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Prices Paid: Buying & Leasing Experiences Honda Fit Prices Paid and Buying Experiences
2413 messages, Last post on Nov 05, 2009 at 7:34 AM
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After going between several dealerships in the Boston area, I just signed the paperwork on the following: $15,900 (includes destination, $500 rebate for partial Honda financing) $795 (5% MA sales tax) $299.75 documentation fees $110 title and registration $17,105 out the door. This is for a 2009 Fit Sport Automatic in Blackberry Pearl, with standard options for the trim level. This was my first time purchasing a new car, and I took the long, circuitous path to a satisfactory ending... Here's how searching for the B.B.D. and clinging to $592 like a rhesus monkey can complicate the car-buying process: 1. I began collecting quotes on June 27, near the end of the month, so take that for what it's worth in terms of dealer motivation. 2. My first step was to collect e-mail quotes from four dealerships through Honda.com and cars.com. I used two different e-mail addresses and two different aliases to determine which dealerships had established firm opening offers from their e-teams, and which allowed loose cannons to throw out arbitrary numbers. The range was from $16,371 to $17,400. Only one dealership quoted both e-mail addresses at the same price, and it was the lowest -- $16,371. 3. I made sure to research everything I could about the actual dealer cost, holdbacks, rebates, etc. I eventually used this information to call out salespeople who told me that there was no flexibility in pricing the Fit, and also reminded one salesman who suggested that they would "take a loss" on $16,300 that the documentation fees exist to pad profits. I had no shame in haggling over a couple hundred bucks, because I was on the fence about whether to purchase a new car anyway. 4. My first visit was to a dealership that had offered one of my e-mail aliases $16,700 (I happened to be in the area, so I figured it would be fine for test driving the vehicle). I told the salesperson firmly that I would not be purchasing that day, but that I would return after doing some research. After three e-mails from different salespeople at the dealership asking if I'd thought about the $16,700 offer, I finally responded by saying that I had received a quote for $16,070 (a small fib). I received the following response from a sales manager: "Salesperson X was correct in saying that every Honda Dealer owns the vehicle for $16,718, however if you finance through American Honda there is an additional $500 in cash back which would bring the price down to $16,218. Seeing as that we take pride in being the #1 Honda Dealer in Sales on the Planet and not letting anybody beat our prices, if you are willing to leave me a small 100% refundable deposit to secure the price as well as the color of your choice in stock, I will sell you the vehicle for $15,900 if you finance through American Honda." 5. After checking for OTD prices on these forums, I decided that, even though these guys appeared desperate to move some inventory, I had probably hit the glass floor, so to speak, in terms of price flexibility. Apparently, these numbers were completely alien to the salespeople on the floor, because they had to check with multiple managers to confirm that the $15,900 quote included destination charges. Perhaps this is why they didn't seem overly disappointed when I walked out upon finding that the only colors available were black, silver, blue sensation, and orange. 6. The next day, a sales manager from a rival dealership (the one that had consistently quoted $16,371) e-mailed to ask if there was anything he could be doing to secure my business that he hadn't done already. At this point, I called him and said, "Sure, you could match this $15,900 offer, but make it a Blackberry Pearl." He responded that he could match the offer, and that if he didn't have my color of choice in stock, he could locate it for the same price. He assured me that he "wouldn't let me walk away over a few hundred dollars." After calling to confirm the quote one last time, I went to the dealership after work. The sales manager passed me off to a novice salesman, perhaps to give him the warm and fuzzy feeling of closing a sure deal. Two-and-a-half hours later, however (don't ask me how so much time was allowed to pass), I was informed that there were no Blackberry Pearls on the lot, and that securing one from a sister lot would cost an additional $592. I replied that this wasn't a problem, because I had been assured that one could be located at no cost. The salesperson simply shrugged and said that his managers hadn't authorized $15,900 for a vehicle that wasn't on the lot. The sales manager who had quoted me the price was nowhere to be found. I walked out, angry and perplexed. Mostly angry. 7. The next day, I tried to call the sales manager who had given me the quote. No response. I sent the following e-mail: I'm just curious why, after receiving a quote for $15,900 on a Blackberry Pearl 2009 Honda Fit Sport Automatic and confirming said quote over the phone, I invested 2 1/2 hours of time at the dealership so that I could be treated to a bait-and-switch? After specifically being told that a Blackberry Pearl Fit with those specs could be located at the quoted price and that XXX Honda "wouldn't let me walk away over a couple hundred bucks," it's a bit disconcerting to sit down to discuss financing and find out that my new quote is $600 higher. I just wanted to offer the opportunity for an explanation. No response. So I sent this e-mail to the customer relations department: I realize that dealerships make plenty of money on trying to browbeat exasperated shoppers once they are in the door (and I suppose it doesn't hurt to ask the customer if he's willing to pay $592 more than a car was offered for), but as a general rule, once a customer insists on the quoted price, I think it would generally be better business practice to honor it. In other words, please don't quote prices and terms that you aren't prepared to honor. Drawing customers with misleading rebates and APR terms is one thing; drawing them by hashing out price terms and then renegotiating when it's time to work out the financing details is another. At the very least, I should have been told over the phone before I wasted my time at the dealership that the locked-in price would only apply to a vehicle on the lot (despite the assurance to the contrary) and that, if I didn't respond favorably to the obligatory shakedown, the offer would be rescinded. Thanks for reading, and I hope you'll pass it along to anyone who cares enough to make a difference. Finally, I got a response from a higher-up... let's call him "Mr. Fix-It." He apologized and assured me that he would do everything in his power to restore my faith in humanity and/or car dealers. Since I still had some venom left in my consumer glands, I seized the opportunity for one last rant: |
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Mr. Fix-It, Thank you for your reply. I just wanted some reassurance that driving up quotes at the last-minute isn't the official business model at every dealership. I am certain that XXX Honda has been able to sell the 2009 Honda Fit Sport Automatic to customers for more than $15,900, and understand that selling one to me at that price may not have been a top priority when there are countless other customers who will pay sticker or invoice and won't haggle over a few hundred dollars. I simply hoped that once the price had been confirmed for my specifications, I would be able to complete a purchase at that price a few hours later without any further mark-ups. In addition to making a modest profit on the vehicle after documentation fees and holdback (and any hidden profits or bonuses of which Internet-savvy customers aren't even aware), you would have established a business relationship with a first-time car buyer with a network of friends and family who will be looking for dealership recommendations in the future. Perhaps with the gauntlet of salespeople that a customer must run before completing a deal, this is just a case of poor communication and too many cooks spoiling the soup. Whatever the case, it was a very inconvenient end to the workday for my wife and me, and it came on the heels of a two-week delay in getting confirmation from an insurance adjuster that our car had been totaled. I appreciate your response and your attention to the matter. To cut a very long story short, Mr. Fix-It called and explained that I had been spot-on about being a low-priority customer at that price, because his sales manager was never authorized to quote a price that low on a vehicle that wasn't already on the lot. In the end, however, he thanked me for my understanding and offered to locate the vehicle at $15,900. Since my wife had practically cried when it seemed that she had forever lost her chance to drive an eggplant-colored spaceship, I put aside my righteous indignation and accepted the gesture. So, that's the long-winded tutorial on how to get a 2009 Honda Fit Sport Automatic in Blackberry Pearl for $17100 OTD. I'll let you judge for yourself whether the phone calls, the deforestation of countless e-trees, a two-day delay in securing transportation, and a mopey wife is actually worth $592 and your pride. For me, it was. But for people with something better to do with their time, just take $17600 if you can get it. You'll live longer. |
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Deals are around and can be obtained as just picked up, over 4th July weekend in the just-outside-southwest-of-Boston area, a 2009 HFS Auto transmission for $1K below invoice at $16,218 (everyone knows $17,820 MSRP, with $17,211 invoice) with NO Honda Financing Corp (HFC) financing tie-in, with inspection sticker and full tank of gas, storm silver metallic (toss-up with tidewater blue metallic). Went this holiday weekend to the same interPLANETary dealer. $16,218 298 doc fees (hate'm, but gotta pay'em) 811 governor's sales tx 5% still 110 new registration and plates $17,437 OTD Complete As you likely know, if went with Honda Financing Corp could have gotten an extra $500 off with the HFC promo going on until tomorrow 7/6/09. Also $418 remote starter with 3 year warranty was available (vs. about $600). Dealer reps (every one of them we dealt with) were very nice, polite, and did not treat us negatively because we got a good price. The place was crowded. They saved us from the grueling hours and trips to comparison shop. Provided us plenty of ice cold Poland Springs waters during our time there on a hot day.....and they have recycle receptacles for the empty bottles. So, go buy there by specifically contacting that dealer in advance through the Honda.com internet site for getting local quotes and get your chance to ring the bell! |
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Replying to: 1234abc (Jul 03, 2009 12:12 pm)
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Replying to: sunandshine (Jul 08, 2009 1:35 pm) The original deal was $17,900, if we took the Honda Financing. But we got a better interest rate at a credit union here, so decided against that. So overall, instead of paying $18,490 OTD, we got it for $18,000. This also included a free GPS unit, 2 free oil changes, 2 free tire rotations, 6 free car washes and owner's clinic. This was not the best deal but all the dealers we went to in the area were offering 17,900 and above. The lowest we got was 17,500 but the dealership is 25 mi away from where we live and there were not giving any extra frills. This dealership from where we bought the car from is just a mile away from where we live and we liked the salesman. Plus she agreed to give all those extra frills which may amount to close to $300. Overall, I am happy with my Pearl:)
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Replying to: sunandshine (Jul 08, 2009 1:46 pm)
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Thanks so much for posting... I'll be looking into a Fit at the end of July when the clunker bill gets its final footing. For the people near Boston... when does 5% turn to 6.5%? I was looking into buying from Honda of Boston in Everett or Honda North in Reading. Would I have luck there? Great recaps & prices paid guys. I won't budge on OTD 17,500... I simply do not need the car. |
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Replying to: cars_phoenix (Jul 09, 2009 7:56 am) |
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The best I can do so far in central NJ has been $16,300 for a FIT sport auto. this is before destination charges etc. I have tried Planet, Madison, Hillside and VIP. any ideas ?? |
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