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Prices Paid: Buying & Leasing Experiences Subaru Forester Prices Paid and Buying Experience
2369 messages, Last post on Dec 04, 2008 at 11:14 AM
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Replying to: weverhat (Sep 15, 2008 6:58 pm) At this point I had not yet found out my Auto-enhanced scores, so I was wondering why the scores dealer #1 was telling me were much lower than what I had gotten from Myfico.com. I decided to contact dealer #2 and have them run my credit (dealer #2, you'll recall, was $400 higher than dealer #1, but dealer #2 had the car I wanted in stock). I calculated that if dealer #2 could get me the 4.9% rate, it would more than make up for the $400 difference in price. I tell dealer #2 of the experience I had when dealer #1 checked my FICO scores - that dealer #1 said my highest score was 645, which I thought was too low. Dealer #2 says that some dealers have bad reputations and have been known to try to make money on the spread, by telling buyers that they qualify for a worse rate than they actually do. Dealer #2 asks me who dealer #1 was. I tell dealer #2 the name of dealer #1. Dealer #2 says that dealer #1 is kind of in the middle - not a bad reputation but not a great one either. Now here's an interesting twist - I had previously asked dealer #1 about dealer #2 (since dealer #2 was one of three dealerships who had the car I wanted who dealer #1 could possible be getting the car from). Dealer #1 had told me that he had a pretty good relationship with dealer #2. Getting back to dealer #2, dealer #2 says that they'll check my credit to see if what dealer #1 told me was accurate. About 10 minutes pass and dealer #2 calls me back. Dealer #2 says that they ran my credit, and tells me that dealer #1 was not lying to me, my highest score was indeed 645. I thanked dealer #2 for checking, and that was that. I still was not satisfied. Why were my scores so low? Was dealer #2 telling me the truth, or were they backing up dealer #1? Was it really due to these mysterious "auto enhanced" FICO scores? Did all dealers use these "auto enhanced" scores, or did some use the "classic" scores? I decided to visit the dealerships of several different manufacturers and have then run my credit to see if I could find out the answers to these questions. I know that inquiries into your credit can lower your score. I also remembered reading that several inquiries in a short time span were treated as one, so it wouldn't really have that big an effect on my credit. Plus at this point I really wanted to know so I didn't really care if it cost me a few points on my credit. First stop was a Jeep/Chrysler dealer. I feigned interest in a car and then asked them to run my credit. They do and come back and show me my scores - 712/680/675. All within a few points of the scores I obtained from Myfico.com! At this point I am feeling pretty skeptical about the trustworthiness of both the Subaru dealers I had contacted (dealer #1 and dealer #2). Next stop was a Nissan dealership. I again say I'm interested in a car and ask them to run my credit. They return and show me the scores/reports - 672/645/603. The names on the reports were the names of the specialized auto-enhanced FICO scores described in my previous post - Equifax BEACON 5.0 Auto Industry Option, Experian Auto Loan Model 2, TransUnion Classic Auto 4. In addition, the 645 and 603 agreed with what Subaru dealer #1 had told me. However, the third score, which dealer #1 said he did not run, turned out to be higher than the other two, and would have placed me in Subaru's tier III - 6.25% for 64-72 months. Last stop, a Honda dealership. Same routine. They run my credit, and return with one score. They say they only use Experian. My score is 603, which matches the Auto-enhanced Experian score from both the Nissan dealership and Dealer #1. Bottom line, of the 4 manufacturers I checked with, three used the "Auto enhanced" FICO scores - Subaru, Nissan, and Honda. One used the "classic" FICO scores - Jeep/Chrysler. Still, there was unfinished business with the Subaru dealers. Why did dealer #1 check only two of my scores? Why did dealer #2 confirm that my highest score was 645? One interesting thing I discover from my credit report is that Dealer #2 never checked my credit! It showed that dealer #1 checked my credit. It also showed that the Jeep/Chrysler dealer, the Nissan dealer, and the Honda dealers checked my credit. But it did not show any record of dealer #2 checking my credit! Remember, I told dealer #2 that dealer #1 had told me that my highest score was 645. I also told dealer #2 the name of dealer #1. Also remember that dealer #1 had told me before that he had a good relationship with dealer #2. Draw your own conclusions. Armed with all this information I send dealer #1 an email. I tell dealer #1 that I obtained a copy of my "auto enhanced" credit scores, and that two of my scores matched what he told me - 645 and 603. I also tell him that the score he said he didn't check because it was usually the lowest was actually the highest at 672, and that since he said that Subaru takes the highest of your three scores, that would have qualified me for tier III (6.25% for 64-72 months) instead of tier IV (6.9% for 64-72 months). The following day I get a response from him with good news, he was able to get me the 6.25% interest rate! |
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Replying to: weverhat (Sep 15, 2008 8:42 pm) 
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Replying to: weverhat (Sep 15, 2008 8:42 pm) After your great credit odyssey, did you close the deal? Do you have your new Forester? It will be all the sweeter for your efforts. Congratulations!
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Replying to: skeleton (Apr 24, 2008 7:10 pm) |
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Hi - I hope I'm posting this to the right place. I'm new to the Forum and am seriously considering the purchase of a 2009 Forester Premium or Limited. I was leaning towards a Premium originally (for the lower price) but this week I test drove a Limited and it was very very nice to drive. I am in the SF Bay Area, CA by the way. Here is one of the better quotes that I received so far from the internet dealer at one of the local (San Jose) dealerships that has positive customer reviews, which I prefer to give my business to. This is what I am being given: 2009 Forester Limited w/VDC: Auto trans. AUTO DIM MIRROR/COMPASS W/HOMELINK LUGGAGE COMPARTMENT COVER PZEV REAR BUMPER COVER SPLASH GUARD KIT MSRP: $27,381 Offered internet Price: $24,970 (before tax, title, and license) For the Premium 2.5x w/VDC and all-weather: Auto trans. TAIL PIPE COVER DUAL EXHAUST CARGO TRAY PLATINUM LUGGAGE COMPARTMENT COVER SPLASH GUARD KIT REAR BUMPER COVER PZEV CERTIFIED MSRP of $25,042 invoice: $23,397 offered price: $22,449 Does this seam reasonable?Not sure if I have everything available to know. I am not too far along in the process, so just gathering info. Thanks in advance for advice.
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Replying to: bleepo (Sep 18, 2008 5:01 pm) |
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Replying to: bleepo (Sep 18, 2008 5:01 pm) |
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Replying to: jason119 (Sep 19, 2008 11:30 am)
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Replying to: pyewackett (Sep 16, 2008 2:20 pm) Now I can share the details of the deal: 2.5XT Limited, obsidian black Auto-dimming mirror with Homelink and compass Puddle light kit Luggage compartment cover Rear bumper cover Cargo tray All-weather floor mats Edmunds invoice price, including options: $27,615 Price paid: $26,516 +TTL I got the 6.25% rate for 72 months with no money down. Overall, I am very pleased with the deal. I spent about two weeks sending emails to 15 different dealerships. Narrowed it down to the lowest offer, they got the car for me from another dealer. Went down to the dealership and it was a very easy straightforward transaction. There were no surprises, everything was as we had agreed upon via email. I drove the car, inspected it, paperwork was completed pretty quickly, I got my two keys plus the valet key and was on my way. On the 70 mile drive back from the dealership, mostly highway miles, going 60-65 mph, the trip computer said I averaged 27.9 mpg! Wow, I'll take that any day, especially for the turbo!
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