Edmunds dealer partner, Bayway Leasing, is now offering transparent lease deals via these forums. Click here to see May lease deals!
Options
Popular New Cars
Popular Used Sedans
Popular Used SUVs
Popular Used Pickup Trucks
Popular Used Hatchbacks
Popular Used Minivans
Popular Used Coupes
Popular Used Wagons
Comments
NOTE NOTE NOTE - the prices quoted at the manu site are all listed at MSRP - you should not be thinking of paying anywhere near that!!
Do the research first, use Edmunds to determine the TMV selling prices in your area, then go visit your local dealers and find out who is competitive. Decide what you want and what you are willing to pay before you negotiate with anyone. Only after you determine what is considered a good deal in your area, can you tell whether a better deal is available elsewhere.
DON'T go driving 3 hours just on a whim (or a promise in a radio ad) until you are armed with good data. Otherwise, you are at 2 disadvantages: (1) after investing time and effort to get there, you may be too willing to talk yourself into believing something to convince yourself it was all worthwhile. (2) You may get a lot of pressure to make a deal that's "only good for today" because they know that once you leave, you probably won't be back.
There's plenty more good advice online - get educated before you buy - and don't rule out anything. Last summer, there were a number of reports on the Honda Odyssey board from people who flew from Phoenix to Houston to pick up their Ody - and reported saving $$1000's even after paying one-way airfare!
As for negotiating, I always (for 5 vehicles since 1990) start with invoice and work up from there. I figure what I think is a reasonable profit for the dealers effort relative to what the market is offering. With this Quest purchase, I used Carmax as a baseline (they are offering invoice price) and settled on $500 over invoice. I read quest123k got $200 over invoice so you can see where the market is. Tell the sales guy you've read up on invoice and market price so they don't give you the old-fashioned sales pitch.
One vehicle I bought 300 miles away because he was willing to deal and my local dealer was clueless. But my 3 recent vehicles (2 Maximas and this Quest) I bought from my local Binghamton guy because he understood my position and didn't haggle.
To get to this price, I contacted dealers within 100 miles. I used various methods including on-line services, email direct to dealers, and direct phone calls. Through follow-up phone calls, I quickly narrowed the list down to those dealers who were serious about selling a van.
I ended up with a little more than an hour drive to Greenville, SC but saved close to $500 by doing so. The dealer is Crown Nissan for those who are in that area. They have only been open a month but their processes were fairly smooth and I suspect will get even better.
I also ended up with the 1.9% financing deal for 5 years. Can't beat that rate.
Anyway back to you....while I was shopping on the net I came about a website (CARMAX.com) that's in the DC/Baltimore area that's selling vehicles under invoice!!! I live in CT and I was actually thinking of flying down there one way to pick it up... fees were only about $125 too!
If they don't have it in stock they said they can order and get it w/in a week!
Good Luck!
I'm in the North Bay of California and paid 27250 which is right at or below invoice (w/DVD). Used the carsdirect.com price as a baseline and the dealer didn't even flinch. He actually went down from that price. So... I'm pretty happy.
I traded two cars, 2001 Malibu LS (35,500 miles and in the middle of a 5 yr. loan) and a 1996 Ford explorer (V8 with 146,300 miles and a badly dented tailgate). They gave me $8100 for the Malibe LS which was a gift considering Kelly Blue book had the trade in value at $6,600 and $1500 for the Explorer "as-is". Plus they discounted the car $1900. The trade took care of my payoff which accomplished what I wanted One car payment. Now I have to buy my buddy's car to get me through the next couple of years.
Overall a very good experieince. I purchased from Cooper Nissan of Lehigh Valley (Easton, PA). They are looking to move cars there. Let me know if anyone int he area is looking and I can pass on a terrific salesman to you. Very low key, no pressure.
I'd like to thank everyone who shared their experiences here and in the Problems board, especially the prolific "regulars." I read the discussions here pretty religiously before buying, and feel like it made me a much more savvy shopper. We narrowed it down to the Ody and the Quest; I was leaning toward the Honda as the more conservative choice, but my wife fell in love with the nontraditional styling of the Quest. Reading about some of issues on the Problems board spooked me a little, but I convinced myself that most of the problems experienced were cosmetic (rattles), and that the number of postings wasn't indicative of an inordinate number of problems (more likely, the large number of people who are NOT having problems don't post on the Problems board - duh).
Anyway, we went ahead and got the Quest, and at 1000 miles now are very happy with it (no rattles either). Our only complaint is that it's a tight squeeze getting into the garage, but we expected that before we bought it. Nothing exciting to report about our buying experience, mostly because I'm lucky enough to qualify for the VPP program through my employer. The sales guy was funny when I mentioned VPP to him after the test drive when it was apparent that we were seriously interested. He joked that we wouldn't get to do any of the fun part (negotiating).
The one significant thing that I wanted to share is that I went back today to buy the extended warranty and got some potentially useful info. I reviewed the previous postings here to get an idea of what others were paying. I should mention up front that I'm a notoriously bad negotiator - confrontation isn't my thing. So, I walked into the dealer expecting some pain, but walked out less than 10 mins later completely satisfied.
I told the very pleasant F&I person that I had bought the car earlier this month, that I had been shopping around on warranties, and wanted to compare the plans she had to offer. She went and got "the book" and showed me what the dealer's cost was for the various plans, and then said she'd need to make a little money on whatever I chose. I scribbled down a couple of the numbers (dealer's cost):
Gold Preferred 84/100k $0 deductible - $1328
Gold Preferred 84/100k $50 deductible - $1063
She offered me the Gold Preferred 84/100k with $50 deductible for $1095 + 4.5% VA sales tax. She offered the $0 deductible for $1350. This seemed to be a good deal to me compared to what others had reported of prices in the $1300 range. She said she was giving me a deal because I bought the car from them and then came back to them for the warranty. I don't know if today being 12/31 (last day of the month, last day of the year) had anything to do with it, but I did shop today intentionally. I was comfortable with quote she gave me, so I didn't quibble and went with $50 ded. for $1095 (I did mention that I'm not much of a negotiator).
The dealer is Brown's Sterling Nissan in northern VA. All my experiences with them have been positive; I'd recommend them to anyone in the area. I forgot to mention that they were able to locate a Smoke SE for us within 24 hours, which appears to have been a bit of a feat given the popularity of this color/model combination.
Anyway, I hope this helps someone.
Happy New Year!
Has the 2004 models for Quest come out yet?
If so, how long has the 2004 Quest been out?
If not, when does it come out?
I purchased mine last Tuesday. Thought I had the rattling problem but it turned out to be my son's car seat. Lov the space and the ride. The engine moves the vehicle effortlessly.
From what I can tell, there is the leaking skyroof and the creaky door. Anything else?
Its more that I would want to know what else to look for in the car when ( and if ) I get the Quest.
Also, when does the 2005 model come out?
Options: DVD (single), NAV system, Seat Package, floor mats, splash guards, and cargo cover (not including taxes, title, and tags):
MSRP: $37,320
Invoice: $34,006
UBS delivered price: $34,166
Other available options, some of which I selected:
Appearance package (from dealer) including wheel locks, pin striping, and door edge guards: $428
Exterior paint sealant, leather sealant, and undercoating: $599
Protection Gold Plus Plan: 6 years/75,000 miles: $909
Lojack System with Early Warning option: $995
I am picking up the vehicle tomorrow and will report my driving experience in one of other Quest forums.
I had a good buying experience at this dealership and would recommend them.
Curious about the pinstriping ... Could you give us more details?
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<HALEY- >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>&- gt;>>
The reason I had to order the SE is because to get the UBS pricing I had to special order it from the factory and NOT from the dealer's stock. I could have got the UBS pricing on an in-stock S or SL but I wanted the SE and was willing to wait the 3 months.
"Curious about the pinstriping ... Could you give us more details?"
In this case, pinstriping consisted of dual contrasting color (in my case, gold stripes on autumn red body) running the entire length of the Quest on each side. Not needed of course, but looks pretty cool!
thanks.
So I went to another dealer and for the same 48 month one pay lease he offered $17,000 less $2,500 for my trade in so I jumped on it.
My total cash outlay was $14,500 for a 48 month lease with a Purchase option of $14,400 at lease end.
I hope I made a good decision.
Bob
A few things I learned when looking to trade-in that car: a) dealers are reluctant to take the Montero because Mitsubishi has been greatly discounting new ones (and offering crazy financing), making used ones less desirable, b) depends on where you live regarding marketability. I live in an area of CT where most people are less likely to buy a used Montero -- they'd be more apt to buy a used Lexus or Land Rover for an SUV. I ultimately went outside my immediate area where I think my car was a bit more desirable.
If you check out Kelley Blue Book (www.kbb.com -- however, most dealers use a resource called Galves because it is lower), you will find your car is probably worth between 12,500 and 13,300 as a trade depending on it's condition. Good news for you -- winter time = higher demand for 4WD.
Hope this helps! Good luck.
Unless they need a high value to show to the bank to float a big loan for a buyer, in which case they grab the book in the other drawer.
What is the "Kelley Blue Book" Price?
Steve, Host
Yeah, I forget I'm preaching to the choir sometimes. If y'all weren't educated consumers, you wouldn't be here.
Live by the book, die by the book.
I think whatever the TMV says is golden. And hopefully you beat that :-)
Steve, Host
The dealer I was working with said that they would beat any deal. But, when it came down to it they changed their toon. Then they started to lay on the guilt about how we test drove their vehicle and kept them late a couple nights. Then they started to lie about things. Said Carmax charged $400 to sell them your car. I called them, they don't charge a dime. Anyway, we bolted out of there as fast as we could.
We had a fantastic experience from the dealer we purchased from. They didn't play any games and evey other dealer I called said that there was no way they were going to honor what they quoted. Well, they did.
I got the loaded SE (which, by the way, they had to get from another dealer. There was only 1 in my area that was the correct color / option combination.)for $573 below invoice. I paid $33,800 plus 5% tax and $107 to transfer my tags. PERIOD! Nothing else! I financed for 5 years at 1.9%. They also gave me $100 more than the highest quote I got on my trade. They are no-nonsense. I would recommend them to anyone.
In fact, we are going back Monday night to buy a SL Altima, also below invoice! Can't pass it up at .9% interest and below invoice!
anyway, I was offered 1.9 APR for 60 months as well. so the prices are coming down and I could have gotten this van for under 30 for sure, if I wanted. I was not sure abt the edmunds price, so did not make any offers also. but I like Odyssey better, so anyway, was not too interested in negotiating.....
Also, the saleman, could not show us how to fold the middle row seats and open it up and also some of the functions on the dashboard.
Clearly, you should buy a different brand of van. That's OK. Different strokes for different folks. They are all excellent choices, and the Quests will all find loving homes, I'm sure. So just buy the one you love, so there will be no regrets, and inordinant faultfinding later.
if you went to carmax, I'm close to your area. if you don't mind sharing the dealer you purchased from we'd might give them a try.
I tried carmax, the price on the new van is great, but the trade-in on my existing car wasn't even valued at fair according to kbb.
thanks.
homer
We started dealing with Frederick Nissan, formerly Jenkins, but they refused to match price even thought we told them we WANTED to buy from them. Once we told them we were buying from Rockville if they couldn't match the price, they started with a guilt trip. That put the last nail in their coffin. I would not recommend them!
Why then does Edmunds TMV show actual prices at about 99% of MSRP, or $3000+ over invoice.
What am I missing? Is the TMV calculation not accurate, or are there so few people making good deals that the TMV data washes out the small number of good deals?
Anyone from the Houston area with a positive dealer experience?
Guff
Town Hall members are so exceptionally well educated in the ins and outs of car buying that they consistently beat the average.
And my tongue is only half in cheek!
Steve, Host
So.....I guess my question was not well considered, and the tongue half in cheek comment is correct - while TMV may show actual pricing, the folks here are beating that down to +/- invoice. Now to get one of the dealers to follow thru on their internet promises - but with 4 to play off each other it should work well.
Thanks.
I won't be able to buy until first week in february and I hate to lose the 1.9% by a couple of days....thanks in advance
You might ask the dealer if you can lock in the rate now (with a deposit maybe?) and close after it expires. The lender probably doesn't permit it but it doesn't cost anything to ask.
Steve, Host
With taxes, tags, and (destination and doc) fees they want me to pay $1200...is this reasonable?
I live in Hampton Roads as well and wanted to know if he found someone to deal with that was reasonable around here.
Anyway to email him?
The idea is you don't care what the doc fee is so long as you still write the check for the van for your bottom line price. Let the dealer worry about how to allocate the money you are going to give them.
And there's no way to email another member when their address isn't marked public in their profile. Maybe Ravi will see your post though.
Steve, Host
Paid in cash so there was no bank finders fee for them as well. I will say the design is a good one, better then Honda and Toyota we have had quite a few eletrical problems; Sliding door required a rplacment of latch mechanism and the overhead console switches had to be replaced as well as the entire radio. After replacing the radio the unit quit again. We will be "dealing" with Customer Affairs and service again tomorrow. One more radio failure and the car qualifies as a NJ Lemon. Be warned I have read of many cases of door failures (NHTSA and bulletin boards) and this is a serious issue. More important then Radio, wipers and leaking sun roof.
There is a thread running through these boards that these issues should be [almost] accepted with a new line of cars, but that is just consumer ignorance. No car should have major defects like that in any year. Manuf have wind tunnels and cold rooms so they can pout these cars through the same environemntal hazards we all face.