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Smart Buying Starts at Home

Set your budget with all costs in mind

Taxes
- New vehicles: charged 7% PST and 5% GST, and may include a luxury surtax depending on the vehicle
- Used vehicles: charged 7% PST and 5% GST, but only on the difference between purchase price and trade-in value (tax advantage); luxury tax may also apply
- Used vehicles bought privately: charged 12% PST
Tire levy
Negotiable dealer fees such as documentation, administration and finance placement fees. See this fact sheet on dealer fees.
Extras you may want or need
The cost of fuel and maintenance
Insurance
Licensing fees

Know your vehicle needs

Gas mileage
Seating capacity
Towing capacity
Cargo and trunk area
Snow or other traction needs
Parking height and size restrictions

Research the vehicles that meet your needs & budget

Visit a library or bookstore to read consumer and automobile magazines
Go online to consumer and automobile websites
Talk to your mechanic about which vehicles offer good value
Study ads to get an idea of prices
Use the Canadian Black Book to value your trade-in

J.D. Power reports that consumers spend an average of 17 hours researching vehicles before they buy.
Twelve hours, or 70%, of that research is done online.

Consider things other than price

Safety
Gas mileage
Reliability
Warranties
Vehicle features and options
Resale value & depreciation

Know the benefits of buying a used vehicle from a licensed dealer

Dealers must comply with strict standards
Dealers often have financing available
Dealers often offer a range of warranties
Many dealers have service departments
Dealers make an investment in their staff, operations, reputation and community
Dealers contribute to a customer compensation fund for eligible claims
The Vehicle Sales Authority can assist you only if you buy from a licensed dealer
There is a tax advantage if you use your vehicle as a trade-in at a dealer

Know the strict standards dealers must follow

Dealers must disclose if a vehicle has been registered out of province
Dealers must disclose if a vehicle was used as a lease, rental, taxi or emergency vehicle
Dealers must disclose prior damage over certain limits
Dealers must disclose anything that would be material to your decision
Dealers must guarantee that their vehicles are free of liens
Dealers must comply with strict standards when leasing a vehicle
Dealers must offer used vehicles that meet minimum safety requirements, or
Dealers must declare vehicles as Not Suitable for Transportation and be towed from the dealership

Buying online or at a distance

Many dealerships offer the option to shop online.

A long distance contract can be cancelled, but only in very specific situations.
Go to our Online sales model page for information and facts: see Distance Sales – Online sales model
See the following additional distance sales resources:

The Sale of Goods Act says a person is not deemed to have accepted the goods until they have had a reasonable opportunity to inspect them on delivery and the seller must provide a reasonable time to inspect. In other words, the deal is not actually done until a reasonable opportunity to inspect has occurred.
See the Right to Inspect

Avoiding online scams

Check the VSA list of online scams
Is the business licensed in the state or province indicated?
Does the address on Google Maps Street View look like a dealership
Who controls the website? Paste the web address of the business into the “Who is” lookup to learn when the webpage was created and the registrant of the web domain. The person registering web domains may be a proxy or agent, but the address may still be of interest.

Fuel consumption ratings vs Actual fuel consumption

The Fuel Consumption Guide offers a comparison of vehicle fuel consumption ratings using the Federal Test Procedure. It does not predict what the actual fuel consumption of a particular vehicle will be. Actual fuel consumption depends on many variables, such as driving habits, the terrain, the weather conditions, and how much the vehicle is loaded.