Buying a New Subaru (Boston, Worcester: Home Depot, gated, floor)

[Shrewsburried]

Originally Posted by mwbms28

Just to throw out another tip... I have a friend of a friend who is a car dealership manager, and I was speaking to him at a party. He said the best method is to offer 9% less than the sticker price on a new car and walk out if they don't give it to you; most of time they'll give it to you. That's about the cut point at which the dealership stops making money.

Also, don't let them pull the "we go by Kelley Blue Book" BS. KBB will almost always underprice your trade-in, a sneaky way for them to get some money back from you while appearing to offer a bargain on the car you're buying. Go on Autotrader and see what similar cars have sold for. Print out those results and bring them with you.

That's going to vary brand to brand and vehicle to vehicle. Subaru, Honda, Toyota are all pretty tight on their pricing as they're moving units pretty well right now. Nissan, VW, and others are likely to go 9%+ as their sales are stagnant.

Last month a large volume VW was cutting certain vehicles loose for 25-30% off MSRP. They're hurting.

[lrfox]

Lots of good advice here. The 9% off figure seems a bit high on a new car (maybe not on a used one) since margins are actually pretty slim to begin with on new vehicles. But as has been stated, negotiating power varies depending on a number of factors. I'd add that you shouldn't get fixated on dealership "cost." Many, MANY dealers play games with numbers for a variety of reasons- but mostly to meet monthly, quarterly and annual goals. It's not at all unusual to get a car for cost (or damn close to it). It's not impossible to get a car for less than cost with a little luck and good timing.

Dealerships are often given incentives to meet sales goals. Sometimes it's as straightforward as being given one vehicle by the factory (one single car- not a model) to sell for $5k below MSRP. So you can snag a brand new "promo" car with an MSRP of $25k for $20k. This is common, and it's a good deal. Sometimes a dealer gets, say, a $75k bonus for selling 40 cars in a month. If you come in on Saturday afternoon on the last weekend of the month and make an offer on a car with an MSRP of $30,000 that cost the dealer $26,000, they may sell it for $24,000 and take the $2k hit in order to make the goal of 40 vehicles to get the $75k bonus. They'll never tell you they're 2 or 3 cars away from their goal, or if there is a goal and bonus on the line. However, it never hurts to be patient and firm while trying your luck. I know some dealerships buy their own inventory to make sales goals for a month (or year). "Cost" is a good number to know, but it's not always a deal breaker in a deal. No matter how much it may feel like it, they're not offended if you lowball them. Annoyed? Frustrated? Definitely. They may have some choice words to describe you. However there are a lot of incentives for a dealer to sell you a car, and turning a profit on each vehicle isn't always one of them.

[mwbms28]

Any advice on how I can buy a new Audi S4 for $30,000?

[GeoffD]

Originally Posted by mwbms28

Any advice on how I can buy a new Audi S4 for $30,000?

The only way risks running into the strict Massachusetts gun control laws.

[GeoffD]

Originally Posted by mwbms28

Just to throw out another tip... I have a friend of a friend who is a car dealership manager, and I was speaking to him at a party. He said the best method is to offer 9% less than the sticker price on a new car and walk out if they don't give it to you; most of time they'll give it to you. That's about the cut point at which the dealership stops making money.

Also, don't let them pull the "we go by Kelley Blue Book" BS. KBB will almost always underprice your trade-in, a sneaky way for them to get some money back from you while appearing to offer a bargain on the car you're buying. Go on Autotrader and see what similar cars have sold for. Print out those results and bring them with you.

That sounds like the street price for an Outback.

Example:
A 3.6R with the option package containing Eyesight adaptive cruise control is MSRP $37,465.

Invoice is $34,902.

2% under invoice is $34,203. That's generally considered a "good" deal as an out-the-door price.

9%-off MSRP is $34,093. Just about the same number.

You just made my life easier the next time I'm buying a car. I no longer need to fish out the invoice price on the internet. Thanks!

For a trade, they're just going to look at Galves to see the auction price. If the dealer won't show it to you, an online subscription for a month is $9.95. That way, we're both looking at the same valuation number. I assume any car I'm trading is going straight to the auction house the next time the car carrier is in their lot. They have some overhead to cover to get it to the auction and they need to make a few bucks for their trouble.

[CaseyB]

That's a lot of money for an Outback.

[gf2020]

Originally Posted by CaseyB

That's a lot of money for an Outback.

Compared to what? The Outback 3.6R Limited is a high end model - a very nice car. It doesn't really have any direct competitors. The VW Golf Alltrack is less expensive but smaller. The Acura RDX matches up pretty well but it is more expensive, similarly equipped. Same goes for the Mazda CX-9, which is a bit bigger with a 3rd row. AWD models from Audi, Mercedes and Volvo are all more expensive.

[GeoffD]

Originally Posted by gf2020

Compared to what? The Outback 3.6R Limited is a high end model - a very nice car. It doesn't really have any direct competitors. The VW Golf Alltrack is less expensive but smaller. The Acura RDX matches up pretty well but it is more expensive, similarly equipped. Same goes for the Mazda CX-9, which is a bit bigger with a 3rd row. AWD models from Audi, Mercedes and Volvo are all more expensive.

The sweet spot for the Subaru Outback if you're on a budget is the Premium trim level with Eyesight as the only option. That's $10K cheaper than a 6-cylinder Limited trim level with all the options like sunroof, keyless entry/pushbutton start, power liftgate, and NAV. The 6-cylinder engine totally changes the personality of the car. Smoother, quieter, 81 more HP and similar boost in torque.

Sub-$25K is competitive for that level of performance and trim level just like sub-$35K is competitive for a loaded 6-cylinder.

The VW Golf Alltrack is not less expensive than an Outback. The street price for the base S trim level with the Driver Assist is higher than an Outback Premium trim level with Eyesight. If you buy an extended warranty (which costs a fortune on a VW and you don't want to own a VW that is out of warranty), it's much more expensive. I had VW GTIs as my daily driver for 15 years. It's a much smaller car. With a 6' driver, the rear seat is not usable. At the top SEL trim level, an APR ECR re-flash for 91 octane, and coil overs to tighten up the suspension, it's a pretty nice car and far more engaging to drive than an Outback. Stock, a Golf Alltrack is kind of a dog. 170 hp doesn't move the car very well. Of course, the Outback has the same problem. The 4-cylinder only puts out 175 hp. You can make a Golf Alltrack pretty engaging to drive for fairly cheap money. A $599 APR ECU re-flash fixes the problem and you can group buy that at a VW event for several hundred less. There's not much you can do to an Outback other than a bigger rear sway bar to get rid of some of the body roll.

It depends what you're looking for. I kind of like having the usable back seat and longer rear cargo area of an Outback. I'm resigned to driving a boring car.

[Parsec]

Originally Posted by mwbms28

Any advice on how I can buy a new Audi S4 for $30,000?

This is obviously a joke (a pretty random one at that). However if you're serious about buying an Audi the best discount you can get is the 6% supplier discount. If your company isn't on the list, the 6% discount off MSRP is also available to the general public through a membership with Audi Club of North America. You need to have been a member for 6 months to qualify. You can still get 5-6% off through traditional haggling methods, but it's a hassle.

[BostonMike7]

Everything half-decent is $30K+ these days.


My folks have a 3.6R. It's nice to drive, well equipped, and very good in the snow with the factory all-seasons. Had some decent get-up-and-go as well and I was impressed with it's HP. Overall though, it offered very little driving excitement, but most people who buy such a vehicle aren't looking to drive it in a sporting fashion.


The downside for me was it's cargo space. It has a decent amount, but, I had a hard time getting some items in the back that I could fit in a true SUV type vehicle. The rear hatch opening is low, so a few times I was stranded unable to fit something in from the local home depot. I couldn't even get my 60G aquarium in it which was only 24" tall.


Overall, not a bad car, although not one I could drive personally.