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Prices Paid: Buying & Leasing Experiences Infiniti M35 / M45 Prices Paid and Buying Experience
804 messages, Last post on Sep 02, 2008 at 1:35 PM
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Replying to: bimmeresq (Mar 18, 2006 10:27 pm) Based on the data I've seen on this post I went to the web and made inquiries with 4 other dealers within a 3 hour drive and immediately got an acceptance of 1k over inv. The local saleman has kept pushing on the deal and when I told him what I had in writting from an Atlanta dealer they changed their tune. I ended up signing doc's today for M45 sport, tech(xm)/Journey, painted splash guards, stone/aluminum interior for 500 over invoice. The dealer wanted the business and I made them "earn it" by beating the offer in Atlanta. Use the data on this forum and go into the dealership well armed and prepared!!! 
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Replying to: networth (Mar 21, 2006 3:51 pm) The best local deal (at West Houston Infiniti) I can get is 5% above invoice. In Dallas, I can get 2.5% (Sewell). The local dealer is giving me some BS about valuing 2 years of routine maintenance (oil changes) at $750 and arguing that the out of town dealers know they won't have to deliver that service on my sale. Has anyone had a similar experience? I can't imagine buying a $50,000 car and having to pay for oil changes. I've owned a Honda, Lexus, BMW, and currently a Benz. Even the Honda had a better service package than this (free maintenance and loaner). I've heard Benz has dropped their service as well. I'd go back to Lexus if the drive was more energetic... Any advice aside from being hard-nosed with the dealer? I hate the way these guys ruin the buying experience.
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Replying to: carbdp (Mar 15, 2006 9:23 am) Go north on I-77 to exit 25 or 28 (one of those two). Just look to your left as you're approaching the exit. You can see them from the freeway. Their M inventory tends to be low, though.
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Replying to: tayl0rd (Mar 22, 2006 7:47 am) Personally when it comes to product knowledge, I tend to depend on my own research and not anything a salesperson can say. Sites such as these with excellent forums really do help. For the most part the information obtained here is accurate and can really help you make a decision. Bottom line, do your own homework, then head to Lake Norman (or any other dealership that will make you the right deal). Good luck. |
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Replying to: cunnikr (Mar 22, 2006 7:05 am) It may not work in your area if the local dealership is that stupid, then again you may find what you want within a couple hours drive and only be out some time..... Good luck. |
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Replying to: hit (Mar 13, 2006 6:49 pm) Thank you. |
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Replying to: sm909 (Mar 10, 2006 12:17 pm) |
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Below is the story of the deal I got on my 2006 M35x. It's long, but hopefully educational (or at least a little entertaining). If you are in the St. Louis area, there are only two Infiniti dealerships within 150 miles: Plaza Motors and Bommarito Infiniti. Both Plaza and Bommarito have multiple dealerships covering nearly a dozen automobile nameplates. I've bought and/or leased cars from both dealerships, 3 from Bommarito (1 Nissan Altima and 2 Maximas) and 1 from Plaza (an Audi A6 2.7T). Both dealerships can vary wildly from a very smooth and straightforward transaction to a hair-pulling stress-fest...it all comes down to the sales person you get and (more importantly) their Sales Manager. For Infiniti M buyers in the St. Louis area, I recommend Plaza Motors. Here's how it went down for me. Up until very recently I was still evaluating both the Acura RL and the M35x. While I was still trying to decide, I test drove the M35 at Bommarito since it was also close to the nearby Acura dealership, thereby allowing me to test drive one car right after the other. The Bommarito sales people were very courteous and friendly, and after my first test drive they even agreed to let me keep the M overnight for an "extended" 2nd test drive. Since they had been so helpful, once I had made up my mind on the M, I gave them the first shot at my business. Here's the car I wanted: 2006 Infiniti M35x -------------------------- Twilight Blue Pearl (Exterior) Graphite Leather (Interior) Journey Package Technology Package w/ XM I called Bommarito Infiniti's New Car Sales Manager directly and told him the following: I knew exactly what configuration and colors I wanted with my new 2006 M35x, I knew the invoice price, and if he would agree to sell me the exact car I wanted at $500 over invoice, I wouldn't bother to call any other dealers and would come down and sign the paperwork that day, if desired. Without commenting on the price, he asked me what options and colors I wanted so he could check his inventory. I told him what I was looking for, even though I had already checked online and knew he didn't have it in stock (so I knew he'd have to do either a dealer trade or pull a matching car from the regional ground pool for his next shipment). He confirmed that he didn't have it in stock, and then waxed eloquent over the car for the next 10 minutes, trying to resell me on a car I already knew I wanted. That's usually bad news, since he kept avoiding the obvious (price). When I finally got him to stop selling me a car I already wanted and asked if he was OK with the $500 over invoice, he confirmed that "No, he wasn't OK with that". He then went on for another 5 minutes about how I would never get a car like the M for that close to invoice and how the best I could ever hope for was what he was willing to give me, which was $1500 over. After a few more minutes of him enjoying the sound of his own voice, I told him that I had never paid that much over invoice for a new car and I wasn't about to start now, I let him know that the deal was off, thanked him for his time, and hung up. Sheesh. The next day I called the OTHER St. Louis Infiniti dealership, Plaza Motors, and got the name of their Infiniti New Car Sales Manager. Once he was on the phone I gave him the same pitch: I mentioned that I was a repeat buyer at Plaza since it's where I had leased my Audi A6 (which I was eager to turn in due to its many reliability issues). I told him I knew exactly what configuration and colors I wanted with my new 2006 M35x, I knew the invoice price, and if he would agree to sell me the exact car I wanted at $500 over invoice, I wouldn't bother calling another dealer and would come down and sign the paperwork that day, if desired. He asked me what options and colors I wanted so he could check his inventory, so I told him (even though I had already checked their inventory, as well, and knew he didn't have it in stock either). He checked his stock, came up empty, and then went online to check his scheduled deliveries for the next few weeks. Amazingly, he had the exact car I was looking for scheduled to arrive on March 27th, one week before my Audi lease was up. It had two extra minor options (painted splash guards and the spacesaver trunk mat), but those were both fine with me, and I even like the look of the splash guards, although they certainly weren't a requirement. When I confirmed the pricing portion of the deal with him, he said that although he "didn't usually sell that close to invoice", he appreciated that I had called him directly first and would certainly be willing to close the deal at $500 over as long as I was willing to also pay their $145 documentation fee. Now, I'm no novice car buyer, and those of us who have been doing this awhile all know that the "doc fee" or "Processing Fee" is a completely bogus fee that dealerships simply have printed on their sales forms to make it appear unavoidable. Folks, I'm here to tell you now that it is just additional sales revenue padding by the dealership. They hate to do it, but I've gotten dealerships to remove that fee, since it is absolutely and completely bogus. However, I also know that they throw a fit when you force them to do so, especially when you are already really close to invoice, and I've had to pointedly walk out on a few deals in order to force them to cave later and waive that stupid doc fee. Also, the exact amount of the "doc fee" varies drastically from dealership to dealership (depending on how greedy they are), with some of them trying to gouge us buyers by padding up to $400 of pure profit for their bogus "administrative overhead" charge. Ergo, since Plaza was "only" charging $145 for their bogus doc fee, and because he was upfront about it, AND because he also had the exact car I wanted due to arrive at the perfect time, I agreed to pay it. So the deal was $500 over invoice, plus $145 for their "doc fee". So for my Blue/Graphite M35x: Journey Package Technology Pkg w/ XM Splash guards Space saver trunk mat MSRP: $51,140 Invoice: $46,626. My deal: $46,626 + $500 + $145 Total: = $47,271 for my cap cost. The Plaza Infiniti Sales Manager even offered to fax me a copy of his invoice for the car for verification, which included the VIN and expected delivery date. I eagerly accepted his offer, and he immediately faxed me his actual invoice...which he had carefully annotated with a handwritten "+ $145" to make sure I didn't forget I would also be paying their doc fee. Heh.  (continued)
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(continued) Since I had not gone through a sales person at Plaza yet, I knew that as the Sales Manager, he would simply assign one to me as he saw fit. I scheduled an appointment at the dealership for the next Saturday to meet with him and seal the deal with a handshake. When I arrived at the dealership that weekend and met him, he informed me that the car had just arrived the day before (a few days early!), and he then scored even more points in my book: He offered to let me take the owner's manual for my car home to study even before we closed the deal. A very nice gesture, especially since he didn't even require me to put down a security deposit! It's been a while since I dealt with someone who not only honored their word but also whose handshake truly meant the deal was done. Since the car hadn't been through dealer prep yet, we agreed to wait until the 27th to close the deal. He did take the time, however, to run through the various Infiniti lease plans and help me pick the one I wanted (36 months, 12,000 miles, 0.57 residual, .00132 money factor, for a monthly payment of $667.22). He even printed out the lease plan with all of the details on it. This guy was a pro, and really treated me with respect. He later told me that he was having a sales drive for his sales people that weekend, and that he was throwing in my deal as a free bonus "kicker" to whichever salesperson sold the most that weekend. So on Monday I got a call from the sales person who told me that he had been assigned to close my deal on the 27th. I then immediately congratulated him on winning the weekend sales contest.  He was a bit surprised that I knew that, but admitted that I was indeed his "bonus" for selling the most that weekend. I confirmed with him the deal I made with his Sales Manager ($500 over, plus the $145 doc fee), and set up the final session for Monday night after work on the 27th. I showed up tonight, and the car was ready and the paperwork only took an hour. Because we had agreed to the final price of $47,271, the Business Manager did try to sneak the $145 doc fee in again since (as I mentioned) it's already printed on their sales forms below the negotiated price for the car (which already included that $145), which meant I would have paid it twice. But I called him on it and they immediately pulled it out of the negotiated price and reprinted the forms. Can't blame them for trying. Other than that, the process went beautifully. So if you are in the St. Louis area and want to buy an Infiniti, do yourself a favor and AVOID Bommarito...their sales manager is a jerk. Call the Infiniti New Car Sales Manager at Plaza instead, and he'll get you a terrific deal. Good luck! - Racer X |
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Thanks so much for the information provided on this forum. It really assisted me as I went about buying my new M35 Sport. I won't go into too long a detail, but, suffice it to say that it took me about 6 months to make up my mind on the car. This was due mainly to the lack of choices that were available early on in my search as well as indecision on what I really wanted. Ultimately, it came down to two cars, the M35Sport and the BMW 5 Series. Although the M35 beats the 5'er in just about every category, I was really having a hard time w/ the "prestige" thing... BMW made my mind up for me. Not really sure what its like in other parts of the country, but, here in Atlanta, dealer of the 5 Series is abysmal and I didn't want to wait. I called several of the Infiniti "internet" sales reps in Atlanta yesterday asking them to quote on a M35 Sport w/ the Journey and Nav packages. Just about everyone had a car fitting my wishes in stock and, interestingly enough, all were coming in at about 2.5% above invoice, which seemed reasonable. So, in a span of less than 2 hours, I bought, yesterday, my Twilight Blue Metallic M35 Sport from Infiniti Gwinnett for $1076 over invoice (2.4%). I've got to say it was one of the most pleasurable experiences I've ever had buying a car. No haggling or email campaigns. Just the knowledge of what a decent deal is. Maybe I could have gotten it cheaper, but, the painless experience was worth it. LDJ |
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