dethred

Since you buy a new car every 3 years, and it shows that this is your (at most) second car purchase, you need to formulate a plan and stick to it.

First of all: You should be able to get that 2010 for under $36,000 before TT&L. I bought my TL 2.5 months ago for a few dollars (literally) over $36,000. I would throw $35,500 at them for the 2010, but only if it has little-to-no mileage. If it has over 100 miles its been test driven a bunch so I'd offer $35000 even.

There is no difference other than the model year number between the two cars. If you are adamant about getting a 2011, then I'd go to at least 3 other dealers (or call) and get progressively more competitive quotes. Until you get them down to about $37000 they are going to be making money above and beyond holdback. $38,000 seems to be a decent price if you can get them to drop that far.

The best way to do it is get them to compete with another dealer, throw a final (OUT THE DOOR) price that satisfies your needs, and let them come to you. If need be, wait until the salesman calls and say that their price isn't good enough, so you're leaning towards a G37. If the dealer wants to make the sale, they'll settle for holdback plus a bit more, and try to scam you in the Finance and Insurance office.

And finally, when you go into the F&I office, the only thing you say yes to is when they ask you to sign the loan papers.

eluzion

Yeah, they're only offering me $38,300 on the 2010 and it's black. Only $600 less than the 2011. According to edmunds, the invoice should be almost $1,500 less. Decisions... looking at other threads, seems like people are able to get much better deals.

The other two dealers said they cannot beat the original price I had on the 2011 of $38,910.

dethred

Are they talking about out the door?

I am not sure if the $3500 incentive is still going on, but 38000 is a ripoff on a slow-selling one-year-old car. I hate to say it but they are seeing you as a 24 year old kid that they can rip off. One thing you might want to do is start getting quotes from a few different dealers over the phone. Never let them know your age either. I know my dealer seemed kind of shocked when my wife and I showed up to buy the car (she looks 18 still).

I can also submit a USAA car buying request for you, but it would be under my wife's name. You can always just say she's your wife, and start negotiating from a very low price point.

What is your zip code? If you want, Private message me your phone number, email address, and zip code and I'll submit it for you. Or I can check costco's buying service and let you know whether its worth spending 50 bucks on a costco membership to save a couple grand on the car.

eluzion

Yeah, these were out the door numbers. I've talked to about 5 different dealers and I never mentioned my age. I told them exactly what I wanted and that I am ready to buy and dealer X is offering at this price. All of them called me back and said they couldn't beat the price (most were about $1,000 over) and that they couldn't figure out how I was getting this price without the dealer taking a loss (blah blah blah).

I'm actually a USAA member so I've used auto circle. That's how I negotiated my original price. It was $38,292 on USAA but with additional fees from this dealer, it came out to $38,910. I appreciate the offer though.

I might just bite the bullet on the 2011 for $40,300 w/ the lip kit. The 2010 is only $600 less and a color I really don't want.

dethred

Well, if I believed my the dealerships when they said they'd be losing money, I would have payed a lot more for my car too. Hell, the dealership nearest me wanted about 700 more than the one a couple hours away from whom I bought my TL. I told the closer dealer that they had until X date to match it or I am already going to be driving a TL from the cheaper dealership. What do you know, the dealer that was asking $700 more, and said matching the price would lose them money, ended up matching the price and called on the day I told them was the last chance.

If you go to USAA.com, login, and then choose this link, I guarantee you'll get a much better price.

https://www.usaa.com/inet/ent_utils/...buying_service

For instance, there are 3000 dollars of incentives going to the dealership, and invoice is a touch over 39000. That leaves you at 36500 or so and you'll be buying the car AT INVOICE, which is virtually the standard for cars that aren't in high demand.

http://www.edmunds.com/acura/tl/2010...ncentives.html

They aren't going to give in easily, which is why you have to be patient. If you are in a hurry, then you are going to be paying more on the order of thousands. It took me a month to go from first test drive to pulling off the lot in my new car. If the dealers folded after a day and said "OK, we can do invoice" then everyone would be getting great deals and dealers would be hurting badly.

My dealer was happy as can be when I bought my car. I got the car for under invoice when calculating in the manufacturer incentives, and the salesman was still cheery and happy. What does that mean? That means the dealer made money despite my great deal, and they were holding me off for that long for no reason other than to wear me down and get me to hand them more money than I planned to give them.

eluzion

That's the link I'm using (Auto Circle). $38,292 was the best price I could get for the 2011 SH-AWD w/ Tech.

dethred

If that's out the door, then I suppose its not bad. If they are trying to tack on extra fees, tell them when they are ready to drop the fees you'll be signing the paperwork. I had never heard of it referred to as Auto Circle, only USAA car buying service.

eluzion

Yeah, it sucks I'm so rushed on buying a new car or else I'd wait to work a better deal or for the 2012 model. Could be much worse though (could have been hurt in the accident). I appreciate all the help but I'm pretty much out of time and I think that 2011 TL SH-AWD 6spd silver is the one I'm going with. I hope I'm happy with the purchase.

onekneedown

You will be.

lji

It's actually to your disadvantage that you're so short on time. Like dethred said, I've had to do the exact same thing... except I was trying to sell the Lexus and negotiate for the new car as well. Finally found a dealer who bought the Lexus above "auction" price - closer to private party value and then proceeded onto negotiations for the TL. I ended up buying my TL out of state as there was one local dealer who had three 6MTs in stock and sold two a week before Thanksgiving. The third had HPTs which I did not want. I've got the car now, and it's a rock solid machine in terms of build quality. The ELS system is so worth the price of entry.

If they're offering $38,900 after TTL, it may not be a bad deal after consideration of your state tax rate.

platinum1

KeithL, may I know why you changed your TL with M37?

platinum1

I can guarantee you'll. 6MT with SHAWD and silver color . That's a dream come true for me .

eluzion

Yeah, he's gonna check tomorrow morning to make sure he can still get it by Saturday (when I need it by). I'm looking at either $38,910 or $40,300 (w/ factory lip kit) out the door. With $2,000 down, the lease comes out to about $500/month or $550/month respectively. Still debating if I want that lip kit or not. It sure does make the TL look a lot better.

I'm kind of hoping the other dealer with the 2010 calls me back tomorrow though with a better deal. If they would offer the 2010 for $37,500, I think I'd take it.

I bet you'll find some killer deals on the 2011 right before or after the 2012 comes out. If I could, I would definitely wait but I'm in a crunch.

eluzion

Besides the AWD and bigger engine, are there any other differences between the base TL and SH-AWD?

Just trying to keep all my options open incase I can't get the silver SH-AWD version I want. It would be nearly $100 less a month as well which is a decent amount to be saving.

Also, how does it drive compared to the SH-AWD? Is the 20-30hp difference fairly noticeable or negligible due to the additional weight of the SH-AWD?

jspagna1

I would say it depends on where you live. If you live in the NE I would go for the SH-AWD. When I was shopping for a car AWD was my priority. My wife's car is like a tank in the snow.

docboy

+1

Eluzion, where abouts do you live?

eluzion

I'll be in the northern part of Florida for about a year then somewhere else after. I might end up in Alaska so that's why I figured the AWD might be nice to have. Plus, it's just fun to drive. Originally, I'm from up there in good 'ol WA.

Unfortunately, the silver SH-AWD 6spd manual is not available now so now I have to decide what I want to do. They do have a silver automatic in stock I could pick up. There is also a black 2010 SH-AWD I could get, but the dealer is offering it at $38,300, only $600 less than what I was going to get the 2011 for and it has 56 miles on it. I'm having him see what the leasing numbers would look like on it since I'm assuming it will have a lower residual cost being that it's already a year old.

docboy

Alaska is nice in the summer (or so I hear). But with their winters, AWD IMHO would be a definite must. I wouldn't be stuck in Alaska with anything but AWD and shoes to fit.

Have you decided whether you truly want the manual, or are you settling for the automatic? The 6MT is quite a gem and a S4 fighter. Get the want you want or you may have regrets. IMHO.

Keep us updated!

lji

^Agree

eluzion

I decided to just settle on the automatic. It wouldn't have been as tough as a decision had Acura put a 6spd or 7spd transmission in there but at this point I don't have much choice. I tried working a deal on the 2010 6spd at a different dealer but they were almost $100 higher in monthly payments. Called every dealer within a 4 hour radius from my route tomorrow down to FL and none of them could even come close to matching the price of $38,910. I thought about just getting the FWD, but I dunno. I'm not 100% sure I'll end up in Alaska but I know I'd be hating myself if I did and didn't get the AWD.

eluzion

Well, that's all she wrote. 2011 TL SH-AWD silver, auto. They didn't have the lip kit in stock so I'm just getting it as is.

Leasing it with $2,000 down, $543.56/month (includes WA state ridiculous 9.6% tax). GAP included, $0 disposition fee, 12000 miles a year, 36 months. Final price (out the door) was $38,910 which includes their Xzilon paint protection, trunk tray and mud flaps. I'm gonna try to get the all weather floor mats thrown in as well.

This has been a stressful week. I really appreciate all the feedback from you guys. For you military folks -- highly recommend not totaling your car in the middle of a PCS.

KES

I gladly pay that sales tax for no income tax. Isn't WA one of the last states with no income tax?

eluzion

True. I think it is one of the few states with no income tax. I guess it all evens out in the end.

eluzion

Now the fun part begins. 4 hour drive on the freeway in a brand new car. Gas mileage is gonna be horrible from not driving a constant speed/rpm.

lji

I drove it 14 hours back from the dealer Not to worry, I think you'll be pleasantly surprised with the highway mileage.

eluzion

My only concern is with breaking in the engine. I know it's a controversial topic but I'm still a firm believer that you should put some load on the engine as much as you can for the first few hundred miles.

I'm already kind of hating the fact I had to get an auto and I haven't even picked up the car yet haha.

NJ SHAWD

the only place you notice the auto is on a launch. Everywhere else it does well.

jspagna1

Good deal I think. You will like the Automatic. I do.

eluzion

So I get here to the dealer and the car has pin stripes and body side moldings.. plus this weird crease/dent on the front right fender. Fortunately they were able to fix the dent although I can just barely see it still and the other stuff is in process of being removed. I know some people really like those side moldings on the new TL but I can't stand them -- I think it makes the car look cheap.

Also, what do you guys think of the xzyilon paint sealant that dealers put on? I've read mixed reviews about it but I'm wondering how it's worked out for some of you.

eluzion

Well, I've put about 100 miles on it so far and it seems like a pretty nice car. This car could really benefit from a 6spd or 7spd transmission. I'm also not a fan with how it lags for a second when you punch it. Anyways, gotta grab dinner (have yet to eat today).

Rocketsfan

The 2012 supposedly being released in March'ish is supposed to have a 6sp auto.

Pete2010

Those dealer added paint protections are all a scam. They are just ways to add massive markup to the price of the car and increase profits. You'd do better with some quality sealant and wax.

HondaOnWORKS

The ELS sound system is actually #1 in Luxury cars best audio system, according to Edmunds. Acura provided a link to the review. The ELS sound system will own both the Mark Levinson and stock sound system. The Non Mark Levinson sound system Lexus offers is whack.

I also personally feel the Mark Levinson audio system isn't that good. Well, the ones right now are good, but the system from the 2007 IS models isn't. My friend has a 07 IS250 and his Mark Levinson is a 13-speaker 194-watt audio system, which I thought was pretty weak and very comparable to the 07 TSX's 8 speaker 360 watts pioneer audio system. However, both these systems improved. Mark Levinson got better systems on the Lexus cars, and Acura produced the ELS.

Ahh, I'm just ranting about audio systems but at the end no matter what audio system you get from a car, an aftermarket audio system will always better and for cheaper.

HondaOnWORKS

For the topic...

I would personally stay away from Toyota/Lexus, because like others have mentioned here they have quality issues. Articles has been flying around saying Honda/Ford now tops Toyota in terms of quality. I also feel the Lexus IS cars aren't that good of a buy.

The Lexus IS250 is a joke, and is 40 grand OTD. Basically the IS250 is a car you pay 10K more to do most stuff worse than the TSX. Same goes for the IS350 comparing to the V6 TSX or TL. I personally feel most of the IS sales are due to brand rather than how good the car is. I do also admit the Lexus' IS ride is much more comfortable compared to the TSX but I don't know about the TL.

Out of your list, I would recommend the TSX V6, TL SHAWD, and the Hyundai Genesis Sedan.


BMW 335i is a very very good car but I feel the face lifted version seems worse looking than the non face lifted version. It also have cooling issues for the Twin Turbo, and I'm not too entirely sure if it still exist.

The Infiniti G37 Sedan, good value for performance but straight retarded value in terms of an overall car. That thing is just so expensive. It starts with a pretty high base price and with it fully packaged to do all the stuff most cars in the competition can do; you're looking at a nearing 45K OTD range. Mind as well get a Benz?

Cadillac, don't know much about that brand, because I don't like the brand so I can't really say anything about it.

KeithL

Was sick of the beak and the awful color, I like a real silver and the 4G Silver was a very muted dull silver/beige look.

jnc2000

x2

I've put about 2000 miles on loaner ZDX's and the 6sp AT is much better all the way around. That vehicle benefits greatly not only in off the line, down shifting on the highway to pass, and fuel economy.

platinum1

+1. Just buy a good quality sealant and wax. It's still far cheaper that their so-called paint protection system, and offers you much better protection. If you take their paint prot. system, I think every year you'll have to return to them to have the wax reapplied onto the paint. I don't know exactly if you have to pay that again every year you return. Someone here mentioned about that kind of program and what they would only do for a really expensive mark-up.