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Lexus RX 330 Prices Paid and Buying Experience

jstempeljstempel Member Posts: 1
edited April 2014 in Lexus
I live in minneapolis and am shopping for a new Lexus RX330. No one in the minneapolis area is discounting the car though I understand it is being discounted in other markets. I am willing to travel in the midwest if anyone know of a dealership offering substantial discounts on this vehicle. Please respond.

Jerry
«13456760

Comments

  • wwestwwest Member Posts: 10,706
    young(???) man. West coast seems to be discounting $3k from MSRP.
  • awjenniawjenni Member Posts: 6
    I live in the midwest and found dealers in this area generally unwilling to offer much in the way of a discount. I found a dealer in Florida willing to take off $3,000, so I placed one on-order... (Couldn't find one with the options I wanted: Performance package, NAV, heated seats, AWD.)

    Go to autonation.com which led me to Palm Beach Lexus.

    Al
  • cotmccotmc Member Posts: 1,081
    Where along the west coast are people seeing a $3K discount? This might affect my upcoming SUV purchase decision!
  • rroyce10rroyce10 Member Posts: 9,332
    ..... I'm curious myself, considering all the dealers I know from Riverside to Oakland are getting "around" sticker or a little less .. now a 8/10 week order is something different, If you see it.

                        Terry.
  • tomtomtomtomtomtom Member Posts: 491
    I think there's only one person on the other Lexus board able to get $3K off MSRP. Most people are getting 1K to 1.5K off MSRP. We got one for $1.4K off two months ago with trade in.
  • lok888lok888 Member Posts: 1,788
    awjenni - Tell us more about this car. It seems unusal at this early production stage for all the equipments you listed. I am just looking at $44.8 MSRP vs. $39.1 factory invoice.
  • im_brentwoodim_brentwood Member Posts: 4,883
    I take that with a grain of salt.. perhaps it happened, but it is NOT anywhere close or indicative of the market on them.

    We had someone this afternonn say he would not pay more than $39K for a $41,478 msrp RX.

    We let him walk.

    $1,000-1,500 on a Premium or Premium plus should be doable in reality, In our market, $0 off is reality on a Navi. We're sold out of Navis till the fall.
  • explorerx4explorerx4 Member Posts: 19,204
    i even see some guys driving the 330. they did 'harden' it a little.
    2023 Ford Explorer ST, 91 Mustang GT vert
  • awjenniawjenni Member Posts: 6
    To answer lok888.
    The deal I have is for an AWD RX-330. Performance package, Navigation, heated seats, cargo mat and wheel locks. MSRP around $45520. My price $42520. This is not for a car that is sitting on someone's lot. It is ordered to my specs/color etc. It will take at least 3 months to get it. Scheduled build is in early August. Expected delivery, early September. Non-ref deposit of $2500. Al
  • lok888lok888 Member Posts: 1,788
    awjenni - That is good deal at this early production stage. But I am not sure if I will have a better deal (maybe another $500 off) in September. Not to mention, the RX330 production will begin in Canada in September.

    brentwoodvolovo - $39K is about $1K over dealer invoice. I guess my quote off $39.2 for AWD and Premium Plus Package is good deal. BTW, how low of the RX (I mean the RX300) you have ever sold? When?
  • im_brentwoodim_brentwood Member Posts: 4,883
    We sold one at invoice to an employee. Lowest we have gone is $2,000 off. The one I mentioned earlier sold this AM for MSRP.
  • im_brentwoodim_brentwood Member Posts: 4,883
    $39,200 for a premium Plus AWD is more than $1K over invoice.. Looks like $2200 off of sticker to me.
  • lok888lok888 Member Posts: 1,788
    brentwoodvolvo - I just double checked my note. The MSRP is $41471 (AWD with Premium Plus Package) and $39680 to buy. It is $1791 off the sticker. It seems fair to me and consider this was done by email only. I am actually doing a research for my friend. It is good to know the pricing in the market now. I just bought two cars (SUV and sedan) within the past 6 months. But I will look into the hybrid version of the RX330.
  • im_brentwoodim_brentwood Member Posts: 4,883
    Not sure about your market conditions.. out here that is indeed a very very good deal.
  • lok888lok888 Member Posts: 1,788
    brentwoodvolvo - I think it is the same market condition, MA & NJ. I think AWD with Premium Plus are easy to get. I mean in stock. And dealers are willing to deal.
  • im_brentwoodim_brentwood Member Posts: 4,883
    We sell 50-60 RXs a month.

    1 On the ground.. 3 incoming unsold and that includes the 7-1 and 7-7 shipments...

    Dunno about MA or other dealers, but we are very tight for these trucks.
  • njexpressnjexpress Member Posts: 170
    Hi!
    Does anyone know if we can get the RX 330 AWD with just the Premium package and HID Lamps, with or without 18" wheels? On the Lexus site, the "ENTRY LEVEL" package for the AWD seems to be the Premium Plus Package with Additional Options, with an MSRP of $4,320.00...
    However, CARSDIRECT.com, shows that the premium package, HID and 18" alloy wheels can be picked as stand alone options. Would this mean a special order?
    I have posted this question on the other RX330 thread also. I would appreciate any feedback on this.
    Thank You!
  • southfloridajisouthfloridaji Member Posts: 1
    I always love it when the car dealers tell you how fast the new model is selling, and that none are arriving unsold. It's just so untrue!

    Here in south Florida all the Lexus dealers discount. They have to. They’re selling a commodity. Yes cars are a commodity just like pork bellies.

    Remember if the Lexus dealer won’t discount, the Audi guy will, and so will the BMW, and the Cadillac, etc.

    The RX330 maybe hot, but I doubt it. We’re in a recession so don’t let the dealers try to gouge you for sticker.

    If you want the low down on how a car is selling, go to the web site www.fightingchance.com. I’ve used them every time I’ve bought a car. My last two Lexus (2003 GS 430 and 2001 RX 300) I paid a few hundred over invoice.
  • biogbiog Member Posts: 1
    Just purchased the FWD with Premium Plus Package today. None of the dealerships out here had the basic Premium Package. Purchased this vehicle from West Coast dealer for more than 3,000 off MSRP. No trade-in.
  • gorygurugoryguru Member Posts: 2
    Biog,

    Please share some details of your deal:
    1. What was the exact price before tax & license?
    2. Which dealership in the west coast?
    3. What color?

    I am looking for a Bamboo Pearl / ivory color FWD with the premium plus package in the L.A. area only and so far I've only been quoted a price of around $37,400 by 3 dealers. Any help will be greatly appreciated.
  • cotmccotmc Member Posts: 1,081
    A few weeks ago I had posted a question on the Lexus RX 330 group asking if anybody had seen an RX 330 with the basic Premium Package. Nobody responded at the time. I later checked with three different Lexus dealers. All confirmed that the basic Premium Package was not available in the southwest region (Arizona, California, Nevada). Premium Plus with 18" wheels is the minimum configuration available out here. With a FWD model, the sticker price is $39.4K.

    Initially, it was looking like the best price I would find locally would be greater than $38K. Thanks to the post by wwest (#2 within this discussion topic), I stopped focusing on the local Arizona dealers and requested some dealer quotes from the Lexus dealers in Southern California. A couple of their initial quotes were as low as $37K. After a little more discussion, I was able to eventually buy one from the L.A. area for $3K off of MSRP on June 30. There was no trade-in involved, and we were able to purchase the color combination we wanted. All arrangements were made before our weekend vacation to San Diego. The dealer drove 90-minutes down I-15 to pick us up from our hotel! We saved another ~$250 off of the ridiculous Documentation Fees that most of our local dealers charge. Thanks wwest!!
  • gorygurugoryguru Member Posts: 2
    Please let me know which dealship and the salesperson's name. I am looking for the exact deal that you got. [email protected]
  • uis00snuis00sn Member Posts: 18
    Just spoke w/ the guy from S.Florida Lexus dealership. I wanted Performance package and he did not have it, so I've asked him about ordering. His response was since Lexus wraps-up its production in Japan he can't order because he does not know what the prices will be. What is that all about?
  • lok888lok888 Member Posts: 1,788
    Just want to know when the RX330 will be built in the Canada? September? I heard it is going to share the production line with another Toyota vehicle. Isn't it Tundra? Are there anymore RX330 coming from Japan? Will this change the pricing on RX330?
  • phylpphylp Member Posts: 49
    I am in the process of purchasing a 2004 RX330, AWD Premium Plus with 18" wheels and the heated seats/rain sensing wipers. The vehicle is impressive, but the sales staff has been just the opposite.

    To be honest, the local Lexus dealership reminds me of Toyota (I owned Camrys in the late 80's and early 90's) rather than a true luxury franchise. The Toyota sales folk acted as if they were selling a good car at a good price, so take it or leave it. No interest in satisfying the customer at all. The Lexus folks I have dealt with thus far seem to have a similar attitude. Wrangling over price, availability, and delivery was something that I did not expect. The excuse that "this is hot car" is not very helpful.

    Any thoughts on this? Yes, I am asking for anecdotal info making broad generalizations.
  • njexpressnjexpress Member Posts: 170
    Hi!
    Thoughts on this? Plenty!
    The reason I would grin and bear the price tag of a Lexus over Toyota 's is
    1) Brand Cachet and
    2) Service during / after sales.
    Other than that, if a Lexus is 100% reliable, to me, a Toyota is 99.5% reliable in the least!!
    If they are treating you like how you say they are, you should WALK!!!!! :o) They just don't deserve your hard earnt $$$$$.
    Make no mistakes, we are in / just out of a recession(Depending on one's definition of it) and no matter what the conditions are, You the buyer is still at full liberty WALK AWAY from such delarships. If you can't find it at one place, there are always others. don't know the specific circumstances of your purchase (Trade in or not, how urgently u need it, etc..) but like I said, there are always courteous dealerships looking for fair business.....
    I can see just one reason as to why this is happening: People might be under pressure to catch the last of the RX-330s from Japan; Well, Guess what? ;o) I drive a '00 camry that was made in Kentucky and it has still been library quiet after 78K miles!!! I don't have a problem shopping for a Canada made lexus late this year when I will be ready to buy.
    Also, the Premium plus package is readily available in AWDs from what I see although I am not sure of the rain sensing wipers. From what I see on the threads here, it looks like thy can't custom order any until after September (Take me with a grain of salt though, this is just a guess!)
    So, they seem rather laid back since they probably know that they will be able to sell the goodies, no matter what..
    Best of Luck and Have fun!!
  • cotmccotmc Member Posts: 1,081
    I'm all for supporting the local dealer, as long as that dealer provides reasonably good service and a competitive price. If your local dealer is lacking in either of those characteristics, I highly recommend considering other Lexus dealers in your region, even if they are out of state. Perhaps plan a short vacation around the purchase? That is what we did when we decided to purchase our RX330 from a Southern California dealer.
  • coppermine2001coppermine2001 Member Posts: 8
    cotmc:
    Did you pay sales tax when you bought your RX330 from California?
  • tomtomtomtomtomtom Member Posts: 491
    you pay the sales tax based on where your residence is not where you buy your car. So if you decide to buy a Porsche or Ferrari, you might consider getting a house in Oregon first.
  • coppermine2001coppermine2001 Member Posts: 8
    I guess my question is if it make any sense to buy from Nevada (i.e. Vegas) just to save on sales tax since I live in California (Los Angeles). I will save me $3,300 on a $40,000 car.
  • rivertownrivertown Member Posts: 928
    You'll have to pay CA sales tax if you buy in Nevada and then register the car in CA.
    If you can use an address in Nevada and register the car there for a while, you may be able to duck the CA tax. Getting caught would be a biter, though.
  • tomtomtomtomtomtom Member Posts: 491
    Things to do to avoid $3,300 sales tax:
    Get a mailing address (to file residence)in NV
    Get a NV driver license with that mailing address
    Buy the car and insure the car in NV
    Drive your car back to CA
    In a year or two, re-register your car in CA and pay sales tax based on the current value. Pay charges if the car doesn't meet California Emission.
    Change your driver license again.

    In other word, it is not worth it unless you are buying a $100,000 car.
  • donwincodonwinco Member Posts: 1
    Thanks for the ammunition to go into the dealer with info. about discounts. I informed them about my "due diligence" in searching on the Internet, and also informed them that I had spoken with the competition (gave the name of salesman and sales manager) and asked for a discount. Note that there is but one other Lexus dealer in Colorado. I wrote the numbers I wanted down for the salesman. Unfortunately I don't think I asked for enough! I asked for $1,400 off sticker (based on posts to this forum as well as looking at autonation etc and seeing only $500 discounts off sticker) and I said I absolutely did not want to pay the paperwork fee which was $300. I signed the paper, the salesman went off, came back, shook my hand and I drove home a beautiful RX330 AWD Premium Plus with heated seats and R/S wipers, 6-disc changer, 18" wheels, etc - the $41,638 package - in the colors my wife wanted. This after them saying that they did not negotiate and were selling at sticker, and selling prior to delivery, and after a co-worker of my wife's saying she didn't get any discount off her RX300 except including a $500 roof rack they didn't want. This was today in Denver. Bad news - that's probably the last time I'll drive the RX. It is my wife's vehicle. Good news - I get my car back! Thanks again, Don
  • cotmccotmc Member Posts: 1,081
    Coppermine21: Sorry I didn't get back to you sooner regarding our sales tax scenario. After researching this issue with our Arizona DMV as well as a couple of CA Lexus dealers, we had two choices regarding vehicle delivery and sales tax submission when purchasing a new car from California. These are the options to the best of my understanding:

    1) We could pay the sales tax normally charged by the dealer (7.75% in Ontario, CA) to that dealer as part of the vehicle purchase; take delivery; get a one-way temporary registration from the dealer ($15); drive home; and then visit our DMV office to get temporary AZ registration. The appropriate authorities here would not charge us any additional sales tax UNLESS our own municipality charges a higher sales tax rate then the sales tax we already paid in California. For example, if we were residents of the city of Phoenix, which charges 8.1% sales tax, then we would be responsible for paying (8.1% - 7.75%) = 0.35% additional tax when registering our car in Phoenix. Since we actually live in the unincorporated community of Anthem, we do not pay any additional sales tax, as our state and county sales tax combined is less than 7.75%. Another trip will be required to the DMV after receiving a copy of the title so that we can get the permanent plates.

    2) Another option is to have the dealer ship our vehicle to us. With this option, we would not pay any sales tax to the dealer. For the dealer to NOT collect sales tax, that dealer must ship it out of state. (The dealer would not allow us to drive it off their lot if we do not pay them sales tax.) After we receive the vehicle here in Arizona, we would pay sales tax at our DMV. As above, the total sales tax would depend on our municipality of our residence. Once again, two trips would be required to our DMV.

    Option #1 is the option we chose because we were already in Southern California on a short weekend vacation, and we wanted to take delivery right away. Crown Lexus picked us up from our hotel on Coronado Island. We then drove home from Ontario, and visited our DMV office the following day. It seems rather strange that our tax money went to California instead of Arizona, but there must be some reciprocation involved.
  • rroyce10rroyce10 Member Posts: 9,332
    .... In Arizona you pay taxes on the difference .. In Ca there is no credit for the trade (if there is a trade) .. but yes, AZ and CA are reciprocal States -

           Tax is tax, that you pay no matter what based on where the vehicle is going to be garaged .. still confused, call 602 255 7427 - AZ dept of MV.

                         Terry.
  • phylpphylp Member Posts: 49
    Thanks njexpress and cotmc for your comments re: Lexus "Attitude."

    All's well that ends well. After more discussions, we felt better about the local sales staff and we are now quite satisfied. Thus, the final deal on the RX 330 I described in my earlier post was $40,600. Will post more about the vehicle on the main RX 330 board.

    And, thanks to all who posted buying info -- it helped.
  • njexpressnjexpress Member Posts: 170
    Glad to be of any assistance ;0)
    Please do post more about your RX down the line / when u get the chance!
    Congrats again on the new Lex and Enjoy what CarandDriver calls the "Gucci Loafers" kind of treatment anyplace you drive it to!!!
  • vieleevielee Member Posts: 4
    I just put a deposit on my RX330 today, I live in Vegas but got it thru a dealership in Ontario, Ca. I got the AWD, Premium Package, 18 Inch Wheels, Gold Package, in Crystal White with Ivory Leather. Total Price $38,500. We looked everywhere and that was the best we found. Now I am having buyers remorse - I did good didn't I?
  • rroyce10rroyce10 Member Posts: 9,332
    .... It's a Canadian vehicle (nothing personal our Canadian brothers) .. I have a feeling you have a great price with -0- for a warranty ..... not including the Odo switch out and a 50% re-sale value .. but I hope not.

                          Terry.
  • rivertownrivertown Member Posts: 928
    Ontario, CAlifornia
    or
    Ontario, CAnada?

    Vielee, some Lexus dealers say you can't buy an RX330 below sticker. Looks like you did good (unless the vehicle's Canadian, of course).
  • benxxbenxx Member Posts: 6
    In Southern California. 43,079 (46,800 MSRP)for a silver/light grey AWD with Navigation/Mark Levinson and Rear seat DVD(I have no use for it but too bad that is the only AWD/NAV configuration here). Will let you guys know how it goes.
  • vieleevielee Member Posts: 4
    I am sorry, I got my RX330 out of Ontario, California. The dealer here in Vegas would only come off sticker $750.00 for Costco Discount.
    I went to DMV here to make sure we did everything right and the lady I talked to said no problem, people who live here go to Utah and California all the time to buy cars. The dealer is delivering the car here to us in Vegas so we don't even have to pay California State Tax which is 1/2 percent higher than ours.
  • cotmccotmc Member Posts: 1,081
    I am not familiar with the cost of the gold package, but considering they are delivering it to you in Vegas, I think you did well! It is definitely a much better price than you could get in either Vegas or in Arizona.

    Did you work with either Laura or Terry? We purchased our RX 330 from Laura. Either way, I think you should receive good delivery service! Good luck!
  • vieleevielee Member Posts: 4
    We are working with both of them, Terry was deliverying a car to Vegas this week-end so Laura took CC info to put deposit on car. Both of them have been great.
  • grace_sfgrace_sf Member Posts: 1
    I am in San Francisco,I got an offer from a local dealer for Lexus RX330,bamboo pearl/ivory,4WD,Premium plus package,Navigation system with rea camera,the offer is $2000 off MSRP price which is $43890.00.Is this a good deal or I can bargain for more?

    THX
  • wwestwwest Member Posts: 10,706
    the Nav, firmware flaws make it truly useless (you can't know when to rely on it and when to not!)and a total ergonomic failure, let alone being a really horrible attractive nuisance.

    "Keep your eyes on the road, NEVER be distracted by the nav screen."

    You will have to attest to the above agreement each and every time you start the engine, but the design REQUIRES you to "watch" the screen anytime you wish to adjust the climate control or audio functionality.

    When I do use mine I always turn the display function off and rely only on the voice prompting.
  • ckdedmonckdedmon Member Posts: 7
    Grace, from my research in the Bay Area, $2000 off MSRP on a RX330 with Navigation is a good, if not very good, offer. The supply of navigation-equipped cars is not meeting demand, so they are not necessarily easy to find.

    If you don't mind me asking, what dealership gave you that deal? I am close to soliciting bids from Bay Area dealers, and I was only going to ask $1000-$1500 off MSRP, but your experience is making me think twice.
  • tomtomtomtomtomtom Member Posts: 491
    grace_sf, don't tell ckdedmon the name of the dealer, he or she might steal your car :-) Just kidding, I think it is a great deal and you should take it.
  • ljg4554ljg4554 Member Posts: 4
    Just wanted to post the numbers from my recent deal on a RX330 lease in the Atlanta area. I completed the transaction about 3 weeks ago. So the numbers I got were based on June lease programs.

    I purchased one with Prem Plus & Nav. MSRP - $42,480, Cap Cost/Selling price $41000, Cap cost reduction $500, 15,000 mile/year 39 month lease at $558/month including 7% local sales tax. Total due at signing (including first month payment, doc fee registration and taxes, etc) $1562.

    The discount on MSRP is not as great as some listed here but I think overall the end result was fair. I did have to work quite a bit to even get that much discount. At the time I made my purchase, the dealer had only 2 vehicles available in inventory. There was a sizable shipment enroute but a good portion of those had been sold so it appears sales are brisk in the Atlanta market.
  • njexpressnjexpress Member Posts: 170
    Never heard of it! Sorry, Can't help u there...
    But I would try fighting it. It's amazing that even the high end dealerships play the same kind of shell games like ordinary places. From what I have seen of the Lexus threads so far, they seem the same. I don't know how powerful the buyer's word is, when it comes to filling up the JD Power associates' buying experience surveys...
This discussion has been closed.