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Jeep Wrangler

23393 messages,  Last post on Feb 12, 2013 at 3:29 PM

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What is this discussion about? Jeep Wrangler, SUV

Messages Page 1234 of 2340

#12331 of 23393 FNG by greenmeanie

Feb 15, 2004 (12:48 am)

Hey There!
 
I am a new poster, I have just received an offer for a new 2003 Sport and going to take the Wrangler plunge. It looks like you have quite an active group here and I thought I would ask some questions (of course).
 
The new Shale Green 5 speed manual Sport I have been offered by a hometown dealer has the 25D package, with 30" T&W group/Dana 44/3.73/Khaki Dual Tops/Deep Tint/Side Steps/Cruise/CD 4spkr Audio/Floor Mats. The sticker is 25,405 and I am being offered it at $20,002 plus T&L, after rebates and military disc.
 
This sounds like a good deal to me, any feedback? I am currently overseas and have solicited mulitple web quotes including PX and other buying services.
 
Also, it is not clear to me if the 30" group includes disc rear brakes/track loc/ABS. I have tried some different web configurators (Jeep/Edmunds/KBB) but cannot tell how this group is configured.
 
Any feedback is appreciated. I look forward to becoming an active member of the group and owners club member!
 
SSG Thomas

#12332 of 23393 greenie by go_ducks

Feb 15, 2004 (6:52 am)

Forget about the rebates for a minute. To figure out the price you should be paying, look up the invoice price with the options you specified. You should be paying right around invoice, no more than $200 or so over. THEN apply all the rebates and add taxes, shipping etc. You can negotiate this way with a dealer--that's how I bought my '98. I brought in a list with the invoice prices for all options and told him I'd buy right now (actually, put the order in right now, I had mine built) if he'd sell for $200 over invoice. Negotiations took 30 seconds. He opened up the books to show his numbers matched mine, we summed up the invoice price with options, added shipping (no sales tax in Oregon, ha!) and subtracted a $400 rebate I was eligible for as a graduate student. Then we negotiated the price of my trade-in, I wrote him a check for the deposit, and watched him put the order in over his computer. Jeep came a month later. No stress.
 
Note that this was the SECOND dealer I dealt with. The salesman at the first tried every stunt imaginable to confuse me: kept figuring out "payments" instead of price after I repeatedly asked for a straight price, did the good cop/bad cop routine with the salesman/manager, etc. So I walked, after an hour of wasting his time and mine. BUT I DIDN'T BUY FROM HIM and I will never forget the look on the salesman's face when I walked out of his office. You do not have to put up with anything from a car dealer, ever. You have all the power. You don't have to buy ANYTHING from ANYONE and can walk at any time. They will always call back. They need you. So cut to the chase. Do your homework and know invoice prices. Tell the dealer what you are willing to pay in relation to invoice, then deal with rebates taxes shipping etc. The second dealer, the one I bought from, was willing to play ball, and he got to sell a car for less than 10 minutes work.

#12333 of 23393 go pack by go_ducks

Feb 15, 2004 (6:56 am)

Tom, I was at the grocery store yesterday at the checkout clerk told me the race was starting soon. I thought she meant some weird promotion thing and looked at her blankly. As a native-born North Carolinian, this state's greatest sports export ain't NASCAR. It's ACC basketball. So today, in honor of my undergrad alma mater who is taking on the Dukies, I am GO_PACK.

#12334 of 23393 ducks by tsjay

Feb 15, 2004 (8:02 am)

I'm with ya! Hope the Wolfpack beats Duke AND NC! Being a KY Wildcat fan, I am obligated to hate NC and Duke.
 
Tom
 
Have you hugged your Jeep today?

#12335 of 23393 go ducks by greenmeanie

Feb 15, 2004 (8:55 am)

Thanks for the advice. I do my homework and have no problem 'walking', it is really easy with email It is a little more difficult to research a 2003, as nobody is listing incentives that I can see. KBB invoice for the Jeep is $23726, I deducted the $2k rebate currently offered and $500 mil discount to get $21,226. Obviously, $20,002 is well below that number. I'm happy with the price, just wondering if others were seeing similar pricing on 2003s now. More interested in the braking/differential spec that comes with the 30" Canyon group if anyone can weigh in.
 
Ciao,
 
Thomas

#12336 of 23393 SSG Thomas by tsjay

Feb 15, 2004 (9:22 am)

WELCOME!!!!!!!!
 
Had you a nice long reply typed, and then the power went off around here before I could post it!
 
I was gonna tell you that your deal could only be judged in relation to invoice, as go_ducks had already said. You have now posted that info, and it sounds like you are getting the Jeep for around $1200 below invoice, plus the $2K rebate and the $500 military rebate. That sounds pretty good to me, as long as you are happy with $1200 to $1400 savings compared to getting an 04. ( I think you could get an 04 for $200 over invoice.)
 
There were no significant improvements that I am aware of between 03 and 04, and you are getting a brand new Jeep either way. So, maybe that savings is worth it? Just be aware that if something happens that requires the insurance to pay off the total value, that figure is going to be less for an 03.
 
Man, sounds like a REAL nice Jeep, Thomas ( that your fist name or last name???). And what's an SSG? Staff Sargeant???
 
Hey, whatever branch of service you are in, and whatever your rank or duty, thanks for serving your country! We are VERY proud of you guys and gals!!!!!
 
Where is "home?" Guess it would be hoping for too much to think I might be getting a new wheelin' buddy here in western KY???
 
Don't know the answer to your brake question. I think you can still get disc brakes in the rear, but NOT ABS with the Dana 44. I think the disc brakes all around is a separate option and would not automatically be included in the 30" Tire and Wheel package.
 
Tom
 
P.S.
 
Just looked at your profile, and I see that Thomas is your first name, like me. We needed another Tom around here!
 
Have you hugged your Jeep today?

#12337 of 23393 green - 2003 options by guy21

Feb 15, 2004 (9:23 am)

I'm looking at the 2003 Wrangler catalog and notice the following notes on the options page.
 
1. ABS was not available with Dana 44
 
2. Trac Loc was a separate option regardless of differential. If yours has it, it will be a line item on the sticker and invoice. This option also would have required 4 wheel disc brakes if the Dana 44 and Trac Loc were ordered.
 
3. The 30" tire package included the Dana 44 and 3.73 if it is a 5-speed manual (which yours is).
 
The additional discount may be monies given back to the dealer for new, non-current year vehicles. This used to be in the range of 5% of the sticker amount. Which would be close to what you are seeing.

#12339 of 23393 Unlimited by hotx3

Feb 15, 2004 (10:13 am)

I just saw a news article that the sticker is $24,495 (delivery included), with automatic the only trans available. The earlier articles had claimed the price would be "between" the Sport and the Rubi; this is within $600 of a Rubi. ABS is not available with the Dana rear axle.
    I'm a little taken back. I was looking for a practical, capable vehicle with stick and ABS and a "skotch more room". I might as well buy the base model if I can't get ABS, and save about $9G.
   I guess "Unlimited" referred more to the asking price than offroading uses. Anybody else think D/C is missing the mark?

#12340 of 23393 2003 vs 2004 by go_ducks

Feb 15, 2004 (10:15 am)

Greenie--I was a little thick before and didn't notice you were talking about a 2003 Wrangler rather than a 2004. Still sounds like a good deal if you plan on holding on to the vehicle, and you probably will. At 6 years and counting, I've never owned an automobile as long as this Jeep, and I plan on driving it into the ground, though it may eventually be lowered to weekend car status. One of the great things about Jeep Wranglers and CJs is that they age really well, not unlike sports cars, because of the fun-factor and classic styling. Taxes, registration fees and insurance will probably be cheaper on a new 2003 vs a 2004. If you like the color and options, the only downside is that a new 2003 vehicle has already taken a depreciation hit.

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