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Any Questions for a Car Dealer?

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Comments

  • rworrellrworrell Member Posts: 149
    Bill, I know we've chatted about this car before but I was reading last week's Autoweek and they had their first drive of the car. They really liked it, but they said one thing that has me a little concerned: they claimed that all X-Type's in the USA are going to sport a leaper on the hood--even the sport package. In Europe, apparently, the sport package has the flush-mounted logo. Is this true?

    One of the things I liked about the X-Type vs. the Bimmer is that you can get dark grey wood with the sport pack on the Jag. I really don't like shiny polished wood on a sports sedan, but it is VERY difficult to get desirable options on a Bimmer without ticking some box that also includes the wood package. On my wife's 528, we got the black high-gloss trim, which we really like. Wood just feels so old, especially in a sports sedan.

    I associate the leaper with the same "old guy's idea of sporty luxury"--hence my (way-too-long) question.
  • im_brentwoodim_brentwood Member Posts: 4,883
    Well,

    Americans like their leapers! If all else, you ought to be able to removeit and swap inthe European badge on there.

    Oh, I have driven it. Makes a 528i feel like a TOwn car if you can believe that!

    Wait tillya driveit!!!!

    Bill
  • ccotenjccotenj Member Posts: 610
    if i ever buy this car (and bill had BETTER stop talking about it in this way, because eventually he's gonna get me to go drive one, and then i'll have car payments bigger than my mortgage :) ), i WANT the leaper... to me, it's not a jag without the leaper... so i guess i prove the theory of "americans want the leaper"...

    -Chris
  • rworrellrworrell Member Posts: 149
    Really? I didn't know they were so popular. Looks to me like a) something to get stolen by punks; and b) a pain to wash.

    The local Jag dealer has an X-Type available for "previewing" today and tomorrow. I think that means you can't drive it. Is it worth the trip to check it out--they're downtown, so it would be a bit of a haul for me?

    Did the one you drove have the sport pack or not? Big engine? Manual or J-gate? Thanks again.
  • dleungnycdleungnyc Member Posts: 41
    I sat in 2 of them during the NY Autoshow. My reaction at that time was, BMW what? And basically everybody in the Jaguar area was commenting all this for under 30k base? The car is well worth the drive/time that you need to take to check it out. IMHO, its that nice.
  • mvargo1mvargo1 Member Posts: 298
    The worst leaper I ever saw was on a 1994(maybe 5) XJS. The car came up from Florida and was a nice aqua blue, low milage flawless car.

    Sold to an older lady who proceded to go to some after market shop and have a gold leaper that must be a foot long grafted to the hood of her car. It was truly terrifying.
  • scottdudescottdude Member Posts: 177
    Hey all you car dealers: is it possible for a buyer to request that a dealer give him all or part of the value of his trade in cash instead of deducting it from the cost of the car he's buying?

    I have some credit card bills I'd like to pay off, but I also want a new car. I thought about selling my car in the newspaper to get the cash to pay off my bills and then get a low interest car loan to buy a new car. Car loan interest is lower than credit card interest!

    So if this is something a dealer might go for, it would make my life easier. I thought I'd ask the question here in hopes of getting a straight answer. I'm assuming that if I go into a showroom with this question a lot of salespeople will tell me whatever I want to hear to make a sale.

    Anyhow, if this is possible, will I only get a wholesale offer for my car or something between wholesale and what I'd sell it for on my own? Thanks.
  • mmcbride1mmcbride1 Member Posts: 861
    My wife did that when she got a Civic back in 98. She had an older Accord that was paid off, but also had some credit card debt. She just put part of the trade amount down and got the rest back in a check.
  • im_brentwoodim_brentwood Member Posts: 4,883
    I've driven a Stick (THink it was a 2.5 but it was loaded pretty well) and a 3.0 Automatic. Stick was a sport, Autowas non-sport.


    WOW! You dont even wanna know how good this car is, it'll make ya sick.


    Ride was rougher and all, But I did like the sport.


    Oh yeah... big leapers... in gold... sick.


    As far as leaper theft goes...


    http://members.aol.com/wsweismann/97lpr.jpg


    replaced that one...


    http://members.aol.com/wsweismann/scumgotit.jpg


    Next to bolt on.... notice the file name?


    Bill

  • im_brentwoodim_brentwood Member Posts: 4,883
    That's not a bad idea at all. And since you have equity.... makes sense to me.

    Say your trade is worth, say, $6,000... And you need $3,000... tell them that you'll use $3K of your trade equity down and want a check back for the rest.

    Bill
  • carsellingprocarsellingpro Member Posts: 10
    Recently a customer needed a couple of thousand dollars to pay off some debt. They had two choices,
    1. Use part of the trade equity as a "Cash back" option

    2. Finance more then the vehicle was worth, use the entire trade as equity on the deal. They opted for #2, as they were looking at promotional financing rates.

    The funny part of the story is that the buyers order looked rediculous because of the added "additional options=$4,000" (we just cut back a check for the same amount)
  • rworrellrworrell Member Posts: 149
    Man, the leaperectomy looked really painful. See--good reason to get the flush-mounted European badge. Maybe I'll mount the leaper to the dash like a St. Christopher or a Hula Dancer. LOL.

    I think I talked my wife into heading downtown after work tonight to look at the car. It helps that the car is EVERYWHERE right now. R&T, C&D, Autoweek, MotorWeek on Speedvision. She must've seen the car 20 times last night. I felt like Ralphie in A Christmas Story cleverly placing an ad inside my mom's issue of Look magazine... :)

    If I go, I'll let you know my thoughts (I'm sure you care very deeply...).
  • scottdudescottdude Member Posts: 177
    Thanks for the info about asking for cash for my trade. Two other questions:

    1. If I ask for a check for all or part of what the dealer offers on my trade, will this effect the amount they offer? For example, if they offer $8000 but then I say "OK, but I want it all as cash." will they say "Oh wait, for a cash payment we'll only give you $7,000."

    2. If they offer $8000 and I ask for all or MOST (i.e. $7000) of it in cash, will a dealer balk at this?
  • im_brentwoodim_brentwood Member Posts: 4,883
    If that's what they're offering for the trade...

    Idont see why you cant get it all back in cash.

    Bill
  • cgaydoscgaydos Member Posts: 116
    The recent discussion on the low demand for high mileage cars has prompted this question.

    15 years ago I averaged over 30k miles/year, and lost a lot on resale. For the past 10 years we've averaged about 6k miles/year, and we've gained a lot on resale. HOWEVER, it seems to me that my low-mileage cars took more of a beating than my high-mileage ones. The high mileage ones were truly 95%+ highway usage ... usually business trips of 1+ hours on open freeways. Brakes, tires, etc, all lasted a very long time (60k+ miles). The low mileage cars are driven many times every day, usually for trips of less than 1 mile, usually with kids getting in and out at each stop. Brakes, tires, etc., are lucky to last 20k miles. Door hardware, etc., tends to wear out much more quickly. The engine usually doesn't get to optimum temperature before the trip is over and the oil gets dirty very quickly, prompting frequent changes.

    SO, the question: why do low mileage cars get discounted? Is it because that is the only metric available regarding the usage of the car? Do you take into account typical usage (city vs. highway) when appraising used cars?
  • mvargo1mvargo1 Member Posts: 298
    When appraising a car their really is no way to tell if it is highway or city miles. It is true that highway miles are much less hard of a car than city miles. However, people just don't like to buy high milage cars, and banks really don't like to finance them.
  • rworrellrworrell Member Posts: 149
    I hope no one minds, but I created a new discussion topic called Swapalease Experiences/Opinions (also in the Smart Shopper Forum--I don't know how to link to it) and I wanted to invite you to express your opinions about swapalease.com in general, and about lease assumption in particular.

    The site looks pretty cool, so I'm curious what those more knowledgeable than I think about it.

    Thanks.
  • cfg1cfg1 Member Posts: 85
    My local dealer has a 2002 Mountaineer with 'AWD' badge on the back. But on the window sticker, it says 'Two Wheel Drive'. The prices also match the other 2WDs on the lot, and the prices for 2WD at KBB.com.

    How can I tell if this is realy a 2WD or an AWD?
  • mmcbride1mmcbride1 Member Posts: 861
    Look inside to see if there is a lever to shift from Full-Time AWD to low-range 4WD. If not, it's not AWD.

    If the sticker is the Monroni label from the mfg., I'd trust that and assume it was a 2WD model. It's easy to slap an AWD badge on it.
  • lancerfixerlancerfixer Member Posts: 1,284
    Or, crawl under the car and look for a center differential and a driveshaft running to the front wheels.
  • cfg1cfg1 Member Posts: 85
    Mmcbride,

    Thanks, There isn't any 4WD drive switch, but the salesman says the system is all automatic, and there is no low-range. The window sticker looks legitimate and the VIN matches the car.
  • mmcbride1mmcbride1 Member Posts: 861
    Sounds fishy to me. If the sticker says 2WD and it's the original Monroni label, I would assume that it's a 2WD and the salesman is a moron at best and a crooked SOB at worst.
  • isellhondasisellhondas Member Posts: 20,342
    When my friends ask me for advise I always tell them to look at the overall condition of the car before looking at the odometer.

    Most buyers equate miles to condition. Low Miles = a good car, High Miles= A bad car.

    I've seen cars with 200,000 miles on them that are in outstanding condition. I've also seem 60,000 mile cars that were shot.

    It is funny though when a person is trading in a high mile car...I'll always hear..." It's ALL freeway miles!! ALL ? yeah, right.

    Still, I would rather have a well maintained high miler than a stop and go, beat around town low mile car.

    But...few people would subscribe to this.

    It's LOW MILES, LOW MILES, LOW MILES !!

    That's the most important thing to most buyers.

    Some of the BEST vlaues out there are in high mile well maintained cars.
  • tincup47tincup47 Member Posts: 1,508
    do come with a totally AWD system that does not use a switch or lever, looking under the car would be your best bet. Monroney labels can and do sometimes have mistakes.
  • audia8qaudia8q Member Posts: 3,138
    I'm with tincup...the AWD model does NOT have any buttons....look under the front wheels.

    We got in an explorer last year with cloth seats in the front and leather in the back....so an incorrect window sticker or nameplate dosnt surprise me.
  • lancerfixerlancerfixer Member Posts: 1,284
    Don't you think SOMEONE in the factory would have noticed that? That's pretty blatant. Doesn't give me a warm fuzzy feeling about Ford's QC...
  • mmcbride1mmcbride1 Member Posts: 861
    Just how far is Ford taking the Mountaineer/Explorer? IRS, no low range...
  • tincup47tincup47 Member Posts: 1,508
    Ford is taking the Explorer/Mountaineer to where the hot section of the SUV market is heading. People want AWD that needs no action on the part of the driver. They also want a car like ride, Independent suspension will provide that. The previous iterations of these vehicles were relatively weak performers off-road already, so going towards the crossover market is really not a major issue for most buyers.
  • mmcbride1mmcbride1 Member Posts: 861
    Oh, I know what they're doing. I just think it's pathetic, that's all. I don't understand people who want an SUV just to drive around town if it doesn't even have low-range for offroading. I had a 4Runner that I sold because I didn't offroad as much as I thought I would. it was not any fun to drive around town. Slow as a pig and handled terribly.

    I know Ford's just going where the market wants it to, but I just don't see the appeal of SUV's unless you've got kids to haul around and don't want a minivan. For single people, they're stupid.

    But if people want them and their 15 mpg, more power to them. It's their money and they can do whatever they want with it. I just traded the 4Runner on an Audi A4 and I couldn't be happier...
  • drc5drc5 Member Posts: 1
    What type of price break should I look for when purchasing a floor model with 6,000 miles on it? And also, what further break should I look for when the SUV is a 2001 and the car is scheduled for a complete redesign in 2002 (I'm talking about the Chevy Blazer).
    Thanks!
  • audia8qaudia8q Member Posts: 3,138
    alot has to do with production speed more than a poor quality product...The Focus for example was riddled with all kinds of initial recalls yet itis a tremendous car. They just built them way to fast and lack layers of quality control...They key is for the dealer to fix it before the consumer gets it. Build it, ship it and fix it on the road is how many carmakers operate. The dealer is stuck in the middle.

    We sell both the mazda tribute and the ford escape...both are made side by side in the same plant with mostly the same parts...but our tributes have had fewer fix it on the road problems.

    Rich
  • akanglakangl Member Posts: 3,281
    I keep seeing people talk about tax on vehicles. I am planning on going out of state to buy a car this fall. I live in Alaska and there is no state sales tax and no state income tax. So, my question is.......will I have to pay tax on the vehicle I buy out of state? I have never paid tax on a vehicle so I have no idea how that works. Thanks.
  • raybearraybear Member Posts: 1,795
    Depends on where you buy it from. I think some states let you pay for the car and register in Alaska, then drive or ferry it home.
  • mvargo1mvargo1 Member Posts: 298
    As long as you are registering the car in Alaska you should not have to pay sales tax. We get people from Delaware all the time in PA and they do not pay any sales tax.
  • ebekinsebekins Member Posts: 21
    We bought our car just over 2 months ago, and had a reasonably pleasant experience. I had heard of these customer surveys that manufacturers send out after a sale, but we haven't yet received one. How soon after the sale do they come? I wanted to give my salesman a good rating, since he gave us no bull and was very professional and polite. Our car is a 2001 Hyundai Elantra. Is Hyundai just slow on sending these out? We've already made two car payments, so I don't imagine anyone is waiting for the sale to finalize.

    Oh, and another question. We're in California, and we haven't received our license plates yet. Is it common to take more than 8 or 9 weeks to get them?
  • im_brentwoodim_brentwood Member Posts: 4,883
    Hmm.

    Some manufacturers send them out randomly.. Not sure. You should have gotten it by now tho..

    Bill
  • fdxboyfdxboy Member Posts: 45
    ...looking for a car for himself do you guys let the other sales guy on the otherside of the desk know you are in the biz. I know, I know, you would not go do that if you can drive your own product and such. Let's say for example you were going to go with a friend who wanted to buy a car that you(as a dealer) don't sell. Will the sales guy normally stop all the B.S or do you not say a thing and just enjoy the game yourself???
  • im_brentwoodim_brentwood Member Posts: 4,883
    I never let em know I'm a dealer till the deal is done.

    I figure I can learn something... you never stop learning, right?

    Bill
  • cgaydoscgaydos Member Posts: 116
    Actually, contrary to post #290 the CA DMV does send the plates in the mail when you buy a new car. 8-9 weeks isn't uncommon. The temporary registration you have taped to your front window is good for 6 months. If you hit 3 months without plates give the DMV a call.
  • dsattlerdsattler Member Posts: 135
    We bought our Toyota on 4/9 and a survey showed up in the mail a couple of days ago.
  • rbrenton88rbrenton88 Member Posts: 186
    ...wants to buy his own brand of vehicle, how does he reconcile this?

    Imagine the inner turmoil of one side of the brain trying to get an invoice deal, while the other side is pushing the rustproofing.

    That could drive a man mad!
  • audia8qaudia8q Member Posts: 3,138
    its easy...pay invoice and go with an 18% finance rate...But the conveyance/doc fee is a stumbling block...LOL

    rich
  • bravocharlie1bravocharlie1 Member Posts: 14
    Just curious as to if a record is kept of an offer when no deal is made? The dealer and I couldn't quite come to an agreement, but two weeks later, they still have the vehicle I made an offer on. I was curious if the dealer reviews what they have been offered on a vehicle that doesn't sell in hopes of moving it. Anyone with any info?
  • raybearraybear Member Posts: 1,795
    And the car.
  • joeyyyjoeyyy Member Posts: 2
    I'm considering purchasing a car used as a florr model. I t has 5,000 miles on it. How much can I expect off the price?
  • anna12anna12 Member Posts: 10
    Is there a Toyota knowledgable person who can confirm or clarify info about the rumor going through the Celica discussions that the GTSs are out of production this year because of "overreving" problems? Weeks ago I read here that there was an oversupply of the GTS model and production was halted until June, and was to resume then (now, hopefully). My dealer didn't have any GTSs for a while, but there are a few now. I hope to buy one as soon as some back pay arrives. Thanks for accurate information. Anna
  • hiwaysanityhiwaysanity Member Posts: 216
    with 5,000 miles on it? What, does it do laps in the showroom after the store closes? ;^)

    Most loan outfits will call that a used car. try taking one year's depreciation off. Maybe one of the dealers has more definitive info, but you will need to reveal more info, like the make, model, year, etc.
  • joeyyyjoeyyy Member Posts: 2
    The car is a 2001 Chrysler Sebring Coupe Lxi. Black exterior, grey leather interior. Has sun roof, auto stick, and 4 cd changer. 3 options I really don't need, but was considering if the price of the demo car was significantly less
  • fdxboyfdxboy Member Posts: 45
    ..that I don't want to post in 3 seperate forums.

    1. If you pay an additonal 20% per month additional principal on a 5 year loan, by logic it should save you 12 months. However, shouldn't it be paid off quicker due to less interest being applied every month?
    2. I like my 2001.5 A4 but I am getting the TT bug. I know you guys generally like 36 months max, but Audi offers 4/50K bumper to bumper with all sched. maint. Wouldn't this be a good way to go(48 months and you don't pay for anything?(I only put no more than 10K miles per year on a car.
    3.Do new models of the same line car hurt resale values???(i.e. The new A4 is comming out this fall)
    Thanks for any insight you can provide.
  • mtwallacemtwallace Member Posts: 28
    two weeks after the sale if I want to add the Extended Warranty to my purchase? Or will I have to come up with the cash to buy the extended warranty. After thinking about it, I would like the extended warranty after all, but need to make it part of my payment since I have no cash left!

    It's been less than two weeks, so I haven't made any payments left.
This discussion has been closed.