I have 2 friends that are buying cars in the very near future- one financing and one paying cash.

I have been charged with figuring out how to get FF miles for both of these transactions.

Preferred airlines are AA and DL, but UA is acceptable.

I figured that the FT residents would surely have some creative suggestions. Am I right?

Thanks...
SteveH

This has been discussed in some other forums here. My reading (and personal experience) is that it's pretty hard to get most dealers to take more than the initial deposit/down payment on a credit card-- the merchant fees simply cut too far into the dealer's margins.

However, the chances for getting miles seem to increase the less "price-sensitive" the buyer is. In other words, if you're willing to compensate the dealer for the merchant fee (either directly or indirectly), your chances of getting miles increase significantly.

You can earn miles through the AA (and probably other airlines) auto programs. You must buy from a dealer participating in the program. You are supposed to go through the auto program to find the dealer and work with a special salesperson, etc.

On one purchase, the salesperson came right out and told us that we could get a better price without the miles. On another, I contacted the dealer independently and waited until the deal was set to ask for the miles. They gave me AA miles without a problem.

This is in addition to charging the down payment on a credit card. The other poster is correct that dealers tend to bulk at financing the entire purchase this way.

Edited to add that you can find a link to the AA auto program on both the AA and AOLAadvantage web sites.

[This message has been edited by DebBrown (edited 05-18-2001).]

Check out http://www.valueconsumer.com/edeals/auto.htm

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UA has a program called odometer miles. www.odometermiles.com
10,000 miles if you buy or lease a car with participating dealers....

Today I went shopping for a new car. I am interested in a Toyota Prius. The first dealer was part of the AA program. I would get about 5,000 miles (1 mile to $4 spent). I could only put $2000 down on a credit card. The only negotiation since this car price is non-negotiable, and must be special ordered, was to refund the $285 he claimed it cost them to buy the miles. In this scenario I would prefer the money because I could fly somewhere for $285 and easily get 5000 miles. The next dealer, not in the AA program, said that they would accept full payment of the car with a credit card. 20,000 on an AMEX starpoints card, gives me 25,000 miles on AA, to me the best deal. They also give lifetime carwashes. The third dealer also said that they could accept only $2,000 on a credit card - and they do not give out miles. I will give the first dealer an opportunity to match dealer 2, but if they won't I will opt for full payment on my cc. You have to shop around.

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DtG

[This message has been edited by dgordon (edited 05-20-2001).]

I have purchased two vehicles using credit cards (affinity cards: NW Visa and CO Visa). Dealers are not fond of this type of transaction. However, in my area (SF South Bay) I found two dealers that would accept the card as full payment. One was a Chevrolet dealer and the other was a Ford Dealer. I bought myself a new S10 pickup. At first the dealer was hesitant to do this. I simply told him that I would shop somewhere else. He then wanted me to pay the 1 1/2 - 2% for the credit card fee. I refused. He sold me the truck - and even drove it to my house for me! Three months later I needed to buy my mother a used car. Again I searched out some dealers and found a Ford dealer that would accept a credit card for full payment. Many dealers refused to take the cards, but in my area there are many hungry dealers!

Good Luck and Good Hunting!

-RKG

From my experience, dealers were willing to accept up to $2000 for credit card payment. But as RKG indicated, one's experience will be different.

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ValueConsumer.com Home of Tripple Dipping Online Shopping

330CiC, did you pay by credit card for your car? I'm in the process of looking for a dealer to buy a BMW that would take credit cards. Any thoughts? You can e-mail me. Thanks.

Earning miles through car dealers has been difficult in the past, and the only option has been in the sales department, but we hope to change that with our new company (launched just last week).

DealerMiles (http://www.dealermiles.com) provides vouchers of bonus miles to car dealers for them to award in all aspects of their dealership. As we build our dealer network, consumers will be able to search our site for those participating dealers in their area. The search will indicate whether the dealer awards miles for sales, service, or both.

Currently the vouchers can be exchanged for miles on American, Alaska, America West, Continental, Delta, or Northwest.

Stay tuned...

Two things that happened to me when I bought my current car (a BMW as it happens, bagold, from Foreign Motors West near Boston) but it could be any car, anywhere) -

1. I tried to pay with AmEx (having previously verified that the charge would go through). They balked. I pointed out, politely, that their contract with AmEx requires them to take it as payment for any transaction and that there were no signs posted, nor was I given any other notice, to the contrary. They offered me LoJack ($695) free if I'd pay some other way. Since I had ordered it anyway, the value was about a wash for me but much cheaper for them, and I expected a long-term relationship, I took it.

2. I was supposed to get miles under AA's fly2buy (one mile for each $4) program. They didn't come through. The dealer kept calling and faxing; no results. I finally suggested this: I'd buy enough Corn Flakes in airplane boxes, they'd reimburse me, I'd donate the cereal to a local food bank and send in the coupons. It worked for everyone. (The funniest part was explaining to the supermarket people why, when the cereal arrived from the warehouse, that I wouldn't take them if they didn't have airplanes on the boxes.)

Bagold - enjoy your car. I love mine!