Sorry but you are wrong here regarding the Capital One blank check. Capital One pays the check within 24 hours.

From their website:

The Blank Check® is no-hassle financing that puts you in control. If you’re buying a vehicle, the Blank Check® is your best negotiating tool. If you’re refinancing, the check can help lower your monthly payment and save you money over the life of your loan.


How it works
We’ll personalize your Blank Check® with your name and address at the top. All you need to do is make it payable to the seller or lender up to your approved maximum amount, sign it and you’re done (you don’t have to use the whole amount; it’s there only if you need it). Plus, there’s no pressure or obligation–you will not have a loan with us until you actually use your Blank Check®.
Gain the negotiating advantage
Arriving at the dealership with a Blank Check® in your wallet frees you from the worries of dealership financing and empowers you to focus on getting the lowest price for your car. Capital One pays the check within 24 hours. It’s as good as cash, giving you the upper hand during price negotiations.


Any dealership refusing to accept a Capital One blank check is shady

 

Even then I think he could have been assisted by the MA to prevent or just help what he went through with finance. We made it clear with South Bay sales that we'd be financing through our credit union and they in turn made that clear with finance - we had zero issues and when we flew in to pick up the car they were all ready and the trip to the finance office lasted only as long as it took to hand over the check get copies of the paperwork.

Re: credit cards, I was also limited to 5k on a car purchase down payment on a card. Its understandable with the fees and all, and since I didn't negotiate it in advance felt that it wasn't really unfair.


PS: By the way, its worth checking on credit union rates, they are often among the best and many are open to the public to join.

 

I ran into the same issue when I purchased my MCS. They told me the most I could put on the credit card was $5000, but they also allowed me to put the $1000 deposit on the card too. So in the end, I got $6000 toward my skymiles. I actually would have put the whole purchase on the card if they let me since I was planning on paying cash for the car anyways.

FWIW an ex-girlfriend of mine used to put her college tuition on her credit card. Her parents would give her a check to pay it off and she got all the points. Pretty good deal!

 

I financed through my credit union but I actually opened the loan a week before I expected to take delivery. I needed to bring the sales contract to my loan officer to get the check written but the dealer had no problem letting the car go. Of course, I brought the loan estimate with me and wrote them a personal check for over a third of the final value. I'm sure that helped. And their spiel for selling me on in-house financing only went as far as asking what rate I was approved for. The rate I got was low even for credit unions, and actually, it was even lower than my credit union's going rate when I finalized the paperwork since I'd started a little before they decided to raise thier rates.

 

The referenced information describes a cashier's check.

 

I know this is off-topic for this thread, but I wanted to dispell this concept as a cashier's check it not really as good as cash in all circumstances. When it comes to vehicle purchases and whatnot, no question the dealership will accept it...however, many people think if they are handed a cashier's check (for any reason...they sold their car, they sold their house, etc.) that they can simply cash it at their bank, no matter the amount.

Not only can a bank refuse to hand you cash for a cashier's check (even though it may plainly read that is is indeed a "cashier's check or official check") any chartered bank can choose to place a hold on your funds over the first $5K of the total amount under federal Regulation CC. The first $5K will be made available to you the next business day. Banks can hold the remaining funds from cashiers/official checks under this regulation, just as they hold personal checks, paychecks, etc. to allow for adequate time to clear the maker's bank. For this reason, a cashier's check it not the same as cash.

I realize this has nothing to do with paying for a car, but if anyone out there experiences complications from trying to negotiate a cashier's check, please be aware that they do share most of the same policies as other check types out there due to the fact that there are tremendous amounts of fraud occurring with these monetary instruments. The only thing that is good as cash, is cash. (and even cash can be fraudulent sometimes!)

 

you are 100% incorrect. The referenced information refers to Capital One's Blank Check. It was copied directly from their website under the "information" area for Capital One's Blank Check. I have never heard of Capital One offering a cashiers check. Did ya notice how the words "blank check" are referenced throughout?

 

Where'd you hear this? Credit cards charge the business a percentage of the sale and they're completely free to limit the amount they'll take on a card.

- Mark

 

I spoke to my MA in Ill and he said that their state doesn't allow credit card purchases over $2,000. I have to get a bank check to buy the car from Citi Card. i am calling tomorrow. I just wondered how people in Ill buy computers, wedding rings, flooring, cabinets, anything over $2,000 is not allowed by state law???? I guess I look like I just fell off the turnip truck. I was born at night... just not last night..... Now really do I look stupid... do I have that Jethro thing going .....I have to check with him again next week..... if he carries on the lie.... no I mean "miscommunication"...I may have to finalize my purchase somewhere else. can anyone confirm it this is true? and if it is.... who would live in Ill?

 

There may be some arcane state laws involved in this sort of thing, but I'd bet a dollar to a donut that the $2K limit is the dealer's policy and at their discretion, not state law.

But I don't hold it against any dealer for restricting the amount they'll allow on a CC, or even having a policy of not accepting cards all-together. On a $20K car put on a card, there's probably $500 out of their pocket and into Visa's. AMEX and Discovery fees are even higher - that's how they're able to do their rebate deals.

We all end up paying for it, one way or the other. That free airline trip to Hawaii - you can be assured you paid for it, or at least collectively we all paid for it. It's all a big scam to encourage spending and hopefully get people to carry balances at 18.9% interest. Credit cards are incredily profitable.

- Mark

 

My dealer would not take an E-Loan check either. In the end, the dealer arranged financing at a credit union that had a better rate than E-Loan, so I ended up pretty happy.

 

My father-in-law has put many cars on his credit card and never had anyone say he couldn't and his cars are typically in the low $30K range and he gets a new one every year or 2. He always figures since he was going to pay cash for them, he may as well limit out his points for the year so he didn't have to use the credit card for the rest of the year

 

No one said a dealer couldn't accept a CC for a large amount - I was just refuting the notion that they are required to.

And you might find the dealer sings a different tune if you push them into a skinny deal. Some deals have plenty of profit margin to pay the CC fee; others it would wipe out the entire profits and the car would be sold at a loss.

No hard and fast rules here. It's a dealer by dealer, state by state, deal by deal thing.

- Mark