Dealer Quote Analyzer — Deal X-Ray
Type the numbers from your dealer quote and see the deal decomposed: real out-the-door price, APR vs the national average, and a fully transparent Deal Truth Score.
Is my dealer quote a good deal?
Decompose it before you decide. This tool rebuilds your quote's out-the-door price under your state's rules — trade-in tax credit and doc-fee taxability — then scores it against published references. At the defaults ($32,000 quote, 6.5% tax, $350 registration, $500 doc fee), taxes and fees add about $2,930, for an out-the-door price near $34,930; the score then reacts to your actual APR, add-ons and doc fee.
Your numbers
Deal Truth Score
100
strong on these inputs
Out-the-door price
$34,930
Monthly payment
$639
Insight — The score is not a secret formula — every deduction is listed above with its weight and reference. It reacts to the three things buyers most often overpay for: the APR, dealer add-ons and the doc fee. A low score doesn't accuse anyone of anything; it tells you exactly which lines to renegotiate before you sign.
Data behind the defaults
- 7.47%·Editorial estimate· as of 2026-07-17· medium confidence
These defaults are starting points from the sources above — every field is editable, and results are estimates, not quotes. All data sources →
What if Quoted APR changes?
| Quoted APR | Deal Truth Score |
|---|---|
| 5% | 100 |
| 6.5% | 100 |
| 8% | 96 |
| 9.5% | 86 |
| 11% | 75 |
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For context: at this tool's defaults — a $32,000 quote, 6.5% tax, $350 registration, a $500 untaxed doc fee, no add-ons, $3,000 down at the national-average APR — the out-the-door price lands near $34,930 and the score starts at 100, dropping as the APR, add-ons or doc fee rise above their published references.
How this calculator works
This is a modeled estimate, not a quote review by a human. The engine applies your state's trade-in credit rule (full, none or capped) and doc-fee taxability to get the taxable amount, adds the quoted fees and add-ons for the true out-the-door price, and computes the payment with the same deterministic loan engine used across MotorCrunch. It then scores the deal against the provenance-stamped national-average APR (linked on our data-sources page) and the tool's stated fee references — every penalty is printed with its weight, so you can verify each point yourself.
Formula
Taxable = price − creditable trade-in + doc fee where taxed. Out-the-door = (price − trade-in) + add-ons + sales tax + fees. Score = 100 − APR penalty − add-on penalty − doc-fee penalty (weights printed in the breakdown).
Worked example
A $32,000 quote with $1,500 in add-ons, an $800 doc fee and a 9.5% APR: the APR penalty is 14 points, the add-on penalty 12 points and the doc-fee penalty 6 points — a score of 68, meaning needs negotiation: ask for the add-ons itemized, the doc fee justified and a better financing offer before signing.
What affects your result
- →The quoted APR vs the national average
- →Optional add-ons relative to the vehicle price
- →The doc fee vs typical levels and your state's cap
- →Your state's trade-in and doc-fee tax rules
- →Loan term and cash down
What this estimate includes
- ✓Out-the-door price under your state's tax rules
- ✓Monthly payment and total interest
- ✓Extra interest vs the national-average APR
- ✓A fully decomposed Deal Truth Score
What it does not include
- ×Vehicle-market pricing (whether the car itself is priced above or below market)
- ×Taxes on add-ons, which vary by state and product
- ×Manufacturer rebates and dealer-specific incentives
- ×Your personal credit pricing — the benchmark is a national average
Good to know
Clear, practical answers about the dealer quote analyzer.
How is the Deal Truth Score calculated?＋
It starts at 100 and subtracts three published penalties: up to 35 points for an APR above the published national average (7 points per percentage point), up to 25 for optional add-ons (2.5 points per 1% of the vehicle price), and up to 15 for a doc fee above the tool's $500 reference (1 point per $50). Every deduction appears as its own row in the breakdown — there is no hidden weighting.
Does this tool see or store my dealer quote?＋
No. You type the numbers yourself and the analysis runs as a calculation on the page — nothing about your quote is uploaded, stored or shared.
Is a low score proof the dealer is overcharging me?＋
No. The score compares your quote against published references — the national-average APR and typical fee levels — not against every legitimate circumstance. Regional costs, your credit profile and vehicle availability can justify differences. Treat a low score as a list of lines worth questioning, not as an accusation.
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