swizard

Hello everyone, I'm a newbie here. I am a woman looking to buy my first Lexus. I have a 2004 Honda pilot that I am considering trading/selling. I want to move up to a more luxury ride. I am an artist (muralist) and design consultant. I did a test drive yesterday and LOVE the RX350. Looking for a great deal. The dealer has an 08 leftover equipted with AWD, Premium Plus pkg, Luxury value edition (18 in. wheels, heated seats, navigation system, cargo mat, wheel locks, tow prep ) I came up with invoice at $40,434 and msrp at $45,881. They offered it at $40,866. It is their last 08 on the lot and it has 300 miles on it. They seem very motivated. I did some research last night on other forums and some were mentioning manufacture/dealer incentive of $2000.00 off on leftovers. They were talking prices at 2000.00 under invoice on 08's. Looks like that incentive ended Mar. 31st. Can I expect to pick this up at 2000 off invoice ($38,800)? I need to start negotiating and don't want to look like an uninformed female consumer.
Appreciate any advice or help...thanks in advance!

swizard

me again...also if I am looking on the wrong site, could someone tell me where I can find pricing help? I am new to all of this! Thank you.

LEXveryG8

Hi, welcome to the club. If your still kind of hazy on pricing a good guide would to just go to www.edmunds.com or www.cars.com. The websites lets you build the car you want with options you want and the pricing for them MSRP and invoice price. That should help you a little in negotiating. Good luck on your search, and hope you have a smooth transaction!

LEXveryG8

swizard

Thank you Lex, I did hit those sites, that is how I came up with the invoice price that I posted. I am mainly concerned with how much lower the dealer may be willing to go based on it being their last 08 on the lot. It is an upgraded model (with lots of stuff I really don't need). They told me they would go the same price on an 09 without the premium plus package (no nav package, 17 in wheels instead of 18 in ...etc.) I thought that I may be able to get them lower on the leftover..not as much wiggle room on the 09. Does anyone know anything about the $2000.00 incentive on leftovers? Thanks!

ecount00

09s are out in full force and as you noted, the 08s are the last leftovers. I would expect to get it below invoice, certainly no more than. No matter what deal you get, there will be somebody who claims they masterfully got a better one. who cares as long as you are satisfied?

as always, it comes down to a grude match between how much they can get you to pay, driven by how much you want the car, and how little you can get them to take, driven by how motivated they really are to move it. It's a very unique sitaution given the timing so you won't find an exact figure online. Do as much research as you can, including advice you get here, and come up with price in your mind that you would feel ok with paying based on how bad you want it and what you can afford. If you can get them to that price, buy it and enjoy rather than worry about beating them out of every last $. my 2 cents.

catdaddylo

If this was in Little Rock where there is only one Lexus dealer in the whole state the offer they made you is great. However, from some of the posts I have seen on this MB and the Edmund's site some folks have gotten their RX350 below invoice. With that said and the 2009 models now available and the 2008 models available getting less every day, I would make them an offer some where in the neighborhood of $39K. You can always go up but not down when you start your negotiations. Also, get the new car negotiations done before you ask them what they will give you as a trade on your Honda. Again Edmunds and Kelly Blue Book are two web sites that you can get an idea of what your Honda is worth and tips on selling your car. On a trade you are looking at the lowest or wholesale price your Honda is worth. If you decide to sell it your self to a private party you can expect several thousand dollars more. Selling it your self is not as big a hassle as you think. Running an add in the newspaper and placing your add on employee bulletin boards at hospitals and business's is where you want to start.

swizard

Thanks so much for the tips. I just don't want them to laugh at me when I call them on Monday and say that I want the car for $38,000. I am thinking of selling the Honda on my own, I am spending some time researching what it is worth. There are two Lexus dealers in the area that I am looking (Cleveland) so I will call the other dealer to see if they have any leftovers as well. (healthy competition!) Once I buy the car, I will enjoy it, and not obsess over whether I got the best deal or not....just don't want to be taken advantage of! Thanks

Lex2000TL

I would lowball it aggressively. The worst you will hear is they laugh at you (they still want to sell the car, don’t they), and the best they will agree with your offer. Then there is everything in between.
At least, you can tell them that you hear about $2000.00 incentive and you offer to split it 50/50.
I would still consider trading in Pilot, as you will significantly reduce tax paid on your new vehicle, unless you can sell it for a lot more.

YWW

I just bought a new 2008 RX350AWD 3 weeks ago stickered at $45,881 w/ NAV, 18-inch premium wheels, .... exactly like the one you looked at and paid $39k. However, they threw in a set of OEM all-weather mats (about $120 value), towing hitch receiver (about $700 value including parts & labor) which I wanted, couple of Lexus baseball caps (guessing $30 value), a free Lexus jacket (guessing $75 value), free exterior paint sealant & free interior Scotchguard (a $500 value), and a free NAV update when the new disc comes out later this year ($300 value). So if I include all the freebies they threw in, I probably paid about $200 over Lexus' new lower "revised" invoice with the factory to dealer $2000 incentives.

If your dealer is quoting around $40k which is the original invoice, you can likely get it for around $39k depending on the number of Lexus dealers you have in your area, how "thirsty" they are and how good you are in negotiating. You should not be too greedy mainly because most dealers are almost all sold out on the left over 2008 RX stock and I really doubt they'll be willing to sell it at below $39k especially if they only have 1 or 2 left. You should disregard those west coast deals where buyers were paying $2000 below invoice on their Lexus even before this special Lexus incentive because I can tell you with 99% certainty that you ain't gonna get that type of deal in the Midwest nor east coast area. Can't figure out how some of those west coast dealers ever make any money on those super "below invoice" discounts.

Here's my suggestion to you. Offer them $39k but have them throw in a set of Lexus all-weather floor mats plus the all-weather cargo mat (for the back) as well as the exterior paint and interior carpet protection. Don't even mention about your trade-in until this is firmed up. Be prepared to "give it away" on your old Pilot because the dealer will give you the very lowest trade-in value listed in the Kelly Blue Book even if your vehicle is in mint condition. Sometimes they won't even take it. If you can sell your Pilot on your own, you'll be much better off money wise. However, if you must trade-in, just be prepared for a low ball price for your old vehicle from the dealer. Hope this helps and good luck. Let us know how it turns out.

swizard

Thanks YWW...those were some great tips, nice to hear from someone that just picked up the 08 recently! Mind me asking what color? The one I am looking at is Savannah metallic, not my 1st choice but all they have. I'll keep ya'll posted!
Thank you again...

YWW

I have the Bamboo Pearl which is a very nice unique color that really hides the dirt well. Dealer only had 2 identically equipped RX on the lot at the time. Second one was Savannah which happened to be my second choice anyway. They had a Light Blue that was sold right before I got there which was quite nice too. When you are buying year-end stock, color choices become very limited especially now. BTW, Lexus Financial may still have a $500 incentive for people who borrow money from Lexus to buy a new Lexus RX. However, their interest rate is at 5.5% as compared to a much lower rate elsewhere. I didn't take their Lexus loan deal since I got 3.49% locally.

Dip Don

I got mine a month ago with all the options you have listed, minus the rear cargo mat. I did get the Liquid Graphite rims. The price was $38,900.00 + tax and license

AM1

iTrader: (6)

whatever you can get for an 09, you should take al least another 1K-1.5K off for a 08 especially one with 300 miles already on it. personally i wouldnt pay more then 37K tops.

ZIN

I just bought an 09 for $670.00 over invoice so to make a long story short....
I would want at least $2000.00 below invoice because of what you are losing in resale value driving an 08 off the lot.$2000-$3000 grand over 5 years is like $25.00-$30.00 bucks.
Last I will add RUN DON'T WALK and deal on that 08 b-4 it is GONE!!

Junkxus

I would not purchase an 08 or 09. Do a search and you will see many people are having issues small and large with Lexus products. Wait for the 2010 to be released in the Spring of 2009. Maybe Lexus will get their act together again. Or purchase a Highlander or the new Toymotor coming out that looks like the RX and save a bundle. Junkxus or Toymotor would not be my first choice. Maybe Infiniti or Nissan.