I’m looking for a pretty specific model and trim, and only 1 dealer in the entire region (within 150 miles) has it in stock. They’re also deep in NY state and I’m from NJ, so I don’t even know if they’ve ever done a NJ registration. It is nearly 100 miles away and a 2 hour drive without any traffic, so realistically it’d take 2.5 hours or more (this is the NY we’re talking about; guaranteed traffic).
My question is, should I wait a couple more weeks till the end of the month and hope that dealers closer by get it in stock, or should I email this dealer with a lease proposal? It just seems unlikely that a closer dealer will get it before month’s end since I don’t even see it listed as “in transit” at any other dealer sites. And even if it were listed in transit, there’s no saying how long it’d be till they actually got in on their lot.
The other alternative would be to compromise on trim, but in my case it would mean having to get either the same trim with features I don’t care about (like Nav or leather) or the next trim up. Both options mean a higher MSRP and thus probably paying more per month. In fact, I have already started doing this, but so far all of the offers are close to $50/month too high. You think they’ll be closer to my price point by end of month?
What are your thoughts? How far would you travel for the right deal?
100 miles is nothing, some people here fly cross country or ship their cars. call or email them ahead so they set up the paperwork ahead of time, complete online credit app, send them proof of insurance. they will figure it out how to sell to NJ. Expect to pay a lot more for that specific trim/package that no one has. Not sure where deep NY is, but if upstate, we don’t have much traffic, intil you reach Jeerrzie.
I’ve done Chicago to Detroit. Problem was DMV back in Chicago were trying to rob me. After two tries I went to see a supervisor regarding the tax code to get it sorted out. Turns out I was right, they tried taxing me an additional $2000. I wonder how many other people get scammed by our bureaucracies. Best part is they were irritated and yelling and I was speaking politely.
This is a car that you’ll have for 2-3 years, so I wouldn’t want to compromise, I’d want to make sure that I’m getting the car I really want. And if this is a 2018 model then I doubt closer dealers will get more in stock. 2019 is a different story. But you can do the deal completely online/phone with this dealer and make just one drive to sign and pick up. In the end, the dealer experience is a day or two, but you’ll live with this car a while so make that your priority. And I’m sure the dealer had experience with registrations in NY, you can’t be the first out of state costumer. Good luck.
What car are we talking about anyway? Sounds like you can get a better deal in NJ by getting a higher trim, than by traveling to upstate NY and getting a more expensive car with less features.
i would only do it if a deal was on the table. I wouldn’t just drive 2 hrs to look at a car/start negotiating. Other than that, 2 hrs to pick up a car is nothing.
Farthest I’ve driven is 15 hours for a deal (truck in NYC, I am in St. Louis), the last few deals for me have been in Atlanta, Houston and Baton Rouge, all a minimum of 10 hour drives for me.
All the deals were done before flying out.
Just get the paperwork finalized, done through the mail, and you’ll be set. One way plane tickets are cheap 2 weeks out, and one long drive is nice to get out and see other places.
Admittedly I won’t do anything that requires a multi-day drive. Like anything on the other side of the Rocky Mountains for me, or SoCal.
For me, it would depend on how much I’m saving by traveling. 5 hours or less is nothing. Anything beyond that, I’d have to ensure the savings far outweighed my time commitment/gas/plane ticket/etc…
I’m all for saving some cash, but the savings must far outweigh the costs the further out I would go from home.
Thanks everyone for your perspective. I didn’t realize it’s so common to go so far! Maybe I’ll shoot them an offer by email closer to end of month.
Just to clarify, they have the trim level with the features I want (in this case just a sunroof), and none that I don’t want, so the MSRP is cheaper than all of the other vehicles I’d consider closer by (ie the closer ones have what I want, but also add things like leather and nav which aren’t important to me but increase MSRP by a couple thousand).
I don’t think I’d ever be hardcore enough to fly out!
Start working it now…waiting till the last day of the month is a myth. If a dealer is looking to hit a quota, and hits his quota on the 25th, deals will dry up for him.
By starting the process now, if, in fact, he is close to a quota and needs one more to fill it, you might be the lucky one.
Some people fly across the country to get their cars. Some fly to other continents to get their cars. It really comes down to if it is worth it to you. Also most dealership will deliver the car to your doorstep for free. All of them will deliver for a small fee. Distance shouldn’t be a factor in getting your new car.
As @305Hackr noted as long as an agreed upon deal is in place before I make the trip I would have no problem going to a dealer within a 5-6 hour radius of Pittsburgh. That gets me to several large markets east, all of Ohio, and Detroit.
Anything more farther out and I would have to consider more carefully since the returns may not merit the effort, especially if shipping would be involved.
Don’t forget DMV…depending on what you’re looking at, there are some good deals down there in comparison to home…within a 4-6 hour drive. Plenty of options in W.PA w/o playing with our conglomerates who don’t like to play ball.
Well I ended up driving 250 miles each way for a deal. This thread really put it in perspective and broadened my horizons. Went from north Jersey to MD for a Jeep GC Upland with sunroof.
It was well worth the drive and my friend and I made a trip of it. We chilled in philly on the way back up. I couldn’t be happier!
I’ve traveled 200 miles one way from NJ to MD to pickup my factory ordered JLU Rubicon, the reason is I got it for 6% under invoice. Enterprise 1 way rental to drive there and drove the Jeep back. Most difficult part of that is staying within recommended brake in parameters.
