Ford Taurus X Prices Paid and Buying Experiences

volfangary

Something doesn't sound right. It does not come with gray seats per Ford website. Sounds like seats have been recovered for some reason. Check it over carefully. Some early Freestyles had water leakage issues straight out of factory. Maybe problem reocurred?

drivemonkey

I was incorrect, the seats aren't gray, they're the "black" interior listed on Ford's website. I called them gray because they're a slightly lighter color than the true black color of the carpet. I understand the skepticism because of the price, and I would be skeptical too if just my vehicle was such a great deal and the rest were regular price, but there were several (5 left at the end of the second day into the sale, 6 sold in the past 2 days according to the salesman) that were 25% off, all 2006 models, varying trims and options. They also had the same deal for lots of other models on their lot, not just Freestyles. The dealer is Holmes Tuttle Ford in Tucson, AZ, and it was their President's Day Sale. I appreciate all of the input though, because I would like to know if I got a great deal or there's an alternate reason for the price.

barnstormer64

because I would like to know if I got a great deal

Trust me, you got the deal of the century!

I'm pretty sure that's even better than the Employee Pricing would have been, along with the rebate. Certainly as good.

minaldo1

Interesting. I went through ford's website and did a dealer inventory search for a Freestyle Limited through Holmes Tuttle Ford in Tucson, Az. They don't appear to have a black limited freestyle in stock. Nor do they appear to have black in the SE or SEL. The only freestyle colors that appear to be in stock at this dealership are titanium green mist, pueblo gold, silver, and white. But, you saw the car, so I guess it's a problem with ford's website. Dealer inventory must be ahead of ford's website, I guess.

drivemonkey

I bought the car Saturday, so that's why they don't have it in stock . From what I remember, they had a gold one with tan leather, a red SEL with gray cloth (that was our close second), a white one, and about 3 green ones (most or all with tan interiors). I wanted the dark interior to avoid the tan leather glare problem i've read about on this site, so the only ones I really looked at were the red SEL and the black Limited. If you call Holmes Tuttle I'm sure they'd verify that they really did offer that 25% off MSRP price this past weekend. Besides the dealer's reason of "overstocked, too long on the lot, etc.", are there any other (less trustworthy) reasons the price may have been so low?

passat_2002

No, there are no more "reasons". With only 64 miles on the odometer it was clearly not a demo. You got a fantastic deal, and the rest of us are probably more than a little envious. You were simply at the right place at the right time. (Does your luck always run like this?) Enjoy your Freestyle. It's a great vehicle at any price.

passat_2002

Sales tax must be pretty high there in Arizona though. I figure your OTD price to be 10.7% above the sales price.

drivemonkey

Yes, sales tax in pretty high. Looking at my paperwork, extra costs were $1889 tax, document fee $269, leiu tax and/or tire tax $479, postage / title fee / reg. fee $16. Included in the 25% off was a $1500 credit (I think at least $1000 of it was for using Ford financing) given after extra costs were computed, so the sales tax was calculated on my $24862 price +$1500, then $1500 was added at the end to our down payment. I didn't question any of the fees because we (and our 2 little kids) were basically exhausted by the time the deal was at this point. Any idea what is a fair amount for extra costs? Are they negotiable?

passat_2002

OK.. I'm now totally confused. Why don't you go back to the dealer (without your kids) and ask them to explain the deal you got.

drivemonkey

I don't feel I need an explanation about the deal. I know it's a good OTD price, whether or not the extra costs on top of the base price are higher than they should be. I'm very happy with my Freestyle and the price I paid for it.

bobg26

I live in the Northeast, MA to be exact, and I've seen commercials on leasing a 2005 Freestyle SEL AWD for $259/month, with (I believe) $1799 due at signing. I have looked at every website I can think of (including Ford and Edmunds) and I can find no details on this deal - like length of lease, mileage limit, etc. Does anyone have details on this deal or know where I can find more info? Thanks in advance.

cmuniz

This is just a thought and probably not relevant, but one word comes to mind - "Katrina". There have been many articles about being leary of low prices on new/used cars that may have been flooded. I would check for rust spots in the trunk and floor board just to make sure. If all is ok you got a heck of a deal.

passat_2002

drivemonkey's vehicle is an '06. Katrina was last August. Extremely unlikely.

In addition, a dealer could go to jail for not representing a salvage car as such. drivemonkey just simply got a whale of a deal. Good for him!

drivemonkey

Hi all, I've already posted my experience buying a Freestyle, but I wanted to start a discussion on what dealer fees are fair/normal. Yes, I already purchased my car and paid my dealer fees, but this is the part of the car-buying process I know the least about, so I'd like to be more informed for next time. On my purchase the fees I paid are (other than sales tax):
$269 dealer documentary service fee
$18 postage / title / registration fees
$479 tire tax and/or leiu tax (the dealer typed "tire tax" over the preprinted leiu tax box).

I bought the car in Arizona. Is the dealer documentary service fee just the cost of the dealer's time to file the registration and title paperwork? Is it negotiable? $269 seems high to me for a small amount of a secretary's time.

And what is a tire tax? I looked online but couldn't find anything except for info about disposal of old tires, and it's usually $4 or something. Any ideas?

Here's a good article on dealer fees:
http://www.carbuyingtips.com/car3.htm

Thanks for all of your input!

minaldo1

Ideas, yes. The dealer wanted to increase his profit, so he tacked on some "fees". Even with the fees, you got a great deal. It doesn't make sense, but you got a great deal. Why would a dealer sell at this price, when other dealers don't have to? These cars are being sold all over the country, and in Arizona, at prices higher than this. The pricing approach you outlined would seem more rationale if it were for an '05, as they would need to get rid of it because of inventory costs. The only other thing I could think of is financing. Did you pay cash? If you financed, are you financing through Ford and is the financing reasonable.

Anyway, good for you. With no negotiations. I wonder how many other folks are getting this deal at that dealership.

drivemonkey

I didn't pay cash, I went with Ford Financing. If I had planned on buying a car I would have gotten other financing with a check ready to go prior to going to the dealer (through e-loan or somewhere), but it was a last-minute purchase. We have excellent credit (scores in the mid-700s), but they would only give us 9.9% 72 months loan through Ford (terrible!). We took it, and I'm in the process of refinancing through e-loan for 6.44% for a 60-month loan. If we had been prepared with preapproved financing we could have had an e-loan purchase loan (instead of a refinance loan) for .5% - .6% less, which would have been ideal. It was a deal we couldn't pass up, though. Also, the salesman said that included in the 25% off was a $1000 credit for using Ford financing which we'd forfeit if we used a different lender for the purchase. I didn't argue with it because we didn't have a different lender lined up, but in the ideal world I would have used a preapproved lender and bargained with the salesman to give me the 25% off regardless of financing because that was the advertised discount.

I think several people got this deal -- we initially chose another Freestyle which we couldn't have because it was in the process of being sold (and was gone from the lot later in the day). Our second choice was a red Freestyle also 25% off, which isn't listed in their dealer inventory anymore. So I think we aren't the only ones who jumped on this.

min1

We also took the 1000 off and went with Ford financing. Rather than go with higher rates and have to refinance, we chose to forfeit the 2000 off and instead go with the low rate for the 05 that we got. We went with 1.9% for 4 years as it was a better monthly payment than going with anything higher than 6% with the extra 2000 off. The deals are different for an 05 than an 06, just letting you know what we did.
The fees that we paid were:
299 processing
824 VA tax
27 dealers business license tax
10 online system filing fee
45 license and title fee
So no, I don't think you got over charged in the fee department. I just figure its all part of the deal, and while I don't like getting "taken for a ride", I also want to enjoy buying a car and not have to haggle and fight for every penny. I am happy with my monthly payment, and with my car, and with the experience that I had buying it. Also with the service that I am receiving from the service department after the sale. I found that I had a much better experience with the internet sales guys than with the sales dealers who "work the floor". They just rub me the wrong way, and the internet guys that I dealt with at the Ford dealer, as well as my neighbor who I accompanied to purchase her new car a week ago, they just seem to have a different approach and a much more customer service state of mind, while maintaining a laid back approach.
The internet sales people who I dealt with at Mazda, Chrysler, and Ford were very quick at getting back to you and providing all the info you want, yet not making you feel pressured in any way. The sales people who I met when walking on the lot at various locations acted like vultures, and quite frankly were enough to make me not want to buy a new car and just put the purchase off for a year or more.

drivemonkey

What a great deal on the financing! I'm not worried about the fees, the only one I really question was the $479 tire tax. I agree about the internet sales people being better to deal with. I was very happy with our floor salesmen though who dealt with us for this deal.

saabturboid

Before re-financing your Ford Credit auto loan I'd read the small print carefully. If Ford is giving you $1,000 off the sale price to use Ford Credit then I suspect there is some language in there that prevents you from paying the loan off right after you take it out. Ford is looking to make up the $1,000 through interest accrued on your loan. By re-financing you are effectively paying it off. Let us know what you find. I am curious.

For what it's worth, we recently bought our Freestyle with a 60 month loan at 5.5% through our local Credit Union. Credit Unions are generally excellent sources for auto loans.

- Chad

min1

If Ford is giving you $1,000 off the sale price to use Ford Credit then I suspect there is some language in there that prevents you from paying the loan off right after you take it out

I know that the sales guy that I dealt with had suggested going with Ford Credit at first and after the first payment, getting it refinanced somewhere else, so I would imagine that Ford is just counting on most people being too lazy to get out and get it refinanced.

drivemonkey

I read all of the signed paperwork that I have, and it says in two places that there is no prepayment penalty on the loan. The salesman told me I should make at least 3 payments before refinancing to "establish a good relationship with Ford financing for future purchases". Later he told me (kind of as an aside) that I could pay it off the day after I bought it with no penalty if I wanted to. I asked the Finance Manager when we were signing paperwork how many payments I had to make before refinancing, and he kind of gave me a strange look like "why would you do that" and said in a vague way 3 payments. But looking at the actual paperwork, there's no language about 3 payments, and it says specifically that there is no prepayment penalty. I'm going to confirm this with customer service at Ford financing before sending them the payoff check (they couldn't confirm because they didn't have my paperwork yet). But the customer service said that if I got a $1000 credit for using Ford financing, and paid it off right away, and there was no prepayment penalty, they can't get that $1000 back from me in any way. They also wouldn't negotiate my interest rate, saying that the dealer sets it as part of the purchase contract.

nibyak

The $1000.00 is yours. They will not take it back. If you pay it off today, the dealer will not get his cut. The dealer "sold" you FMCC financing and Ford will give him his cut. You can call FMCC (no need to call the dealership)with your SSN and they will give you the account number and pay-off amount as soon as you get home from the dealer. If you like the dealership and have a relationship with them, you can wait for three months and then they will get their payout from FMCC. Its up to you.

tourist1234

Congratualtions on a great deal! We took advantage of the X family plan. We bought almost the identical vehicle and paid about $1800 more than you.

Enjoy!!

CarMan@Edmunds

Fpdafish, your vehicle's lease payment is based upon its selling price. So the lower the price you are able to negotiate is, the lower your monthly lease payment will be. You can see exactly how a vehicle's selling price, or capitalized cost, impacts its monthly payment by reading the following article: Calculate Your Own Lease Payment.

Car_man
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Smart Shopper / Prices Paid Forums

realhawker

Just picked up a 2006 Freestyle.black on black, nav, dvd, etc.. MSRP 37,150....

Leased it for ~$450 a month,(~$1000 out the door) I owed 4(~$2200 ford expy) payments on my last lease so this is higher than the $410 I saw in earlier posts. Got the free remote start as well.
I could have waited I guess 4 months and got a cheaper payment.

Picked it up at fette ford in clifton NJ... did my dealing over the phone and went in to sign the next day. Was a pretty nice deal and transaction.

Great car so far, a little bumpy ride but i think itll soften up, love the navigation and dvd player.. The interior has such a high quality feel to it over the other styles(sel, etc..) Love the center console in the back seat too. Power is fine for my in-town driving.... 2 car seats fit in back great.

respect642

I always negotiate buying at dealer cost minus customer rebate, manufacture to dealer rebate, any other incentive available and then I use that number as the start of negotiating a lease. I work the lease against what other dealers who won’t deal are charging and check at the local Credit Union to find out payments based on the negotiated price (If I buy, I never use a bank for an automobile purchase, they want to feed too many people at the top).

I have the Freestyle and it has gone through two winters and 38,000 miles without any problems. The Volvo all wheel drive system is great. When we take our elderly parents any where they have great ease in entering and exiting. Lost of room for our dog and cat when we go to our cabin. Every one who gets a chance to drive it finds it much more pleasant to drive than they expected for a station wagon (That includes friends who drive a number of different foreign models). I have even carried many 10 foot long 2 X 12 boards in it.

Ford may be discontinuing the Freestyle but keeping the Five Hundred at this years end. You may want to check into that.

passat_2002

"Ford may be discontinuing the Freestyle but keeping the Five Hundred at this years end."

Bad rumor. Freestyle sales have been accelerating lately, and Ford has reconsidered it's plan to hand the Freestyle over to Mercury. Since the upcoming Edge won't carry any more than 5 people, the Freestyle will become an increasingly important vehicle in the Ford line-up as SUV sales continue to decline.

rick2456

After much consideration, I decide to toss the dice and buy american again. I was looking at the toyota highlander, but they would not budge an inch off MSRP. The Freestyle I got had an MSRP of $32800. It is an 05 SEL AWD with 65 miles on it pretty much optioned out (leather and safety package). As I had $4500 negative equity in my trade in and I got the extended warranty ($995), with rebates and discounts, my out the door price was $32,528. Thus I think I got a pretty good deal. Time will tell if the vehicle holds up well, but so far so good.

I purchased this vehicle in Marietta, Ga.

ideafix

Hi... I've been looking at these forums and I found a lot of useful information. Good job, and thanks from a happy soon-to-be freebie owner.

Now, this is the deal I got... and I'm not too sure if it was a fair deal or not... I haven't signed yet so I hope there is room for negotiation if not. Any advice is greatly appreciated.

2006 Ford SE FWD, 83 miles.
Titanium Green / Graphite / shale gray interior.
Convenience Pkg (Auto HL, Dual Zone TC, Temperature Disp)
Traction Control
MSRP: 26,295

Extras:
6,000 miles extended warranty ($1,379)
Simonize ($399)
Tire and Wheel 4life warranty ($229)

Taxes and Fees:
Taxachusetts Sales Tax (5%: $1110)
Title Preparation: $5
Document Preparation: $95
Other: Insp Plates $94

Total: 29,606

I didn't get any rebate, instead I opted for the 0% APR finance for 60 months, financing 22,806. It seemed to me better option than getting the $1000 rebate, considering I'm making payments of $341

:confuse:
How does this sound to you?

-----------

Also, is there something I should be adding to the freebie, or any advice for a new owner? (i.e. if you just got your freebie again, what would be the first thing you would do/get?)
I think I'm getting the extra key I saw in other forums, and I'd be sure to check if that glare a lot of people mentioned to buy a dark mat for the dashboard... but what else could I be missing?

Thanks a lot for your help, and hey... great forums you have here.

Ideafix, posting from Pittsfield, MA

passat_2002

ideafix,

"You have much to learn Grasshopper"

Hope you're old enough to remember the TV show from the 70s that used this phrase.

But seriously... Don't sign this deal!!! You can do much better.

First off, exactly what are you paying for this vehicle before the "extras" and the "Taxes & fees" are added? If MSRP is $26,295, invoice price would be closer to around $24,500 or so. No one should have to pay any more than a couple of hundred dollars over invoice these days. Make sure you actually understand what you're actually paying for the car by itself. No exceptions!!

Second off, what's with the "extra's" already. I can understand buying the extended warranty if you plan on keeping your Freestyle a long time, but shop around on the internet for one. Several Ford dealerships in the country sell genuine Ford extended warranty's over their website. I can almost assure you they will beat your dealers price on the warranty. Tell your dealer the price you've been quoted and they will probably match it. Very simple and can save you hundreds of dollars. ($1379 definitely sounds high)

I am not familiar with "Simonize". Whatever it is, it ain't worth $400. This comes under the category "shameless dealer mark-up". They should be ashamed of themselves. Just tell them you don't want it and you won't pay for it even if it's already been "applied".

Tire and Wheel 4life warranty $229? The life of what? You can buy 4 brand new 17" tires for the Freestyle for this price. Another shameless dealer mark-up item. It's extremely unlikely that you would ever be able to make use of this added coverage. (Unless you're the sort of person that drives head-on into curbs a lot.)

Lastly, go to fordvehicles.com and look-up exactly what the available incentives are in your area for the Freestyle. I have no reason to believe that your dealer is not being straightforward about this part of the deal, but it never hurts to make sure. Knowledge is power, and you really can't have too much of it when buying a car.

Remember.. you're the customer, so you're the boss. The deal will always still be there tomorrow if you're not really comfortable buying today.

Good luck and enjoy your Freestyle. I really enjoy mine.

P.S. One last thing. Since you're getting the Shale interior, there is no glare problem.

cmuniz

I agree with the last post. Don't pay for any of the extras and do more research on the TMV (true market value)of the car as Edmunds calls it. Go to the new car pricing portion of Edmunds and put in the car and options you want. They will give you MSRP, invoice and TMV. You should be able to get it for around the TMV without much haggling. Also, go to more than one dealer or contact them on the internet to get several prices quotes. You should seperate the transaction into 3 parts - what you pay for the new car, what you get for a trade-in and what the financing terms are so that you can maximize each to your benefit. The biggest weapon that dealers have is the confusion at the dealership when they intermix all of that together with extras to try to convince you that you are getting a good deal. Doing your homework and being armed with knowledge is your best defense.

ideafix

I love you guys. You just save me some $$$
I went to the dealer today and had a printed copy of Edmunds TMV report. I also printed the close dealers list from Edmunds, and an extended warranty quote from fordwarrantys.com.

When I explained what I got from the site, I was able to get a $1000 Dealers discount, different from the $1000 rebate that I forfeited to get 0% finance. I discussed the Extended warranty. I told them that I was interested on the warranty, but ask them to consider remove another $500 if I bought the warranty and the simonize (which with a 3 year old and a baby on the way, considering simonize covers the interiors, I still wanted to go for it). He 'went to talk with the owner' and was able to give me those extra $500.

About the dealers list, I didn't actually mentioned it, but I made sure that was in a visible place so they knew I was shopping around and that they would have to concede to not let me go across the street.

So I owe you guys $1500. But most of all, I owe you having peace of mind and knowing that, even if I did buy some of the extras and probably I didn't get the deal of the year, I did make a more educated purchase, and saved a little bit on the down payment and some bucks on the monthly payments.

THANKS!

passat_2002

Glad to be of help ideafix. I think you did very well. The "deal" was fair to all in the end.

drivemonkey

You'll be so happy with your purchase, it's a great car. How did you get 0% APR for 60 months? I just checked Ford.com, and they're offering 5.9% for 60 on the Freestyle. I was offered 9.9% with very good credit, which I knew was a terrible deal, but I didn't have anything to back up arguing for a lower rate. Did the dealer just offer it? I refinanced with e-loan for 6.44% for 60, but I'd love to know how to get 0% on my next car purchase.

passat_2002

Wrong person. I think you meant ideafix instead.

ideafix

Oh... I picked up my freebie last night... happy, happy.
I ended up cancelling the extended warranty as well, so it was $1300 less. In sum it was $2800 + $140 in taxes less than i originally was going to pay. In all it was a very pleasant experience, made it a fair enough experience thanks to you.

About the 0% APR for 60 months, they just offered me either the $1000 rebate or the 0% finance. A quick division showed me that 0% APR was the way to go.
And honestly, my credit is not so good. It is clean, but is kind of new (I had my first credit card -secured and with a $250 limit- in 2003, and my first car had a 12% APR)

So I guess it was a dealer thing. I thought it was pretty standard... I see tv ads offering 0%APR all the time. Maybe is local to Massachusetts?

And you are right. I just checked http://www.fordvehicles.com/incentives/offers/ and in the 2006 you get 5.9% APR, but in the 2005 they do offer 0% APR for 60 months. I was planning to get a 2005 at first (and they made the first estimate with that one) but then I decided to go for the 2006... maybe they screwed up there?

Anyway.. thanks again!

bobw3

Too late now, but over $29K for an SE seems pretty high. You said you're financing $22,800, so are you putting down cash, or did you trade something in?

ideafix

Actually it came out to about $26,700, including taxes, paperwork and the simonize. I did put the rest of the cash down. Not a bargain, I know... I guess I was simply looking for the fair price.

Driving it... and loving it.

I've realized that it actually changes shape... If you look it from the front it looks like a small Grand Cherokee. If you look it from the back it looks like a Explorer. And if you look it from the side it looks like a simple long wagon. But the way I LOVE to look at it is from the drivers seat

passat_2002

If your happy with it then it is a bargain.

bobw3

That is a good price, and putting down cash for the downpayment is much better than doing a trade-in.

newfrstylawd06

Just bought a 06 AWD Freestyle demo 4300 miles (still new)
MSRP 36,500 .Bottom line price 31000-$1000 private rebate from Ford Magazine and $3000 on trade $27000 + tax, tags brings it to $28800 + addit. 5yr/100000 powertrain warrenty
AND 0% financing. Loaded all options inc. nav except aux climate. Last day of month c all research done on Edmund's and all previous quotes given via email and phone c internet [non-permissible content removed]. at mult dealers. Excellent sales experience. Owned CHrysler and Toyota before and had high pressure exp. Not c Ford. LOVE THE CAR!I picked it over all minivans after tons of reseach. ( best for 2 kids, 3 may be tight) More families should be driving this car

stevedebi

"Loaded all options inc. nav except aux climate. "

That is the first time I've ever heard of NAV without aux climate...

tmltml2

I thought I was going to get a good deal as a Ford Supplier entitled to X-Plan pricing, but at $1,000 over invoice, it is a far worse deal than the $500 over invoice that Edmund's in indicating as the True Market Value(sm). It pays to know your prices.

passat_2002

Better check your figures. X-Plan is not $1,000 over invoice. It's actually a little under I believe.

barnstormer64

X-plan should be about $100 over invoice, not $1000. At least it was last year.

nibyak

The X-Plan price is listed right on the invoice. If you qualify for X-plan the dealer has to show you the x-plan price on the invoice. The A-plan price is also listed. From what I've heard on some other boards that have a bit more dealer participation, the x-plan prices are not what they used to be. As far as the TMV price, our dealer beat it by a few hundred back in January on a 2006 SE. Ford was also giving away the remote start and a 25K mile service contract. My dealer also sells 80% trucks and was happy just to get Freestyle off the lot. They had two to choose from back in January and according to their website they still only have one for sale.

tmltml2

My Apologies. I could not find the original data on which I based the orginal claims, So I re-ran the numbers. I checked the numbers and here they are.

Price Information MSRP
2006 Fresstyle SEL FWD
STANDARD VEHICLE PRICE $26,505

Optional Equipment
2006 MODEL YEAR
PUEBLO GOLD CLRCT METALLIC
PEBBLE LEATHER SEATING

50/50 3RD ROW SPLIT SEAT $115
FRONT ROW COMFORT PACKAGE $495

AUX CLIMATE CONTROL W/HEAT $650

REVERSE SENSING SYSTEM $295
LEATHER SEATING $895

__________
TOTAL VEHICLE & OPTIONS $28,955
DESTINATION & DELIVERY $700
__________
NO-CHG LEATHER DISCOUNT $-895
TOTAL SAVINGS ($895)

TOTAL MSRP $28,760
Edmunds TMV $27,125 with same options
X-Plan $26,817
Invoice $26,473

barnstormer64

Did the Edmunds TMV perhaps have a $1000 cash rebate included?

You'd also get that with the X-plan, if available.

tmltml2

All those prices are on the same basis, neglecting the $1,000 rebate.

The X-plan gets even a little better because under the X-plan, dealers can NOT charge a separate documentation fee, which in Texas, USED to be $50 a few years ago.

The Documentation fee is such a scam. They pay some minimum wage kid to take all the title documents down to the Tax office, which has a special short line JUST for car dealers, and you just drop it off. Years ago, I had to stand in line for 30 minutes to Drop it off. Then Texas passed a law Requiring the Dealer to submit the Title and tax documents. What a scam.

johnboyvt

I am looking to lease either an SEL or Limited. Just wondering what the current residual percentage and MF are for 36 and 39 month leases in Virginia..Thanks,
John