randomhero

Hello,

I've found the car I've been looking for (the color and trim). But the thing is the dealership is 5 hours from where I live. Are there any cons about buying a car from that far away from my house? Obviously, I won't be bringing the car there for regular check-ups. I would be going some where local. Is there anything I should look out for? I'm not making the trip unless I get a solid price quote over the phone. Thanks for your help.

LaCostaRacer

Not knowing more details (like are you looking for an 2007 or an increasingly more rare 06) I'll give just general advice. I would suggest asking for an email quote so you have something in writing which could prove helpful if you can find a local dealer to match or come closer to the price.

I guess it depends on how much $ you're going to save over buying at a local dealer and how comfortable you feel in your discussions with the out of town dealer and you're confidence that they won't change the 'deal' once you arrive.

Just remember when the out of town salesman sees you in person he/she knows they have you because you just made a 5 hour trip investment (or really 10 hour commitment for round trip) and probably won't abort a deal for any minor additions to the actual price. There could be flaws in the car that you may not find because you might be pressed for time with all the paper work. Remember your time is worth something and you'll be spending all day getting that car.

I bought my TL this past July and could have saved $400 driving 60 miles to another dealer. For me, it didn't seem worth the hassle then for me or my family. However, I bought my first new car in 1985 (Honda Prelude) and travelled 250 miles to buy it since the local San Diego dealers were charging $1500 premiums above MSRP at the time and there way a 6-8 week wait to boot. I was able to buy the car for MSRP and it took just 2 weeks wait for my color choice. That time is did seem worth the trouble.

Just thought I'd share my experiences in this matter.

csmeance

if it is an 07, dealers can do inventory exchanges for you.

Fulani has a TL

iTrader: (1)

I purchased my TL in North Carolina, and live in VA. Nothing wrong with purchasing a car from a dealer who is away from where you live. Like stated earlier get an E-Mail quote or a Fax quote. That way, when you go in to the dealership they cant mess around with you.

BE SURE IT IS the OTD (Out The Door) Price, otherwise they will try and add on extra costs if theyre a crooked dealership

randomhero

Thanks for your replies all,
I live in the bay area and I have found a '06 that I'm really interested in but the car is located in So Cal (Santa Monica Acura). Just doing a Google search on directions I came across some "reviews" on Santa Monica Acura. From what I read there they don't seem to be a very good dealership (ie: very pushy sales people). I guess I can hold off several more months (until late summer) and look into getting an '07.

Desert_TL

Something to consider. Don't ignore the fact that your local dealer will treat you differently if you buy the car from them compared to if you buy the car from somewhere else. Don't think it happens? Ask around on here and people will tell you all the time that if you buy the car from the dealer where you have it serviced, you will get preferential treatment when it comes to things like fixing rattles or other things where the warranty coverage is disputable. So don't overlook that. If the amount of money you are going to save is small or even moderate, I don't think it would be worth it.

Bob289

Ive bought my 06 TL w/navi at Santa Monica Acura. I delt with the internet sales person. No problems. But ive also delt with the floor sales person and he was a moron! His supervisor is also a moron and treated me like whatever. Im guessing being my age (i look young) most dealers didnt take me seriously. But the internet sales rep gave me no bull. I bought my TL back in 06 of July and I got it for 32.8k w/back up sensor, and i-pod connector + TTL. Not a bad price in my book. Im not sure what price they are offering you but if its lot of money I would say do it. Make sure you get a solid qoute on paper ie:fax or email. The sucky part is even tho you drove all day to pick up the car dont forget to cancel the deal if nothing is to your liking. Being a smaller dealership and its already 2007 they are hard pressed to sell it cheap because they have to pay interest on the car per month. If you have any questions shot me an PM or just post. Ill tell you more about my buying experience in SoCal.

On a side note: dont buy from Keyes Acura. They treated me like a retard and worst service ever! They was telling me what I like or dislike. Also what I need and dont need. Come on im the buyer not them. Well I can go on forever on this subject.

randomhero

It's not really the price. It's more the car color and trim level. Sure, it being early 2007 the price for an '06 will be much lower than it was 6 months ago, great! But it's more the car type than price at this point.

Bob289

If thats the case I would opt for the 2007 model. Better navi and other improvements. If you have time you could try to wait out for the 09-10 redesign. Then again if you always wait for the redesign no one would buy a car because there is always a better model around the corner.

randomhero

I've had my eye on the new anthracite gray. But the Moroccan red pearl looks incredible (maybe my new favorite TL color). I've only see pictures online nothing in person. I might just hold off for a while and get something close by.

By the way, this is kind of off my original topic, but what are your experiences with the following Acura dealerships around San Jose/south bay area:
- Autowest Acura of Stevens Creek
- Los Gatos Acura
- Sunnyvale Acura
- Acura of Pleasanton
- Hopkins Acura

avs007

I bought my Infiniti from a dealer 2000 miles away. I didn't have any problems. We even fed-exed the documents for signature, so they couldn't alter anything when I was going to fly in to drive the car home...

(I ended up just shipping the car over, but that's a different story)

Anyways, I didn't get any different treatment from the local infiniti dealer. They still even gave me free stuff on one of my warranty visits, as I asked about shaving the door-locks from my doors, and they offered to do it for free.

Acura on the other hand.... One of the service departments treated me like crap, and I actually bought our TL from them.... I've gotten our last 3 cars from out-of-town dealers, and I've never had any issues. I just make sure to have the price in writing before venturing down there.

Kostyan

I bought my new '06 just 3 weeks ago from a dealership thats 75 miles away but did it because

a) they sold me the car for 4000 under invoice, which still bested any deal I could get in 300 mi radius by at least 1200, and truly believe best deal anyone got on this forum nationwide
b) it was the color/trim combination I wanted

150 mi round trip of course is not a 700 mi trip, but I made the salesperson send me an email, documenting car VIN#, stock #, the price he agreed selling it to me over the phone. I came to the dealership with a printout and would have raised a lot of noise if they didnt do what they said they'd do. As of peace of mind, dude relax, you're covered under wtty, and the car will be fixed free of charge at any dealer in US.