hmn1

Hi all,

I am new to this board. My wife and I are shopping for our second car. Well, it's more like her car. We are leaning towards Lexus, mostly because of its great reliability. We're still trying to decide between the ES and the IS. Money is mostly our main priority. I heard that car companies are giving huge discounts on new cars because of this economy. Do you guys know if Lexus does the same? I hear luxury brands including the German brands are giving somewhere from 4G to 7G discount on their new cars, because the market is not very good for them right now. If you guys know anything like that for any of the Lexus model, please let me know.

Thanks for you help.

(Hoping to be a permanent member in one of the forums here soon. )

lexusk8

Welcome to ClubLexus sir! If I had to do luxury car shopping all over again, I'd still choose Lexus over all others including German brands because of maintainability and reliability, not to mention affordability. But realistically speaking, a Lexus is not for everyone , so do some substantial research in the midst of your car shopping (i.e. the Internet can do great wonders ).

I've never heard of dealerships putting up big discounts on brand new cars from their lots, but every so often on the newspapers, I see large ads showcasing "great" lease pricing on new cars of all kinds. I believe some Lexus dealerships have that kind of promotion on the new ES and GS. Take a trip to a dealership of your choice, and ask the sales manager about those kinds of discounts. Good luck!

RX300-BV

It's not unreasonable to expect a discount of 3-4k+ on new Lexus' right now. Both the ES300 and IS300 can be had for under invoice. The IS and ES are different cars. The IS appeals to those wanting a more sporty car, where as the ES is more of a luxery touring sedan. Definitely do your research when comparing between the two and against other luxery nameplates.

amf1932

I'd like to see what part of the country where you could purchase an ES or IS for under invoice! I live in an outer borough of New York City and no dealers within 100 miles would sell any of their cars for at least $2000 above invoice!

Alan

XenonES3

Since you said money is your main priority:


Your biggest discounts would come from an IS300 or GS300. Both cars are poor sellers. At the dealership my parents own, salesman have to practically give away these two models.


On the other hand, the ES300 is a very, very strong seller. You will have some haggling room, but not as much as say with the GS300.



Good Luck!

kreativ

Southern California of course...where the hottest cars cost more, and everything else is cheaper. I can confirm what RX300-BV said.

amf1932

So what you're telling me is you can get a 2003ES loaded w/Nav & Mark Levinson Audio for about $34,000? I was in Santa Monica in March and I went to the local Lexus dealer and priced this car there and they wouldn't go under $36,500!!! What's the deal?

Alan

RX300-BV

amf,

You can go to Carsdirect.com, enter an LA zip code and configure an ES and see the cost.

An ES with Nav and Mark Levinson comes out to $33,253. Which happens to be $200 over invoice. Toss in HID lamps and VSC and your price is $34,285. I'm sure you could take those numbers and have another local dealer beat that price by at least a $100. That would leave you a pretty loaded ES for $100 over invoice.

A non-Nav, Mark Levinson ES with the HIDS and VSC cost $31,962 which is $550 below invoice! A Nav equipped ES would cost a bit more but still substantially less then in NY.

kreativ

Whenever I go in and act like I don't know about pricing, they'll give me BS like "this is a hot new model. We won't be able to take much off of the sticker price", even if the model in that particular option package is going for under invoice in the area.

So the key is to know the price you want before you even step into the showroom. Find out Internet pricing, club pricing (Costco, AAA), etc. Having to ask them about pricing is a sure way to an inflated offer....gives them more room to work with.

It also helps when there's a lot of Lexus dealers in the area to play against each other. If one won't take your offer of $100 under the "no haggle" internet price, one of the other dozen dealers will.

amf1932

Thanks for the information guys........the next time I plan on purchasing a new Lexus I'll keep your advice in mind.

Alan