Well, I placed my deposit with 3 different Honda's. The first was one that had a markup. Got the call today that it is in (mag pearl with NAV).

I asked (confirmed) the price and stated that two other dealers have since (put in writing) the final price including the Pro pack (splash guard, dimming mirror, wheel locks and floor mats) as $26,023.49 including tax, licensing, etc.

They said they can probly match or beat it and I asked if they definately can. The others were the "firm" price and not nagotiable. I rather like that; then I know what I'm paying. Anyway, I'm about to sell my truck for $10,500 private party; they said they'll trade it for that. I laughed really hard, becuase 18 dealers in southern california all quote the same thing: $7,500 max.

The salesman was really nice for a while but now that the car is in he's brutally insistant. I almost feel like he's going to chain me to the chair and take away my potty priviliges for 8 hours until I pay his price.

In any case, I'm not feeling comfortable at all so I'll just have to wait until the other two call me, the two that quoted me in writing the final price.

I don't know why this place would want to negotiate, I would be a loss to them, if they can get $6,500 more than I'm willing to pay to the next guy that walks through the door. Why is it that when the car is not in, they are nice, nice, nice. But now its in and it's close, close, close, at all costs. Throw all integrity out the door.

He's even trying to discredit the others by insisting they'll throw in hidden costs (might possibly be true) and he's really, well, I don't know, he's just not the nice friend I actually respected the first time around. Now, I feel like he's a jerk.

Thanks,
Shawn

 

I think you should take the emotion out of the deal. If he has the car you want, and you know exactly how much you're willing to pay, give it a shot. He CAN'T tie you to the chair. You can walk in there and be in control. (If you feel like you're being a jerk then you're doing a good negotiating job.) When you walk in, decide in advance that you're going to allow them 15 minutes max to give you the deal you want. If they don't close the deal in 15 minutes, and they keep BSing you, calmly walk out.

 

The salesman is just trying to make a living. He isn't your buddy, or your enemy. Take ElanC's advice or even better just have them give you a firm OTD price over the phone. If they can't give you the final price over the phone, then they sure as heck will try to work you over once you get there.
Wow, I don't get the 3 deposits thing-CA is a really different state.There is absolutely no advantage to giving a deposit!! When a car come in, the dealer will sell it to the 1st customer who will meet their price. Sure, the salesmen will call the folks who have given a deposit, but it no deposit Joe Blow calls and beats the deposit folks with the $$, he will buy the car.
Giving multiple deposits just assures you of battle getting your deposit back when you buy somewhere else.All It gets you is a phone call when the vehicle arrives-nothing else. Yeah, you will probably get your deposits back, but sometimes it takes forever-literally.
Don't give deposits; especially don't give them without a firm in writing price and VIN. Luck,Charlie
Don't mean to be a pr_ _k, but multiple deposits are multiple bad ideas.It is ALL IN FAVOR OF THE CAR DEALER-HE HAS YOUR MONEY-YOU HAVE-NOTHING!!!
Is there something in the water in CA??

 

Cool down. You have a few misconceptions. First, like you said, what you get for your deposit is a phone call when the vehicle arrives. No deposit, no phone call. So if you want a car, when there are more buyers than sellers, you have to make a deposit. They go down the list in order, top to bottom, offering the car until someone buys it.

Second, nobody's holding your money and it's no hassle to get it back. I made deposits at two Honda dealerships and ended up buying at a third one. The first two didn't cash my checks, they just held them, and when I cancelled the desposits I got my original checks back - no questions asked.

As for the water in California, it's fine. Seeing that you're from N.O. I had some responses in mind, but that would be in bad taste.

 

He decided to trade the truck for $9K instead of $7,500 but the car was $1,500 above the price I wanted him to match. Then, when I decided I'll just pay full cash without the trade he tried to match the price then add-in $2k worth of add-ins that were "standard" and not negotiable (Lo-Jack and XM).

I told him my conditions: $26,023 out the door including the Pro-Pack. Period. Or I wait until the other two call me. After back and forthing with his closing manager, during his 4th time "discussing" with his closing manager I walked out and left. I wonder his facial expression when he came back and the room was empty. I don't have time for this crap. Either he'll sell it or he won't. There's no shortage of people who will pay the $6,500 markup they charge. He'll during the first 30 minutes I was there two of them already sold. Mine was the last (of 7 he says) that arrived today to be sold.

So true. At least two of the places call me without a deposit but during the 3 hours I will have to drive it could be sold (on a first-come-first-served basis). The ones that accept the "reserve" deposit will hold it specifically for me for 24 hours if I indicate during the phone call that I'll come pick it up.

If I don't pay the deposit, my next alternative is to pay the $6k+ markup they are charging on the lot. But, there's a difference in phone calls. If I pick it off the lot through a salesman, then the phone call is only a courtesy indicating the vehicle arrived and I want to "hurry" and pick it up before someone else does.

If I work with a fleet manager via Internet sales, Costco, Sams, AAA, Etc., then the "reserve" deposit they ask for will give me a 24 hour window, nothing more; something the normal sales people don't afford me, and the price is ususally much less (no markup). But there are some Internet sales teams that charge a markup and don't accept a "reserve". In any case, if I want the car at a price I consider acceptable (sticker plus tax) then I have to play their rules.

If this madness continues through the end of next month then I'll most likely just get the vehicle I originally wanted: 2006 Toyota Tacoma 4-Door and forget about the Hybrid. The Toyota people are much easier to work with and I already negotiated the price of my truck to be exactly what my Hybrid would be ($5,200 savings from the price of the truck without negotiating).

My time and peace-of-mind is more valuable than this. I don't want to engage into a feeding-frenzy of who's willing to pay more; I'm certainly not willing.



Thanks,
Shawn

 

shawnb, I was a little over the top, I apologize for that. I would do it a bit differently, but what the heck. Multiple deposits probably isn't just a west coast thing. Recently a Chevy dealer in the Midwest was taking deposits on Camaros; GM made him give the $$ back for obvious reasons.
It is hard to wait for something you really want, and with the tax credit, you really don't have to deal as hard to get a decent deal.
My bad. Sorry,Charlie
PS Make him give you a hard price over the phone. You are right about your truck-they are lying, and won't match what you can sell it for. They just want to get you and your checkbook into the dealership. Can't really fault them for it- their job is to get as much money as possible out of you. It is a hard way to make a living-I kinda feel sorry for them. It is a crummy job-long hours, bad pay, your customers think you are trying to screw them, and of course, you usually are!

 

I think the madness is at a peak and will continue this way in California until the carpool stickers run out. In two months it'll be a different scene, unless gas is at $4 a gallon by then.

 

shawnb, once again I apologize. I had written(was writing) my response below before I had read your last posting.
Louisiana isn't really hybrid crazy-the dealers have the usual>$2000 "adjusted market value" or "loan value" on the windows of course, but they have that on every freakin' car on the lot. There was a HCH on a local lot last week-the only "markup" was $999 worth of pinstrips,scotchgard bs.
The Toyota dealers aren't any better than the Honda dealers-apparently the HCH is in shorter supply than the Prius.
No interest in the Prius? They aren't in as short a supply as the HCH?The styling grows on you-not much of a recommendation-and they have lots of capacity for dogs,bikes etc?
No interest in traveling-shipping? A midwest(Ohio) dealer sold a HCH for $21050 on Ebay recently-2 weeks ago.Shipping to CA is about $1200 from Ohio.
The Prius-HCH frenzy is going to cool again-like it was in Jan-Feb. Waiting 3-4 months(or less) could save you $$$. I know, I'm one to talk. I bought the Prius 3 weeks ago during the peak of the frenzy at all but MSRP. All my plotting and planning went for nothing once oil hit $75.
Your plan B-Tacoma- isn't a bad one. I have owned 6 Toyota trucks over the years-everyone was a winner. The MPG with the Tacoma has dropped over the years.The doublecab V-6 2wd auto is ~3800 lbs-city driving gets 16 mpg-hy maybe 22.The 4 cyl auto will get maybe 18-25 real life. Of course, a Tacoma is a lot more useful than a regular car. The Tacomas will hold their value since they aren't V-8 guzzlers, and they are Toyotas.
Another thought-the Tundra sells for about Tacoma $$ now. They are heavily discounted. You give up about 2 mpg city V-8 VS V6 Tundra VS tacoma, and maybe 3 mpg hy. The Tundra prices will continue to drop since they are coming out with a new Tundra. I have noticed that Carson Toyota has Tundra SR5 DC for $24000 or so.
Well, I am leading you astray. If you can wait or ship, you can save some $$, but waiting -well,easy to say,not so easy to do. Luck,Charlie

 

I have a 2000 Tacoma (my first car ever) that I was planning on upgrading to a 2006 to make it easier to transport a child yet to be born. I don't like my wife's Acura because I don't fit in it. I do, however, fit nicely in an HCH-II.

My reasons for the Hybrid actually have to do with the tax credit and the fact that my gasoline bill will drop from $380/mo. (currently) to $81/mo. HCH-II. With the new Tacoma, my gasoline bill will be about $400/mo. I expect the same gas mileage but it is a larger capacity tank.

In the beginning, the HCH-II was saving me about $6k from the Tacoma with my desired features but now I've negotiated it down (very easy thing to do with these people) about $5,200 or so. They're actually waiting for me to come pick it up but I'm holding out for the HCH-II. Normally, that would lose me the truck, but these people, as long as I haven't purchased another, see me as an oppurtunity to purchase theirs and these Tacomas aren't in "high" demand, they sit on the lot for about 15 days or so (around here).

I'm not a Prius person. I actually seen a few and haven't driven on but, I don't like them like I do the HCH-II, for some unknown reason. I don't mind waiting a month for my HCH-II (just got a phone call from one of my reserve places that their next two shipments through the 1st don't contain my vehicle unless the guy in front me of cancels). By then, perhaps the carpool advantage will be gone and sanity will be restored and I'll be able to negotiate prices (if gas isn't $8 by then). I don't need the carpool sticker anyway, in 6 years driving this commute, it would have helped me less than 10 times, anyway.

But this feeding frenzy is turning me off to Honda.


Thanks,
Shawn

 

I checked another site- hybrid cars-they have a price pulse(folks reporting what they paid).On May 10, someone reported paying $22700 for a HCH-said it was just MSRP-from a dealer in Buena Park?? internet guy was Mike Castillo? The poster did say that he had bought 3 other cars from them, and he thought his relationship with them got him the $2000 discount from the extra $2000 they charge "normal folks"?? There was no waiting,no deposit. Of course, raw numbers really don't tell the story if he financed and traded.
I have no idea where Buena Park is-for non CA folks everything, in CA is either near LA, or near San F-there isn't anything else for us.Unfortunately, your state is about 1000 miles long, so it could be a long drive.
Might be worth a call.
The Prius does have an odd look to it-sorta Art Deco meets Godzilla at the Jetsons.
Toyota dealers are generally at least as bad as Honda dealers when they have a hot winner on their hands. The higher price/weird look/ and generally greater supply makes the Prius a little easier to get.
If you can wait, and our president doesn't bomb Iran, there will be good buys in Sept.The oil run up because of Iran/GB is making Iran about $60,000,000/day!!They export ~4 Million barrels/day-run up has been about $15/b.
Luck,Charlie