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Comments
-juice
Any thoughts appreciated.
2006 Outback Sport Special Edition with Manual Transmission in Obsidian Black / Crystal Grey Metallic + the following factory installed accessories:
+ Floor Mats
+ Homelink Upgrade for Auto-Dimming Compass Mirror
MSRP: $20,462 + fees (tax + lic + doc)
Your special E-Price: $18,435 + fess
You'll love the car.
Bob
Bob
There are 2 advertised in the local paper at $21,995
I'm wondering what kind of equipment might be included without having to call the dealer.
One big drawback to the 2005 models as opposed to the 2006 is that they faired marginally on the IIHS side-impact crash test. However, the side structure was reinforced for the 2006 model year to correct the problem. Another (cosmetic) difference I see is that the 2006 2.5i models have much nicer looking wheels - it's a cleaner 7 flat-spoked design instead of 5 curvy spokes.
Never mind MSRP, see what they'll sell it for.
I got an 06 xt ltd msrp was $33k+ and I got it for $28,500 including a $1,500 rebate. You should be able to get into holdback at this stage.
ps WOW!
Not sure about flat versus curvy, but 05 2.5i's had 16" wheels. 2006 have seven spoke 17" wheels. 2006 H6's and turbos have five spoke 17" wheels.
Another difference which helped make my purchase possible is the 05 XT was available without the limited package. I prefer the cloth seats and the limited is out of my price range even if I wanted the leather and moonroof. For 06 XT its only limited.
So for me, it was the 05 XT or no XT. No brainer at the price I paid.
BINGO! Base Outback with auto and Compass Mirror (in car already) Silver/two tone/charcoal interior Love the look!
List $26700
Bought for $21,300!!!
I am pumped!!!
In my short life on "God's great green Earth", I have had:
1989 Brighton wagon (remember where you had to lift lever to engage 4WD!)
1997 Outback My lovely Bride was hit by a big SUV! Bride is fine thanks to the Subaru quality...car totaled!! @ 108,000 miles.
2006 Outback is one sweet machine! I think I got a great deal on a sweet ride!
Smokey
That's like $3500 off invoice!! Can you tell me what dealer gave you this?? I'm looking to get pretty much the same model Outback you bought.
Also looking the at the new Rav4. Since there are new this yeat not many out there yest and most dealers dont want to deal much.
Thanks for any info!
Also, what's a good Subaru web site??
Yes I was caught short by the quote! Never thought I could get the Outback at such a price.
Dealer "Becker Subaru/Allentown PA". Very low presure dealership. Price was given over the phone. Salesmen said that they were having a special, and would hold the price if I came down.
I live in NJ and had to drive a good distance for the purchase. I know I did not use $3500 in gas to get there!!
I guess they used the $2000 rebate and their holdback monies to swing the deal
Becker dealership claims to be the 3rd largest volume dealer in the USA! I now can see why.
Has a good website at Becker.com You can see the inventory, access. and MSR.
RAV4: I looked at those as well! Was hunting down an 05 back in October and was having no luck. Toyota dealers, if they had any, were not willing to deal them out! That was strange considering the 06's were comming in.
Test drove the 06 I liked everything about it. But, of course, dealers were looking for MSR++ so.....I staggerg back to an Outback! (Ha!)
Becker is one of the larger dealers, currently 4th in the nation month to date and 5th for the year.
I did find one "lost leader" (2005 with comparable mileage, in-service date etc.) at a dealership about 40 miles away in Central Massachusetts for $17,700. Of course that one sold towards the end of February. They do have some similar 2005s in the $18,700 -$18,900 range. Using Carfax it appears that they were all bought at Auction in early March and most are former "daily rentals", one may be a former lease. This doesn't bother me too much since I am planning on buying a "Subaru Added Security Plan" (more on that later.)
I had been working with the internet manager over the phone to see if he could get one of the lower priced ones within striking range of $17,700. Ultimately I got a voice mail message from one of the owners. After playing voice mail tag I did speak with yet a third person (calling on behalf of the owner) who basically said these prices were firm. This came as a bit of a surprise since the vibe I got from the internet manager is that there may have been one or two they would have had some flexibility on. I think I should still be able to save at least $150.00 using their "Internet Savings" certificate and another $150.00 if I set up a test drive appointment through their website. So, theoretically I should be able to get a 2005 for $18,400 -$18,700, representing a potential savings off of the local vehicles of $1000.00 to $1,600.00
Also, the Central Mass dealership does have one 2004 for $17,700. It has about 35K miles and a Feb/04 in-service date. What I would be losing is about 1 year of original Mfr warranty and side curtain airbags. (Unless anyone can point out any other differences that I am missing).
Obviously I am reaching the point where I need to re-visit my local dealership (with the $19,995 2005 OB) &/or finally visit the Central Mass dealership.
I'd appreciate some insight into whether the Central Mass dealership may have more flexibility in their prices, since they bought these vehicles at auction, or whether I should focus on trying to get the local dealer down by about $1000.00. The local vehicle has a little less time left on warranty but significantly lower mileage. It also has these "options": security system upgrade ($98.00), all weather mats ($55.00), and cargo net ($45.00). As I understand it, the usual security system is just a "Dummy" flashing light but the upgrade actually makes noise. As long as the light alone qualifies me for the insurance discount I'm not sure the security upgrade would mean anything to me.
I don't know how motivated the local dealer would be. I tested the waters before I realized the $17,700 lost leader had sold and they made it clear they weren't coming down to $17,700 or $18,500 but they never made a counter-offer. They have a reputation for not negotiating but have been known to come down by $1000.00. If it matters, they acquired this 2005 OB wagon at an auction in January of 2006 but it is one of the few vehicles they have in this category, compared to the Central Mass dealership. They have it marked as a "super saver", I think because it's white. The only other vehicle they have in this category is about the same price with slightly higher mileage but more time left on warranty. However, they acquired this one at auction much more recently.
So, I would appreciate any thoughts on where to go from here. Do you think either of these dealerships would be more motivated towards the end of the month? I had considered waiting until the Summer but if the current prices on used 2004s are any indication I'm not sure the 2005s would be significantly cheaper then. If only because the more reasonably priced ones seem to be former daily rentals bought at auction and I have no idea when those might be hitting the dealers' lots again. Not to mention if I wait too long then we would be getting closer to the Fall/Winter and I'm guessing AWD vehicles will be at more of a premium then.
Regarding the warranty, for a non-turbo, $0.00 Deductible, Gold Plus, 7 yr / 100K warranty the best price I found over the phone was $1,530. He faxed me a quote and the $1,530 was crossed out and replaced with $1,430. That's slightly better than 40% off the $2,460 MSRP. I'm guessing that's as good as it's going to get but if anyone is aware of a better deal please let me know.
Again, I'd appreciate any feedback on how to negotiate on any of the vehicles described above and whether I found a pretty good deal on the warranty.
Thanks,
~Cath
I realize that you are buying a 2006 but are you under the impression you are buying a new vehicle(possibly a demo) or a used one? How many miles are on it?
Since this almost seems to be a "too good to be true" price, I think what Raybear is suggesting is that this may be a used vehicle that the dealer picked up at auction. The big tipoff would probably be mileage. Although it is possible for the miles to be so low that you might take the vehicle for a demo. Worse yet, it is theoretically possible for the miles to be so low that it might be a flood vehicle (e.g.: Katrina).
In my case, I am looking at a number of used 2005 OB Wagons that I know are former daily rentals that were purchased by the dealer at auction. I learned this through Carfax, which you may have heard of before.
Here is there link:
http://www.carfax.com/cfm/UUCP_Redeem1.cfm
If you haven't heard of them, they are essentially a service that has developed a database of used vehicles through public --and some private-- sources of information including the Registry of Motor Vehicles (for purchase info) and State police (for accident info). If they give you a clean report, they offer a “Buyback” guarantee against certain problems (odometer rollback, salvage titles, etc.), but you need to register with them within 30 days or so to be eligible. I should note that they aren't the only service like this out there.
If you have any question about whether the vehicle has been represented to you accurately I would definitely spend the $19.99 or so to get a report from one of these types of services.
For anyone else who is in the market for a used vehicle and thinks they will need to look up more than one vehicle, with Carfax you can get a 30 day membership and look up an unlimited number of vehicles for $24.99.
Let us know what you learn.
~Cath
Now you got me worried! But.....I test drove the car. It had less than 3 miles on the odometer. I have the VIN number on this vehicle. I also had asked the dealer if this stock came from flood areas (Katrina) He looked at me like I was crazy...but I made him sign the agreement that it was NOT a flood car!
I have heard about Carfax. But never thinking it could be used for NEW cars! So if I enter my VIN # to the site will it come back as a NEW CAR? Would it tell me where the car started is journey to my dealer?
I pick the car up Friday (unless it snows!..not ready to test the 4WD right out of the showroom!)
If I ask the dealer if the car is from an Auction...do they have to disclose the details?
The deal just seemed too smooth! I started to question if I had taken the correct invoice price from the internet!
Looking forward to what the group suggests I do BEFORE I give the final check!!
Thanks,
Hoople
Bought for $21,300!!!
Congrats, it's a really super deal!
For other potential buyers, check http://www.fitzmall.com before you go to a dealer.
Right now, the cheapest Outbacks are:
OBK 2.5i Manual
$21,330
MSRP: $25,475
OBK 2.5i Auto
$21,767
MSRP: $26,526
I feel much better knowing that you drove the vehicle and it had less than 3 miles on the odometer. Of all the hypothetical things you have to worry about I think you’ve ruled out the worst case scenario in having them sign something assuring you it isn’t a flood vehicle.
To try and answer your latest questions:
I have a current Carfax subscription; I ran a Vin for a new 2006 Outback and got the following notation: “The CARFAX© database currently contains no records for this vehicle. Please check back again soon, as our database is continually updated.”
Regarding what the dealer must disclose about the vehicle, that probably varies depending upon state law. However, there are a few basic principles of contract law that probably apply here: 1) The duty of each party to deal with each other in “good faith” and 2) the duty of the Seller to disclose anything that has a material affect on the value of the item being sold. That begs the question of what is “good faith” and what has a "material affect" on the value. For the sake of discussion, assuming that the vehicle is “Used” they would probably have to let you know that since there is a big difference in price between a new and a used vehicle, even for one of the most current model year. A demo may fall into a gray area but I would think most reputable dealers would let you know that and, again, the mileage would probably be a tipoff. I think Subaru also has “Used / Executive” cars driven by Subaru dealer owners and the like. I see this notation on cars available for sale in my area but don’t know whether these are technically “Used” and whether the “Used” and/or “Executive” notation is required. My guess is the “Executive” notation is a more appealing way of putting people on notice that it’s “Used”. However that’s not likely to be an issue with a car that has only 3 miles on it unless the odometer has been rolled back.
If the vehicle has been disclosed as “Used” then they probably don’t have to tell you how they acquired the vehicle (e.g. at auction). On the other hand, regardless of how they acquired the vehicle in all likelihood they need to tell you if they know --or have reason to suspect-- that it is some sort of salvage or flood vehicle.
I think that, as with the purchase of a house, the duty to disclose negative information is weakened if the Buyer has the right of inspection and the negative info in question could have been discovered by inspection. Of course, very few people that think they are buying a new car would ask if they could have the vehicle inspected.
As a practical matter, in my limited observation, oftentimes very intelligent buyers are “put on notice” of critical information by way of the paperwork. As an example, I have a friend that got a great price on a used van only to find out that he had “signed for” income disability insurance and an extended aftermarket warranty after he had specifically told them he didn’t want or need either. However, he didn’t look at the paperwork carefully enough. Fortunately that story has a happy ending. I won’t bore you with the details except to say that I got involved at the eleventh hour.
For what it’s worth this is the course of action I suggest: 1) Check your paperwork. In addition to reviewing what you do have copies of make sure you aren’t “missing” anything they might “accidentally” have forgotten to give you a copy of. 2) Call or better yet visit the dealership and “go over” the paperwork with them; that’s your best way of making sure that they don’t have a copy of something you don’t have 3) As an alternative to #2, take the more direct approach and simply call and ask. 4) Finally, I would definitely try to run a Carfax, if it comes back without a record you are probably ok. I do wonder if you sign up for the one report and it comes back with no record if you’d get a refund but I think that’s the least of your worries.
It’s kind of sad that when you get a good deal you almost have to start to wonder if it’s too good to be true.
Good luck and keep us posted. ~Cath
I am replying again because it just occurred to me that there may be a much more practical direct way to get some useful history on the vehicle.
Try calling Subaru of America Customer Service &/or Warranty. Generally their policy is to not give info regarding a vehicle to you unless you are the owner but in the past I have had some luck calling them regarding extended warranty eligibility on vehicles I am interested in once they knew I currently owned a Subaru (which sounds like your situation). Be prepared to give them the VIN # of your current vehicle.
You don't necessarily have to open with any alarming, inflammatory questions such as "is it a flood vehicle". You might start by simply asking if it is eligible for an extended warranty and if so what the in-service date would be.
Which brings me to another point, if you are interested in an extended warranty I think I found the price to beat at Stacy Subaru, Brattleboro VT. Check my posting one or two pages back for the details on a 7 year / 100K, Gold Plus, $0.00 Deductible.
Good luck, I'm anxious to hear how things work out for you.
~Cath
Here is an update. Ran the VIN thru Carfax free Test Run....came back as "No Recornd of Vin..or something like that. I guess that is a good thing since it had not been titled as yet!
I am also very interested in an extended warrenty! Here is another interesting "Becker" touch, they (Becker) will offer extended warrenty that basically covers what Subaru New car warrenty covers. But with an interesting twist!
They will refund "ALL" $ of what you paid for the xtd warrenty if you do NOT make use of it!!
So, for ex: if you purchase 7yr. ,100,000 package, and do not lay any claims against it, (Which they will check with S.O.A) they will cut a check at 100% refund.
I have never had an extended car warrenty, but I think I want to go with one this time.
I will check out your info on the Warrenty
JOHN
I'm glad to hear you got a "No Record" from Carfax. Even with my active imagination I can't come up with a scenario where one dealership's catastrophe damaged vehicle would wind up on another dealer's lot in a different state. So as long as the Carfax "No Record" is accurate you should be ok. Although I'm sure a conspiracy theorist could come up with something to worry about. For additional peace of mind you might try to subtly get more info on the history of the car from the dealer --in the natural course of things-- and/or contact Subaru Warranty once you are the titled owner.
I am a big fan of extended Mfr's warranties. As much as I loved my OB Sport the extended warranty got quite a work out. I spent about $900.00 on the warranty but I had more than $2000.00 worth of warranty work including: --a $1,350.00 short engine block replacement, for the part alone, not including labor; --rear differential, $700.00 +/- on the part alone; several wheel bearings (at least $100.00 or so each), etc.
Regarding Becker's Warranty, I'm guessing it's not backed by Subaru and that you won't be able to go to just any old Subaru dealership. (Although I am thrown by your comment that they will "check with S.O.A." for any claims against the warranty, which implies that some --if not all-- other dealers will accept it). Even if there is a Subaru near you that will honor it now there is no guarantee they will do so in one or two years. You may have the option of having the work done and then submitting the paperwork for reimbursement but you have no way of knowing how difficult or time-consuming the claims process might be.
Additionally, even if you lived near them (which you don't) there is a built in disincentive for you to use it. Would you make a $150.00 claim against the warranty in year one if you think you might not use it again for the next three years? Would you make a $300.00 claim in year two where you've already passed on $150.00 in year one and you may still get a full refund in year three?
In the meanwhile, they are earning interest on your money.
So, even if I lived near this dealership and I believed they would be around forever I would not consider buying the "Becker" warranty unless I could refrain from submitting any claims until they cumulatively exceed the cost of the warranty. In other words, the time limit on submitting claims is generous enough that at any point --even towards the end of the life of the warranty-- you could submit all claims for consideration; which of course you would only do if the total dollar amount on the claims exceeded the cost of the warranty.
Even then, however, you face the risk they won't pay all of the claims and you would have done better if you'd sought reimbursement of the cost of the warranty.
My instinct is you are better off shopping around for the best price you can find on a Manufacturer backed "Subaru Added Security" Plan.
I know we aren't suppposed to post phone numbers but the name of the dealership I found the price to beat on the warranty is Stacy Subaru in Brattleboro, VT. The contact person is Luke Higly (sp?).
By the way, when you say you got the base model am I correct in assuming it is the 2.5i Sedan, with the couple of extra options you described? Is it an automatic?
I am curious since I am in the market for a 2005 wagon and I'm trying to get some perspective on the price ranges I am seeing in my area. Just for the fun of it I requested a quote on a base OB Wagon from Becker. If the price is right it might be worth a ride to PA from MA.
Once again, good luck and keep us posted.
~Cath
I just visited the Fitzmall website and I'm pretty impressed. These prices are close to what Hoople paid for his. It looks like a brand new 2006 OB/Legacy Wagon is $21,700 or only about $3,000 more than the least expensive used 2005 with about average miles and 1 1/2 to 2 years left on the original Mfr warranty. In fact, a fair number of dealers in my area are asking for about that much on some used 2005s.
Before I get too excited, I live in Eastern MA, on the coast in the Boston area, and their Automalls are in PA, FL & MD. Am I correct in assuming you would have to pick up the car at one of their automalls? If so, I might be able to make that work if one of the PA automalls is right on the NY / NJ border. I'd have to do all of the advance work by phone, fax, email, etc. and then my husband and I would have to drive out together to pick it up but for the savings it could be worth it.
Have you dealt with Fitzmall &/or any of their automalls yourself? Do they have a good reputation?
In the alternative, how likely do you think it is that I could get a dealer that's local to me match their prices?
Thanks for the info and feedback.
~Cath
In fact even their body shop is great.
-juice
I will reply to your questions"
Car is a 2006 Outback wagon 2.5I/Auto. with HOmelink Mirror/compass access.
Xtd warranty is a "Subaru Backed warranty"! Top of the line Gold is 7/100,000 for $1800, 0 deductible. Good at any Subaru dealer. Becker comes into play with the Policy Return Feature.
I am also curious to see what they give you! Go to the website and look at the inventory!
Hey! Stop on by when you go down to PA and I will throw in some coffee and donuts!! But you have to promise to bring me "Coffee MIlk Drink" I miss that since I have not been to Boston in a few years!
Hoop
Thanks for the feedback. I am hoping to hear from the Central Mass dealership towards the end of the week to see if they get any good deals on used 2005 OB Wagons at auction on Thursday. If they acquire anything they could sell in the $17,000 - $18,000 range that's probably the way to go. At that point I'd be saving about $3,500 to $4,000 off of a comparable new 2006. That money is probably better put towards the new roof we need and the new windows we want for the house.
If the saving is $3,000 or less a new one is more tempting. I checked Mapquest and Becker in Allentown, PA is about 6 hours from me. The closest Fitzgerald Auto Mall is Annapolis, MD, about 7 hours away. So, if Becker can meet or beat Fitzgerald's best price(including "delivery"), assuming my husband and I are willing to deal with the logistics, then that might be something to think about.
But I'll need to wait and see if they respond to my request for a quote. I did check Becker's inventory. They only list MSRP and as far as I can tell they don't have any "Specials" or any sort of new car promotions with an actual list of cars. Although after poking around a bit I did find one notation regarding their car specials due to dealership construction. I guess they need the space. That notation did refer me to their specials page, but all I found there were Maintenance specials. It may be that they've thinned down their inventory to a point where they don't need to price their cars as competitively, or at least not to advertise it as prominently. I seem to recall your saying something about the salesman "holding" the price for you. Was there a time limit on the ad you saw?
By the way, did you have a chance to check out Stacy Subaru's Warranty price on a 7 year / 100K, $0.00 Ded? If memory serves correctly the price I was quoted over the phone was $1,530.00 but the price he faxed me was $1,430.00. So you'd be saving approximately $400.00 off of the "Becker" warranty and you wouldn't be faced with the dilemma of whether to actually use the warranty for minor items. Just something to think about.
in any case, before you are committed to the warranty I would request a copy of the actual contract and review it thoroughly, for whatever my opinion is worth.
At any rate, it looks like you're in good shape now. I'm sure you are relieved. But again, keep us posted. If nothing else I'll be interested to know how smoothly your out of state buying experience goes from here. It could be instructive for me.
Good luck. ~Cath
Hoople, how do you like you Outback so far? Did you have to pay any doc or processing fees at Becker??
So it looks like a solid deal! I had that quote as well, but the car I got had the HOmelink/compass mirror ($119 cost addition)
I pick up the car on Friday. The additional fees are $65 for temp tags and doc's, $10 PA. tire tax.
I need to pay my sales tax and registration fee in New Jersey.
Hey Cath: I called SOA and asked them to run the VIN for me. Came back as not titled. When she asked why I was checking I gave her the speal about "Price was too good and I wanted to get extended warrenty....yadda..yadda!
SOA gave me a big pitch about how great the Subaru xtnded warrenty was, all the features and such.
When I told her that I was a 3 time subaru owner (incl the 2006) and that the warrenty was a bit too high a price....she offerd to give me $200 if I send her a copy of the Bill of sale and copy of warrenty.
So I again want to thank you for that heads up!
This is going so well!!!!
I will report back after I get out of PA with my 2006 Outback!
Hoop
Refresh my memory, did you get a sedan or wagon?
This is the price quote I got from Becker on an Automatic Wagon: "I do not have a low emission vehicle here so I would exchange with a northern tier dealer to get one. The price is $20,999 plus $100 for expenses to swap the car, plus $208 for the price of the (New England) emission gear plus $55 for the documentary fee, and $5 for PA tire tax." Did your price include these incidentals?
Also, did you try calling Stacy Subaru on the warranty? If the quote I got is accurate you can save 40% or so which can amount to about $1,000, which is substantially more than $200.
Thanks, Cath
So, if I understand you correctly, you can save an additional $200.00 off of the best deal you can find on any genuine Subaru "Added Security Plan"? This would only be my second Subaru but I've had the other one for about 6 1/2 years; does that count? I wonder if SOA warranty would give me the same deal.
Regarding your question about what I'm going to do. That involves a very elaborate cost / benefit analysis. I'll try not to bore you with too many details but my beloved 1997 OB Sport fell victim to a flying slab of granite and is a possible constructive total. I'd simply repair it but I have a toddler and a baby on the way and while I've always felt safe in it the thought of getting broadsided with one kid against a rear door really scares me.
Now might be the time to move up to a larger car since we'd never get as much money in trade as we would in "actual market value" (ACV) on the insurance claim. If you understand auto claims you'll know I'm using the term "ACV" loosely; nevertheless it is more than "trade- in" value. It pains me to do it since I'd planned to drive the vehicle into the ground.
However, I still need to come up with the difference between the amount I get from my insurance company and the cost of the new car. So I'm torn between buying a newer used one and biting the bullet and spending another $2000 on a deal like this. If I simply had the money hanging around it would be a no-brainer since the 2006 has side curtain airbags and it would have another year or so of original Mfr warranty, etc., etc., etc.; but I'll have to give it some more thought after taking a hard look at the budget. Did I mention the house needs a new roof?
One other thing does make me think twice. I don't mind a 6 or 7 hour drive to and from to pick the vehicle up but in the extremely unlikely event I wind up with the rare lemon I'm a long ways away from the selling dealer. It would be ideal if I could get a Massachusetts dealer to come close to Becker's price but I suspect that's unlikely. The quoted price of approximately $21,300 is about $600.00 less than Consumer Reports (CR) $21,935 "Bottom Line Price" which is based on "real dealer invoice" and which reflects the $2,000 Rebate and an estimated $774 hold back. Essentially CR has cut out any add-ons such as advertising. As far as I can tell the only charge it seems to include is the "destination charge". I can't imagine there are many dealers able or willing to match that price.
If anyone is aware of Massachusetts dealer that might be willing to come close to the $21,300 figure --perhaps a high volume dealer-- please reply to this post.
In any case, I hope to make a decision in the next week or so. If only so I can get on with my life. Thanks for the feedback. Whatever I wind up doing, this has been a good learning experience.
I'll be checking back to see what you wind up doing on the warranty.
~Cath
If you don't mind another opinion, do you have a Subaru dealer you are dealing with now? If so, take your quote from Becker and call them up to see what they can do for you. Back in October when I was looking to buy my LLBean wagon I had gotten (what I thought was) a pretty decent deal from a dealer I found through the internet. When I contacted the dealer I go to for all my service in NJ, he beat that deal by $200.
It definitely pays to shop around. As several other people have mentioned, Fitz is a good comparison point. I had even considered going down to them, only problem was the dealer I wound up buying from gave me a better trade-in value. I guess that's because their service department did all the work on my old OB.
Let us know how things go!
Mark
You have a lot on your plate!!
Funny, except for the babies!..we are going thru almost the same issues!
We are getting estimats for a complete teardown and rebuild on my 1872 farmhouse,we are also getting new windows all around. My lovely bride had a major accident with our 1997 Outback back in October. A slimey SUV ran the stop sign, broad sided my wife and knocked her into a the telephone pole. Wife is fine, car held up well,,,,but insurance considered it a total wreck.
I know full well what that means as far as what they are willing to pay. Take it from me, do not accept the first or second offer from the Insurance company. Make a big point that your car was in excellent condition and to replace it with a comparable vehicle would be considerable more that they (insuraNCE) is offering.
I addded a considerable amount over the first offer. It helped ofset the price of the new car!
FYI
Hoop
You make an excellent point. My problem is time constraints. However I think I may have figured out an efficient way to contact virtually every Massachusetts' dealer by email. Via the official Subaru site I can search Massachusetts dealers, click their site, click contact and then click email. The trick will probably having a sample document to copy / paste from and then perhaps customize it for those few dealers I've been shopping for a used one with. In that email I plan on letting them know that my target price is $200.00 over "real" dealer invoice, specifying that the only add-on in that figure will be the "destination charge".
In my mind I've been debating whether to attach a copy of the email from Becker &/or link them to the Fitzgerald site (Fitzgerald prices for a comparable car are about $1,000 more than Becker but I probably need to add the $208 N.E. emissions if not the $100 dealer swap charge).
I did make the mistake of using the Edmunds online quote service. I've gotten about three replies in the $23,000 to $24,000 range, maybe more. The numbers were high enough that I wasn't paying much attention. I did test the waters by replying by email to the one dealer that didn't quote me a price but sought more info from me. In that email reply I mentioned $200 over "real" dealer invoice inclusive of destination charge only. I gave them a "ball park" on the lowest figure I have so far, rounding down from $21,300 to $21,000. Can you hear the laughter from where you are?
We'll see how that goes.
Wish me luck.
~Cath
Regarding the negotiations with my carrier, they are proceeding slowly for strategic reasons. I don't have the time or energy to argue any further with them unless and until it becomes absolutely necessary.
At the risk of ruining your opinion of me I'll tell you that I have a background in insurance claims, with some Auto property damage experience in my distant past; and I think I have probably done the best I can with my carrier. (I will not bore you with all of the excruciating details which include producing receipts for a newer engine with only 20K miles on it, researching comparable vehicles available for sale, checking book value, reviewing Massachusetts appraisal regulations, etc., etc., etc.)
I finally contacted the carrier of the at-fault vehicle and they have deemed it repairable. No big surprise since that was my carrier's position at first. Again, it is a borderline total. I was hoping to avoid towing it to a shop for a formal supplement but we finally had that done the day before yesterday.
If I decide to push for a total I think I can do better with the at-fault vehicle's carrier since I can always sue their insured. Whereas with my company I would have to go through the time and expense of arbitration, which may be binding.
Fortunately for me, my carrier, and ultimately the other carrier, I have been driving our third vehicle, the econobox "commuter car"; so the clock isn't ticking on a rental vehicle. Squeezing behind the steering wheel in my current condition is the closest thing to exercise for me these days besides sprinting for the train on occasion.
As long as I can stand the sardine in a can routine I have the luxury of time to aggressively shop for the new "family car" and if I do well enough, possibly repair the OB sport, trade in the econobox and demote the OB Sport to commuter car status.
Whew... Did you follow all that?
By the way, how much did your carrier increase their original offer? I don't have a before and after figure from my carrier since I made my best case going into it. However, given the age of my car their target figure was basically private party sale ($4,500, or so they say) and with the documentation I provided on the condition of my car the actual offer was basically the low end of dealer retail ($6,200). Of course you and I both know I can't replace the car for that amount and have any peace of mind not knowing the history of the car I am buying.
Anyways, thanks for the feedback; and tune in tomorrow.
~Cath
could you run a VIN check on 4S3BL676654225763 ?
I picked up my new 06 xt a couple of weeks ago and the dealer wanted $3,250 for Gold Plus warranty. This would equate to 10% of the MSRP,seems way high to me. Anybody give me some guidance on this?
Thanks
The former record was around $1800, so that dealer is hopeless. I would shop at other dealers.
I hear there may soon be a tool on the internet to help Subaru customers shop for warranties, if I hear any more I'll share it here.
You can buy up to 3 years or 36k miles after the new purchase, so no hurry.
-juice
Mark
I haven't decided whether to renew the subscription. It looks like I'm in the market for a new 2006 now.
Is the vehicle you are interested in being offered for sale through a dealer? Most dealers will run the Carfax report for you. I am assuming it the Dealer version includes all the same information available to Buyers through personal subscriptions. The one thing you do want to check for is that they give you all of the pages.
My sister got a Carfax type report from a dealer and page 3 of 7 was missing. I still don't know if it contained any critical pages. Reports for newer vehicles generally contain about 8 pages and the upper right of each page will note "Page 1 of 8, Page 2 of 8, ..." and so on.
~Cath
A couple of pages back I posted information regarding the best price on a Subaru backed "Added Assurance" plan.
Here is a summary:
Non-turbo, $0.00 Deductible, Gold Plus, 7 yr / 100K:
$2,460.00 MSRP. Phone quote from Luke Higly (sp?) of Stacy Subaru, Brattleboro, VT,: $1,530.00. However, I asked him to fax me the quote and he crossed that figure out and replaced it with $1,430.00. That's slightly better than 40% off the $2,460 MSRP.
Additionally, there is a recent posting from someone else indicating that they may have some sort of owner loyalty discount of $200.00. This is for someone that is buying his third Subaru. Apparently he has to submit some documentation following his purchase. If you already own or are replacing a Subaru you may want to call them and see if you are eligible.
~Cath
Wonder if we could have Becker give us more of a discount if we say we saw them on Edmunds??
Hoople....did you get yours yet?? Let us know how it went