Many thanks to this discussion group. We picked up our car on 4/30/04 without much problem. Happy with the deal we got on the vehicle. The business manager was really upset after hearing the $795 deal from IL but he offered a 7yr/100k/$0 Platinum at $800 and we took the offer. Only problem experienced was that the trade-in value was too low to accept. They said that it is because of the engine replacement. All the work was done by a Chrysler svc ctr under the extended svc contract we had until lately. So, we will try to sell it ourselves and if its not working well then we will keep it till the ground. Not too much fun on the new Sienna yet but lots of learning to do on the new toys. The backup sonar and camera, the main reason to get HO, were working very nicely. The Navigation and DVD system that came with the option seem worth the money too.
I read several posts that state that Autofair in NH sells at $100-250 over invoice. Well, if using Edmunds invoice pricing, I discovered that a XLE LTD AWD with a HE package (dvd) is selling at about $3000-3200 over invoice even after Autofair's discount. Am I missing something here? Please let me know b/c everyone is praising this dealership's great deals.
I'm looking for a good dealer in Arizona, preferrably southern part of state. I have never bought a new car, so I don't have a clue. I don't want the salesperson to eat me alive. Help!! I'm in the market for a Sienna with DVD, side air bags and maybe moon roof.
Somehow, the deals in my area (Philadelphia) were not as good as the deals posted from the other parts of the country. I was keep monitoring the deals in my area, in this board as well as the Autofair website for the last 4 months hoping that the situation on Ltd AWD improves over the time but with no luck. Also found are the deals on fully loaded vehicle is not as good as the others. It looks like that the deal in my area progressively worsens as the MSRP goes up. I eventually ordered and received a sand Ltd AWD with HO last week from a local dealer who wanted to match the price of the Autofair on a vehicle of our choice. We settled paying 50% of the dealer mark up (MSRP - dealer invoice) over the invoice. No other dealers even come close to this deal in my region. Most of them still asked MSRP or few hundred below. If I did not received the deal then I may purchased a Ltd AWD with HE from Autofair even if the option pkg and the color were not our first choices. The Ltd AWD is still quite rare but the supply on other models seems improving a bit. Good luck.
I am looking ot buy a 2004 Sienna LE with the #7/BW package. I would like to pay $500 - $750 over invoice. Would be willing to go anywhere in the greater Western Washington area. Anyone have any experience and or ideas on who best to deal with? Thanks in advance.
Hello everyone, I am a newbie to this town hall and looking for some advices on a good deal for 04 sienna XLE 7 pass. front wheel drive in Northern California. I live in Fremont and I have to admit that It's really hard to find a good deal around this area. If any of you have any recent purchase or experince with this vehicle, please feel free to reply, I'll be very appreciated.
I am looking for 04 sienna XLE front wheel drive with CX package or package #3, phatom gray exterior and stone leather interior. Currently, I have an offer out-the-door price for this vehicle for $31K. Is this a good price?
indy500: Picked up an XLE7 fwd w/#16 and a few other goodies in early March @ Dublin Toyota thru the Costco program. I felt the deal was "fair/reasonable", as was working with their "designated salesman"; the finance guy was another story, make sure you got "your plan" in order before you meet with those dogs! Not sure what supply/demand is this month but you might want to give them a try. GOOD LUCK!
It seems the XLE fwd Artic Frost #12 is hard (impossible?) to find in the South, and I ended up finally settling on an XLE Artic Frost #5 plus dealer installed leather seating (side airbag compliant) for $33,500 out the door (World Toyota). I know it's not the "best" deal compared to some other states, but I needed the car before 6/1, and this was the best I could do. Comparison shopping with other internet managers didnt yield any better deals either, as they all said the same thing: "XLE Package #12 in Artic Frost is limited to 4 in the entire 5 state area, and few dealers want to give it up in a swap".
Maybe others in the Atlanta area have had better luck with this particular combo.
Hello petrino, Thanks for your feedback. Do you or anyone else in this forum have any dealerships in mind that can beat Autofair, specifically an AWD LTD with package #4 (HE) or package #6 (HO)? Balise Toyota in W. Springfield, Mass. seems to have pricing identical to Autofair. As always, any suggestion is sincerely appreciated!
Could anyone provide the names of dealerships that post their lowest sale price on their websites besides Autofair and Fitzgerald Lakeforest? Many thanks!
I don't think what I paid "out the door" will be that relevant since we're getting vehicles with different pkgs/accessories, but I will tell you, for the week that I bought, under the Costco plan, my total price was $2,753 below MSRP/sticker; essentially their "no haggle/take it or leave it" price. This is before tax & license, any other fees, and maint/warranty add-ons. I hope this helps. You may be able to do better, but for all the work I DIDN'T have to do, I though it was fair.
Thats right. Got my XLE LTD last night and she sits nicely in the garage.
It's been a fun little trip, my Edmunds friends. I must say I learned more here than ever thought possible. Advice for all who are on the fence - just do your homework, understand what your options are, set a budget, and take your time. This was a very interesting process, and I couldn't be happier with the outcome. This car is simply beautiful. Everything about it. I encourage all you shoppers to push for an overnight test drive, so you can experience the entire van on your own terms. taking your time.
I'd like to thank my management staff - Host Steve and that other lady who always deletes my posts , nematode, weedshasta (invaluable!), davenow (you got me into this mess), rorr (lovin' my spoiler!), kmead, greentea and all you other fine folks who have helped me along. Also a special thank you to the Academy, for making this all possible.
I won't be frequenting as much (since I now will be studying the owners manual for the next 2 months). From putting $500 down on a Quest SE, waiting 6 weeks, then test driving a Sienna on a whim, it's been a real hoot.
When I picked up my Sienna yesterday, I was offered a Fidelity Vehicle Warranty (7 yrs/100 K/0 deduct) with GPR (Guarantted Price Refund) for $1400. The price can be $1300 if I buy first three year maintainess with it for $699. I declined. The dealer said he would hold it for me. The interesting part is about the GPR which will refund the money you paid for the warranty minus $50 management fee if no claim is made when the car reaches 7 yrs/100 K. My take was: 1) It is not a Toyota Entended Warranty; 2) We will have to decide whether to claim the money if the fix does not exceed $1400, and any fix that costs more than $1400 would be major. So it is basically close to power train warranty. How do you think about this?
Just purchased an XLE Ltd with HO from Team Toyota in Langhorne 3 weeks ago. They reportedly have the highest volume in SE Pa. Their pipeline had over 25 Sienna's on order (back then). Purchased mine on a Wednesday, was told 3 weeks for delivery. Got a call 2 days later, the car was on the truck with 3 miles on it. You might get a better deal waiting till the end of the quarter in June. They sold me my car at $2500 off MSRP.
Just ordered a XLE FWD pkg #16. Dealer said it will be 4-5 weeks. Does anybody know the process from now on? When do I get a VIN? Also heard of Toyota delays on Siennas. Any ideas.
through CarsDirect.com. Have a delivery date that is about 8 weeks off (but praying for sooner ;o). This is not my first internet purchase but certainly the LARGEST. Will keep all posted with the overall experience dealing with both CarsDirect and their dealer-partner.
What is the best price anybody has got in the greater Houston (or Dallas)area. looks like the dealers are not willing to negotiate at all. I don't mind travelling to Dallas for a better deal. J.B
I purchased an XLE FWD with pkg #14 (salsa red pearl) at Champion Gulf Freeway at the end of March. The price was about $2500 off MSRP - not great, but the best we could find at the time. Didn't shop around very many Houston dealers, but this beat anything we could get in Austin.
It was ordered from dealer's allocation and were able to delete all the garbage add-ons (Extra Mile Package, Vehicle Shield etc.) that would have been added at port/dealer. We dealt with the internet sales manager and LOVE the van.
From what I have read, most people say to stay away from third party extended warranties. Did you get details on the plan so you can compare the parts covered with the Platinum Toyota Extra Care ? Sounds like the dealer may be trying to make some money to me.
Maybe there are others more experienced with third party ext warranties out there that can provide some input on this ??
FWIW, I bought my 2000 Odyssey through Carsdirect when it was THE hot minivan. Got it for about $300 over MSRP when the Odyssey was selling for $1000-$1500 over MSRP. The transaction was flawless and they delivered the van by flatbed truck to my house on a Saturday! I might go that route again when I get the Sienna or new Odyssey this fall.
Can't believe it went to the dealer to do all the paper work and since we are buying this van when we usually lease we went for the window etching and the extended warranty . I don't have the paper work in front of me but I believe it was 6 or 7 years. and with the window etch. they will replace the van if it is stolen in the first 5 years of ownership and to me that is priceless between toyota and the insurance company. all around it worked out well and we were very happy with the dealerships response to all our questions and concerns . i am hopeful that this will be it for us a good reliable toyota since that was the reason to get out of our GM lease we went something that is not in the shop every six months for as much as a week at a time.
Close in on getting 8-passenger LE with Option package 7, plus mats/sill protectors, VIP RS3200 security, the cargo net and the tote. Right at $26K. And even in the beloved (by our family) Stratosphere Mica.
I'm dealing with Internet sales at Piercey Toyota, in San Jose. They actually respond to email. Customer service seems something of a novel concept at a Toyota dealer, so them actually providing some explains why they will get me business over the other 6 or 7 places I called or contacted.
Invoice for this vehicle is a little over $25,800. But, of course, invoice is kind of a fake number, since it includes 'Wholesale Reserve' and 'Dealer Holdback', which are 3% of the vehicle's base price and are nothing more than money delivered back to the dealer. Said differently, if you paid exactly 'invoice', then the dealer would make about a 3% profit (a percentage that is lowered incrementally based on how many options one adds on, which follows from from the fact that the numbers are derived from the base price and not from the fully configured price...) As well, one can only wonder how much, if anything, the region returns to the dealership from the mysterious TDA fee. And then there's the document fee, which would be a cost of doing business just about anywhere else but a car dealer (ok, real estate slimers do it, too).
Imagine going to Home Depot and seeing a hammer that is marked at $20. After bargaining with the sales associate and the 'manager', you get the price down to $19 and proceed to checkout. At the register, in addition to sales tax, the checker adds on a regionally-based cost for advertising and a documentation fee just for your privilege of being served at the checkout.
Also discovered that CarsDirect is kind of a joke. Originally started looking for LE/8-passenger with the CM package (#11). CarsDirect said the package was 'impossible' to get and that there was only available/coming available in all of California. Calls to a few individual dealers revealed that there were plenty. So much for the volume buying/Internet business model schtick.
Anyhow, I digress. Focusing on invoice as a benchmark seems just a tad unhealthy. Consumer Reports seems to have it right to say that negotiating up from the dealer's cost (Invoice minus the giveback stuff) is the way to go. Unfortunately, though, CR does not account for the TDA fee in their Toyota calculations.
Should get the vehicle shortly. Will post again as followup.
I'm in the Seattle area and looking for a sienna. The best price I can come up with is $23,378 for a CE with CE package 2. Thats about $1685 over invoice. Sienna CE are real hard to come by in washington. Has anyone else in washington had this problem? $1685 over invoice seems like alot what does everyone think.
You'll probably have a hard time finding a good deal on any Sienna anywhere in Western Washington. I've been looking for over month and finally decided to go out of state. I'm flying to San Francisco tomorrow morning to pick up a Desert Sand Mica AWD XLE Ltd, with HO (nav/DVD) and CF (mats) for $38,084. The lowest I could find around here was MSRP, NO ONE was below, and a quite few even HIGHER ($45,495 at Foothills Toyota in Burlington!!). The dealer in NorCal is Toyota Marin (fmrly RG Toyota) in San Rafael. Ask for the Internet Department and tell them the crazy guy from Washington sent ya. It's costing me $200 for the plane, another $175 or so for gas, so in the end I'm still nearly $3,500 lower!
If NorCal is too far away, you can also get good deals in the Portland area. I remember getting a good quote for the XLE #19 from Broadway Toyota in Portland. Here too, ask for the Internet Department. Very friendly and responsive. He even congratulated me on finding the great deal NorCal.
For those faithful readers in Western Washington, I have to relay a very bad experience I had with Michael's Toyota in Bellevue. A month ago I put down $500 for a FWD XLE with #19 (nav/DVD). This was for a car in "A" status. It was supposed to be assembled on 4/12 and on 4/19 I called to see how things were going. At that point I found out that for some reason they had not been able to get the option change in after all and were now waiting on a car to be assembled 5/17! All that without even once calling me! I told them I was very dissatisfied and would look elsewhere and that I wanted my money back. They weren't very apologetic but at least they did not give me a hard time about getting my deposit back. Except that I had to call back every day for a week for them to actually refund the money on my credit card. I actually started a case with the credit card company (who said they could not do a charge back until 30 days later) and the following day I had the money back. Go figure. I don't think I'll ever go back to THAT place!
On the other hand, we had a very good experience with Toyota of Kirkland, even though they would not budge on the price. They treated us with respect, allowed us a very long test drive and we'll be going back there for warranty service.
I'll post a follow-up after I return home with the car. I gotta go to bed early today, up at 3:45am tomorrow to catch the 6am flight! :-\
Have just recently decided on getting a 2004 LE Sienna. Does anyone in the Melbourne or Orlando,Florida area have any input on which dealer they can recommend or past experiences with the bad ones for me to look at?Also need info on pricing deals & how you were treated.
I posted this message in the Sienna 2004+ forum, but got no response so far. Hopefully more people will see it here. So, here is my question. Can anyone comment on effectiveness of the hood protector and/or any side effects of one (i.e. increased noise level at higher speeds, etc.)
I've had no noticable noise increase since putting it on a month ago. however, i can't seem to push the van over 65 mph consitantly for fear that it may attrack larger and more juicier bugs! (it's a cleaning thing for me)
I am looking for a XLE with at least a 6 disc CD changer. Can anyone recommend a dealer in the Chicago area? I'd like to find one that will give a fair deal. Thanks!
What was your final price? I get all kinds of numbers when talking to dealers about MSRP or Invoice. Also, I notice that posters typically say $x off MSRP or $y above invoice, are we not supposed to tell actual price?
[sorry, all - this post has turned into a chapter fit for War and Peace]
Well, we did it... Finalized the deal and drove our new car 800 miles home!
As I posted Friday evening, after many trials and tribulations we finally settled on a Desert Sand Sand Mica AWD XLE Ltd with option package HO (NAV/DVD) and CF (mats) at a dealership in San Rafael, CA (just north of San Francisco).
I have to say thanks to porcaccio for posting HIS experience last weekend when he got a similar deal at this dealership. Without him and Edmunds I would have NEVER found this place!
My wife was very leery about making such a large purchase and flying down without even having seen the car and knowing nothing about the dealership. But I convinced her it was a great deal and we could always fly back if it turned out to be too good to be true...
Wife and daughter went to visit family and I went to visit the dealership.
Dealer is "Toyota Marin". Formerly R and G Toyota, they haven't even changed the sign on the building yet; it's covered by a banner! They also do not have website yet either; they still use the old one from rgtoyota. I dealt with the "Internet department" which they keep completely separate from the "regular sales". Now I can understand why. Edmund's TMV pricing for that area on this car is $40,169 and change. When I called last week Monday, the lady was straightforward and gave me an immediate, no-haggle quote over the phone of $38,084 + tax/title. No other charges. That's it. Their price saved me some $3,700 over what I was quoted here IF they could even get it (which for some odd reason was really difficult). Even after paying for planetickets, gas and one hotel night, still save over $3000!
The lady was easy to deal with, knowledgeable about her product and very reachable. (had experience with other salesreps who would not return calls etc.) She even picked me up from the airport Saturday morning at 8:30am!
When we got to the dealership, the van had been driven from the overflow lot and was being prepped. Odometer showed a mere 4 miles! Sweeeeet... Did the paperwork (I paid cash so I had a cashier's check for the total amount) and then had to go to the finance guy to pay. In the meantime, the sales rep drove to the gas station to fill up the tank with expensive California gas. True to form, the finance manager tried to convince me I should pay another $3500 or so for prepaid maintenance and get the extended warranty on top of that. It only took 2 tries for me to convince him I was (in his words) "NOT interested in saving money" and then he backed off. (I'll probably get the extended warranty in a couple of months at that dealership in IL that everyone's raving about - KC Mattoon or something?). Had to sign an insane amount of paperwork (approaching a mortage signing!) and I was done. The sales rep then gave me a quick tour of the car showing some of the bells 'n whistles.
I got on the road and all I can say is that the van DOES drive like a car. Once you get used to the laser cruise control, you'll love it. And if you don't, you can easily turn it off. To pick up wife and kid I had to go through downtown San Francisco and the DVD NAV saved the day, guiding me up and down winding little streets to my destination 30 miles south. I even took a wrong turn and it got me right back on track. Worked like a charm...
Picked up wife and kid, had lunch and off we went back up North. Ride was uneventful, everything worked as advertised and daughter is in seventh heaven with the DVD. Though the flip-down screen is on the smallish side, it's adequate. Sound through the wireless headphones is good, but sound over the car speakers is FABULOUS, and even includes real surround sound.... Amazing.
The DVD navigation worked flawless (it's pretty easy to get to Seattle from SF. Go straight for about 700 miles on I-5 and you'll hit Seattle). One major drawback of the unit is that it does not seem to contain the Rest Areas along the Interstate. Maybe it's something I'm doing wrong; I have yet to read the 137 manual...
All-in-all a very satisfying experience and no regrets whatsoever...
Now I'll have to peruse the Sienna Acc. & Mods board!
Refer back to my message #3856 which listed the actual prices paid. Shame in PA we have to add 6% sales tax, and since I was not trading a car, that figure is horrible. Have the car 3 weeks and absolutely love it. Unfortunately, third day at day care some kids lunch bag put 3 scratches on the side door. Oh well, I'll have to wait for Toyota to develop a scratch resistant paint.
We don't have a set format for reporting prices paid - it does help to spell out the details, like the out the door price, TTL fees, options, rebates, extended warranties, TDA, etc.
1. For people in the southeast (I live in NC), KBB adds a Southeast Toyota Administration charge of $575 on top of all other destination charge. I do not see that at edmunds. Do you know why?
2. When I go to the dealer, they mention a dealer invoice which is even higher than the KBB invoice. For example XLE (with no package or options)
(a) Edmunds invoice 25,345 + 540 (freight) = 25,885 (b) KBB invoice is 25,150 + 575 (freight) + 575 (SE charge) = 26,300 (c) Dealer shows his invoice: 26,552 (the dealer invoice is consistent across all the dealers that I checked.) (d) Best price that I found after lot of research and negotiation: 26,700 + tax + title + doc fees (199)
TDA and captive distributor fees vary by region so we don't try to track that kind of information. The invoice prices should otherwise be the same from one source to another. If there was a change, we may not have updated our data.
Can you explain what ToyoGuard is? Is this extended warranty? Also, did you skip the security system? I'm just starting to shop but I think you got a great deal!
The name is ToyoGuard Plus protection group. It includes roadside assitance, rental car assistance for warranty repairs, no charge for the first oli & filter change at any S.E.T. deler, vehicle vin etch glass protection, exterior paint sealant undercoating & interior protection application. This is a $699 option. It seems that all Sienna's in the dealer's parking lots have it, for all the dealers I talked to. I did not care about it. I think dealers make a lot of money by installing the package. I do not have AAA, so the roadside assistance should be worth something. I skipped security system. I do not know what it is either. If you want to know the agent name, send me an email. My email is public.
Any tips on buying in the Boston area? One dealer is telling me there are a few around (scarce), or I can order one. The price will be pretty much MSRP. I will be getting an 8 passenger LE with the #7 package (BW option?). Probably will be talking to dealers in Framingham, Acton, Worcester.
Any suggestions on making the contact and getting quotes? I'm not getting very much timely response. Or is this just the way they play the game.
I bought my LE-7 with LE package #7 back in December within the Boston area. It was a pleasant experience. I don't think dealers here are still charging MSRP. But I know people had to months for the 8-seater at that time. You probably get a great deal on 7-seater. I can email you the dealer and my sales rep name if you want. But I don't see your email on your profile.
Just picked up my Blue Mirage LE-7 Passenger / BW tonight. Clair in West Roxbury had best pricing by far @ $25K. Check their website, their listed prices are real!
Comments
Thanks in advance.
I am a newbie to this town hall and looking for some advices on a good deal for 04 sienna XLE 7 pass. front wheel drive in Northern California. I live in Fremont and I have to admit that It's really hard to find a good deal around this area. If any of you have any recent purchase or experince with this vehicle, please feel free to reply, I'll be very appreciated.
I am looking for 04 sienna XLE front wheel drive with CX package or package #3, phatom gray exterior and stone leather interior. Currently, I have an offer out-the-door price for this vehicle for $31K. Is this a good price?
Maybe others in the Atlanta area have had better luck with this particular combo.
Thanks for your feedback. Do you or anyone else in this forum have any dealerships in mind that can beat Autofair, specifically an AWD LTD with package #4 (HE) or package #6 (HO)? Balise Toyota in W. Springfield, Mass. seems to have pricing identical to Autofair. As always, any suggestion is sincerely appreciated!
It's been a fun little trip, my Edmunds friends. I must say I learned more here than ever thought possible.
Advice for all who are on the fence - just do your homework, understand what your options are, set a budget, and take your time.
This was a very interesting process, and I couldn't be happier with the outcome.
This car is simply beautiful. Everything about it.
I encourage all you shoppers to push for an overnight test drive, so you can experience the entire van on your own terms. taking your time.
I'd like to thank my management staff - Host Steve and that other lady who always deletes my posts
Also a special thank you to the Academy, for making this all possible.
I won't be frequenting as much (since I now will be studying the owners manual for the next 2 months).
From putting $500 down on a Quest SE, waiting 6 weeks, then test driving a Sienna on a whim, it's been a real hoot.
See ya on the road!
J.B
It was ordered from dealer's allocation and were able to delete all the garbage add-ons (Extra Mile Package, Vehicle Shield etc.) that would have been added at port/dealer. We dealt with the internet sales manager and LOVE the van.
Maybe there are others more experienced with third party ext warranties out there that can provide some input on this ??
Have fun
Close in on getting 8-passenger LE with Option package 7, plus mats/sill protectors, VIP RS3200 security, the cargo net and the tote. Right at $26K. And even in the beloved (by our family) Stratosphere Mica.
I'm dealing with Internet sales at Piercey Toyota, in San Jose. They actually respond to email. Customer service seems something of a novel concept at a Toyota dealer, so them actually providing some explains why they will get me business over the other 6 or 7 places I called or contacted.
Invoice for this vehicle is a little over $25,800. But, of course, invoice is kind of a fake number, since it includes 'Wholesale Reserve' and 'Dealer Holdback', which are 3% of the vehicle's base price and are nothing more than money delivered back to the dealer. Said differently, if you paid exactly 'invoice', then the dealer would make about a 3% profit (a percentage that is lowered incrementally based on how many options one adds on, which follows from from the fact that the numbers are derived from the base price and not from the fully configured price...) As well, one can only wonder how much, if anything, the region returns to the dealership from the mysterious TDA fee. And then there's the document fee, which would be a cost of doing business just about anywhere else but a car dealer (ok, real estate slimers do it, too).
Imagine going to Home Depot and seeing a hammer that is marked at $20. After bargaining with the sales associate and the 'manager', you get the price down to $19 and proceed to checkout. At the register, in addition to sales tax, the checker adds on a regionally-based cost for advertising and a documentation fee just for your privilege of being served at the checkout.
Also discovered that CarsDirect is kind of a joke. Originally started looking for LE/8-passenger with the CM package (#11). CarsDirect said the package was 'impossible' to get and that there was only available/coming available in all of California. Calls to a few individual dealers revealed that there were plenty. So much for the volume buying/Internet business model schtick.
Anyhow, I digress. Focusing on invoice as a benchmark seems just a tad unhealthy. Consumer Reports seems to have it right to say that negotiating up from the dealer's cost (Invoice minus the giveback stuff) is the way to go. Unfortunately, though, CR does not account for the TDA fee in their Toyota calculations.
Should get the vehicle shortly. Will post again as followup.
It's costing me $200 for the plane, another $175 or so for gas, so in the end I'm still nearly $3,500 lower!
If NorCal is too far away, you can also get good deals in the Portland area. I remember getting a good quote for the XLE #19 from Broadway Toyota in Portland. Here too, ask for the Internet Department. Very friendly and responsive. He even congratulated me on finding the great deal NorCal.
For those faithful readers in Western Washington, I have to relay a very bad experience I had with Michael's Toyota in Bellevue. A month ago I put down $500 for a FWD XLE with #19 (nav/DVD). This was for a car in "A" status. It was supposed to be assembled on 4/12 and on 4/19 I called to see how things were going. At that point I found out that for some reason they had not been able to get the option change in after all and were now waiting on a car to be assembled 5/17! All that without even once calling me! I told them I was very dissatisfied and would look elsewhere and that I wanted my money back. They weren't very apologetic but at least they did not give me a hard time about getting my deposit back. Except that I had to call back every day for a week for them to actually refund the money on my credit card. I actually started a case with the credit card company (who said they could not do a charge back until 30 days later) and the following day I had the money back. Go figure. I don't think I'll ever go back to THAT place!
On the other hand, we had a very good experience with Toyota of Kirkland, even though they would not budge on the price. They treated us with respect, allowed us a very long test drive and we'll be going back there for warranty service.
I'll post a follow-up after I return home with the car. I gotta go to bed early today, up at 3:45am tomorrow to catch the 6am flight! :-\
they can recommend or past experiences with the bad ones for me to look at?Also need info on pricing deals & how you were treated.
I posted this message in the Sienna 2004+ forum, but got no response so far. Hopefully more people will see it here. So, here is my question. Can anyone comment on effectiveness of the hood protector and/or any side effects of one (i.e. increased noise level at higher speeds, etc.)
Thanks.
Thanks again.
Well, we did it... Finalized the deal and drove our new car 800 miles home!
As I posted Friday evening, after many trials and tribulations we finally settled on a Desert Sand Sand Mica AWD XLE Ltd with option package HO (NAV/DVD) and CF (mats) at a dealership in San Rafael, CA (just north of San Francisco).
I have to say thanks to porcaccio for posting HIS experience last weekend when he got a similar deal at this dealership. Without him and Edmunds I would have NEVER found this place!
My wife was very leery about making such a large purchase and flying down without even having seen the car and knowing nothing about the dealership.
But I convinced her it was a great deal and we could always fly back if it turned out to be too good to be true...
Wife and daughter went to visit family and I went to visit the dealership.
Dealer is "Toyota Marin". Formerly R and G Toyota, they haven't even changed the sign on the building yet; it's covered by a banner! They also do not have website yet either; they still use the old one from rgtoyota. I dealt with the "Internet department" which they keep completely separate from the "regular sales". Now I can understand why. Edmund's TMV pricing for that area on this car is $40,169 and change. When I called last week Monday, the lady was straightforward and gave me an immediate, no-haggle quote over the phone of $38,084 + tax/title. No other charges. That's it. Their price saved me some $3,700 over what I was quoted here IF they could even get it (which for some odd reason was really difficult). Even after paying for planetickets, gas and one hotel night, still save over $3000!
The lady was easy to deal with, knowledgeable about her product and very reachable. (had experience with other salesreps who would not return calls etc.) She even picked me up from the airport Saturday morning at 8:30am!
When we got to the dealership, the van had been driven from the overflow lot and was being prepped. Odometer showed a mere 4 miles! Sweeeeet...
I got on the road and all I can say is that the van DOES drive like a car. Once you get used to the laser cruise control, you'll love it. And if you don't, you can easily turn it off. To pick up wife and kid I had to go through downtown San Francisco and the DVD NAV saved the day, guiding me up and down winding little streets to my destination 30 miles south. I even took a wrong turn and it got me right back on track. Worked like a charm...
Picked up wife and kid, had lunch and off we went back up North. Ride was uneventful, everything worked as advertised and daughter is in seventh heaven with the DVD. Though the flip-down screen is on the smallish side, it's adequate. Sound through the wireless headphones is good, but sound over the car speakers is FABULOUS, and even includes real surround sound.... Amazing.
The DVD navigation worked flawless (it's pretty easy to get to Seattle from SF. Go straight for about 700 miles on I-5 and you'll hit Seattle). One major drawback of the unit is that it does not seem to contain the Rest Areas along the Interstate. Maybe it's something I'm doing wrong; I have yet to read the 137 manual...
All-in-all a very satisfying experience and no regrets whatsoever...
Now I'll have to peruse the Sienna Acc. & Mods board!
Good Luck
Steve, Host
2. When I go to the dealer, they mention a dealer invoice which is even higher than the KBB invoice. For example XLE (with no package or options)
(a) Edmunds invoice 25,345 + 540 (freight) = 25,885
(b) KBB invoice is 25,150 + 575 (freight) + 575 (SE charge) = 26,300
(c) Dealer shows his invoice: 26,552 (the dealer invoice is consistent across all the dealers that I checked.)
(d) Best price that I found after lot of research and negotiation: 26,700 + tax + title + doc fees (199)
FAQ
Steve, Host
I skipped security system. I do not know what it is either.
If you want to know the agent name, send me an email. My email is public.
Etching is worthless, imo.
Paint sealant is wax.
Undercoating usually isn't recommended anymore since it can do more harm than good.
Interior protection is 2 cans of Scotch Guard.
Oil changes are $20.
Rental cars are $60 a day?
From CNN Money:
The rip-off room
Rip-off room revisited
Steve, Host
Any suggestions on making the contact and getting quotes? I'm not getting very much timely response. Or is this just the way they play the game.