Topic: NEED HELP to buy new 2008 Accord EX-L

[CarBuyer]

Hello, I am about to buy an 08 Accord EX-L (leather heated seats and safety are most important factors). I'm not sure whether to get 4 or 6 cyl. but am leaning toward the V6. I'm located in Saskatchewan, Canada where we have a good 5-6 months of cold weather, snow, and ice. Dealer quoted prices are 38,895 with .9% financing; otherwise, 35,600 cash for the V6 everything included. (I'd rather deal with the bank than the dealer). Any suggestions on where to go from here? I've been trying to research how to make the deal but unsuccessful so far. Anyone know the invoice price in Canada or where I can find it. I can only find US info. I think the prices I've been quoted are kind of high for a car that's a year old already. I'd also like to get 4 winter tires added into the dealing. I'm a female which I think makes it more difficult to deal with the sales people. Thanks for your help.

[vdk]

Hi there,

I think you should start at www.honda.ca http://honda.ca/HondaCA2006/Splash_Default?L=E and build your car. The dealer's quotes should be below that NOT higher. You should be paying somewhere around $1k less that what you get on the website (w/ the winters included) .
.9% financing will save you a lot of cash over the years, I don't know if any bank can match that.

Invoice prices here: http://carcostcanada.com/1/en/default.asp
Print whatever you get from carcostcanada and go with that to the dealer.

[CarBuyer]

Thanks, I looked at CarCost. So do you think it's worth it to pay the $39 to get a wholesale invoice price report? The MSRP cost taxes included come to just over 40K (for a 2009), close to the quote I have for a 2008 (38,895 with .9% financing or 35,600 for cash). Shouldn't the 2008 be considerably lower at this point in time?

[vdk]

Well I think those $39 could save you a lot more at the dealer.

There should be some sort of discounts for 08s.. I would think, just to clear the stock. You should be paying at least $1k less than what they're asking, maybe more.

If an 09 is 40k, $39k for an 08 doesn't make sense really.

[Ottawa]

Well I think those $39 could save you a lot more at the dealer.

There should be some sort of discounts for 08s.. I would think, just to clear the stock. You should be paying at least $1k less than what they're asking, maybe more.

If an 09 is 40k, $39k for an 08 doesn't make sense really.

Honda was advertising 5000 dollars off 08 in Ottawa anyway. 40K for an accord sounds wrong to me.

[vdk]

You could call Honda and ask if the have any discounts for 08s in your area. It's definitely worth a try.

[CarBuyer]

I got info from CarQuotes.ca. I highly recommend the service. They are very helpful. Located in Ottawa I think.
2008 Honda Accord Ex L V6        MSRP $34,990
                             Dealer Invoice Cost $32,367
                              Dealer Mark Up       $2,623
(Nat'l Average 'mark-up on the 2008 is 5-7%)
Air Tax 100
Freight 1410
Rebate on cash purchases in lieu of .9% financing for 36 mos and 1.9% for 48 mo (ending October 31) The rebate seems to be around $3500 so if I can get a good price I'd prefer to pay 'cash'. So any suggestions what I should offer? Remember, the quotes I have are taxes, pdi, etc. all included, so it looks like the quote (with the 3500 rebate) is actually close to the invoice cost. But again it is for a 2008, already a year old.

The sales person told me the financing and special pricing will be over at the end of October, then the cars will be considered used. Anyone know what that means? It's difficult to 1) ask this sales person questions and 2) get straight answers. (Or are they all like that?)  I wish there were more than one dealer in my city because I'd certainly go there!

For a 2009 there is a $2655 rebate. The MSRP is $500 higher and the dealer invoice may be too. It seems to me then that it's worthwhile looking at a 2009. Suggestions, comments?

I also want to get a set of winter tires and remote starter (getting ready for the winter!). How would I go about factoring that into the bargaining? Then comes the trade-in....

[The Fuzz]

Anyone know what that means? It's difficult to 1) ask this sales person questions and 2) get straight answers. (Or are they all like that?)  I wish there were more than one dealer in my city because I'd certainly go there!

It means you should find another salesperson. If you can't ask him questions or get straight answers then you shouldn't deal with them.

[PMREdmonton]

I got info from CarQuotes.ca. I highly recommend the service. They are very helpful. Located in Ottawa I think.
2008 Honda Accord Ex L V6        MSRP $34,990
                             Dealer Invoice Cost $32,367
                              Dealer Mark Up       $2,623
(Nat'l Average 'mark-up on the 2008 is 5-7%)
Air Tax 100
Freight 1410
Rebate on cash purchases in lieu of .9% financing for 36 mos and 1.9% for 48 mo (ending October 31) The rebate seems to be around $3500 so if I can get a good price I'd prefer to pay 'cash'. So any suggestions what I should offer? Remember, the quotes I have are taxes, pdi, etc. all included, so it looks like the quote (with the 3500 rebate) is actually close to the invoice cost. But again it is for a 2008, already a year old.

The sales person told me the financing and special pricing will be over at the end of October, then the cars will be considered used. Anyone know what that means? It's difficult to 1) ask this sales person questions and 2) get straight answers. (Or are they all like that?)  I wish there were more than one dealer in my city because I'd certainly go there!

For a 2009 there is a $2655 rebate. The MSRP is $500 higher and the dealer invoice may be too. It seems to me then that it's worthwhile looking at a 2009. Suggestions, comments?

I also want to get a set of winter tires and remote starter (getting ready for the winter!). How would I go about factoring that into the bargaining? Then comes the trade-in....

Why not offer the following for cash purchase:

Invoice: 32 367
Freight:   1 410
AC tax:      100
Rebate: -3 500
Dealer profit:  $1000

Total pre-tax:  31 377
GST:                1 568.85
PST:                2 510.16
Total:             35 456.01

I would offer $500 for remote starter. 

I would suggest you buy the winter tires separately from a tire dealer in town as they will have better selection and you should get a deal on ongoing tire maintenance and seasonal tire changes if bought with rims (get steel rims as they resist corrosion better).

[toolatecrew]

I would suggest you do NOT try to get winter tires and or starter "included" in the deal.

Why? The more things included the more numbers and the easier it is to confuse you.

Id work with the following

Invoice: 32 367
Freight:   1 410
AC tax:      100

Plus make it clear that you will be expecting the 3500 rebate. The rebate is a factory to dealer deal as I understand. It should not factor into your negotiations. Don't let them "take back" poart of that rebate to pay for tires etc.

The rebate is given to you after you decide to purchase and then can be applied against the cost of the vehicle . It is not to my understanding a reduction in the retial price (you have to pay tax on the full retail price not price minus rebate right?)

Offer them invoice plus required taxes. No admin fees etching NOTHING. They will of course say they won't sell for invoice or "cost" (its not cost they do have holdbacks). That's a reasonable positon. Start negotiating UP from the invoice price. Maybe $100 at a time. Do not negotiate DOWN from MSRP. Do not allow the rebate into the discussson (Salesperson "You are already saving $3500 on this car. We've come down $3500 what more do you want). Do not offer them 1K profit off the bat. They will try to bump up your intitial offer. Would you rather they bump you from 1K profit up to 1500 or from 0 up to 500. Both are a 500 bump.

If it is a small area, you only have one dealer and all the sales people seem to be difficult for a woman to deal with take a make freind. Yes I know that isn't the way it should be BUT all we care about is getting you the car at the best price. You can fight the improper treatment of women in your new car :-) later.

Once the purchase is made. Then have the dealer and local tire dealers compete for your business on winters. You will get as good if not better deal.
Same thing with remote starter. You will get the best deal via competion.

[CarBuyer]

  Thanks to all the advice! I need it! Okay, what I figure is I'll make the offer starting from the invoice plus pdi, taxes, etc. (BTW, Saskatchewan we have 5% pst now).That'll come to 33,415 OTD with taxes. That sounds good to me.  (I'm still going to ask to have the starter thrown in... what the heck, the worst that can happen is they'll laugh).  I'm not really sure if it was a rebate or just a cash incentive as an alternative to the .9% price.  Everything is so 'secretive'. I'm going to try to deal by email - Is that a good idea? Anyway, it'll have to be as I'm at work during their hours.

Two questions:
1. Anybody know what it means for a new car to be re-classified as 'used'. Supposedly, that is what will be happening after Oct 31 with their 2008s when the .9% interest rate offer expires.
2. Does the 3 year warranty start on the day I buy the car?

[rrocket]

^^Warranty USUALLY starts from the date of manufacture....

[PMREdmonton]

Thanks to all the advice! I need it! Okay, what I figure is I'll make the offer starting from the invoice plus pdi, taxes, etc. (BTW, Saskatchewan we have 5% pst now).That'll come to 33,415 OTD with taxes. That sounds good to me.  (I'm still going to ask to have the starter thrown in... what the heck, the worst that can happen is they'll laugh).  I'm not really sure if it was a rebate or just a cash incentive as an alternative to the .9% price.  Everything is so 'secretive'. I'm going to try to deal by email - Is that a good idea? Anyway, it'll have to be as I'm at work during their hours.

Two questions:
1. Anybody know what it means for a new car to be re-classified as 'used'. Supposedly, that is what will be happening after Oct 31 with their 2008s when the .9% interest rate offer expires.
2. Does the 3 year warranty start on the day I buy the car?

Usually the way the incentive works is you can take the rebate or the incentivized finance rate but not both.

It is very unlikely a Honda dealer will give you invoice even in this tight market.  A better approach would be letting them know that you know what the dealer cost is and having a firm price on which you will walk out of a deal.  The dealer will want some profit on the sale and will likely be more willing to deal if they see some flexibility on your part.  My friend and I discussed this strategy and walked out of an Acura dealership with the incentivized finance rate on an MDX and only paid about $500 over invoice + cost of mats/engine heater.

In terms of warranty, I think it starts the day you buy the car.

In terms of expiry of the incentive, with consumer confidence so low, I doubt they will disappear so long as there is steel that needs to be moved.  You could run into an issue over time that there is diminishing supply and not being able to get the colours you want.

[toolatecrew]

The salesperson is talking out their A**.

Cars are not reclassified as "used" based on a date.

If a car has not been purchased and registered it could be a 2007. ITs still NEW.
Dealers will often use a car for sales people or test drives and it is not registered to an outside customer and THEY the dealer call it a "Demo". That isn't a legal thing. Its just dealer speak.

Does the car you are looking at have any anmount of KM on it. Maybe they are using it as a "Demo"?

I agree you probaly won't get the car for invoice but that is where you should START. The dealer starts at MSRP. Its a bit of a random number really as its not based on what the car actually sells for.  Starting at invoice gives you a legit foundation for your number. Sales is all about overcoming objections and getting agreement.

You're objection is that MSRP is too high. They will try to overcome that by challanging the legitimacy of your offer. Invoice price is data its "fact". They can try to come up with excuses why their particular car cost more etc but its very hard to do. Negotiating from invoice reverses the control. If you neGOTIATE down FROM msrp you are the one requesting the discount. You are the one trying to convince them they should cut their price and justifying your offer.

If you negotiate up from invoice they are in essence agreeing with you that that is there cost. It is now up to the dealer to justify his PROFIT. Rather than the dealer saying "how much discount do you need for me to sell you this car" you are asking "What is the minimum profit you will accept  and still sell a car?" Sales systems are designed to put them in control and gain commitment from you. Reversing this by negotiating from invoice really throws a wrench into it for them.

Given what your sales person has said about the car becoming "used" I'd determine first if its a demo. Then I woul either get a new salesperson or preferably deal with a manager. This guy obviously is full of **** and you don't need to deal with that. It would be better to deal with someone who can make a decsion too. Not run back and forth to the office with your offer.

Email really isn't going to get you the lowest price. That might work in a bigger area where you have several dealers and they know they are competing. Here its the only game in town. Email are not binding contracts.

You need to make the time to go into the dealer spend an hour or so negottiating. IMO now is a perfect time. Its nearly the end of the month. If they are short of quota or bonus they may let the car go for a little less that normal to get that bonus.

[CarBuyer]

THanks for the comments. The car I am looking at is not a demo. In fact, I haven't even seen the actual car that I want to buy as they would have to bring it in from another location (Lloydminster) which is apparently owned by this dealership as well. I called the dealership today to clarify some questions. My salesman wasn't there so talked to somene else. I clarified (well kind of) that there is a $3000 cash incentive on both the 2009 as well as the 2008. So when it comes down to it, maybe I should be 'bidding' on a 2009 at this point, especially if there may be little price difference. (Do you think the invoice price stays about the same?) Also found out that the Warranty begins the day it is sold. As for the "Used" status, the guy I talked to today didn't know what I was talking about! What a game it is!

[CarBuyer]

By the way, I wonder why there are no female car salespersons? Oh, on second thought, that's okay, I know why! 

[PMREdmonton]

THanks for the comments. The car I am looking at is not a demo. In fact, I haven't even seen the actual car that I want to buy as they would have to bring it in from another location (Lloydminster) which is apparently owned by this dealership as well. I called the dealership today to clarify some questions. My salesman wasn't there so talked to somene else. I clarified (well kind of) that there is a $3000 cash incentive on both the 2009 as well as the 2008. So when it comes down to it, maybe I should be 'bidding' on a 2009 at this point, especially if there may be little price difference. (Do you think the invoice price stays about the same?) Also found out that the Warranty begins the day it is sold. As for the "Used" status, the guy I talked to today didn't know what I was talking about! What a game it is!

If the cash incentive is the same then it is a no-brainer to take the 2009 which will be a year younger when it comes time to sell or trade-in.  The only thing I wonder is if the cash incentive is stackable with a financing incentive on the 2008 (ie.  you can use both at the same time).

[vdk]

i doubt you can... you gotta choose one..

[CarBuyer]

There's a choice between .9% financing OR the cash incentive, one or the other. And the .9% is supposedly being pulled tomorrow - October 31. I'd be happy to get both together! Maybe I should try for that deal - both together - seeing how it's a 2008. I'm thinking that the 2008s can only go down in price as they try to clear them out. So if they don't go for my offer for the 2008 then I'll start negotiating on the 2009?

[1TSX]

Meidl Honda? Ah, I remember them. Ever since my dad bought a Toyota Sienna, instead of a Odyssey back in 98', we were completely ignored when we set foot into that dealership. 

Anyways, I'd go for the 09', if you are essentially getting the same deal.