Last December I worked a deal for '03 FX45 w/ Prem. for $39K. It was a good deal since Infiniti has some incentives at the time, but trade-in didn't work so i didn't buy.
I am close to selling my car so the trade-in isn't an issue any more.
The same dealer has some left now, but they claim there are no incentives for the '03 FX45's and can't get back to the 39K number.
Anyone have the scoop on '03 incentives. I can't find anything after researching several car sites.
check out Grubbs Infiniti's site. I think they are in Houston but they do internet deals. I've read some posts here that indicate that they typically have lots of stock and better deals than most. 39K is the best deal I've heard of however...you'll probably be hard pressed to match that even on an 03 45. Unfortunately, I paid top $ (54K) myself on a loaded 45Tech last June - there were no deals then.
Out of curiosity, I inquired about some leftover 2003 FX45s and it does seem that there are no incentives on it, currently. The dealership was only offering invoice on 2003 FX45s. What would be the point when one can get a 2004 model for not much more or the same price? The depreciation alone on a 2003 model would be at least a couple of thousand, if not more.
I think Grubbs Infiniti was able to sell all of their leftovers via a $10K across-the-board discount.
A contact at Grubbs did indicate that February is the last month that 2003 models can be leased out. By March, they can only be purchased. So, incentives may come up again next month?
I have been offered a price of $39,000 for a new 2004 FX 35 2 WD with Touring and Tech. Is this price reasonable or are there better deals out there. Thanks
For what it's worth, I just got my FX35 2WD Touring, but no Tech for $35,500 + TTL. Since there is only one Infiniti dealer in Las Vegas, it wasn't so bad of a deal.
i am about to purchase a used and unadvertised 03 FX35 rwd with premium pkg and 16k miles for $30k (the price of an awd murano!). does this seem like a decent deal? or might i find an awd FX35 for this price if i wait? also how much will it cost and where is the best place to have XM installed so that it works on the display in the car rather than an add on?
alternatively i can buy a never titled dealer demo 03 FX45 with 4k miles premium pkg and 20" chrome wheels for $39k. is it worth the extra 9k for awd and the v8?
or should i look for a used $27k murano awd save another 3k just and forget the FX?
i live in san diego - i'd classify that as a dry climate. so is the rwd good enough?
$41940 for an FX35 when you can get an 03 for FX45 for 39600 seems like a bad deal to me. in fact buying any FX new seems like a bad deal all around when you consider in a year your vehicle will be worth $10k less! sadly this is the nature of the car biz unless you buy a high demand low availability model like a mini cooper.
have you purchased yet? I know a while back you were leaning toward the bimmer but you are still here.
so_cali - drive both the 35 & 45, after I did it was a no-brainer cuz the power bug bit me. Also, the differences between rwd & awd aren't just bad weather performance. The intelligent awd adds performance & handling by sensing the situation and adjusting torque even on dry roads particularly in cornering.
Have not decided yet. Its either going to be a 4Runner V8 or a X5 4.4. My cancelled X 5 is due in shortly so I'll have to decide; performance (with poor reliability) vs rock solid reliability (with compromised performance).
Know someone who got, via my suggestion, a FX45 and likes it. I can't live with compromised rear vision.
the best vehicle I have owned was a 4Runner(not enough of a track record yet for my FX)....9 years and almost no problems. Not a performance vehicle as you noted though. I don't get the vision thing - maybe it's just what you're used to and an adjustment. Anyway, good luck with the choice - a couple of fine vehicles there. I don't buy the bad press Bangle is getting for his new bimmers. I drove the X5 when I bought my FX45 & that's a nice vehicle (just not as nice as the FX IMO).
I can deal with the impaired side vision with the mirrors but the narrow rear window restricts how much of the road behind me I can see and I will not be happy with it so restricted. I like to see way back so I know what is gaining on me.
FX is a great car, either edition. I regret that that one factor eliminates it.
....but that's ok. I just haven't experienced any restricted vision with either the mirrors or the rear vision in 8 mos & 22K with my 45 but if you do - it's a problem. Good luck with your choice.
In CT, got quote of 37780 on AWD touring (no sport or tech). I keep seeing people here paying only 500-1000 over invoice (which is 35541 with destination charge). Is this a lousy offer or fair in CT?
I just bought a diamond graphite/willow FX35 RWD-Sport+Tech+Touring (works to be $500 over invoice). The price with destination was $40,200 from from Grubbs Infiniti in Dallas. They ship anywhere in the country.
Got the bug last Turkey day while visiting Tucson. 3 weeks later I had an 04 FX35 AWD with everything but hitch and DVD(not included in 04 tech) for 600 dollars over invoice. I thought about waiting until January and the possibility of dealer incentives, as it seemed there were a bunch of 03's on the lots. But it got to the point that I wanted to be driving the car,and the possible payoff of saving a few bucks a month did not offset the desire to drive the car. I mean if your paying this much for a car what is a few extra bucks to be driving NOW?
Almost 3 months later I am glad I did not wait. Good thing about the transaction is I did it all online except for one test drive. So I did not worry about leaving that 3 hundred dollars or so on the table, maybe. I sent in for a quote and got the standard come and see us email. However I wrote him and told him specifically what I wanted and how much I would pay, based on Edmunds info of course, started at 250 over invoice. Wrote him and built a relationship with him online over a period of a couple of weeks or so while looking for the car with what I wanted and color. Instead of repeat visits and standing in the parking lot for a few hours. When he gave me the first price for a car similar to what I wanted I knew there was no reason to wait. Pulled up to Hoehn Infiniti,the car was waiting there ,45 minutes later we were out the door. That including time for the finance manager to finish her dinner. Dealers talk about selling cars online, but they just use it as a way to get you in the door and sitting down. You just need to find a sales person who recognize you are a serious buyer. Discover Infiniti here did not give me a realistic quote when I asked him to give me one online,they lost the deal. Their response was to come back in. It is a great and fun ride the FX35. The only drawback was the 35 hours it took to be able to clean my garage so I could park it inside. Doh! LOL Peace Jeff
not to rain on your parade and with appreciation that you have been able to drive your fx for a few months, the question becomes but how much has it been worth for that result?
last week i was offered a 4k mile dealer demo fx45 for less than you paid for your fx35, i would suspect. 39600 plust t&l including chrome wheels plus 0.9 financing for up to 60 months. this is a ten thousand dollar saving from msrp. so had you waited two months you could have saved a ton. i have seen 2 wheel drive fx35s with the premium pkg selling for 32k on ebay with 6k miles. so waiting for bargains and rebates or buying used and letting someone else take the depreciation hit would definitely save a shopper money.
i guess the point being that getting any new vehicle, even at dealer cost or below still equates to a big loss, fairly quickly.
>guess the point being that getting any new >vehicle, even at dealer cost or below still equates to a big loss, fairly quickly. >
I think you hit it right on the head. To buy used or new. For me, the extra 2k spent for new was something I was willing to pay for new and now. YMMV
Don't worry about raining on my parade. ; ) Here in Socal rain is always appreciated. AWD or not. So why are you still waiting to pull the trigger? 39,600 for a fx45 sounds like a good deal. I do think the new car payment motivated me to get out and make more than I would have saved. Plus my clients like the car. LOL Of course being self employed makes this easier to do than if your working for somebody and know what you will be making next week and next month. peace jeff
i'm in san diego too and work for myself so, besides taste in autos it sounds like we have a bit in common. i am down to the fx35 for $30k or a murano for $26k. as much as i'd like to step up to the fx45 my payment increases from $477 for the fx35 and even lower for the murano to at least $665 for the fx45. it just doesn't make sense to carry almost $200 more each month for a V8 and all wheel drive. maybe we can meet at mission bay park and check out each other's vehicles once i get mine. i should have one finalized by the weekend.
I am close to purchaseing an 04 FX35 AWD with Touring and Tech package, splash guards, cargo area protecotr, and Sunroof wind deflector. Dealer invoice on these items are $39,416. I would like to offer $40K even. Is this reasonable? Holdback is 1% of MSRP, so the dealer will be making over $1k.
Regarding your comment that "holdback is 1% of MSRP", please advise where you were able to obtain this information. Edmunds is not showing this information under their "incentives" category when pricing out an FX35. I used my Los Angeles area zip code, as well as a randomly selected Connecticut zip (to see if your home state offered different incentives than those here in California); all to no avail...
I'll be buying an '04 FX45 shortly, and want to make sure I haven't left any stones unturned regarding rebates, etc. Like your deal, I have a firm agreement for a $500 over invoice deal with the same dealer that got me my wife's G35 sedan last year (also for $500 over invoice).
Thank you for the Edmund's link. I guess I needed to do a little additional digging to find this information, as it does not readily appear under the "incentives & rebate" page.
Nevertheless, it definitely adds a different perspective to a "steal of a deal" in the form of $500 over invoice transaction.
Using an '04 FX45 as an example, the dealership stands to profit nearly $1250 from a straight invoice deal (1% X base MSRP of $44375 = $444 plus 2% of base invoice of $40144 = $803, totalling $1247). Add in the $500 over invoice component, and they stand to profit nearly $1800! This amount does not take into consideration any option packages or accessories (in which I plan to pay invoice amounts), nor the destination & handling fee (which appears to be non-negotiable).
The link makes it clear that a consumer should not use the holdback information as a bargaining chip. That being said, knowledge of holdback money can prove to be a prospective buyer's proverbial "ace card", especially when the dealership starts crying about not making any money on a proposed deal...
Finally, the information on the dealer holdback link is dated as of January 2004; can we assume that it is reflective of the current trends in national car sales and supply & demand issues? Do you know if manufacturers update their holdback percentages on a weekly / monthly / quarterly / annual basis?
It seems most any car (except for a handful of models) can be had for invoice or under right now - assuming there is a manufacturer to dealer holdback and/or floorplan (finance) payback in the equation (especially if you order and don't buy off the lot - invoice is the max you should be paying). And remember, there are always folks out there paying close to MSRP - if not MSRP. They subsidize those in the know...
Dealers are being forced to wheel and deal like never before!
Just to be clear, does the holdback percentages include option groups, such as the tech and touring, which in turn would mean more profit for the dealer or does holdback refer to the base models MSRP and invoice with no options?
just to let you know that i bought a 04 FX35 AWD about two weeks ago with tour and tech, splash guards, cargo area protector, sunroof wind deflector and roofrail cross bar for 39963.00 in sf bay area.
Nothing against your offer, but $5K off MSRP for 2003 models is not that great of a deal since those models already have a year's worth of depreciation. $5K off invoice sounds much better.
I don't know the ins and outs about holdback. I think it's figured on each individual car that hits the dealer's lot. I don't think the percentages get changed very often either. Any dealers lurking who can help out?
There are always hidden incentives and bonuses for the dealer in addition to holdback. I figure the dealer has to eat too so I don't worry too much about how much money I'm leaving on the table, so long as my deal isn't much worse than the next guys (and TMV is the number to shoot for and try to beat).
And the dealers generally make more money on used car sales and service than new car sales, so chances are there's not all that much grinder room on a new FX anyway. That said, I'd drive 50 miles to save two hundred bucks :-)
The info is from a reliable source. The marketing assessment (MA) on Infinitis can cause a lot of bad feelings with buyers, mainly because some websites(Edmunds included) don't include in it the invoice prices they publish. Hence , someone negotiating $500 over invoice would find, in California at least, the price over Edmunds invoice would be $900. Nissan performed a similar exercise last year.
I paid $400 ad fee for my FX35 - guess the cost is different from region to region and it is added on to the price . But all the dealers (not just Infiniti's) told me the internet invoice pricing (like Edmunds, KBB, etc) is NOT actually invoice because they all do not include advertising fee. That being said, the dealer was willing to show me the invoice on the FX35 I was interested (and purchased afterwards) which does include the $400 ad fee they mentioned.
Comments
Steve, Host
I am close to selling my car so the trade-in isn't an issue any more.
The same dealer has some left now, but they claim there are no incentives for the '03 FX45's and can't get back to the 39K number.
Anyone have the scoop on '03 incentives. I can't find anything after researching several car sites.
I think Grubbs Infiniti was able to sell all of their leftovers via a $10K across-the-board discount.
A contact at Grubbs did indicate that February is the last month that 2003 models can be leased out. By March, they can only be purchased. So, incentives may come up again next month?
For what it's worth, I just got my FX35 2WD Touring, but no Tech for $35,500 + TTL. Since there is only one Infiniti dealer in Las Vegas, it wasn't so bad of a deal.
alternatively i can buy a never titled dealer demo 03 FX45 with 4k miles premium pkg and 20" chrome wheels for $39k. is it worth the extra 9k for awd and the v8?
or should i look for a used $27k murano awd save another 3k just and forget the FX?
$41940 for an FX35 when you can get an 03 for FX45 for 39600 seems like a bad deal to me. in fact buying any FX new seems like a bad deal all around when you consider in a year your vehicle will be worth $10k less! sadly this is the nature of the car biz unless you buy a high demand low availability model like a mini cooper.
so_cali - drive both the 35 & 45, after I did it was a no-brainer cuz the power bug bit me. Also, the differences between rwd & awd aren't just bad weather performance. The intelligent awd adds performance & handling by sensing the situation and adjusting torque even on dry roads particularly in cornering.
Know someone who got, via my suggestion, a FX45 and likes it. I can't live with compromised rear vision.
FX is a great car, either edition. I regret that that one factor eliminates it.
MSRP 39495
Harte Disc -2600
Sales Price 36895
2004 FX35 AWD, with Touring.
I'd make an even lower offer, they might bite. Please post how it works out.
fx35 sport/touring/mudguards/protect pack/wheel locks, paid $500 over dealer cost, (really $675 over when charged for $175 dealer prep)
plus got 1.9% financing for 36 mo
It was last day of the month. I was told they have been averaging about $2500 over invoice
Almost 3 months later I am glad I did not wait. Good thing about the transaction is I did it all online except for one test drive. So I did not worry about leaving that 3 hundred dollars or so on the table, maybe. I sent in for a quote and got the standard come and see us email. However I wrote him and told him specifically what I wanted and how much I would pay, based on Edmunds info of course, started at 250 over invoice. Wrote him and built a relationship with him online over a period of a couple of weeks or so while looking for the car with what I wanted and color. Instead of repeat visits and standing in the parking lot for a few hours. When he gave me the first price for a car similar to what I wanted I knew there was no reason to wait. Pulled up to Hoehn Infiniti,the car was waiting there ,45 minutes later we were out the door. That including time for the finance manager to finish her dinner. Dealers talk about selling cars online, but they just use it as a way to get you in the door and sitting down. You just need to find a sales person who recognize you are a serious buyer. Discover Infiniti here did not give me a realistic quote when I asked him to give me one online,they lost the deal. Their response was to come back in. It is a great and fun ride the FX35. The only drawback was the 35 hours it took to be able to clean my garage so I could park it inside. Doh! LOL
Peace
Jeff
last week i was offered a 4k mile dealer demo fx45 for less than you paid for your fx35, i would suspect. 39600 plust t&l including chrome wheels plus 0.9 financing for up to 60 months. this is a ten thousand dollar saving from msrp. so had you waited two months you could have saved a ton. i have seen 2 wheel drive fx35s with the premium pkg selling for 32k on ebay with 6k miles. so waiting for bargains and rebates or buying used and letting someone else take the depreciation hit would definitely save a shopper money.
i guess the point being that getting any new vehicle, even at dealer cost or below still equates to a big loss, fairly quickly.
>guess the point being that getting any new >vehicle, even at dealer cost or below still equates to a big loss, fairly quickly.
>
I think you hit it right on the head. To buy used or new. For me, the extra 2k spent for new was something I was willing to pay for new and now. YMMV
Don't worry about raining on my parade. ; ) Here in Socal rain is always appreciated. AWD or not. So why are you still waiting to pull the trigger? 39,600 for a fx45 sounds like a good deal. I do think the new car payment motivated me to get out and make more than I would have saved. Plus my clients like the car. LOL Of course being self employed makes this easier to do than if your working for somebody and know what you will be making next week and next month.
peace
jeff
i'm in san diego too and work for myself so, besides taste in autos it sounds like we have a bit in common. i am down to the fx35 for $30k or a murano for $26k. as much as i'd like to step up to the fx45 my payment increases from $477 for the fx35 and even lower for the murano to at least $665 for the fx45. it just doesn't make sense to carry almost $200 more each month for a V8 and all wheel drive. maybe we can meet at mission bay park and check out each other's vehicles once i get mine. i should have one finalized by the weekend.
cheers
Correct!
tidester, host
I'll be buying an '04 FX45 shortly, and want to make sure I haven't left any stones unturned regarding rebates, etc. Like your deal, I have a firm agreement for a $500 over invoice deal with the same dealer that got me my wife's G35 sedan last year (also for $500 over invoice).
Please advise...
Steve, Host
Nevertheless, it definitely adds a different perspective to a "steal of a deal" in the form of $500 over invoice transaction.
Using an '04 FX45 as an example, the dealership stands to profit nearly $1250 from a straight invoice deal (1% X base MSRP of $44375 = $444 plus 2% of base invoice of $40144 = $803, totalling $1247). Add in the $500 over invoice component, and they stand to profit nearly $1800! This amount does not take into consideration any option packages or accessories (in which I plan to pay invoice amounts), nor the destination & handling fee (which appears to be non-negotiable).
The link makes it clear that a consumer should not use the holdback information as a bargaining chip. That being said, knowledge of holdback money can prove to be a prospective buyer's proverbial "ace card", especially when the dealership starts crying about not making any money on a proposed deal...
Finally, the information on the dealer holdback link is dated as of January 2004; can we assume that it is reflective of the current trends in national car sales and supply & demand issues? Do you know if manufacturers update their holdback percentages on a weekly / monthly / quarterly / annual basis?
Thanks again!
Dealers are being forced to wheel and deal like never before!
2 Black Obsidian on Graphite models and 3 Brilliant Silver on Graphite models.
One Acura dealer told me- and I quote, "you stay out of my pocket and I will stay out of yours".
I got up and walked right out.
I don't know the ins and outs about holdback. I think it's figured on each individual car that hits the dealer's lot. I don't think the percentages get changed very often either. Any dealers lurking who can help out?
There are always hidden incentives and bonuses for the dealer in addition to holdback. I figure the dealer has to eat too so I don't worry too much about how much money I'm leaving on the table, so long as my deal isn't much worse than the next guys (and TMV is the number to shoot for and try to beat).
And the dealers generally make more money on used car sales and service than new car sales, so chances are there's not all that much grinder room on a new FX anyway. That said, I'd drive 50 miles to save two hundred bucks :-)
Steve, Host
The info is from a reliable source. The marketing assessment (MA) on Infinitis can cause a lot of bad feelings with buyers, mainly because some websites(Edmunds included) don't include in it the invoice prices they publish. Hence , someone negotiating $500 over invoice would find, in California at least, the price over Edmunds invoice would be $900. Nissan performed a similar exercise last year.
Thanks for the update.
Steve, Host
Thanks!