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Prices Paid: Buying & Leasing Experiences Volkswagen Jetta Prices Paid and Buying Experience
467 messages, Last post on Aug 19, 2008 at 8:45 AM
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Here's my buying experience with Ourisman Volkswagen of Laurel (Maryland). I had been looking for a replacement for my rapidly aging 1994 Honda Accord LX sedan, and I wanted something with its own style, good economy, excellent reliability, and I thought I also deserved something fun to drive. For some reason, I'm hot for wagons, and I wanted a manual transmission for the fun, the longevity, and the lower price. Other cars I considered (and the reasons I rejected them) included: 3-series BMW (far too expensive), Jaguar X-type (expensive and unreliable, and no manual in the 3.0 version), Mazda 3- and 6-series (too expensive for what you get), Subaru (AWD is nice, but poor styling and mileage), Chevy Malibu Maxx (too big, too plain, unproven format), and Ford Focus (awful resale, expensive to maintain). The Jetta wagon seemed a good choice for lots of reasons, including a nice test drive in a TDI sedan, but the kicker was the $3,500 in factory-to-dealer incentives for all non-TDI wagons. The TDI would have been nice, but I would have ended up paying about $5,000 more for it, and that's not worth it. Interesting note: the factory-to-dealer incentive for non-TDI wagons is $3,500, and the incentive for non-TDI sedans is $2,000. The differential between the sedan and the wagon is only $1,000 (MSRP) to begin with, so this makes the wagon actually $500 *cheaper* than the sedan! I called a VW dealer local to my work and asked if he could find "a Jetta wagon, manual transmission, GLS trim, 1.8T engine, in black, white, or any of the blue shades" (there are three or so blue-like shades available.) That was all I gave him to go on. He called me back within the hour and told me that an Indigo Blue wagon matching that description was available from a nearby dealership. It also had the Leather package (I was fine with or without it) and ESP (electronic stabilization program, a nice supplement to ABS and standard traction control). He offered to have the other dealership hold the car until he could meet with me to discuss it. The costs break down as follows, according to Edmunds.com: Item (MSRP / invoice) Jetta GLS 1.8T wagon (21,940 / 20,022) Leather (1,050 / 928) ESP (280 / 247) Destination (575 / 575) Total MSRP: $23,845. Total invoice: $21,772, but the dealer quoted me an invoice of $22,114; he included a $342 fee package comprised of three profit-only items. Something like $25 port prep fee, $75 something-or-other, and $242 advertising somesuch. On arriving at the dealership, I asked the sales manager, with whom I had been dealing over the phone, to let me (a) see a car in the same shade as the car he was holding at the other dealership, and (b) let me test-drive a manual 1.8T (sedan or wagon, as I had only driven the TDI at that point). We found a car on the lot and he handed me over to a floor sales rep for the drive. I took a drive and was highly pleased with the experience...the shifter was notchy but positive, the engine smooth, the interior very well put-together. I found out later that, oddly, I had not been driving a 1.8T after all, and had been impressed by the (very) base 2.0 normally-aspirated engine. Even though I had not driven the 1.8T, I was ready to deal...I was impressed enough with the base engine that I knew I would love the turbo version! In my initial phone contact with the sales manager, he had readily agreed that there was $3,500 in marketing support available and offered not only to hand it *all* over to me, but to start the negotiation at invoice, not sticker. To *his* invoice price (including the $342 fee package) he added a $99 documentation fee. My counteroffer was simple: I offered to let them keep $200 over invoice (not $441). I went to take a cell phone call, and when I got back 15 minutes later, they agreed to my offer. Painless. I signed a contract, after reviewing my numbers to make sure I didn't make any mistakes. Final figures: Jetta as equipped: $18,373.38 State sales tax (5%): $923.62 (should be $918.67, but it's close enough for me) Title fee: $23.00 (legit MD fee) License fee: $128 (also legit MD fee; new tags plus two years registration) "Profit fee": $156 Total out the door: $19,604.00 Total for the car (not including taxes, tags and title): $18,534.33...and MSRP was $23,845. I paid $5,311 (22.2%) less than sticker! I did my calc based on letting them have $200 of profit over invoice; they apparently mis-mathed it out to $156 (plus $4.95 I got over-charged for MD taxes). Overall I think it's a great deal, considering how little effort it took. Yes, they took my first counter-offer, but I'm pleased to be getting a great car for a great price, and isn't that what's important?  --Chris
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Replying to: nihilator (Nov 03, 2004 9:17 pm) |
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Replying to: nihilator (Nov 03, 2004 9:17 pm) Absolutely!! It's not always about getting the rock-bottom, lowest possible price. Sometimes working toward that can be stressful, and excessive haggling can leave you with negative feelings about the overall process. You got a very good price for a car that you wanted. Now go out and enjoy that ride! kirstie_h Roving Host & Future Vehicles Host |
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This was a leftover '04 that had been on the dealer's lot for over six months. Car had 64 miles on it. This is the original GLI w/ VR6 and 6spd, NOT the 1.8T w/ body kit. Reflex silver/Black leather/Sunroof & Monsoon MSRP - - - $25675 Haggle - - -1475 VW incentiv -2500 Cust Loyalty-1000 Sale Price $20700 |
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My own car purchase 5 years ago was very complicated and took quite a bit of maneuvering to get what I wanted at the price I wanted. A few years ago, I helped my husband buy a new Passat and it was a comparatively painless experience to get exactly what we wanted at the price we wanted. This time, I was helping my brother make a Jetta purchase (because of my husband's Passat, my brother really had his eye on a Jetta). Admittedly this was a difficult purchase to research because we started out looking at CPOs and prices vary widely. But we finally made our way back to the dealership where my husband had bought his Passat and had another very positive experience there (Antwerpen Volkswagen in Pasadena MD... I would recommend them to any VW shoppers in the area). Here's what he bought: a "demo" 2004 Jetta GL Automatic w/ESP in platinum grey sold as "new" with full factory warranty (that begins counting from his purchase date and the existing odometer reading). The MSRP is $19160 and the invoice is $17984. We got it for $14131 + destination charge and TTL. I'd read a lot of pros and cons about demos, especially when they have a few thousand miles as this one did. But we checked it out thoroughly, gave it a test drive and felt fine about it having been, essentially, used. The price seemed good, even if you research it as a used car, and especially compared to all the 2000-2002s that we checked out in our area. As a used car, Edmund's TMV pricing puts his Jetta at $13,982 private sale, and $15,746 dealer sale. They also suggest $16,461 as a dealer CPO price. Of course as a used car, you'd have no destination charge, so a fair comparison on price would be to include the $457 destination charge my brother paid, making his car $14,588. So the numbers seemed right whether you looked at used car pricing or new car pricing. And he got all the benefits of a new car. My brother was basically able to get exactly what he wanted in a newer model, with lower mileage than what he'd found elsewhere and that was because it was a demo. There was simply more negotiating room because of the VW new car incentives. We walked out of the dealership feeling really happy about the car and the price. Here's the breakdown: Car: $14131 Freight: $457 Tax: $729 (5% MD) Documentation Fee: $49* Title/Tags: (I don't recall this number, but it was what we expected it to be) Financing was done at 4.99% * I was pretty sure this was a dealer profit add-on to the bill, but honestly, it wasn't big enough to cause a fuss over (they have to make thei money someplace). I know it can be difficult shopping for a used car or for a demo because there isn't as much information. So I hope this experience helps someone else out there.
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Replying to: tgoodnow (Dec 01, 2004 12:59 pm) |
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Replying to: jettagirl1 (Oct 14, 2004 2:34 pm) I think you can get a little better price on the car...but that's just me. |
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Replying to: KarenS (Feb 13, 2004 9:14 am) |
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Replying to: occupant1 (May 02, 2004 7:57 pm) |
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Hi, I am looking to buy a 2005 Jetta GLS (not the redesigned one). I know it carries 1.9% apr. Can these cars be bought below invoice with the introduction of the new Jetta? Any good deals people are getting? Thanks!
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