How to read an out-the-door quote, line by line
A quote can look different from dealer to dealer even for the same car, because the same money can sit in different lines. This guide goes through an itemized quote one line at a time.
What the total is
The out-the-door price is everything you pay to drive the car away: the vehicle price plus every fee, add-on, tax and registration charge. It's the only number that compares two dealers fairly, because anything less can be moved from one line to another.
The lines of an itemized quote
An itemized quote usually has these parts:
- Vehicle price, the number most ads show
- Doc fee, for processing paperwork; some states cap it, others don't (rules by state)
- Dealer add-ons, such as window etching, nitrogen tires or protection packages
- Sales tax, set by your state and often your county
- Title and registration, the state's charges to put the car in your name
The planner marks a line that is a dealer add-on and flags a doc fee that is over a state's cap. A rebate, when there is one, comes off the vehicle price.
Why the total, not the vehicle price
Dealer A lists the car at $30,500, with a $499 doc fee and $1,295 in add-ons, for $32,294 before tax and title. Dealer B lists the same car at $31,200, with a $150 doc fee and no add-ons, for $31,350. Dealer B's vehicle price was $700 higher, and its deal is $944 lower.
The comparison only works when every dealer quotes the same items. Asking for each line in writing, with no trade-in and no monthly payment figure, keeps the quotes comparable; the request-a-quote email asks for exactly that.
What can move and what stays put
Dealers often won't remove a doc fee, but they can lower the vehicle price to offset it. Add-ons are worth questioning one by one: each can be asked about, and some can come off. Taxes and state fees are what they are, set by the state and county.
A first number on a worksheet is a different thing from a quote in writing. A written, itemized total is the figure to measure other numbers against (the first pencil).
Comparing quotes and the walk line
The quote tracker in the planner adds up every line and ranks dealers by the total, so the comparison is always on the same thing. The walk line is the out-the-door total above which a buyer leaves, set at home before any quote arrives (the walk line). If the numbers at the desk differ from what a dealer confirmed in writing, that difference alone is a reason to leave, even when the new total is under the line.
Common questions
- What does out the door mean?
- The total to buy the car: price, minus any rebates, plus doc fee, add-ons, sales tax, title and registration. A trade-in and a down payment then come off it. It is the one number to compare dealers on.
- Why compare the out-the-door total and not the vehicle price?
- Anything less than the total can be moved from one line to another. In the example above, the dealer with the higher vehicle price had the lower total, by $944.
- Can a doc fee be removed?
- Dealers often won't remove a doc fee, but they can lower the vehicle price to offset it. Some states cap the fee and others don't.
Where this fits
Part of stage 3 of the method: Leave one square open: price, as an out-the-door total. Related: Out-the-door is the only number, The first pencil, The walk line.