KTDJ

Hi Guys and Gals,

So I have been looking at the 18 TLX since the reveal and I finally went and test drove one a few weeks ago. It was only the FWD version as the dealer said they don't stock AWD models due to poor sales. My "dream" version of the car is a white on red A-Spec AWD. From what I hear, some dealers are selling below invoice while others are only letting $1,000 or so off sticker. When should we see pricing get close to the $40K mark for the config I mentioned? If the car was just a bit cheaper, I probably would have bought already.

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

^baller ass.
at your age and with $40k, i'd be looking at much more baller ass cars.

aIRpeACE

iTrader: (2)

yeah if a ferrari was just a bit cheaper, i probaby would have bought already.

UNCMo96

My bet would be early next year. Since the 2018 just came out I bet you can get some good discounts on remaining 2017 stock. Around my neck of the woods you can get invoice or below but not below 40k. Invoice is about 43750 or so. This isn't a personal finance forum, but I'd caution about dropping 40 grand at 20 years old on a car (unless you've really got the finances together. If you do more power to you!).

slimm1469

If you want the car, make them an offer. I've read about $2,500 TLX discounts on this and the other Acura forum. Do your research. TLX sales, August '16 to August '17, were down 30%. Negotiate. Make them an offer. All they can do is counter. And you go back and forth.

ronricks

Why the rush? If you are not in immediate need of a new car why not wait until the 2019's start to hit the lot? They will be aggressively discounting the 2018's and it isn't like the TLX has been a hot seller the last few years.

kurtatx

20? Are you a student?

UNCMo96

It's interesting: On TrueCar for an awd aspec the invoice is listed at 43.8k. The local average (north east) is 41.8k. The national average is 43.2k. I got mine for 43k flat. I wonder if TrueCar includes leases in their sales figures. It seems you can get a better "deal" on a lease since they discount the starting price.

RDX10

FWIW I know a guy who bought a brand new f10 M5 when he was only like 23. He has a good paying contracting career/job but I don't think the guy has any idea what the hell he is doing getting a car that expensive at his age. From what I understand he does not come from money either and he said he regrets his purchase big time.

iforyou

iTrader: (1)

Daaamn 20 yr old and already considering buying a $40k car! When I was that age I was still borrowing my parents 98 Camry or 02 TL...lol.

Joke aside, I think September/October is usually the time when more incentives will be available to push for more sales volume. Right now, there are dealers that think the A-spec is the latest and greatest in the segment and aren't moving much on price. Perhaps waiting for a bit longer is a good idea.

slimm1469

Come on guys, this isn't about whether he should or shouldn't buy whatever kind of car. He's a member with a legitimate question.

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

^which you answered in post #5.

if I was 20 and had a budget of $40k, plain jane TLX aspec would not be my first choice.

KTDJ

First off thank you for a good reply and not just mentioning my age. I currently go to school and work full time at a very well paying (for a 20 year old it seems) job. I have my down payment ready so I'm not in the biggest rush to buy, but it would be nice to have something new. TrueCar seems to be trickling closer to $40,000 for the A-Spec's but not sure how accurate it will be.

KTDJ

What would be on your list for 40K or less with good gas mileage, (I commute about 100mi/day) and a fun ride at the same time?

AZuser

If sales continue to trend downward and I have no reason to believe it won't, you should be able to get a good deal during Acura's (Season of Reason) holiday sales event.

Late November/beginning of December marks the start of a slower sales period for car manufacturers because people are spending money on holiday gifts, not cars. Plus, who wants to go do test drives in cold/rainy/snowy weather?

CheeseyPoofs McNut

In theory the last week of December should be the best car buying week of all-time. It's the last week of the quarter, last week of the year, and it's during what is usually the slowest time of the year for auto sales - especially if you live in an area with crappy weather.

It's always best to get multiple dealers involved and let them fight it out for your business.

Good luck to you.

KTDJ

I don't see how much longer they can keep the pricing structure so high when they only sold 2,500 units last month. I understand that they misjudged inventory with not making enough AWD models, but that should be more than fixed by now. Its not like this car has nearly the same following as something like a GTI or Golf R where people ordered one 6 months before they hit the dealer lots.

Do you or anyone remember what the deals around the holiday season have been in previous years?

pyrodan007

I remember free maintenance for 2 years and lower interest rates being part of it. But not too sure what kind of discounts, for some reason I have $2000 cashback in my mind.

ggesq

iTrader: (1)

When I was car shopping a few weeks ago, dealers in my area wouldn't budge off MSRP for an ASPEC SHAWD. Out of principle, I immediately ruled the TLX out (and for other reasons too) because sales managers were acting like I needed their car. I didn't and they lost a potential sale.

pyrodan007

Felt exactly the same way, and they knew I wasn't happy with my 15 TLX.
I see that you got a Q50RS, was a high runner up. But in the end, I got the right deal and I'm waiting for my blue A4 Technik S-Line to be transported from Ontario. Very excited!!! The Q50's engine was nice, but the interior was too similar to my TLX. Needed a change, plus A4 feels bigger and much more advanced.

jhb31

1k off sticker is not that great. I bought the AWD Aspec and every dealer was instanty at around 43500 with no protest and would go down to 43k without much effort. Based on that experience I would think if you went in and were willing to buy on the spot you could get the FWD for slightly under 41K, I doubt they would let you walk but shopping dealers is always the best way to get the best price, once you get that price go back to the dealer you want to buy from and ask for the deal. Since this is already a 2018 model there will probably not be any clearance end of year to make way for the new model as the next model is 2019 and that most likely is fall of next year. Pretty much all the incentives now are on lease but at some point they will offer something decent on purchase. To date I have only seen 3 other 2018 on the road all non-Aspec but the A-Spec will always be outsold by the cheaper models.

ggesq

iTrader: (1)

I test drove the A4 w/ Quattro and 6MT- super nice car as well. There was only a handful in FloriDUH and luckily when I was visiting my folks in South Florida I was able to experience it. A4 was definately bigger but the styling was a little long in the tooth for me. Still, because of the Quattro and 6MT I was still considering it and was a front runner. Unfortunately, the Audi dealers I was dealing with had the same mentality the Acura dealers did and I walked.

MSZ

I bought my first gen TSX brand new when I was 21. Yes it is doable.

KTDJ

Thank you! Not everyone at 20 is living on their parents dime or is a broke college student.

KTDJ

I talked to the sales manager over the phone and asked about pricing and he really hesitated to mention anything. Played the "Our car is so hot rn it will be tough to get one for you" card. But when I told him I wasn't ready to buy, he wouldn't let me hang up. Checking their online inventory shows they have the same cars sitting for weeks on end. Probably just wants me to come in so he can trap me in there.

RDX10

It's not just about being broke, it's that shit come up A LOT around this age (I would know, I'm only 22 myself) and typically (not always of course) it isn;t the best idea to get into such a large unnecessary loan when there are cheaper alternatives (i.e used car) that will depreciate much less. At the end of the day, you know your own financial situation and we are only trying to give pointers here. As mentioned above, wait the dealers out because they are currently thinking they have the hottest thing on this side of the hemisphere and november/december is probably the best time to negotiate. Alternatively you can try to pit the dealers against each other to get yourself the best deal possible.

kurtatx

If I was 20 and had a $40k budget, I would buy a B8 S4 and save the rest for maintenance. Yeah, Audis are expensive to fix, but a $40,000 car is still going to have issues and you have no wiggle room

CheeseyPoofs McNut

Don't fall into their traps - remember they do this stuff for a living and many of them are skilled at wringing every last dime out of you. You want to be the guy in control. You do that by doing a lot of research - find out what the cars are selling for in your area. Find out what financing options you have. KNOW the max you are willing to spend and start well below that number. And don't expect to get lucky - if cars are selling for 42k in your area you're very likely not going to get one for 39k. Frankly your best bet would be to try in December and if that doesn't work I would wait until late March. They will come down on pricing but it may take a little time.

And have a plan worked out. I like the "My wife won't sign off on anything over 39k (or whatever) so if you can't get there then let me know so I can try the other dealerships" tactic. That way they can't try to work on you because it's not you - it's your wife setting the rules. Of course if you're not married that may not work - and you can't take your wife with you! If one dealership quotes you 42 take that quote to another dealer and tell them you would prefer to buy from them but they need to beat that quote. Do that for as much as you can stomach with all the dealerships! Anyways - the more prepared you can be the better the odds that you can get a good deal.

iforyou

iTrader: (1)

haha yes for sure it's doable.

Sspehnkouch

I am playing the market game as well. I have been looking at the A-Spec since it released. I have visited my dealer about three times now to see the current incentives. To date the best price I have gotten for a SH-AWD A-Spec is $42,433 with the 950 destination included. I am holding out for the low $40k without destination. I can get that with the current lease incentives but I keep my vehicles for 10 years before purchasing a new one. I am not in a hurry to purchase so I don't feel pressured when I sit down with the salesman and I think that helps. Some of their sale tactics are actually amusing. The other day when the salesman gave me his best price the sales manager stepped in and said "make sure you call the GM before giving him that price". Clearly the salesman wouldn't have gone below a value he felt comfratable selling the car.

AZuser

As long as you're not making minimum wage and trying to buy a $40K car, then go for it.

F23A4

Honestly if I were in the OP's shoes, I'd probably go for a 17 Accord Touring and call it a day. Effectively a TLX in Accord clothing, Honda dealers are marking them down by a good margin ahead of the upcoming 10G. Add to that, likely cheaper to insure and you don't lose much (if anything) when it comes to performance. (Downside: looks identical to the tons of 9.5G Accord Sports on the roads save for the jewel eyes.)

TacoBello

this is patently false. Dealerships can set their "year end" to be in April, if they want. Nothing forces a dealership to have its year end in December. If this was the case, no one would buy a car for 11 months of the year, because they know when the deals happen. What is more vital is to find someone working at said dealership, and have them find out when end of the year is actually. That's when the best deals happen.

jhb31

A lot of it has to do with how long you keep the car. I bought a 2007 type S new late in the model year discounted down to 32k. Kept it for 10 years and traded it in for 12k which worked out to about 170 per month for the time I owned it. Other than $200 in unscheduled maintenance I enjoyed that car every day while I had it. A new car is never an investment but pick the right one and hold onto it your cost over time goes down. Then again I bought a 2017 tlx heavily discounted and kept it 4 months and my cost of ownership after trade in was more like 1k per month.

KTDJ

Interesting you mention the accord. I actually drove on back to back with the TLX and I didn't like a few things. First off the noise was noticeably higher on the highway vs the TLX. Also didn't like the fact that the volume up/down are touch instead of a knob. Third, the transmission didn't seem to have the same response as the TLX. But fully loaded it is about $8,000 less then the TLX I listed.

KTDJ

Planning on keeping the car for 8-10 years. I currently average at 25k/ per year so deprecation will not be in my favor at all, but after 8 years it wont matter anyways.

alpha0

I also drove both back to back and i agree with you on Accord driving dynamics. In the end, i was not blown away by TLX to spend 14k more (32k OTD for accord vs 46k OTD for TLX Aspec SHAWD), so decided to buy Accord. Will look at new model of TLX in 3 years or so. When i drive accord, i miss ventilated seats, thigh extention and center armrest of TLX.

Nexx

Volkswagen sells an average of 1800 golf GTI's a month. people arent busting down the doors for that thing like you think. its niche and certain will buy them but they are just flying off the shelves like you think.

hadokenuh

If you are 20 and plan to keep the car for 8 years, I congratulate you just for that. If that's the case then get EXACTLY what you want. ASPEC AWD. Wait until next month or end of the year to get better incentives.

But seriously, at your age, I'd get something nice and fun but used. Like Camaro, Mustang, 370Z, G37/Q60 Coupe, BMW 3 series, WRX etc. Something that you can get for 30K. Then drive for 3, 4 years that would cost you (car payment wise) about 4K per year to drive. That means when you sell or trade after 4 years, the car would be worth about 12-15K.

UNCMo96

To the OP I'm curious what you drive now and what you have driven in the past. Seeing a post like this makes me feel old! When I was that age I was rollin' in a 1980 Malibu Classic Station Wagon! (Hand me down from my dad!) It died on the Jersey turnpike when it was 15 years old and I got a used 2003 Mustang (4 cyl. not the 5.0) in 1995.