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Honda Element Prices Paid and Buying Experience
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Comments
Bigandtall, your price doesn't sound so bad. I don't know how many dealers are in the Indianapolis area, but I doubt you could have done a whole lot better without having to travel or do an e-mail blitz or spend hours on the phone or at dealers. Don't sweat it.
The first is an 03 Element EX AWD Automatic. Brand new, only options added are mud guards/flaps and roof racks. Offered at $19,900. Color: orange.
The other is an 03 Element DX AWD Automatic. This model has air conditioning added, upgraded wheels, tinted windows, plastic window guards on the two front windows (keeps the rain off if you want to open the window, I am told)and mud guards/flaps. This vehicle is new, although it has 1,000 miles on it from test drives. Offered at $17,950. Color: my choice, black or silver
Are these good deals? They offered to reduce the price of the DX if I didn't want the fancy wheels. I have my own stereo system to put into the DX, but only the EX has Anti-lock brakes and the roof compartment.
It looks like I have seen one or two deals on this site that were better than these, but I am new to this site.
Any responses would be appreciated. Thanks.
that included tax, title, dmv fees, destination
splash guards
keyless
carpet mats
ashtray ( never got it installed i changed my mind)
cargo cover
seat back bungees
skylight shadescreen
free oil for 2 years/30K
And it came with 181 miles on it in the Washington DC area.
*Shrugs*
I did have a problem with a local dealer i went to first accusing me of making him my "santa claus" and then i went to the next dealer, told him everything i wanted and my range and had my car within 2 hours of paperwork and scheduling installation appointments.
I have though the last 30 days seen a few more willing to budge and random specials...
It's weird eh?
Enjoy it!
Steve, Host
Call it mid-life, call it fun, but I have fallen in love with a 2004 Element. How does this pricing sound? 2WD EX, Sunset Orange (no side air bags)Everything else standard with a 2004 EX. $19,106.28. Dealer says it is his cost. (This is without TTL)
If he wants you to pay 19,100, have him throw in some accessories.
I got a dealer guote of just under 18K drive out price for the LX 4wd with no additional options. The EX 4wd driveout price was almost 3K more. Should I bite the bullet on the LX with nothing or get the EX with all the standard options??
A local dealer also allowed me a 4 day test drive. Loved IT.............
Also, another Long Island dealer said he would sell the vehicle to me at THEIR invoice cost. Should that be any different than what is listed on Edmunds . . . .$20,213? And . . . to steer me away from the other offer noted above, he would include the following: 10 year / 100,000 mile extended gtee, Loaner Car when I'm in the shop, 40,000 mile Tune-up, Free Oil Changes (although I do not know for how long)? This too sounds pretty good. Any thoughts on this?
And lastly, for now, have dealers been known to include as freebies such things as mud flaps, roof rack, sun screen shade, bumper trim, rear air deflector?
I obviously want the best deal, but do not want to be completely unreasonable.
Thanks in advance
I just bought a green 2003 Element in the Atlanta area for a fantastic deal. It won't come w/out some work, but basically pulled out 18k on this EX AWD...and, this dealer pre-installs mudguards & the roof rack. I think there are only a handful of these 2003s around, however. Mine was manufactured in Dec 2003. I had a trade and insisted on atleast KBB trade-in value for it, although they initially offered much lower. I believe the best possible deal was made!
It looks like the invoice + destination charge is $18922, so I'm paying $264 below invoice currently. I think the dealer holdback is $537 and $200 for the dealer advertising fee. Assuming they have all of the holdback and I'm paying $264 less than invoice, they still get roughly $273 + the advertising fees = $473 out of the deal.
I bought an Element this week, pretty excited about it. Thanks for all the posts, they were helpful in my negotiations.
2004 4wd EX w/SAB, 5spd, + splash guards, in Nighthawk Black Pearl
bottom line:
price -- $19080
destination, tax, title, docs -- $1920
$21,000 out the door, at Howard Cooper Honda in Ann Arbor, MI.
I purchased a yakima roof rack from REI, they're having some good sales right now...definitely cheaper, higher load capacity, and more durable than the honda factory rack.
Here's the breakdown (perhaps not a good word to use on a car site . . . . but you know what I mean):
4WD EXS (side airbag), Automatic Trans., Orange (Including $490 Dest. Charge, yes . . .INCLUDING Dest. Charge): $19,500.
Installed Accessories (Roof Rack, Side Steps, All Weather Floor Mats, Mud Guards): $1,010.
TOTAL (excluding tax and DMV charges): $20,510.
I started my research exactly one week ago and became extremely knowledgeable thanks to sites like this and . . . I think . . . ended up with a great deal.
By the way . . . the included MP3 Jack is the greatest thing to be added to a car since air-conditioning! I know . . . its a small detail on such a cool vehicle, but my iPod sounds SO much better than it did in my JEEP when played through a cassette deck adapter. Truly a night and day difference.
Also . . . (one last rave for tonight), after much reading in discussion boards all over he net I found that the most practical accessories were the ones I ended up with (although there seems to be some feeling that you can get more functional and cheaper mud flaps in the after market). But even if not "essential" for you, my feeling is that these items truly "finish off" the Element's look without overdoing it (especially the Side Steps and Roof Rack).
I hope this post helps those still in the shopping or negotiation phase.
I then met with a different parts/service guy and had him give me his "Best" price for a wish list of accessories I might had wanted. His price was of course extremely high. I left the dealer and spent that night and the next day back on line and on the phone to many other dealers to find out their rates for the same accessories and installation. In essence, becoming as knowledgeable about accessories and installation rates as I felt I had become about the vehicle price. I'm sure it did not make the car sales guy feel good seeing me leave their dealership without actually knowing whether I was going to close the deal of cancel. This I felt gave me a little leverage.
Once I discovered what accessories I really wanted (roof rack, side step, mud flaps and all weather mats) I called the parts/service sales guy back and negotiated the price I was willing to pay (i.e. $1010 including parts and installation) and closed the deal. I was back at the dealer less than 24 hours later to bring the balance of the payment due and drove into the sunset with my new Sunset Organge Element.
While I can't say that my approach is the best or that it would work for everyone, I felt that it was all in all a rather painless process. The key to it all was my research and always keeping the negotiation civil and not antagonistic (that of course depends a lot on the person you happen to be sitting across the table from - I think I was lucky since everyone I dealt with was actually very nice and reasonable).
On the other hand I'm also sure they did not lose money on me!
Is there anyone out there with pricing experience for the Salt Lake City area? My wife and I considering the element to replace my '90 Range Rover as my daily driver. (The RR becomes the project vehicle.) Edmunds TMV price states that others in this area are paying $19,265 for an auto 4wd LX. Any help would be appreciated.
2 months ago...
Got my wife a 4WD EX Auto for almost #300 under invoice locally in
Raleigh area and was wondering what others may have negotiated for
on a 2WD LX 5-Speed, as I need one too!
Dealer I bought from via Internet has no inventory of 2WD LX 5-
speeds.
Best, fun, practical vehicle ever owned in 40 years of driving!
Goal is to get a 2WD LX 5-speed for $16k + TTL.
I can travel 2-3 hours for a deal, from central NC
Gary in Cary NC