Timing on buying a 2017 vehicle

[clobber]

9. We're considering ordering a new Toyota. The Toyota dealers in our state acquire vehicles through Southeast Toyota Distributors--and their wholesale price is substantially higher than dealers to the north (of us) that get their vehicles directly from Toyota. Southeast also adds undercoating, paint sealant and other rip off items at the Jacksonville port--prior to delivering them to their dealers. Gulf States along the Gulf of Mexico is another Toyota distributor that does the same thing. Needless to say, I'll drive an hour to save big bucks and do business with a non-chain dealership buying cars cheaper.

Thanks for the informative post. Regarding point #9, how would the layman find a good place to go for Toyota? I'm currently in North Texas.

 

[REWahoo]

Thanks for the informative post. Regarding point #9, how would the layman find a good place to go for Toyota? I'm currently in North Texas.

New Mexico or Colorado is your best bet - or north of Oklahoma.

I'd never buy a new Toyota from the GST cartel dealers as they have a monopoly in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma and Texas.

 

[Bamaman]

If you're going to travel out of town to buy, t'd be nice to find a dealership willing to deal in a city that's a cheap budget airline flight away. Then deal online.

But there are relatively few "big city' Toyota dealerships that are not chain store affiliated. I'm looking for that "home owned" dealership in a medium size city, and luckily I've found one in the city where my wife goes to the doctor an hour north.

I just hope they do business the way I do business--by putting the dealer invoice on the desk. I don't want any extras of any kind, and I don't expect anything for free--like lifetime warranties, etc.

Back in the "old days", dealers would advertise big in the large city newspapers. And the prices quoted were always right at cost. But now, it's seldom that you see anything advertised but leases.

I'm thinking about running over to the Lexus dealer tomorrow to drive a ES hybrid to see how they run before ordering a Camry hybrid with the same running gear. Oh, well, it'll all work out. It's a shame the Lexus' are twice the price of a Camry as I can get one at cost--since my sister owns the dealership.

 

[brucethebroker]

Great info guys/gals. Some really good points-I appreciate all the input. Please continue even if you are late to the party.....

 

[CaliKid]

Wait 'til Dec. 31st about 3:00 or 4:00 in the afternoon. It's no joke. They really do better deals then.

 

[Totoro]

Regarding models late in the year: if you plan to sell relatively quickly, better to buy cars done earlier in the year.

A car from dec. 2016 is one year old in jan. 2017. Silly, but it does have an effect.

 

[scrabbler1]

On the flip side, remember that a car's model year determines in part the insurance premium you pay for Comp and Collision insurance. If you buy, for example, a 2017 car this September as the 2018 cars are coming out, you will pay a little less (about 4-5%) for your Comp and Collision coverage.

 

[imoldernu]

My guess best time for a 2017 buy would be October.

GM (for one) is stuffing dealership floor planning. By the end of September the "buy new" prospect will force the price points.

The decline in auto sales makes margins secondary to survival. Current drop in auto sales is the leader in the continuing fall off in all consumer spending. Possibly a harbinger of things to come.

 

[nash031]

We saved a couple grand buying at the end of the manufacturer's quarter last year. Bought off the lot and reduced inventory.

Also looked into buying former dealer loaners. Usually well equipped, with only a couple thousand miles on it, but several thousand cheaper than brandy new. While we didn't go that route, we explored it in depth. May only apply to luxury brands that offer such incentives, in our case BMW X1s.

 

[Bamaman]

I was reading some online news articles this a.m. about the move from sedans to roomier SUV's. Nissan is kicking some serious butt with their Rogue--#4 in sales right now after pickup trucks. Ford's Explorer is also seriously up in sales. Pickup truck sales are hanging in there, especially with high end models.

If someone's looking for a sedan, there should be a glut of them on retail lots because sales are down dramatically. It's going to take some serious sales incentives to get them moving.

The next 6 months in the new car market should be very interesting.

 

[walkinwood]

I was reading some online news articles this a.m. about the move from sedans to roomier SUV's.

We're one of those planning to move from a sedan to a small SUV. Ford Escape and the Honda CRV are on our radar.

 

[scrabbler1]

I once bought a former rental car. It was sold back to the carmaker then reconditioned and sold as a high quality used car, backed by the balance of the factory warranty. In my case, the car had relatively few miles for a former rental car, only about 10k, and had been first put on the road for only 7 months, pretty low for a rental. What I saved was the first year's depreciation, or about 1/3 of what a similar, new car would have cost. The car lasted me 15 years and gave me little trouble.

 

[pb4uski]

We're one of those planning to move from a sedan to a small SUV. Ford Escape and the Honda CRV are on our radar.

If those are on your radar then you should consider Subaru Outback or Forrester.... both are very good values IMO... particularly if you need or want AWD.

 

[Blue Collar Guy]

I have to get the Bill of sale for our last car. In addition to the $700 for nitrogen in the tires, there was I think $299 for the VIP CLUB. The small print said 10 % off collision work, 1(ONE) free oil change, 5 % off body work, that kind of junk. That was another no-go item. As far as the best way to deal, I got a USAA buying coupon from 4 dealerships. The dealer around here couldnt even touch the price. One of the coupon guys was a fake, he couldnt even come near the price he said. Here is a reprint from my old post about car buying.

we got some kind of pricing from USAA they sent us 3 quotes, we prepicked all the options and they emailed us 3 dealers with 3 decent prices, one dealer in Manhattan swore he had the car, we go and bingo all lies we wasted 5 hours, the next dealer not on the list said he would lose money on the car if he sold it to us at the price, we went to the second dealer that emailed us and he had "sold" the car , before we drove to new jersey to see the last guy we cold walked into an old time dealership in a horrible part of town, we showed him the prices he said will you buy the car today?, we said yup, he located the car in Connecticut, 2 days later we got the car, . i called usaa car buying service and told them it was far from hassle free and the liars that said they had the car at that price, but in the end we saved far more on it then if we had to haggle.

 

[Bamaman]

We're one of those planning to move from a sedan to a small SUV. Ford Escape and the Honda CRV are on our radar.

Both are great vehicles, and big, big sellers. Ford's throwing great incentives on the Escape right now. Ford dealers' basic dealership expenses are covered from profits off pickup trucks, and you'll just about always beat a Honda dealer's deal. Ford's 2.0 liter Ecoboost is quite a performer, too.

(My family once owned part of two different Honda dealerships.)

 

[meierlde]

One thing to check on is what date in your state do dealers get assessed personal property taxes on their inventory, they will typically have clear their lot sales before hand.
Note that I have read that cars as contrasted with SUVs are not selling to well and GM had to stop production on the Malibu and Cruze for a couple of weeks, likley you could get a deal on those if interested. Note auto sales in general are down about 2% year over year.

 

[Bamaman]

The ad valorem taxes are usually assessed on inventories on hand as of December 31st. Trucking companies close down for Christmas Vacation and dealers are thankful for that. And many dealers also ignore booking in vehicles that arrive before year end--until after January 1st.

The last week of the calendar year is very good for the car business. Many customers with profitable businesses are also purchasing vehicles on paper when they can take enhanced depreciation on them. They may not even get around to picking them up until a week or two into the new year, however.

General Motors has finally come up with some really good styling on the Malibu and Impala. And the Cruze has developed into a good vehicle. With low sales right now, sales incentives should be excellent. When supplies go up--the price comes down.

 

[walkinwood]

If those are on your radar then you should consider Subaru Outback or Forrester.... both are very good values IMO... particularly if you need or want AWD.

We did consider the Outback which is very popular here in CO. Didn't like it as much as the the two.

Both are great vehicles, and big, big sellers. Ford's throwing great incentives on the Escape right now. Ford dealers' basic dealership expenses are covered from profits off pickup trucks, and you'll just about always beat a Honda dealer's deal. Ford's 2.0 liter Ecoboost is quite a performer, too.

(My family once owned part of two different Honda dealerships.)

Thanks. My FiL is a retired ford employee, so we get good Ford deals. However, I want us to buy the car that we like best since we keep them for a long time.

 

[Totoro]

I once bought a former rental car. It was sold back to the carmaker then reconditioned and sold as a high quality used car, backed by the balance of the factory warranty.

My current car is an ex-rental too, bought via the outlet store of the parent lease company. Great value, no hassle. Put 20k miles on that thing in the past year, and it only depreciated a few hundred dollars.

Only the engine is woefully underpowered, but can't blame them for that now can I

 

[Andre1969]

The last new vehicle I bought was a 2012 Dodge Ram. I bought it in September of 2012, so by that time they probably wanted it gone to make room for the 2013 models. Anyway, it originally MSRP'ed for around $26,000. I got it for $20,751 out the door, with tax, tags, all incentives, etc.

I wanted a specific body style that's not so popular anymore...regular cab, with the 8-foot bed. Essentially, a light duty work truck. Most people these days want a back seat, so they get either an extended cab with stubby rear doors, or a crew cab with full rear doors, and a correspondingly shorter bed. Or, if they want a "real" truck, they get a 3/4 ton or beefier model. So, the dealer might have been more willing to throw the extra incentives on my truck, just to get rid of it.

 

[ERD50]

I haven't paid a doc fee in years. They are just "additional dealer profit." ...

Especially when they screw up the documentation. Do I get that refunded?

But personally, I don't see the point of concern over whether they charge xyz fee or not. The out-the-door price is all I care about. If I get what I consider a fair price, they could put a line item for 99% of the price that says "Beer & Pizza sales-person fund", or "Fee for driving the car from the lot to our front door and handing you the key(fob)". Why would I care?

Though I have had a sales guy tell me that the doc fee is a government regulated fee, or something like that, leaving the impression it is required. I looked him in the eye, and said, yes, the government regulates the maximum you can charge for a doc fee (at least in IL), they don't require you to charge a penny.

-ERD50