Lexus RX 330 Prices Paid and Buying Experience

fsc1555 · November 2003

thanks for the info - it sure helps.

lexus022 · November 2003

Today i just bought a Silver RX330 with Navigation System/Mark Levinson Audio Package, Rear seat entertainment system, 18" rims, heated front seats, rain sensor wipers, head lamp washers, wheel locks, and cargo mat. MSRP $45,298, but i paid $41,000! Over $4000 off MSRP! I also got a great deal on the extended warranty. I got 100,000mi/7yr Platinum extend warranty with $0 deductible & LoJack system for about $2000. I love my new car and most of all I love the deal i got.

myk_a · November 2003

That's so GREAT! Congratulations! Did you get AWD?

s852 · November 2003

The dealer still made out since they got the profits from the $2000 extended warranty, plus any trade you may have had.

finch3 · November 2003

Anyone make a good deal in the Atlanta or Raleigh area?

nicolosi1 · November 2003

has anyone purchased a rx330 with the premium plus package , wood trim at either ray catena or difeo lexus? if so what was the best price you reached with the dealership? thanks for any input
also i will be trading in my 1999 GS 300 i was offered $20,000 for my trade in i have 47,000 miles approx and is in mint condition. any trade in offers made by others?

timhayden · November 2003

I just ordered a fwd RX 330 with premium plus package,heated seats, 18" wheels, rain sensing wipers,cargo mats and wheel locks. List was $40,128 and could only get him $1200 off list and I've been working on it for 4 weeks now. However he did give me $3000-4000 more for my '01 Acura MDX than the other dealers in TN (This one is in Memphis). I don't think they're giving the discounts here they are in Texas or California. But I still feel good about the deal and really look forward to delivery. My only reservation is that it is going to be a Canadian car. Any thoughts about quality vs a Japanese car?

myk_a · November 2003

Hi Christine, see my previous post (#425 page 22)for details. Also check out Edmund's TMV and www.kbb.com's Pricing to see how much the going market rate is for your zip. Both can show you values for the new RX330 and your trade-in. If you'd like more details on where I got my RX330, please email me at mykrx330@yahoo.com. Good luck!

fsc1555 · November 2003

3000-4000 more for ur acura - is that 3000 - 4000 more than the blue book value?
Im getting at least 3200 off for premium plus (40,128)and was able to negotiate almost 3500 off for my friend's 42,380 with nav and rear camera.
they are not giving me much with my C280 but still on negotiation with them for the trade in.
thanks

nicolosi1 · November 2003

Thank you for the input of what others are being offered on trade ins and options avialable with purchase prices. Still looking for the best buy

timhayden · November 2003

kbb was $21plus for my Acura 01 MDX and that's what most were offering me. But Edmumds, black book and NADA were 25,400 to 26,700 and I gave them copies of those 3 and said I thought kbb was a lowball figure. They are giving me $25,000.

stever · November 2003

This article may be enlightening:

What is the "Kelley Blue Book" Price?

Steve, Host

fsc1555 · November 2003

thanks for the info. I did the same thing - I showed them the 3 figures from kbb, edmunds and NADA.
Thanks

fsc1555 · November 2003

whats is the black book? how can i access used car info from the black book? thanks

stever · November 2003

There are a bunch of books. Galves, NADA, Kelley, Edmunds, etc. I forget which one is black.

And of course, some publishers have editions for dealers and editions for consumers. Not us :-)

Steve, Host

fsc1555 · November 2003

thanks steve.

timhayden · November 2003

Black book value can be accessed through Cars.com.

stever · November 2003

hmmm, Click and Clack live in Boston, so I'm guessing that the black book is the same as Galves then? Galves seems big in the East but not common elsewhere I guess.

Those interested in the books (live by the book, die by the book) should check out Real-World Trade-In Values. Terry and the other dealers in there are the book (and they hit the auto auctions all the time).

Steve, Host

lehighlexus · November 2003

Is a little black book, and it is called Black Book. Not the same as Galves. Galves is big because the prices are determined on what the vehicles are trading at. Don't go to NADA for trade in prices. You are just going to let yourself down. The numbers in there are used mainly for insurance companies for totalled vehicles etc. They are usually much higher than you would get as trade in

docdds · November 2003

am being offered 559/month for 36 months 12k miles year on a white rx 330.
out of pocket is 1462, which includes 1st month, MV fees, bank fee(bogus fee), documentation fee(bogus fee)
or 582.00 for 15k miles
This is over 100 more per month than my rx 300 lease from 2000!
Any suggestions? Any other deals out there

myk_a · November 2003

For the 39k, which options does it include?

docdds · November 2003

This was with the premium package
Did you buy/lease? What dealer. I got this from DIfeo> What do you think about the lease vs purchase

jeffmust2 · November 2003

a. What's the MSRP or sticker price
b. What's the lease capitalization or cap price
c. What's the money factor (interest rate on a lease)
d. What's the residual amount when the lease ends
e. Is the lease paperwork through Lexus/Toyota Motor Credit Corp (TMCC)?

This is the information required to know what kind of deal you are getting. Your sales rep should be more than willing to get you answers to these questions.

docdds · November 2003

i have some of that, i will get it monday and post it

lehighlexus · November 2003

the doc. and bank acq. fee as bogus. I'm suprised you didn't put the tax and mv fees as bogus too. For that matter, why not put paying for the car at all bogus. And is the 559 + tax? Sounds like a good deal though.

doctord13 · November 2003

Finally decided after much to do that the RX 330 was the best out there - was going to wait to check out the BMW X3, but wont be available until after 2/1 - so whats the point!

Has anyone seen/bought the multipanel roof package - have not seen any posts, and not normally the way our dealer gets them in, but looks intriguing - anyone know the scoop?? I would prefer no roof rack (who really climbs up there anyway), and like the idea of the open air!

docdds · November 2003

559 includes tax-on my rx 300 (2000), 39 months i pay 467 inc tax-no money down on both

lehighlexus · November 2003

I'd go with it. And you have to remember that this is the first year of the new redesign, whereas your 2000 was not. Plus the good old fashioned inflation. Thank Uncle Sam for that

docdds · November 2003

Yeah, but the msrp is the same-so consumer suffers again-in my eyes it is better to buy than-paying one hundred more per month on the same msrpfor a lease is just not right!

lehighlexus · November 2003

If you have the means to purchase it outright, that is the best way to do it. The 100 a month is the bank's wallet getting fatter. With interest, bank fee, etc., it's easy to see why purchasing would be better than leasing

jeffmust2 · November 2003

MSRP on a lease calculates into the residual value which is only part of your deal since it represents the depreciated vehicle value after the lease term expires.

Cap cost (selling price) and money factor/interest rate are of equal or more importance. What are they?

If the deal is going thru Toyota Motor Credit
Corp (TMCC), then your MSRP, residual value, and money factor are fixed by them on the RX330 (unless the dealer has added some options).

So all that's left to negotiate is the actual selling price or "cap" cost. This is where most folks fail to get a good deal because they have no clue as to how their lease payments are calculated. I'll bet that more leases are written near or at MSRP than non-lease deals.

lehighlexus · November 2003

There is no need to do the extra work. You are getting an excellent deal. This coming from a different dealer

jeffmust2 · November 2003

No, not really an excellent deal; an ok deal.
Unless I have your figures wrong...

$39k msrp
15,000 miles a year
36 month term - thru Toyota Credit?
Cash for first month, lic, misc - $1450
$582 per month x 35 months
Note: If $582 includes your sales tax the price is ok; if it doesn't, the price is lousy.

Figures from my 2004 RX330 lease in Aug04... (FWD, Nav, Premium Plus, chrome rims). Payments are the same as my previous '01 RX300, primarily due to the lower interest rates:

$41k msrp
15,000 miles a year
36 month term thru TMCC
Cash for first month, lic, misc - $1500
$512 per month x 35 months (without sales tax)

I don't think money factors have changed that much in the last 3 months - but you do live in a different area of the country and that is a factor in the cap cost.

docdds · November 2003

1. jeff: it does include tax, yours is fwd, which costs less yes tmcc lease company
2. the residual is always off of the msrp, but the key is, yes, the cap cost, which on this car is 39,000. so on a 36/mo lease the residual is 56% for 36/mo 15k here in nj=23,345.28-39,000=so leasing 15,654.72 for 36 months.
so payment is 434.85+interest(118.45)+(33.20)6%tax
total payment=586.50,dealer is quoting 582.00
only way to lower it would be cap cost reduction
the cap cost (dealer reduction) on my 2000 rx was significant

jeffmust2 · November 2003

MSRP is MSRP - and whether the vehicle is AWD or FWD with Nav (like my RX330) doesn't really matter in a lease (except some leassors have slightly different residual factors for AWD vs. RWD, Nav vs. non-Nav).

I assume your AWD has the Premium package and has a factory sticker of approx $41,530. That's the lowest AWD MSRP with destination/freight currently shown by the Lexus website for a NJ zip code.

If that's accurate, then a residual of $23,345 is 56% of MSRP as you suggest.

At a cap cost of $39,000, that's $2,530 off sticker, an average deal in Los Angeles but perhaps a good deal in NJ.

Your interest of $118.45 reveals a money factor of .0019 (based on the total of residual + cap or $62,345 x .0019 = $118.45), the same as an interest rate of 4.56%. Certainly nothing to complain about there.

Enjoy your new RX330!

lehighlexus · November 2003

And they do have different residuals for nav, non-nav cars. $2600 of is a great deal for NJ. I'm in PA, and the cars are going for alot more than that. And what I would do is take the order, cause I don't believe you will get until next month. And I am sure they will go fast

jerlf55 · November 2003

Hi everyone. I have a 2000 RX300 that I've been looking to trade. Did an email blast and responded first to my local dealer here in Tampa, Fl. Was advised that they would give 2000 off any 2004 RX300. They valued my trade - 29,500 miles silver w/leather, sunroof, cd (basic 2000 model) at 21,000. For non-Nav, I'm looking at around 30,500. With Nav, 34,800 due to current packaging, including heated seat which I don't want. Doesn't this seem a bit high? After meeting the internet salesman to give me a price on my trade-in, I did advise that I was checking with other 'non-local' Lexus dealerships. He then went into a spiel about ' if it's a lemon, not that it would be, you would have to take it to the dealership you bought if from. And if you don't buy here and need to bring it in, OUR customers come first.' I checked where I work (a large corporate center with many businesses) it seems this dealership has lost several repeat buyers due to this philosophy. Thoughts anyone?

lehighlexus · November 2003

We have valet service though, so it might be a little different.

morgan43 · November 2003

Has anybody seen the RX 330 in Black Forest Pearl?

Any opinions on that color choice? Is it rare to find because they do not make many in that color or is it because most people do not like it?

Help I am about to order it? My second choice is Black

lovemylexus1 · November 2003

You raise an interesting point on dealers. I could only buy my Lexus at one dealer because the next closest one is nearly 250 miles away. My dealership offers valet service and that's important since I live 40 miles from the dealer as it is. I could have gotten a much better deal in Chicago in terms of price but then my local Lexus dealer wouldn't do the valet pick-up. Honestly, I think this sucks. I expect valet service when I pay $40,000 or more for a vehicle. What happens if I have to relocate in a year? Will my new Lexus dealer refuse to offer me valet or even worse, not work on the car because I didn't buy it there?

I read an article not long ago that Lexus USA is working to beef up dealer service across the country. Lexus has basically admitted it doesn't have all of the service bays needed to service all of the cars they sell. I am hopeful the extra attention on service will benefit all Lexus buyers in the future.

lovemylexus1 · November 2003

I test drove a Black Forest Pearl. It is a REALLY dark green. In fact, from a distance it looks black...hence the name. In bright sunlight I couldn't tell the RX had a hint of green until I was standing next to it. If you want something more than just a basic black, Black Forest Pearl isn't a bad option. I have no idea how hard it is to find.

I personally, however, don't tend to like dark colors so I bought Bamboo Pearl. And I must tell you it was very hard to get Bamboo Pearl when I bought mine in late August.

Hope this helps.

morgan43 · November 2003

Thanks that helps alot. I prefer it to look almost black. I wish the dealer had better color swatches!

Back here in the norteast-we have only one dealership in little RI. That is alot of $$$ to pay for a bad color. But the dealer said if we didn't like it he could sell it.

This is my first Lexus!

johnnieliu · November 2003

My wife and I have this color RX330. The color changes depending on the lighting condition. Sometimes it looks like flint mica; in very dim light, it looks black. The green, IMO, looks blueish-gray. Up close, it does have the multicolored-speckles like the flint mica.

We also considered Bamboo Pearl, but we didn't like the light colored exterior next to the light colored(Ivory) interior. Since we prefered a light colored interior, we wanted a contrasting dark colored exterior. I wanted black, my wife wanted flint mica. Since flint mica didn't come with the ivory interior, that color was dropped from the list. We didn't want a blue car(althought the breakwater blue with gray interior is NICE), so we dropped neptune blue from the list. Thus we picked black forrest pearl. We had a really hard time finding black forrest pearl. Our sales rep mentioned that Lexus didn't make that many cars in black forrest pearl nor neptune blue, and that Lexus might discontinue these 2 colors.

myk_a · November 2003

johnnie.. you are right... I parked alongside another RX330 with black forest pearl. At first glance it kinda looked like flint mica. But once you look at it the colors show - esp. in bright sunlight.

We wanted white with black interior but the RX didn't come in that combination. I almost got the black forest pearl but my wife didn't like that shade of green (very dark). So we opted for the flint mica with black interior.

At the dealership, if you take the color (painted on metal) swatch under noon-time sunlight (on a clear day), you'll see the difference in each color & how they react to light. Did the same thing by night fall under incandesant light. This was what we did when shopping for colors. No regrets.

tailhook2003 · November 2003

If anyone is interested in FLA dealer pricing, I just picked up an RX-330 fwd /Prem. pkg. (power rear door,sensory wipers,wood wheel/knob. locks and cargo mat). Price was $3000 off list and no $699 prep. fee. Total out the door $38342 (incl. tax,title and registration).The dealer is County Line Lexus of Hollywood Fl.They gave me the lowest price of 5 or 6 dealers which I e-mailed. No haggling and the car was in w/in 2 weeks.

vetpathologist · November 2003

What is the best price readers of this board have gotten for a 330 with RES and NAV. There is only one dealer in the triangle area, and he pretty much controls the market in this region and does not budge on the price!!

jeffmust2 · November 2003

If you can get over having a RX330 shipped to you from So. CA, you could probably do a lot better on pricing.

The AWD RX330 with Nav and RES stickers at $45k give or take (depends on other options) and Edmunds has the invoice at $39k.

You can find a dealer in So. CA that will sell it to you at no more than $1000-1250 over invoice; figure another $1000 (or less) for shipment to your door...and you're at the mid $41k level delivered before any taxes (paid to NC), lic tags, etc.

And your local sales rep at the dealer might not be happy about losing a sale but the Service Mgr. there will be happy to have another warranty customer for 4 yrs/50k miles. I went through the internet department at Lexus of Riverside (just east of L.A.) and got a great deal for my 2nd RX procured from them in the last 3 years - and my local dealer, 80 miles from Riverside, loves my service business. Well, perhaps "loves" is too strong a word...they certainly never give me any grief about an appointment.

Good luck!

lehighlexus · November 2003

Number one- you might lose out on valet/loaner car.
Number two- they may not be too receptive to working on your car. ie. "Our" customers come first

I work for a dealer, which we do not practice these (except for valet), but working here I know how some other dealers work.

jeffmust2 · November 2003

I've been in the computer business for over 30 years.

I thought IBM's "FUD" sales strategy (Fear-Uncertainty-Doubt) went out the door when companies finally decided is was acceptable NOT to buy from IBM in the mid 80s when the migration from mainframes to servers began.

Any Lexus dealer mistreating a Lexus owner should get immediately reported to Lexus Customer Service with a certified letter written to the highest-ranking exec you can locate in Torrance, CA, where they are HQed. Be sure to include the name of the sales or service rep that informed you of this dealer policy as well as their bosses' names. Also send a copy of your letter to the owner of the dealership so he/she can explain their Client Satisfaction Policy to Lexus corporate.

As for the bull about loaners...you can rent a lot of vehicles for $2000-3000, right? Sounds more like a Dodge dealer than a Lexus dealer if they pull that line. I've now had four Lexus vehicles, two RXs and two LS400s...and none have needed more than one unscheduled repair type visit to a dealer during or after warranty. None, by the way, were purchased from the dealer where I have warranty and non-warranty work performed.

If anything is true, it's that these vehicles represent the most reliable luxury marque in the world today - don't let a scare tactic like "we'll mess with you on post-sale service - so you damn well better buy locally" remove your rights as a consumer to get the best deal for your money.

Must be a Friday afternoon..!

lehighlexus · November 2003

I am just making a comment. I was noting that there are still some old-fashioned, greasy hair, know it all, wannabe in the 70's dealership employees that do that. And as much as you mock me for it, it happens. Seriously, what would "El Presidente" do? I work in Pennsylvania, so what would I care about a dealership elsewhere.

Lexus RX 330 Prices Paid and Buying Experience

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