Help me buy this Lexus RX

H

harllee

Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Joined
Oct 11, 2017
Messages
5,319
Location
Chapel Hill, NC
I have a 2006 Lexus RX with 200,000 miles. I have LOVED this car but I do a lot of driving and think it is time to get something newer. I want another Lexus RX (perfect size for me). I don't like the new Lexus RX body style (ugly) so I am looking to buy a 2015 (the last year of the old body style). I have looked around online and have found a 2015 RX I like at a nearby Lexus dealer, it is certified preowned, has only 12,000 miles, is the color I want and has all the options I want. The price is $33,000 (plus the usual add ons). I want to negotiate the purchase online before I go in for a test drive (this is how I have bought cars in the past--I hate playing games at the dealership). I think the $33,000 price is a little high but this is the only car I have seen online with so few miles so it is hard to compare. The NADA retail value is $33,000, the Blue Book value is $31,000. I want to negotiate a drive away price and will not put up with any surprise costs at the dealership.

Any advice or tips how to negotiate this purchase? I will be paying cash.

Also have to decide what to do about my current 2006 Lexus RX. It is in good shape but has 200,000 miles, "well loved" as they say. I figure the most I could probably get for it is $5000. Maybe I should trade it in (the trade in price will reduce my sales tax) or maybe take it to Carmax. I don't want to spend alot of time on the sell of this old car. Any advice?

Thanks!
 
Go to Carmax first and get a price for the old Lexus. Work from there.

Always offer a dealer 10 - 15% less than "asking" before bringing a trade into the equation.

Even if the dealer buys your trade, they will more than likely send it to the auction to dispose of it due to excessive miles.
 
harllee said:
... Any advice or tips how to negotiate this purchase? I will be paying cash. ...
Click to expand...
Find a competing car (or more than one)within a few hundred miles and use this as a bargaining chip. Tell the dealer that you have these options and that you don't mind at all driving to pick up the car. Make it clear to the distant sellers that you have a local option and that they will have to give you an attractive price to make it worth your drive time and cost. We saved a few hundred bucks on DW's Mini that way, with two cars each about 150 miles away vs the local dealer's car.

Do not reveal that you are a cash buyer until a price is established. Dealers make a lot of money on leases (especially) and on loans. We tend to think that as cash buyers we are more attractive but in fact it is the exact opposite.

I always shave a little money at the end by refusing to pay the "document fee" that is preprinted on the sale contract. This is simply additional dealer profit and I point out that we already have an agreed-on price. I had one F&I guy say "You'd break this deal for $200?" My answer was "That's your decision, not mine." He caved.
 
That's an insane price. I have a 2015 RX in California and the trade in value with 35k is about $22k. Dealer retail is $28k. The miles are suspicious for a four year old car.

Your 2006 is a superior product in my opinion. Lexus has steadily gone downhill over the last 15 years.

Start low and don't give in if you really want the car.
 
Negotiate away. It can't hurt as long as you won't be heartbroken if somebody else walks in while you are negotiating and just buys the car.
It sounds as if you are going to drive this car for a long time, and it's exactly what you want, and it took a long search to find it, so you might just ask yourself if it really matters if you spend an extra 2K for a car you really want, and will drive for many years.
 
What aja said. Spend an hour to get your carmax written quote to have in your pocket when the dealer offers you less.

Getting a better deal on a CPO is tough to do. You can probably wiggle them down in loose change, but they know that nice CPO's with low mileage are hot buys. And Lexus is well known for December deals on new cars, so the dealerships will be teeming with buyers in a week or two.

Your want list is long, and you have found a unicorn: the year, the features, the color. If you really want it, go with your trade quote and then ask for their best OTD price. Keep pushing until the manager says "that's it, take it or leave it". It won't take long.
 
Lots of good advice here, thanks. One question-- I am not desperate for a newer car right now. The old one is going fine and I don't have any long driving trips planned until spring. So I could wait until after the first of the year. Would prices go down after the first of the year? I know the low mileage Lexus might be gone if I wait but there are plenty of 2015 RXs for sale around here (most have 30,000-40,000 miles and are priced around $30,000).

Someone mentioned to be suspicious of a low mileage car. Why is that? I have looked at the Carmax report and it looks good, one local owner, not a lease, I figure someone who does not drive much owned it (like my mother), but maybe I could be wrong. I figure a certified car would not have any mileage problems but I could be wrong.

On my old car--I will get a Carmax value. One thing we have considered is to give the old car to a family member, I am checking around to see if any young family member needs a decent car. My sister-in-law is perpetually short of money. She is currently leasing a car and if we could give her our old car and she could get out of her current lease that would help her cash flow a lot. But she says she is "upside down" on her lease and would have to pay a large sum of money to get out of it. I have never leased a car (I buy a good car and drive it 200,000 miles!) so I don't know how you get out of a lease. Any ideas how we could help out sister-in-law?
 
harllee said:
I have a 2006 Lexus RX with 200,000 miles. I have LOVED this car but I do a lot of driving and think it is time to get something newer. I want another Lexus RX (perfect size for me). I don't like the new Lexus RX body style (ugly) so I am looking to buy a 2015 (the last year of the old body style). I have looked around online and have found a 2015 RX I like at a nearby Lexus dealer, it is certified preowned, has only 12,000 miles, is the color I want and has all the options I want. The price is $33,000 (plus the usual add ons). I want to negotiate the purchase online before I go in for a test drive (this is how I have bought cars in the past--I hate playing games at the dealership). I think the $33,000 price is a little high but this is the only car I have seen online with so few miles so it is hard to compare. The NADA retail value is $33,000, the Blue Book value is $31,000. I want to negotiate a drive away price and will not put up with any surprise costs at the dealership.

Any advice or tips how to negotiate this purchase? I will be paying cash.

Also have to decide what to do about my current 2006 Lexus RX. It is in good shape but has 200,000 miles, "well loved" as they say. I figure the most I could probably get for it is $5000. Maybe I should trade it in (the trade in price will reduce my sales tax) or maybe take it to Carmax. I don't want to spend alot of time on the sell of this old car. Any advice?

Thanks!
Click to expand...
Last two cars i purchased from Lexus were very easy transactions. I did not need a new car and let them know my out the door price including all taxes and fees. It worked both times and the last one we were about 2200 apart from each other but i walked out and they called me on the way home. They have quotas to meet for CPO, used and new inventory so it most likely depends on how good of a month they are having as to how lucky you will be. Good luck!
 
While that's very high for a 2015 Lexus RX, it may not be for one with such low mileage (if that's the real mileage). According to truecar there are several other very low mileage RX's near you listed at $31K+ so you ought be able to do that at least. But you're not going to get the best deal possible sitting on your couch, you have to engage with a dealer or three. It's not hard.

At the very least print out the listings below and tell your dealer to beat those listings and you'll buy. If they don't you have to walk, if there was an easy way to get the best deal with no effort everyone would do it, and dealers aren't stupid. But you could have done better with a little negotiating.

https://www.truecar.com/used-cars-f...15/location-chapel-hill-nc/?mileageHigh=15000
 
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Midpack, thanks for the listings. The second listing is the one I am interested in at the Raleigh Lexus dealer. I am not familiar with the Vroom dealership on the other listings, never heard of them, I will look into them. I do think I want a certified preowned and to get that I guess I will have to deal with a Lexus dealer (you get some benefits from the CPO Lexus--2 years free maintenance etc).

Actually I do want to get the best deal I can sitting on my coach. I plan to do all my negotiation by email and only go into the dealership with a check once I have the deal nailed down. I hate visiting dealerships so I want to do that as little as possible.

The next thing I need to do is to take my old car to Carmax and get a price on the old car.
 
No matter what they say is their absolute lowest price is.....let them know you are not just kicking tires but you are definitely buying a car and walk away. Give them your phone number and offer them another $500 less and tell them to call you. But you are heading to the next dealership to buy today. They will call.
 
flintnational said:
For the same $33k I bought a new 2018 Toyota Tacoma, 4x4. It's sorta a Lexus with a larger trunk, no? :facepalm:
Click to expand...

Isn't a Tacoma a Toyota pickup? I have owned Toyotas in the past and I am sure there are several Toyotas I could buy brand new for $30,000 or less and they are good vehicles --but that is not want I want. I want a Lexus RX. Best vehicle I have ever owned by far.
 
I would not judge a 2015 RX by your experience with the 2006. I know someone that drove a 2006 RX for many miles and got a 2014 year end deal on a new one. He said it was not the same quality car. My 2015 is not bad, but I don't get the feeling it's anything other than a re-badged Toyota. Lexus is more about marketing these days than quality.

In your shoes, I would go drive the 2015 before you make any deals. I certainly won't buy another one at today's prices. Leather is not even standard - vinyl seats are now.
 
I will definitely test drive any car I am considering before purchasing. All the cars I am considering have leather seats, heated and ventilated seats, back up cameras and extra safety features my old 2006 car does not have. I paid in the mid 20s for my 2006 Lexus and it was 2 years old at the time so it was not an inexpensive car even in 2008 when I bought it.
 
I went through this a year ago and I was very happy with the resources available like carfax, car gurus, true car, etc. Some of these have a price history and "days on lot" data that can help you negotiate. One of them has a plot of price vs. mileage for all the identical models available for sale. The market value figures are not reliable IMO, though. I was really surprised how many very low mileage cars were available. I don't think you can go wrong buying a factory pre-owned car from the dealer. Also if you belong to a credit union sometimes you can get a discount if the dealer participates. I think the used car market is fairly volatile and depending on how specific your needs are with regard to make, model, options, etc. I'd say don't let this one pass you buy because the mileage is so low. Many people lease cars and just don't put many miles on them.
 
My family owns a big city Lexus dealership. Let me just say their dealership is the finest car dealership I've ever experienced. And I worked in the auto industry for 24 years. They don't play games with customers, and their customers are extremely loyal.

Offer them $31K for the RX and you've got it. Go ahead and trade your old Lexus to them, as it's pretty high miles. They often have Lexus owners looking for used vehicles for their kids, and no retired lady should have to deal with the hassle of selling a car to the public on their own. Too many squirrely tire kickers come out of the woodwork.

I've had RX, ES and IS models, and they were very trouble free. I'm taking my IS over for an airbag recall, and will be leaving it for them to sell for me. My 2018 Camry Hybrid is nowhere the quality of any Lexus, but we are certainly enjoying 48 mpg and the silence of the hybrid running around town. Hybrids are the future of automobiles.
 
Bamaman, thanks for the advice from an insider. I think I will start the email process with the Lexus dealer today and see what goes. I understand what you are saying about the hybrids. I have thought about the hybrid Lexus SUV but the price is much too high for me on the Lexus hybrid.
 
The best way to do it is let them put a face to the name and establish a rapport. Call the dealership, make an appointment to see the vehicle and satisfy your curiosity.


After the test drive the salesman will ask if you are ready to talk numbers "no thanks I'd like to think about it", call/email him later that day and at that point make an offer. The last thing you want is to be trapped in their office for hours on end.


That's the way I did it the last time I bought a car and it was the most pleasant purchase I've ever made. The dealership knows that you've already seen the vehicle and you aren't just going into it blind.
 
We just had a similar experience with buying another Honda Odyssey. Our old 2007 Odyssey had 200K miles and although we still loved it, due to the miles, we decided to get a 2015-2017 used Odyssey. We drove about 5 at the dealership and we were surprised that only one drove as nice at our 2007. So even though you think you found THE ONE online, you may change your mind based on the test drive. You could be wasting your time on the couch.
 
harllee said:
Midpack, thanks for the listings. The second listing is the one I am interested in at the Raleigh Lexus dealer. I am not familiar with the Vroom dealership on the other listings, never heard of them, I will look into them. I do think I want a certified preowned and to get that I guess I will have to deal with a Lexus dealer (you get some benefits from the CPO Lexus--2 years free maintenance etc).

Actually I do want to get the best deal I can sitting on my coach. I plan to do all my negotiation by email and only go into the dealership with a check once I have the deal nailed down. I hate visiting dealerships so I want to do that as little as possible.

The next thing I need to do is to take my old car to Carmax and get a price on the old car.
Click to expand...
Not possible, but best of luck.

I have been using email and online car buying services for over 20 years for every car I've bought, and I've gotten great discounts in hand that way. But I have gotten substantial further discounts every time by going into 1-3 dealers after taking email and phone as far as possible.

It takes two to tango, and you're not the only buyer. You can do a lot by email and phone, but not the best deal possible - no way.

It'll be interesting to see what CarMax offers. My experience has been they do pay top dollar for late model trade ins, but they low ball older or high mileage cars - but maybe they've changed since the last time I took a car to CarMax. Not sure what you're going to do with the CarMax number, but you realize the sales tax implications of selling your car to CarMax and then buying another car at a dealer - often thousands in additional sales tax. Dealers know the sales tax angle, so they don't have to come anywhere close to the CarMax number to net you lower out the door after taxes - and I am sure they'll make you aware they have you over the sales tax barrel.
 
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OP here, oh well, back to the drawing board. I contacted the dealer this morning and the car I was interested in is already sold, only on the lot a couple of days, it sold really fast because of the low mileage. So I will continue looking. I think I will go ahead and get the Carmax price on my old car.

Midpack raised a tax question about trade ins. In North Carolina the sales tax on cars is 3%. If you trade in a car you pay the tax on the sales price net of trade in so if I sell the old car myself I do pay a little bit more but on a $5000 car the extra sales tax is only $150.

Midpack, I am sure I could get a better deal by going in person to the dealers (there are 5 Lexus dealers within a couple hours drive) and haggling but I am at the "life's too short stage"--I would rather pay a little more and avoid car salesmen. I hate going to car dealers and talking to used car salesmen.

There has to be a better way to buy a car--maybe I should look at the Carmax Lexus inventory since they do not haggle.
 
harllee said:
Midpack, I am sure I could get a better deal by going in person to the dealers (there are 5 Lexus dealers within a couple hours drive) and haggling but I am at the "life's too short stage"--I would rather pay a little more and avoid car salesmen. I hate going to car dealers and talking to used car salesmen.

There has to be a better way to buy a car--maybe I should look at the Carmax Lexus inventory since they do not haggle.
Click to expand...

Maybe you can find a third party to do the looking and test drive for you? Say maybe your spouse or a close relative? Maybe there is a "service" to do this kind of stuff?
 
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