerships ahead of time using websites like CarEdge, which he says grades dealerships from A to F based on transparency and pricing practices. According to the creator, this can help buyers compare stores, even within the same state.
The video, he says, is a “great reminder that you should do your research before you buy a car.” As of this writing, the clip has more than 24,200 views.
Edmunds suggests that focusing on the out-the-door price is one of the smartest ways to negotiate for a car because it forces everything onto the table at once.
That number includes not just the vehicle itself, but also taxes, fees, dealer add-ons, and any extra charges folded into the deal before you drive off the lot.
That matters because dealerships often steer conversations toward monthly payments. And while a lower monthly payment can sound great in the moment, it can also hide a longer loan term or extra fees buried in the financing.
Edmunds reports that getting the out-the-door price, or OTD, also makes it easier to compare dealerships. For instance, one may advertise a lower sticker price, but then tack on thousands of add-ons once paperwork begins.
That’s part of what @caredge was getting at in the video. And many buyers now try to negotiate remotely for that reason—even if it’s not always possible to do so. Instead of spending hours at the dealership, they’ll ask multiple stores for written-out-the-door quotes over email or by phone and compare them side by side.
And if the numbers stop making sense, many shoppers say the best negotiating tool is simply being willing to leave.
Many commenters criticized dealerships for dragging out negotiations or making buyers jump through hoops.
“I would literally pay someone to talk to dealerships for me than deal with all this bs,” one person wrote.
“Dealerships need to go away,” another added. “We should be able to buy straight from the manufacturer with no up charge, just out the door price with tax factored in.”
“We need [more] regulations on car dealerships,” a third viewer said.
Others used the conversation to praise their own experiences buying from Mazda.
“This is how I ended up with my Mazda,” one woman wrote. “No regrets.”
“I had a great experience at Mazda,” another commenter said. “Didn’t end up buying, which I felt bad about.”
“Mazda is vastly underrated in comparison to others like Toyota and Honda,” a third person wrote. “More for your money and excellent cars.”
Some viewers said frustrations like those described in the video are exactly why more shoppers are turning to online car retailers rather than traditional dealerships.
“This is why people go to Carvana,” one person quipped, referencing the online used-car retailer that lets shoppers buy vehicles remotely and avoid dealership negotiations altogether, though the company has also faced complaints.
“This happened last month when we tried to buy a CPO Honda CRV at a Honda dealership. We still wanted a Honda CRV, so [we] went to Carvana instead,” another added.
Motor1 has reached out to @caredge via direct message on TikTok and to Mazda and Toyota via email. A Toyota spokesperson declined to comment. We’ll update this story if we hear back from Mazda or Car Edge.
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