So I am a bit new to buying and leasing new cars. Usually, have bought used cars, and have a better sense of the market value of these cars, thanks to online resources, etc.
The problem with new cars, is that there is a very opaque pricing structure. That is to say, there is MSRP, invoice and the price the dealer will actually sell the car for.
I understand with leasing, you first negotiate the price, then subtract the incentives add other fees etc. to get the adjusted cap cost. The residual and money factor then go into the lease price.
I am just wondering what is the best way to get the best price. I’ve looked at Truecar for some of the pricing. Is the Truecar price fair? Often times, it seems some better deals are posted on the website.
Sometimes, I’ve seen some incredible deals here in terms of negotiated price, less than invoice on BMWs, Mercedes etc. These prices are better than the truecar price.
My question is simply, what is the best way to get there. I hate the back and forth nonsense. Should one just be upfront and say can you match this price I saw on leasehackr, or is there some game to play to get there?
Also, what do you do with dealers who are like come in and we can talk about it. I just don’t have the time to deal with them. Should I just say sorry.
The best way is to read many of the posts in this forum. Learn what the going cash to dealer rebates are as well as invoice. Then negotiate from a position of knowledge.
I just look for specials on the dealer website. Then, you can back into how much of the discount is purchase only incentives to get an idea of how much the actual discount is. Sometimes their website is very clear about purchase incentives and sometimes they are not.
The specials are usually vehicles that have been on the lot too long and they need to move them.
Unfortunately, if you’re going into car buying/leasing on your own, it’s kind of an art form. There is no right way to do it. Someone here can post an awesome deal they got here, share the dealer and even the salesperson’s name, but if you go talk to the same exact person there’s a chance you won’t even get the same deal. They could simply say no. I believe most people on here who get great deals put in some kind of effort to reach out to multiple dealers and haggled along the way. Some put in the effort and even turn up empty handed. There’s no guarantee, unfortunately. If you don’t have the time/patience (which is perfectly ok), using a broker or other car buying service might be a better option.
Recently I received a truecar quote for a Pathfinder SL with tech and took it to my nearby dealer. He told me that truecar guaranteed savings only applies to a sale and not a lease. He told me that it was due to financing incentives that don’t exist on leases. Is this true or did he not want to honor the price? I’m happy with the deal I got but wondering if it could have been better.
Don’t know much about Nissan deals, but 12% off doesn’t sound bad. Check out Edmunds. They don’t track prices, but other users share their deals there. Maybe our resident brokers - @nyclife, @Benedetto - or someone else can evaluate it.
I looked at the Highlander. There were no incentives offered and they weren’t discounting that much. Also, Nissan covered my last two months payments and the $395 disposition fee because I returned an Altima. My local dealership quoted me roughly $550 for an XLE and I didn’t bother going back. I didn’t research nearly as much as I did with the Pathfinder though so I’m not sure if I could have done as well. Also, the sales manager rubbed me the wrong way. He wouldn’t give me a straight answer about the residual value. He told me Toyotas don’t use percentages and wouldn’t give me a residual value.
I pulled the trigger on the pathfinder but my other lease is coming due early next year. I may consider the Highlander although I was thinking about a sedan as a 2nd car. Are there any sedans with residual values comparable to the Highlander? Everything I’ve looked at is 45%-55% for 36/12. I’d be looking in the sub 400 a month range preferably closer to 300.
I am in the same boat with a Rogue. I am turning it in soon. I would do it now, but nobody will give me numbers on the Pathfinder. I want a Highlander. And we may end up going in that direction. But the fact that Nissan will absorb some of the fees and there “seems” to be more negotiating with Nissan, we are considering the Pathfinder. I was hoping to wait until 2018’s came out to see what the residuals look like and if there is any money thrown out on the 2017’s to get rid of them. The 2018’s a bit nicer, but for the most part very similar to the 2017’s.
Infiniti QX60 is worth looking at too I think. I was looking into that prior to the pathfinder. I negotiated a premium, premium plus that looked like this:
MSRP $51,040
Agreed on Price $44,750(with fees)
Gross cap $45,800 or so
Monthly payment $480(including taxes of 6.875%)
$800 due at signing.(First payment + DMV)
If memory serves it was 36/12, 53% RV and .00003 MF. Also, they had a $3,000 conquest that didn’t apply to me. That could knock another $80 off your payment. Also you’ll get your disposition fee waived and last two months payments taken care of if you need it.
My usual answer to these dealers “Yes I will gladly come in to sign the paperwork when we worked out the deal over the email and I have the numbers commitment from you” TrueCar is just a tool, not a panacea for getting the best deal. Keeping that in mind and the fact that you seem to value your time, why not talk to one of the trusted brokers here, see what they have to say. No obligation for talking, right?
I had the same question about negotiation and I still don’t have a definite answer. When we go to the dealer can we go off of the true car price ? I’ve seen some cars that are $3-4K below msrp on true car but I don’t know if that includes incentives or not. I feel like truecar really does not tell us much. I would like to know more about how the truecar price is calculated and what it includes and what we can go off of when negotiating with the dealer. Thanks
