2013 and earlier Honda Odyssey Prices Paid and Buying Experience

njswamplands

brian125 i emailed the worse a 'enjoy your growing inventory' type emails. checking nyc area dealers i see a growing stock of both pilots and odysseys so just a matter of time before they come off of their clouds.

brian125

if im correct it took over a year before people started seeing discounts on that minvan.the pilot was alot sooner. the odyssey is a great minvan enjoy it. brian

clpurnell

Well thought I would share my Car buying experience and why I ended up with an odyssey. This might get long so consider yourself warned.

For the past 3-4 months I have been steadily looking for a new vehicle. I had a few must haves for my next vehicle. Must seat at least 7. Must have rear A/C and Heat. Must have full power and Cd. Must not break the bank. I considered everything from the new XC90 to the Kia Sedona. The finalists for me were as follows Ford Expedition (03) and Explorer, MDX, MPV, Honda Pilot and Odyssey. I came really close to pulling the trigger on a Pilot and Expedition but walked away at the last minute. First why I didn't choose the others.

Ford Expedition:
I actually liked this the best. It had a lot of room and features not available on others. Safety Canopy, Rear back up sensors in dash 6 disc player and more on the Eddie Bauer. The bad part was price, gas mileage and resale value. I think the reliabilty would be ok it is the most reliable full size SUV and the Expedition board has not posted of many problems. The resale really killed it and the fact that this would be my second car I couldn't justify paying 35k+ for it.

Ford Explorer:
I liked this too. Rented one and was very impressed. The third row wasn't usable enough for me and the resale on these are horrendous. I don't keep cars more than 3 yrs so resale is a big thing. I have office mates that have had bad experiences with explorers also so I stayed away.

Acura MDX:
Before Driving the Expedition this was my favorite. It was safe seated 7 and a luxury vehicle and nameplate. What killed it for me was pricing I refused to pay MSRP and this vehicle would have been 10k more than the vehicle I bought with almost the same powertrain. Sorry I don't have cash to throw away like that.

Honda Pilot:
Nice truck but the styling is very bland and the third row seat is pretty tight. Even though I could get a decent price it would have been 3-5k more than the oddy and just not worth it.

MPV:
I think resale value and size kind of killed it for me it is a nice van. I may have paid 2500 more for the oddy but I think I will see that on the back end.

Odyssey:
My wife and I are pretty young and felt that we weren't ready for minivan life. But having two kids and a house told us we were. The odyssey had the best blend of what we liked of the other vehicles. Almost all the same features of the pilot minus awd plus more room and cargo space. The Oddy almost offers as much room as the expedition and will probably get better gas mileage than my current car. Add in the fact that I got a good price and 3.49% financing I would have been dumb not to take it. Below is a break down of what I paid. I probably paid 3-400 more than I should have but I got the exact color and features I wanted right now with no wait. I purchased at gillman honda in Houston.

MSRP of Midnight Blue Pearl EX - 27360
Sealant side sticker of 695 (refused to pay this)

Purchase Price - 25671
Tax (6.25%)- 1604.45
Title, license, doc and misc - 176
Vin etching and security system - 299
Gap Insurance - 302
Total out the door price is right at 28000

I was offered a 6yr/80k mile warranty for 1195. I agreed at first but will cancel and buy a honda care warranty off the net if needed but like I said I usually don't keep vehicles more than 3 yrs so this will be a waste. I also received 3.49% for 60 months. All in all I think it was a good deal.

seguy

Where can I confirm this from Honda?

Thanks

taste

After narrowing our choices of Mini's to an Ody (first choice) with a (Sienna moderate second) we shopped the Chicagoland area with no luck and then the rest of Illinois with no luck. Everyone wanted MSRP and were NOT willing to negotiate; a very frustrating experience because I absolutely refuse to purchase MSRP (what a waste of money). I decided to see if I would have better luck out of state and was able to find a dealer in Michigan, Friendly Honda who gave me an internet quote of $29,318. for an EX-L+Nav. I tried once again with Honda Dealers thoughout the area and even with this in hand - no luck. Finally we decided to take a final test drive of both the Sienna and Ody because Toyota is getting very aggressive on clearing out inventory and with though I wasn't against going to MI to pick it up it was still more work than I really wanted to do. The Chicagoland area must still be having inventory issues because we couldn't even test drive an Ody at Schaumberg Honda (our local Honda dealer)...because they had NONE in stock to test drive.

So...the Sienna was looking better and better.

We did however make a final decision to stop at O'Hare Honda and they did have a Nav EX-L that we could test drive. The wife still liked the drive of the Sienna a tap better however no magic seat and the interior dimensions were nagging questions that we just didn't want to deal with given an expanding family but price is price and I really have no desire to take it on my knees and there are OTHER options. Anyhow we didn't expect anything from O'Hare Honda particularly given that when I inquired over the Net they would not discount (even though there ads say they have the best pricing and will match) and it seemed I could here the sales guy licking his lips when I told him our local Honda dealer did not have ANY Ody's to test drive... Anyhow we met the Sales Rep and did the test drive. We talked about the pricing and told him where were at and what he need to do to get the deal done, e.g. we told him the price they needed to be at if they wanted the deal. When we returned from the drive the Sales Rep took the number down and came back 5 minutes later congratulating us as we had our new vehicle + 3.49% financing.

So here are the stats...and I believe we did well (well at least well if we wanted an Ody).

Ody EX-L+Nav - 29,318 (+TTL)
Wheel Locks/Mudguards - $0

We did buy an extended warranty (7/75,000) for $1500. Maybe a tap on the pricey side but since it is provided by Honda this alleviates any tranny concerns and worth the piece of mind.

The moral of the story for us (everyone has a different experience) is that if you have do your homework, have your price in hand, can back it up, and walk in to the dealership and are willing to buy that day, it can be a very simple process. Either they match or you walk. Apparently those stuck on MSRP are not so stuck (+ we waited until this time of year to take advantage of dealers moving inventory).
Just my story hope it helps.

clpurnell

As a former Chicagoian (lived in Bensenville) I can appreciate the battle you had with most dealers. My buying experience was kind of funny. I already had two quotes for vans from other dealers here in Houston Goodson west (25.5k) and Russell & Smith (25k) the bad thing was neither had my color in stock. So I stopped by a third dealer gillman (see post above for prices paid) who had exactly what I wanted. Their first quote came back as MSRP + 695 rust proofing. I kind of chuckled and said I would pay msrp for my out the door price. He came back with 1k off msrp and no more rust proofing. I said match my quote of 25.5 on the van and he did. however this time he put the rust proofing back on. I scratched it out and gave him an extra 150 on the deal since they had the color and style (ex-cloth) I wanted. If you know what you are willing to pay you will get a deal especially right now being so close to the end of year. Happy holidays all.

taste

Someone in a different thread mentioned how it was sort of funny the lengths some of us have gone through to get their precious Ody. Upon reflection I had to laugh as it really rings true. Perhaps someone can explain this diehard obsession? Is there a clinical diagnosis, e.g. Ody Desiritis Maximus??

I would agree with most that the Honda dealers were not suffering from a lack of "confidence" and in some cases were downright pompous. On the otherhand one of the Toyota dealers turned out to be borderline stalkers. In one Saturday we had at least three different people call us...and this was after they completely blew us off the night before in the parking lot..e.g. no one even came out to greet us after 20 minutes and when I tried the following weekend I was told the dealership had closed 5 minutes before as I was viewed with a look of disgust because I requested a test drive "after hours" (and my son's diaper was not the reason for this look (e.g. no poo poo)).

I never figured out why they would put so much work on the phone to get me there and then no work in on the lot. The final straw was I did make an appointment with a rep on Friday and when we arrived for the test drive yesterday I was told he no longer worked for the dealer. LOL - dealing with them made me feel like I had fallen in to a Kafkaesque alternative reality...which (once again) was sort of like our Ody search. Regardless it was driving my wife nuts to be contacted by separate people without any recognition of what there colleagues were doing. I suspect they eat their young at this dealership...

I think the most important aspect of an auto purchase regardless of the vehicle is the homework you do in advance. It can and will save you thousands. I also agree with the posts on dealers...find one whose style you like. Buying a car is similar to dating in that...every date will be different, some you will be attracted to right away, some you will dislike from the first, some will be easygoing and some will want commitments right away, some will promise you the world and not deliver and some will not promise you anything but prove thems upon further meetings and this will be the one you marry. Of course like marriage you will always be able to file for divorce later however contingent on your your earlier decisions/choices these will define how much it will cost you. Lastly only time will show if you if you made the right decision :-D

njswamplands

yeah i agree most dealers are like my ex-wife, lol.

kingstaw

thanks for the words...really enjoying the Ody.

in the spirit of full disclosure, I had a few dealers in driving distance very close to my price. However, since my wife was insisting on black, and there were only 3 in stock in a 3 state area, I didn't press to the bone. If you have more than one color in mind, you could probably do better in price.

s1gins

I have a 2000 Acura TL 3.2 (will probably add the Ody in 2003) and recently received a notice from Honda/Acura that due to higher than expected problems with the transmission they were extending the warranty for the transmission to, I believe, 7 years 70K miles. This was the major reason I was considering an extended warranty on an Ody but this may alleviate that need. I have had no issues with the transmission even though I do use the sportshift mode pretty hard on ramps and in traffic.

njswamplands

my new odyssey arrived this morning from cleveland tothe nyc area. driven door to door via jay honda's employee bob. car arrived at my door at the time estimated. car is in perfect shape.

vaiad

Just drove a 03 Ody (EX-Cloth) off the lot last saturday. Paid $26,360.00 + Doc Fee + (TTL to be paid in VA). i.e. $1000.00 off of MSRP. Its well worth of it going out of state if you can get a better deal. Purchased the vehicle at Leith Honda in Raliegh, NC. I live in Northern VA close to IAD airport. I tried couple of dealers in VA, (Including LandMark Honda). They are coming down from TMV (True Market Value in Edmunds) to MSRP, But not any further. If we keep buying for MSRP or Over MSRP, they are going to sell like that only. I suggest if you have time and patience, go out and buy it some where, but dont even pay MSRP.

Another Dealer in Charlotte,NC (Agent - Debbie) also offered me better deal, but that is too far for Northern VA.

I visited this TownHall, thanks for all the postings, it gave me enough information how to proceed. At some point of time, I have second thoughts of going to Sienna, But not after reading all the messages here.

I started calling NC dealers one by one, and I could get a 26360 (Including destination) at Leith Honda, Raleigh. Jessy Nordom is the agent helped me.

Again, Townhall is definately a great resource for new car buyers, specially for Odyssey with great demand.

njswamplands

i am ready to throw the ford windstar back to the dealer before the lease ends. sweet handling car, feels like i am driving an accord.

hislander

Who's at Russell&Smith that quoted 25K for EX? Also who's at Goodson west for 25.5K? Is the destination charge included w' the quote? IF you don't mind disclosing names. I would like to buy the Ex for 25K-25.5K in Houston. Thanks for your info.

westend

finally,i bite the bullet last weekend and got a midnight blue pearl EX(MSRP $27360) with after market leather installed by dealer.Price i paid (exclusive of TTL and Doc fees) $26650.00.I have not seen a post for Socal listing a better deal than this.dealer was hardin honda.enjoying it...
dealer did not have EX-L on the color i wanted and that's why i agreed for after market leather,and probably, that helped my negotiation for this deal.after market leather does not have seat heating and rest is same as factory leather.

top6

I offered several dealerships 26500 for ODY EX-L most said sticker one came back with an offer of 27500. I said I thought 27 even would be a fair deal. any suggestions?

seguy

to buy an odyssey and is also financing should jump on board now. The 3.49% financing ends soon and that in itself will save you at least a $1000 in interest versus a 4.9% APR. So if you've found something you like at a price that's close to what you'd be happy with, the special APR from Honda should close the deal. We should be taking delivery of ours' this weekend.

njswamplands

where do you live?

top6

Central KS

njswamplands

thats not a bad deal for 27k

taste

Just checked Edmunds and Carpoint on the EX-L which comes back with a sticker of $28,400. So if you purchase at $27.5K you are getting a $900 or $1386 discount ($486 is for Destination Charge) which seems like a reasonable deal for this vehicle.

If you qualify for 3.49% financing it is an even better bargain. There are of course much better deals to be had on other Mini's but then again they would not be Ody's...

checking_ody

I have visited the Honda dealerships in the Twin Cities area (MSP/St. Paul) and found that none of them is willing to sell the Ody for less than MSRP. (The price is MSRP + cost of accessories you want like mud flaps etc.) Going by the salesguys, the demand is huge and so there is negotiation on the price. You can't even get an Ody to test drive. I would appreciate if other Ody owners/shoppers in the Mpls/St. Paul area could share their experience on this.

Thanks

maplecanes65

After two weeks of trying to find a Honda dealer in the Raleigh area who would "deal" on an EX, I finally gave up and bought one from a dealer in Pennsylvania (we were planning a trip up to visit friends anyway so it wasn't as if we had to make a special trip). Anyway, I was able to get a '03 Odyssey EX for $1000 below MSRP AND 3.49% for 60 months. The dealers in Raleigh and surrounding areas refused to go below MSRP. In fact, one salesperson informed me that the NC dealers had a "bond" that they would not go below MSRP. When I asked one dealer to match the $1000 below MSRP, he replied that it was "only $1,000 over 5 years...or about $20 per month". My response was " if it's ONLY $20 per month, then why won't the dealer pay it" Needless to say, that was the end of the conversation.

dyh555

Which dealer in PA did u buy the Van from? No one in philadelphia area is willing to discount the van below MSRP.

njswamplands

you can go at around $1800 or so below msrp in cleveland ohio ( jay honda, dennis jenkins ) and have it shipped door to door and still come out way ahead.

jldm

After reading this town hall for the past month, my husband and I decided to take the plunge and buy a new mini van to accomodate our growing family and it's stuff. We settled on the Oddy EX-L (my husband loves leather).

I spent most of yesterday making phone calls and sending emails. THe results were that Doris at Twin Honda in Chicago had the best price. Dennis had better selection, and offered to match her price, but since I live in Chicago, I went with the local offer.

I got a sitter, and hubby and I went to the dealer. In three hours, we test drove the Oddy, looked at a different Oddy with DVD (we decided not), financed it and drove away. No pressure for any add-ons. No pressure for the extended warrenty. Just a lot of very nice professional people willing to sell a great car.

So here's the scoop on what we got:

Honda Oddy EX-L 26,880
Tax (7%) 1,884
License 143
Doc 51
County Tax 15

Out the Door 28,973

Then, I got Honda financing for 3.49% for 60 months. I'm pretty happy.

THanks to everyone who posted over the past months, so we could benefit. We really appreciate your help.

njswamplands

good job jldm and a great price. i bought the leather because it can be easier to clean those kids spills. what color did you get?

hschultz

I'm sorry you had to go all the way up to PA to get your Ody, but I purchased an SBP EX-L in NC last month for $26,700 (plus their crappy 250 doc fee).

I had been talking to Jay in Ohio and another dealership in the Louisville area as well as Twin Cities in Chicago (they were all in the $1,800 off MSRP range), but when I got this local deal it was too good to pass up.

No matter--enjoy your Ody and good luck!

infinitiq45

I am in the market for a 2003 Honda Odyssey EX in the Dallas area. What kind of prices have people been able to get here?

dyh555

Any good deals in Philly area?

disport

Hi infinitiq45,
If you are looking for a good price try Vandergriff Honda in Arlington. They are trying hard to be the Honda leader in this area. I bought a 2003 EX-L RES, Midnight Blue Pearl, 3 weeks ago from Vandergriff. The price I paid was $2,100 below total vehicle sticker price, plus they added 2 free oil changes and any of the Odyssey accessories I wanted at their cost.

My salesman was Ken Gilbert. He's very nice and very helpful.

Good luck with your quest.

maplecanes65

Try Bianchi Honda in Erie, PA. I know its a hike from Philly but they are good guys. Ask for Bob or Jeff.

clpurnell

Sorry but I have been away enjoying my oddy. I have put about 500 miles on it in a week and it has been put through it's paces reguraly carrying 6-7 people. It has been great except for the fact that my wife scratch the hatched on our garage today but oh well. Any way I dealt with Nathan at Russell and Smith. He is the internet manager. He only had a sage brush ex cloth and would do 25 on it. Not one of my favorite colors. Goodson had silver but I had my heart set on blue check online inventory and request a quote. Goodson (formerly Spring Branch) sent me the following quote.

Thank you for choosing Goodson Honda West (formerly Spring Branch
Honda) for the purchase of your new Honda. We have three Fleet &
Internet Account Managers Mr. Tim Chow, Willie Evans and Rick Wang.
One of us will be available to assist you Monday through Saturday
9:00 am - 8:00 pm.

The 2003 Odyssey EX is a EXCELLENT choice. The window sticker price of
this
vehicle is $27,360.00 and your Special Internet Price is $25,500
(includes destination charges).

I would like to take this opportunity to invite you to Goodson Honda
West to test drive the vehicle.

The first available Account Manager will call you. Should you wish
to speak with one of us before we call you can reach us at Or by replying this e-mail

Thank you,

Rick Wang
Fleet & Internet Manager
Goodson Honda West
(formerly Spring Branch Honda)
10250 Old Katy Rd
Houston, Texas 77043

mauimama

Hello, We are in the market to purchase an EX-L with a towing package the second week in January. We are cash buyers and are looking for a Florida dealership. We've been quoted $1,000 under MSRP, does anyone know of a better source? Thanks a million for all your help and have a fabulous 2003.

Sharon

geh86

If you want a good deal, here is my advice (and I have been following this thread for a while). Find several cities in your area with large dealerships that move plenty of product. They are all looking to unload their Odys before the year end. (Don't mess with the rural folks. They won't budge on price.) I live between Chicago and Indianapolis. I sent out a flurry of emails to all kinds of dealers in both cities , bounced the deals off each other until I was ready to bite and did. Email is great...no shmoozing since they don't have time to type that much. I bought a Sage EX-cloth for $2000 under MSRP today (Sat.) in Indy (and was even capable of fending off the financial guy's speech on warranties...the salesman was great). A friend was quoted the same ($2000 off) on an EX or LX in the Chicago area. They are unloading with 3.49% financing. You have to move now (before the 1st), though!

P.S. I think one could even push for more as the 1st approaches.

justinr1

Well THANKS to everyone's input. Took the plunge on an 03 Starlight Silver Ody EX with 3.49% financing. Just like jldm, had a great experience with Jacobs Twin Honda in Chicago. See ADAM BRUCE, he was most helpful, NO PRESSURE, no attempts to add options, and very thorough. A curious thing about my trade-in (2002 CR-V), Carmax in Kenosha, WI offered $16,850.00. Everyone I have met has said that Carmax will offer more than any dealer; of course you may / should get more selling privately. Jacob's Twin offered MORE for my trade (much more), and of course the price on the ODY EX was already set at $25,360. The breakdown is identical to jldm with the exception of the trade-in thus lowering the taxable amount. We also tried Fletcher Jones and Carr's Honda, both in Chicago. Fletcher Jones won't match; Carr's advertised for $25464 but THAT ONE WAS SOLD!!! Of course!!! Thanks again for everyones help.

twins7

i am from mpls/st paul area also. could not get a price less than msrp for a honda ody, so am waiting for the new 2004 toyota sienna that is coming out in april of 2003. from the pics posted online, i would say it has same, if not better, features as the ody. besides, honda is doubling the ody production at its alabama plant. it is just matter of time before the ody selling price comes down. of course if you think msrp offers good value then you should buy it now.

justinr1

Once it comes out, redesigned as MY2004, the pricing will strictly be MSRP. And typically, Toyota pricing is higher than Honda. It all comes down to each others preferences and the almighty DOLLAR!!

njswamplands

if you look at the current top of the line xle and all of its options it runs around 35000. so i would expect, and have heard others that are more in the know, that the '04 msrp will be around the same as the '03 msrp. i also expect the pricing to be around msrp for at least ½ year. so i believe that i saved several thousand by buying an odyssey now but probably gave away a few features that will be really nice but not worth several thousand. enjoy.

nj_ody_buyer

I seriously looked at Sienna 2003, and called up many dealers. But price of Sienna was HIGHER than Ody for the same features. example :dual power sliding door is xtra, you can get automatic climate control on XLE only. leather only in XLE.
So if you make a Sienna XLE with all these features. (Leather/Heated seats/dual power sliding doors/side air bags/traction control).
u will end up buying a LOT of extras.
the invoice ran to $ 29,500. Even if u get 1000 rebate and combine to $ 400 college grad rebate(if u qualify). it would cost u - $ 28,100. I got my ody EX-L for $ 27,500 which is still less than that. And Sienna cannot give u:
240 hp
thirds row folding seats
combin 2nd row 2 seats...

lets see what they do for '04, but i settled with '03 ody...

nj_ody_buyer

This is right across the bridge in NJ.
Contact Joe Mitchelotiti.

He should give you a nice deal.

Good luck

wjammer

Just bought a 03 odyssey lx for 23,100.00 in the ohio area. I used edmunds to get price quotes from area dealers.

Cheers !

odysearch

What dealer in Ohio? Your figure excludes t/t/l. Not to bad as I have been quoted the "out the door" price (inc t/t/l) of $24,500. Combined with the financing this may not be to bad of a deal. Hard to convince Honda to come off this mark. They are still making a great profit of $1300 plus the interest through financing this deal. Does anyone know what Honda will post for their 4th quarter earnings? I am sure that the demand for the Odyssey has helped !!!

jmanley1

Appreciate any info on recent purchases in the Atlanta area. thanks.

03oddity

A new father of twins, I've been waiting for the lease on my smallish, gas-guzzling, underpowered 2000 Infiniti QX4 to end so that I could switch to an Ody. And perfect timing too, with the 3.49% long-term financing. Many thanks to you whose posts saved me a few bucks.

First off, there are no $2000 discounts around here. One dealer had a newspaper ad for an EX-L RES at $672 below MSRP but "that one sold late last night." As usual.

My solution was to let my fingers do the walking. I phoned the fleet managers at about 8 LA-area dealerships and asked them their best price on an '03 Ody EX-L RES (MSRP $30,360 including destination charge). Most would not budge below MSRP, and in fact had added lots of inflated dealer options. Two others quoted a slightly better price ($100 to $500 below MSRP) but "forgot" that there was 3.49% financing available and quoted 4.9% despite being told that my FICO was high 700s. Bye-bye.

I ended up dealing with Bob Mattes at Honda World in Downey, CA. He quoted the '03 EX-L RES at $500 under MSRP (net $29,860 + $2467 sales tax + $239 DMV + $45 doc fee + $5 tire disposal fee). To sweeten the deal he agreed (still on the phone, sight unseen) to include wheel locks, fenderwell trim, mudguards and cargo tray without additional charge. BTW, those minor dealer accessories are quite inexpensive for them. Bob gave me the deal exactly as promised. Then of course, the finance guy tried to get me to bite on everything from etching to extended warranty to Lojack. I gave him a polite Nancy Reagan ("just say no"). I was out the door for $32,616.

Nice big van, really a great value compared with the competition. The kids love the space and especially the DVD!! Now to get a deal on a Hondacare warranty. Those doors, you know...

guybyars

Yesterday, I bought an EX-Cloth for $25,850.00 with tax and fees and a $99 mat for the rear area, we drove off for $27,574.70

They might have been motivated by it being close to the end of the month/year.

Dealer was Honda East on Beechmont Ave/I275

Good Luck.

wjammer

The dealer was Honda of Mentor. Good experience.
the 23,100, of course does not include t/t

top6

I went ahead and bought 03 ex-l for 27,5 right after I bought it I had another dealer call and said he'd go 27,3. From central US

robr2

"Does anyone know what Honda will post for their 4th quarter earnings? I am sure that the demand for the Odyssey has helped"

What does it matter. Honda's earnings are based on selling the unit to the dealer not to you.

Be thankful all of you are getting something off a vehicle that has been MSRP for over 4 years. Can anyone believe a minivan has sold at MSRP for that long? Here in Boston, that is still the norm although some are starting to loosen up.

wholigan

FWIW-

I live in Apple Valley and my experience is similar to yours. I have heard from all five local dealers (Brooklyn Park, Buerkle, Richfield, Burnsville, and Hopkins) as well as Rochester and the story is the same - MSRP or nothing. I am going to Chicago this weekend and will be checking out a dealer in Libertyville and, just for grins, Jacobs Twin (heard a LOT of mixed reviews). Finally, I may have to get serious about the Ohio dealers... It appears that there are some dealers willing to ship the van to your front door! So far, the only drawback of buying out of state is that you MIGHT lose your Lemon Law rights (I have not confirmed this). In lieu of saving almost $2000, I am willing to look around...

Keep us posted on your searching please!

Wholigan