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Prices Paid: Buying & Leasing Experiences Ford Escape/Mazda Tribute/Mercury Mariner Prices Paid and Buying Experience
384 messages, Last post on Aug 20, 2009 at 7:01 PM
You are in the Prices Paid: Buying & Leasing Experiences Forum. Your Hosts are car_man & kyfdx
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I’ve been using Edmunds.com, including these user postings, as well other sources to make a new car purchase decision and figure out a target price. I’d like to “give back” to Edmunds and the other online posters so here’s my experience. It’s long but I hope it’s helpful to newbies. For various reasons I settled on the 2005 Mazda Tribute S as my first choice. I initially leaned toward a 2005 Subaru Outback 2.5 (I’ve owned two Subarus, starting in 1976!) but drove a 2005 Ford Escape rental in July and liked it: not as “truck-like” as I feared and got 24 MPG on the highway. I prefer the Mazda interior plus the longer warranty and loaner cars for warranty repair. Also the current 2005 Tribute close-outs incentives appear higher than Ford’s and the 2006 model doesn’t seem to add any significant improvements. The closest Mazda dealer to the tiny mountain town where I live – and where Outbacks are the dominate vehicle – is Wenatchee, WA, 100 miles away. Cascade Autocenter which sells Subaru, Mazda, Jeep and other brands, had a car in stock equipped almost exactly like I wanted. I emailed, said I was ready to buy and asked for an out-the-door price on a particular vehicle (referenced by VIN). I did the whole deal online with their excellent internet manager plus one phone call. Cascade Autocenter offered the best price, and were significantly lower than Seattle dealers proposed. What I got: Mazda Tribute S with 1PK (Level 1 package: sunroof, stereo upgrade, etc.); AB2 (side airbags/side curtain airbags), FLA (floor mats). Prices (including delivery charge) per Edmunds.com MSRP: $27,295 Invoice: $25,405 What others are paying (?): $26,013 My price goal: $21,400 plus TTL What I paid: $21,322 plus TTL After agreeing to the price online I phoned to provide information to arrange Mazda financing (necessary to get additional $1,000 discount; will pay off 90% in first payment and rest over three months which will cost less interest than I would lose by cashing in a CD early to pay for this car) and scheduled a pickup date/time. When I arrived the car was parked in front and perfectly detailed. The internet manager demonstrated the car – locating jack, under-hood items, etc. – and we went for a 25 mile test drive with speed up to 80 mph on the highway plus twisty roads, over railroad tracks, etc., to check for vibrations, wheel alignment, etc. No problem. Back at the dealership we went over the warranty and service schedule, signed the papers and I drove off. As far as I’m concerned it was a satisfactory transaction and I highly recommend Cascade Autocenter’s internet manager. Hope the car turns out as well as this transaction; I’ll report later on my driving experience. |
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This bulletin board plus specialty tire consumer survey boards all indicate the standard Tribute/Escape/Mariner Continental Conti-Trac 235/70-16 tire is a total dog. Here's how I dealt with it at time of purchase: Before going to pick up my Tribute I called the Wenatchee Les Schwab tire dealer to price a set of Toyo Open Road A/Ts (considered a good tire for conditions where I live and well-rated by several sources and consumer surveys). Les Schwab’s installed price was identical to internet dealers (after factoring in shipping and installation) plus they offer free 3,000 rotations, 30-day no questions exchange/refund, additional warranty services and have a dealer for service 9 miles from my house. I drove straight from the Mazda dealer to Les Schwab and got the Toyo’s put on. The sweet part is that Les Schwab gave me a $216 credit for the unwanted (by me) Continentals. Driving the 100 twisty highway miles home the tires seemed excellent. Life’s too short to waste time wearing out lousy OEM tires. |
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This is the first car I’ve purchased since getting my internet connection in 1998 and my take on online car buying is: If you want the lowest price you need to know beforehand EXACTLY what you want and let the dealer know you’re ready buy NOW; don’t ask for three demo drives in the same car, wait for weeks to decide and then expect a great price. My philosophy is that if you find a fair salesman/dealer then treat them fairly as well. Most so-called online salesmen I encountered were basically unresponsive and treated an online inquiry as a lead to be reeled into the dealership. Despite their manufacturer and dealership web sites inviting you to “request an online quote on this vehicle”, most of them won’t do it and will send back some line like “you need to come in so we can assess your needs properly.” I decided to just ignore them and move on to other dealer sites. Except for the internet manager I purchased from (who provided detailed, specific answers to all my questions) everyone else, including Mercury’s so-called Online Concierge, simply ignored questions I asked re maintenance costs, the benefits of certain options, etc. My experience, and I’ve been both a business owner and salesman, is that most salespeople, online or otherwise, are too lazy to work for a sale with a customer who wants to know more than is in the brochure. I found it incredibly useful to check (and even track over a couple or three weeks) the dealer’s actual online inventory. Not only could I tell if they had one equipped as I wanted – and even some large dealers didn’t; all of theirs were “loaded” – but I could gage by the size of inventory on a particular model and by tracking it over a couple of weeks how badly the dealer might want to get a particular car off their lot. One so-called internet sales manager – who refused to quote a price on a particular VIN - went on about how hard it would be to get the model I wanted while this jerk’s online inventory showed a large and growing inventory and the manufacturer is rebating them. I got an excellent online quote on a Mercury Mariner BUT using the online inventory I leraned there are no remaining 2005 Mariners equipped as I like anywhere in the state. I would have to order a 2006 (also a very fair online price but still higher than a 2005 and I would have to wait six weeks and I wanted the new car for a month-long “safari” in September). I hope everyone uses internet resources responsibly – i.e., if an internet dealer is treating you well don’t try to bust his chops – so that courteous, informed online buyers continue to make good transactions at the expense of salesmen and dealers who “don’t get it.” On, no! I just realized that if I keep buying cars online I’ll never have a chance to get the free balloons and hot dogs some dealers still use to lure in suckers or visit another "tent sale"...
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Replying to: bubblehead (Aug 20, 2005 3:25 pm) turtoni PS - i paid 18K + TTL for a new 2005 Tribute 4WD i with cruise control.
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Replying to: turtoni (Aug 26, 2005 5:19 pm) 2005 Mazda Tribute List: 28,900 Automatic Discount 2000 Minus 3000 in rebates Minus 1000 Mazda finance (must use for a minimum of 3 months) Base total = 22900 Minus 600 manager reduction Trade in had been valued by other dealers at 7 to 9k. They gave me 10000 sight unseen for a trade in. Tax savings of about 700 for the trade in. Total = 11600 +tax+tag transfer+title Tribute has package 3 w/leather, V6, automatic, side air bags, wind delflectors, Moonroof with wind deflector, Side Step tubes, Heated seats and mirrors, Wheel Locks, nicer rims then the other tributes on the lot, rear bumper plate, cargo net, and me in the driver seat. Will refinance after 3rd payment to mazda to drop the interest rate and save montly. Dealer tells me he lost money on the deal - but I can't imagine that to be true. Even if he did - the car is a year old and now he can place a 2006 on his lot. Thoughts on this deal? |
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Took 8 hours at the dealership to work the numbers 8 hours???? if you walked into my dealership and offered me your numbers the deal would have been done in 10 minutes. That includes 5 minutes looking for a pen. You did fine....but 8 hours??
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Replying to: audia8q (Sep 01, 2005 7:50 am) 
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Replying to: tenebros (Sep 01, 2005 8:04 am) audia8q is a valued member of our Town Hall community, and is here to help answer your questions and participate in the discussion... regards, kyfdx
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Replying to: kyfdx (Sep 01, 2005 8:09 am) It was a joke, take it as such. Did you notice the wink? Does everyone have to be so literal that we forget how to enjoy ourselves? Don't bother answering those questions. But take a chill pill. 
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Replying to: tenebros (Sep 01, 2005 8:25 am) Newer members may be unaware of the rules... regards, KYFDX (chilling) |
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