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Comments
...using KellyBB site and cranking in dealer trade for an '04: $18200. So your pricing seems pretty decent....ez
Am considering a Forrester XS with moonroof and leather vs XS LL Bean model. Will be in DC next week so could actually pick up a car at Fitzmall and drive home. The online price at fitzmall.com was 24,300 for an LL Bean. This seems almost too good to be true.....is it? would it be likely that I could find a local dealer (Atlanta) that might match this?
Thanks for any info,
MAP
They are for real, too. No hidden costs. My wife bought her Legacy there, and in total my family has purchased 5 Subies from them.
-juice
I tried fitzmall.com but could not find the one that I wanted from the list. However, my sister bought an Outback from them recently. I can't believe we are becoming a Subie family, :-) !!!
Going for a test drive again this weekend and see how the offer goes. Be back next week...
-juice
What exactly is Fitzmall? I hear it mentioned a lot. I am going to look again this weekend at a couple of Foresters. Has anyone heard anything about any November deals Subaru might be offering? I know the 1.9% financing ends this weekend. Now that I am seriously considering the XS over the X, I have to start all over again with the hunt for the best price. I would like the moonroof also. Any ideas on what a good out-the-door price might be? I know this is tough question to answer. Thanks!
-juice
I almost forgot, I also get free lifetime oil change. It is not a big free offer but every little bit helps.
I am curious about the registration fee. I just bought in NJ and they now have a new 4 year registration on new cars. The total is over $200 . Even if you were going by the old registration it was over $40 for a year.
The lifetime oil change seems like a big thing to me. Sounds like a great deal.
-Frank
You are correct on the new 4 year registration fee which is over $200. In fact, the dealership wanted to charge me for $342 for the 4 year new registration. I told them I would keep my current plate number and registration, so he charged $ 27.50 for the transaction and I just have to renew the registration myself when it is due.
Not bad for auto, AWD, ABS, quadruple 5 stars, IIHS Best Pick frontal, Good rated for side impacts by IIHS, etc.
-juice
-Frank
2005 Forester X $18999.
Upon (1) calling; (2) being switched to three different folks: the used car(?) manager indicated
"Plat. Silver; 5-speed....better get here tonite; it'll be gone by morning..........."
That's a dandy price; same model...a used '04 is circa $22+ per KBB dealer retail...........best,ez
I was quoted $19,800 (including rebate) in the S.F. Bay Area for a manual "X" with 3 small options... does not seem low to me but fits the Edmunds TMV suggestion. Any opinions?
Kaye
Of course I have color difficiency issues.......ez
If that includes freight, the price sounds good to me.
-juice
Thanks for your help.
Use the internet price, they tend to be lower. Even fitzmall uses that strategy. Walk-ins do get some perks like free oil changes, so look into that.
Subies in NE do indeed go to a port to get options installed, so dealers might know what is on the way.
Good luck.
-juice
Fitz actually had a Florida location. Call them up, and see what kind of financing they can get you. Their prices are fixed so those won't change if they can indeed get you the preferred rates.
-juice
Elissa
Cars.com states:
Forester 2.5 X: $1,200 (2.5 XS with moonroof: $850; 2.5 XT: $1,000) or 1.9%/2.9%/3.9% APR up to 36/63/72 mos.
Subaru.com just talks about the special financing..I couldn't find any mention of the rebate
So does this mean its customer cash and it really is an option between choosing one of them? How does one find out these things?
I'll share my experience though... This past Saturday, I purchased a Forester XS for $850 below invoice + $299 processing from Mastro Subaru in Tampa. This is the same price Fitzmall.com's Tampa dealership was selling the same car for. Instead of getting the promotional 2.9% from Subaru for 60 months, I qualified for normal financing at 3.79% for the same term with $0 down. That made the promotional financing pretty much a moot point. The 3.79% was also through Subaru. Make sure you have been prequalified with an outside lender so you have leverage and do not volunteer what that lender is willing to give you. Just tell the dealer that you will give them the opportunity to finance you if they provide better than what you're already qualified for. I ended up getting a rate that was 0.9% better than what my credit union prequalified me for.
As a side note, Masto's internet sales manager was very straightforward and pleasant to deal with.
I did all of my negotiating through email. Fitzmall made it easy because they price so competitively. I simply emailed Mastro with the vin # from a similar vehicle on Fitzmall and asked if he would match that price on one he had in stock that I was interested in. He replied that he would and the next day I went in, test drove and did the paperwork.
I liked having negotiated a price prior to actually going to see the car. Also, doing it over e-mail gives you a paper trail that you can reference back to if a salesperson decides they might want to pull a fast one.
$850 Cash to Customer start: 11/02/2004 end: 11/30/2004
Restrictions $850 Customer cash may not be combined with 1.9% - 3.9% APR
Comments Incentives may vary see your local dealer for details.
You can see that on http://www.edmunds.com/new/2005/subaru/forester/100401122/incenti- - ves.html?tid=edmunds.n.prices.seealso1.incentives.1.Subaru*
And by the way, you can buy that same car from carsdirect.com for $22,364 including the options you want.
-Jason
I got a 2005 2.5X Forester today. With: Auto trans., security system, cargo tray, cargo side nets, tailpipe cover and armrest extension.
Blue over gray. Sticker $22,619 + $575 = $23194
Paid: $18,926 (base price which in my case included a $1200 rebate, a $125 advertising fee and destination charge of $575)+ $133 (security sys)+84 (arm rest ext)+ $46 (cargo tray)+ $49 (side nets) + $28 (tailpipe cover)= $19,266 (pre-tax)
I think i did better than well, but what do you think?
In NJ the trade in amount doesn't get taxed. The other NJ bonus as of 10/01/2004 is new cars get can four year registration and all get four years without needing state inspection (sticker says due for inspection 11/08!). $7.50 tire tax though.
Dealer notes to those in Monmouth, Southern Middlesex and Northern Ocean counties of NJ.
Pine-belt Subaru's price was terrible and they slap on pin-stripping and door edge guard which should be a clear indicator for any shopper to RUN AWAY. They also quoted a price for a stick when a Automatic was clearly specified, of course you have to question them to bring out the facts. UGH, hate them liars.
Freehold Subaru- Can they be serious? They had maybe two in stock. I prefer a dealer who is committed to the brand.
www.fitzmall.com price for blue with auto is $19,691 has rubber floor mats and cargo tray and nothing else. They have several in black with better pricing but from here it's a few hour trip.
Oasis Subaru- Salesman was OK, glad i didn't get one of the teenager like salesboys. Went in and got what i thought was a fair price (was below invoice w/ options and rebate figured in after that) but they were too low on the trade in. They apparently were using a lost ancient form of arithmetic (when figuring trade value)which allows you to skip some lines (like low mileage allowance) at your will. So, no sale. destination fee is $5 more in Middlesex county. Wasted time.
World Subaru - Bought from them, bottom line was the main reason. Price was lower and trade value higher (even before the "push and shove", which brought the price up) compared to Oasis. They had 58 foresters in stock and allowed me to pick which one and add options for invoice price. The salesman I got was OK and it didn't seem like the other sales staff were sneaky or desperate. Sales manager didn't have a problem with refusal to sign arbitration clause on the contract, so i crossed it out (this was not negotiable to me, it would have scrapped the whole deal). I crossed out the window etching which is printed on the contract for $169. Lastly, the F & I guy took no for an answer without a fight. The only thing offered was a third party maintenance contract/mechanical breakdown/road hazard for tires. Fairly painless dealings.
Have fun driving your new Forester.
When I looked at Freehold's inventory several weeks ago they had only a couple of 2.5X's. In fairness they now have 18 2.5X's (per their Subaru website).
-juice
What other options do I have? Does anyone have experience with such a situation?
I am not sure if buying a new car is worth this stress and hassle. But we need one, so we are thinking of heading down to fitzmall this weekend and hope for the best. There are a number of lessons that I have learnt from this -- the most important being not to put down any money till the car is physically on the dealer lot. Will be glad to share further experiences about how this gets resolved but am anxious about the deposit now. Thanks.
Ask for the print back and tear it up.
Take your business so a more honest place, you deserve to be treated better.
-juice
I bet they are stalling in hopes that you will change your mind. Just keep persisting as you've been already.
-juice
-Frank
Have you considered options like the Costco Auto buying program or AAA car buying program? My guess is that program prices are $300-$500 over invoice.
-juice
Thanks,
Don Luce
Good deals can be had for 2004 models that are left. I spent a while debating whether to get a 2004 model or a 2005 model. In the end, it came down to the price, which obviously was better for leftover '04s.
Several advantages of a buying "new" 2004 vs a 2005 model right now:
(1) dealer has it on the lot, so you get it there
(2) good deals abound
Some disadvantages:
(1) car has been on lot for a while and probably has been testdriven. Expect 150-300 miles on the car.
(2) you may have fewer choices regarding options.
(3) interior not quite as nice as the 2005 models, though not much else is different
I'm in the San Francisco Bay-Delta area. I searched the online inventories for all dealers within 200 miles for the model and color I wanted, did my negotiating by email, and called several places that were slow to respond to online price requests / email inquiries. I knew the estimates for invoice price and TMV, got several good prices, and bounced the dealers off each other.
Got a 2004 XT automatic with cloth seats for $21925, which became $23922 out the door (doc fee $45, $1737 taxes, $210 licensing, $5 California tire fee). I got the armrest extension, security system upgrade, auto dimming mirror/compass, splash guards, cargo tray, and rear bumper cover. The price I paid included $2000 customer cash back. TMV was $24971 before customer cash back. MSRP was $27124.
Car had 200+ miles on it from test driving, but I could live with that. Premium package would have been nice, but the best price I could get was just under $26000 out the door -- about a grand more than I wanted to spend.
Had a good experience overall. I visited or contacted Senator Subaru (Sacramento), Diablo Subaru (Walnut Creek), Marin Subaru (San Rafael), Carlsen Subaru (Redwood City), and Ron Price (South San Francisco).
Senator -- decent people, but didn't have any 2004s. They also didn't seem as informed about their cars as they could be. I also took a test drive in an Outback with them that they told me was a non-turbo. Stepped on the gas and the car shot forward (albeit with a bit of turbo lag); "whoa," says I, "turbo model?" "No" says the salesman, "it's a regular." We got out of the car afterward and lo and behold, it was an XT.
Marin -- nice folks, but ultimately got lower price elsewhere.
Carlsen -- very nice and helpful. They have no-haggle prices, but only had the premium package. Excellent price, but more than I wanted to pay.
Ron Price -- good price, but not especially helpful. Guy I talked to on the phone didn't seem that interested in selling me the car and was not exactly pleasant.
Diablo -- bought from them. Best price, and the folks I dealt with were very nice. The F&I guy only halfheartedly tried to sell me the extras like paint protection, extra warranty, etc -- just mentioned them and briefly explained them in case I was interested. I said no thanks, and that was it.
Hope this helps someone.
cheers!
kirstie_h
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-juice