Zeus69

iTrader: (1)

Your points are well taken. But how do I pin the local dealer against the dealer up north? The big city dealer will soon have the I want in inventory, which they claim gives them more flexibility to discount it. The local folks tell me such a car would need to be a special order with the attendant 3-4 month wait. Are they unaware of the car coming up north?? Further, they tow a line which seems ubiquitous among dealers: "we are not aggressive in discounting special orders". I still don't have a clear understanding as to why special orders seem to lead to a more laissez-faire attitude at the bargaining table.

I don't have a problem waiting for this car. It's not an urgency. I may, however, have some bargaining advantages with any dealership if they are motivated to make a sale before end of year. If I pass now and they sell it to someone else, I'm likely back in "special order" mode unless the EXACT SAME VEHICLE shows up as part of inventory somewhere in my region. Could happen, but my "wish list" doesn't seem to be readily available on any nearby lots.

I appreciate all the feedback. I still am not as aggressive as I need to be when it comes to pitting sellers against each other.

A question: Can the local dealer pilfer the other's inventory and price it just as aggressively? Should I let the local guys know that "my car" will be on a lot 100 miles north of theirs in a week or two? Go get and make me an offer that will prevent me from making the commute to buy it elsewhere??

Thanks again...

4TehNguyen

iTrader: (1)

any car physically on the dealer lot is costing them money each day it sits there in the form of bank interest. A dealer will be MUCH more inclined to discount to get a car off their lot even more so at the end of the month and/or the end of the year. A dealer will not sweat over a car that doesnt exist yet hence their lack of discounts on a special order. A car sitting on the lot is one less new car that will get allocated to that dealer for the next shipment. Nothings worse than a stagnant inventory.

Not trying to pressure you but if you decide to wait and 2008 rolls around the dealer have less of a reason to give you a discount since its a new year and the beginning of a new month and they are in less of a hurry to get some last quick sales. End of the month or end of the year are the best times to purchase a car. My car was purchased at the end of the month. I got lucky on my car, and I think you are having the same luck as I am. Your other alternative is going to be that agonizing 3-4 month special order with a weak discount. Hopefully the far away dealer is providing the vehicle you are expecting.

tex2670

Maybe so, but if big city dealer is selling a nav equiped car for LESS than local dealer on a non-nav car, does it matter they aren't comparably equiped? I mean, if you are just getting the nav because it's a better price, there's a whole lot more money being left on the table of local dealer if that dealer isn't beat up.

gengar

This is the most retarded policy I've ever heard of and it's utterly unbecoming of a dealer who has a Lexus sign in front. They make way more off a lifetime of service than they ever will nickel and dime-ing you for $500 on the car's purchase price.

Zeus69

iTrader: (1)

Agreed. I called LoA about it and they told me that each franchise is independently owned and operated. They have the latitude to make policy decisions such as this, though it seems rather "bush-league" for a premium marque like this... I can survive without he loaner if the best deal is 100 miles away.

Zeus69

iTrader: (1)

The local dealer doesn't have the non-NAV car on the lot. It would need to be "special ordered" (I was planning on ordering my spec IS w/o the NAV option). The "discounted" price on that special order may still turn out to be more $$ than the NAV-equipped car on the competitor's lot 100 miles away. The local guys don't have the urgency to make a deal, thus the relatively scant discount.

Should I approach the local guys with: "There is a NAV equipped car up north that is being offerred for less than what you guys are quoting me to special order the same vehicle WITHOUT the NAV!?!" At least I won't be accused of not giving them a chance to bid...

tex2670

Lay it out for them. Tell the local guy you have a SUBSTANTIALLY BETTER OFFER, and how much $$ he needs to cut down to get your biz. Period.

If he thinks you will come back for service regardless, tell him you'll go to the Toyota dealer after you get your free 5000 mi service.

kickin8

iTrader: (1)

you might be able to get a better deal if you get it from CA...but it's gonna be a hassle shipping (unless you are driving it back)

Zeus69

iTrader: (1)

Can I do that? The local Toyota dealer shares the same plot of land with the Lexus dealer (common entrance). I've heard that if you're a Lexus owner they won't even see you. There must be an arrangement here in town where "Only Lexus can service Lexus..."

Joeb427

iTrader: (1)

I would go the Lexus site and find a region in the US where the car comes through with the option package(s) I want and call a few dealers there and have it shipped.
Would cost about $1000-$1200 to ship depending on distance but you can get exactly what you want and not wait.

CRB

You should be able to get a hefty discount off these cars at this point, special order or not, and if your aren't then either you didn't try hard enough (which is fine some people hate haggling) or you have enough money that it really isn't worth your time to haggle ( and you might be advised to pay someone to procure the car for you in this case). The numbers your "local dealer" gave you are, in my opinion, too high for the current market let alone what that special order car should be priced at when it finally gets there in March or April of '08. Personally, I would not settle on a price for a car until the dealer HAS the car and you SEE both the merchandise AND the current market at the time of purchase. And I'm NOT saying to order a hard to sell car and then attempting to low ball them on the back end either. Find out what "good price" is on IS350 at that time and make the adjustment for the options you ordered and tell them what you'll pay.

gengar

The dealers should be able to arrange the shipping for you, and at low cost because they have deals with the shippers. I bought my SC400 certified pre-owned from Magnussen (bay area CA) when I stopped by on a trip, and I didn't have time to drive it back here to Vegas (nor did I really want to). The dealer was fine with working out a price that included shipping, and based on our negotiations it was around $300. I had my car two days after I got back to Vegas. It was very hassle-free, I wouldn't have had it any other way.

IS350inCA

Does your local lexus dealer offer the loaners for $ to customers who didn't buy the car from them? The way I see it is you should jump on the offer that gives you nav and a better deal. Service it locally and just pay for your loaner if you need it. Most services on the car will be 2 hours or 3 hours with the exception of the 5k service. I have about 25K miles on my car and have used the loaner twice. Your toyota dealer next door may also have a deal with enterprise and you could just walk across to toyota and rent an enterprise car for $40 or $60, and you still end up saving a ton of money while getting what you want at the same time.

Evitzee

All of the previous posts are well intentioned, but all regions, and all dealers, are different. Too many people are posting from CA and FL which seem to get the biggest discounts, which do NOT reflect what happens in most other parts of the country with fewer Lexus dealers. Some dealers just don't want, or need, to heavily discount. Trying to swim against this tide will be futile. In most parts of the country you can't go in and demand $6k off invoice and expect to walk out the door with a car. They just don't deal with those kind of discounts. Do your homework and test the waters, but unless you are willing to go outside of your area you are pretty much stuck with what the prevailing market is. Demanding a certain price won't get you very far. Too much testosterone flying around here.

Don't let this loaner business color your objective. You really don't need a loaner most of the time. If you can save more money going elsewhere you can rent a vehicle for the few times you will need to leave your Lexus overnight.

tex2670

That sounds a lot like collusion to me.