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Comments
Thanks,
George
Thanks,
As far as Doc Fees go, they vary drastically by state. In California, dealers are capped at $55. Who's gonna squabble over $55 when you've bought a car at $500 over or less, right? However, in other states, they can be as high as $700! That's absolutely ridiculous IMO.
If you happen to reside in a state where the doc fees are through the roof, this is where using your knowledge of their holdback can be to your benefit. Some dealers hold firm on there inflated doc fees, where others will bend.
Be polite, but be firm and let them know that $XXX is unreasonable to simply messenger your paperwork to the DMV. Make a joke out of it and offer to take the paperwork to them for free. Seriously though, if you live in a competitive market, be ready to take your business down the street to the next dealer who wants your business more.
Ran the numbers based on what you provided at your local tax rate of 7%. Came out to $542.43/mo. Looks like it's in-line with what they're quoting you.
Good Luck!
So for about $50 more a month I moved up to the GS (figured it was worth the $2 a day.) Also, at 4.4% interest, it makes more sense to lease now than finance a purchase at about 6.5% or more. If I want to keep the car 39 months from now, the buyout is about $26K plus tax. But I didn't have to lay out either a large down payment up front to keep the monthly finance payment down from the over $900 amount it would be. That large payment will either be at the end of the lease, or I can finance the $26K 3 years from now and earn interest on my money for the next 39 months.
Don't get me wrong. The ES is a wonderful car. That's the car I was hoping to get, thinking that I couldn't afford the GS, but with the difference in money factors, the difference wasn't that much. Also, because the Residual Factors are also different (52% for GS, 58% for ES), the buyout at the end will only be about $2000 more for the GS because you are "buying" more of the GS during the lease (48%) than the ES (42%). Some of that may be the difference between 39 months and 36 months, also.
What dealer are you working with? Prestige Lexus in Ramsey, NJ is VERY aggressive in discounting. In shopping the GS, they were between $1500 and $3000 less for the GS than the competition (I called 3 others) despite my telling the competitors that I had already dealt with their competition. When 1 heard that I was dealing with Prestige, he basically backed off, knowing their aggressive pricing practices
Let me know what you decide.
Enjoy your new car. Love mine.
rc
Let me know how you make out.
rc
I am looking at the ES 350 Premium Plus Package, no nav. They are asking for a doc fee of $595 as well. The MSRP is $39272 with a customer discount of $3125 they are telling me to get to $36147. Most of the posts I have seen have been around $33500 for this car which is about a $1000 over invoice. Any help would be appreciated.
I plan to buy the 2008 ES 350 soon (December or January). (Would the price be higher after the December to Remember sale event? )
Here are the specs: 2008 ES, with premium package, navigation, rear seat side air bag, wood and leather steering wheel. No other options needed. Cars Direct quoted a price of $34,727 (with the mentioned options and destination included). So with 8.25% Los Angeles County tax and DMV registration, it comes out to $38,000 as drive away price for a basic ES with navigation.
I am still gathering internet price quotes from local dealers. But it seems Cars Direct has quoted a price that is at invoice. Is Cars Direct realistic?
Any SoCal buyers that bought the ES with similar features for below $40K (tax and license and fees included)?
Thanks
Just know that CD does not sell you the car, and is at the mercy of the local dealer networks that they refer you too.
I like to check CD's pricing compared to other dealers when getting quotes. At times they've been high, and at other times, they've been the lowest.
If you want a clean no-haggle experience where they prenegotiate everything for you, then I say go for it. But, if you have the time and don't mind contacting other dealers and fielding quotes, you may find that you might save some money.
An example: The ES I negotiated a deal on back in October had a window of $44,812.00. I negotiated a selling price of $40,459.00, whereas CD had a price of $42,232.00. To me, that was a substantial savings. However, a few weeks later, I worked up a deal on an LS460. I took the prices I was being quoted from dealers and compared them to the CD price and found that they (CD) were the lowest, and thus I was able to make counter-offers using the CD's price as a reference. It served to be a great negotiating tool.
Good luck!
-premium plus package.
-navigation
-full size spare
-rear seat side air bag
-power rear sun shade
-prefered accessory package
-Adaptive Front Lighting with HID lamp
-wood and leather steering wheel and shift knob
The Cars Direct agent found a local dealer that accepts the mentioned price. Basically the Cars Direct agent is shopping and haggling for me (to meet my price). There is no fee involved but I believe the agent will earn commision from the dealer and Cars Direct.com
It appears this December to Remember is nothing but a scam to get folks in the showrooms. The prices do not appear to have move substantially.
All this December to Remember attraction is that dealers just cut off some of the dickering room from the top of the MSRP.
Having said that, factory invoice (or close to it) is still the goal of the game for now.
Belly up now and get the car, or wait till later maybe pay less. It's up to you when, where and how much.
Enjoy the car.
Now I gotta decide whether to pay $2,000 for the body damage on my car (new front bumper cover and passenger door dent of which I collected $1,200 insurance from the parking garage for the door) and try to sell on my own, which I have always donem but it has been more difficult the last couple of cars, or just trade it in and avoid the headache, or fix it and trade it in.
I still think the last week of the year will even be a bit better, a couple of hundred less than invoice, maybe? I think so. Remember, they might not have the exact color and options if you wait till the very end. If you can be flexible on all this then you get probably get the best price. You have to weigh out a few hundred dollars for what you absolutley want versus accepting to what is available at the time.
Is this a good deal?
Thanks.
And oh, is that a 2008 model? Premium Plus with nav is exactly what I am going after! Thanks in advance for the info!
Ultra Luxury package and traded a car since they didn't have the color combo I want. As long as it drives ok on the test drive (worried about the transmission flares), I'm gonna purchase it tomorrow.
Price I paid for ES 350 Lexus in Dallas
Bought on 07-28-2007
I paid $34,500.00 for my ES 350 at Sewell Lexus Dallas. The only thing it did not have is Navigation, High Intensity Headlamps, Mark Levinson Audio, Park Assist, Panoramic Sun Roof and Chrome Wheels.
Sewell wanted $1,700 for Chrome wheels; I got the same wheels for $750 shipped to my door from L.A. Wheel and Tire.
My experience with Sewell was absolutely wonderful; I did all my negotiating by e-mail with both Park Place Lexus Grapevine and Sewell Lexus of Dallas. Park Place also offered me the same price of $34,500.00 but did not include Window tint, Hand painted pin stripes and All weather floor mats. Park Place did include the plastic stone chip hood protector though, Sewell did not.
E-mail me if you want the sales managers name, he was fantastic, it only took one hour to sign all paper work and purchase the car. My interest rate with Lexus was 5.99%.
Things I don’t like about the car so far: Engineer who designed interior lights should be fired (Cannot see a thing, very dim), driver side Ventilated front seat works better than passenger side, ceiling is a little low, not much head room (I am only 5’-10”). Other than that I love the car, my previous car was a 2000 E320 Mercedes.
Package I – “Premium” - $38,157
- Premium leather trim interior with real wood accents
- Heated and Ventilated front seats
- Driver memory: Seat, Steering Wheel, Outside Mirrors
- Power Tilt and Telescoping Steering Wheel
- Bluetooth Compatibility
- 6 Disc, Single feed in dash CD player in the console
- Rain-sensing Wipers
- Driver Seat Extender
- Carpet Cargo Mat
- Wheel Locks
- Power Rear Sun Shade
- Body Side Moldings
- Smart Key
They also threw in the following:
- Window Tint
- Rear Spoiler
- Hand Painted Pin Stripes
- All Weather Floor Mats
Total list price of car was $39,100.00 .I only paid $34,500.00.
Sale Price - $34,500.00
Sales Tax - $2,156.25
Dealer's Inv. Tax - $80.07
Documentary Fee - $50.00
Deputy Fee - $5.00
License, Trans, Title - $103.80
Inspection - $23.75
Sub-Total - $36,918.87
Good Luck, John
E-mail – jm_proe@yahoo.com
P.S. I followed this web-sight in buying a car and it absolutely works: How to save money buying a new car in 5 quick steps.
http://www.carbuyingtips.com/buyingnewcar.htm
The key is to get an internet quote from the Dealer through Kelly Blue book or Nada.com, this will cut out the middle man (the salesman) and you will save by not paying commission to the salesman. Internet price will always be far less than walking through the door and getting a price.
Right now, you can get the car you want at invoice and 5.59% APR for 60 months and this offer ends on 01/02/08. Also, check to see which options you need and which you don't because options means more luxury and money for you but more profit for the factory. Also, better to have your numbers ready before you talk to the salesman by browsing thru the sites mentioned by clutchless1. Good Luck!!!
I was quoted by Lexus of Westminster (the O.C.) in early December for 2008 ES with premium plus package, navigation, rear seat side air bag, power rear sunshade, full size spare, HID lamp, wood and leather steering wheel & shift knob for $36,100 plus tax, dmv license, tire fee, and dealer doc. fee ($55). Destination is included.
I did not buy from them, however, as I bought the same car with all options above plus rear spoiler for $36,300 from a local dealer (Longo Lexus).
I'm not that good at bargaining so am interested in what pointers you guys can give me. Thank you and Happy holidays to all.
The negotiated price includes the destination fee (around $750). So when I agreed to a price of $36,300, it means $35,550 for the car plus the destination fee. Dealer doc fee is always added to the purchase contract regardless of make and model ($55 in California).
Yes, I got it below invoice basically if you configure the vehicle with the options mentioned. The final price is the negotiated price plus tax, dmv registration, doc fee and tire fee. That's it.
What a great deal!!!!