Update in Post #10 - Need Advice - Car totaled???

[jenmcadams]

What is an auto broker and how do I find one?

An auto broker is a business/individual who will scan the auto auctions around the country for exactly the car you want. TYpically, they end up cheaper than regular dealers because they don't hold (much) inventory. We used the following broker to find our Honda Pilot (he normally does luxury cars, but will do anything):

http://www.theimportwarehouse.com/home.php

[MamaMolly]

We bought our Pilot through USAA. We ended up choosing to drive an hour away because there was a dealer on the list who offered $1K less! We take it to the local dealer for work. We ended up, between a $6K trade in and the USAA price getting a brand new Pilot for the same as a used one from Carmax. ETA: I mention that because we prefer to buy used, too.

[OKKiddo]

We've used USAA new car buying for all of our cars so far (3). We also have USAA for auto insurance (and home) and I can promise you that your premium will not go up for using your rental car coverage on an accident that was not your fault. I've had 3 "fender benders" and used my rental car coverage and body shop from USAA's 5 star team. (In my defense I should mention that 1 fender bender was no more than coming out of wal-mart to find that someone had scratched an ipad sized amount of paint of my back bumper of my 2 week old Oddy.) The ONLY time my insurance went up with USAA was for a moving violation several years ago (not speeding, just didn't make it through a yellow light in time) and even then it was only about $30 every six months extra.

Still, their insurance should cover you until you get the check.