So I wanted to enjoy my new purchase of a 2012 Prius II before I inquired, but I'd like to know your opinions on whether I got a good deal. I originally wanted to buy a used one, since all my past cars have been purchased used and I think it's usually smarter, since you save so much. But when I saw that the price of a used one would be very high, I realized that I'd have to go about the Prius in a whole new way. So I started looking at 2011's hoping I'd get a deal but was advised it wasn't worth the savings, which would be minimal, so I began searching for a 2012. As I recall, the price for a II is around $24,000 and above. After searching my area I found a dealership that puts certain new cars on their websites for sale prices. What they do is actually choose one Prius and put it on there and that's the one you get if you purchase at the sale price. The price of this car goes up and down between $21,500 and $22, 500. My wife and I went in a day or two after the sale on the cheaper amount expired. But I called first and the salesman committed to the expired price. We decided on our bottom line price and when we met him we gave him an outrageously low figure: something like $21,000 out-the-door. He said "no" of course, so we pulled the stunt where you say, "ok, thanks" and walk out. We expected someone to come running after us but we walked all the way through the lot and got in our car without any interest from the sales team. So then we were like, "OK, what do we do now?" We went back in and after trying to haggle with the manager, who wouldn't budge, we finally settled on the price agreed upon over the phone: $21,500. So how would you interpret these events? The salesman was super outgoing and friendly and in a great mood (that is until we asked to talk to the manager to get a better deal) and didn't seem to care that he'd lose a sale. We assumed this was again, because the Prius is in a class by itself and it's purchase can't be treated like other cars. Maybe they assumed that later that afternoon someone else would walk in and purchase it. We figured you can only find out what the dealer's situation is by playing the game of hardball. In this instance, we pushed them all the way and they didn't budge, so we assumed that they really wouldn't have trouble selling it for what they wanted. Do you think this is accurate?
Congrats on the new car. As an FYI, you have a 2012 Prius two, not II. Roman numerals were only used for 2010 in designating packages. 21,500 for a 2012 two sounds good to me but I'm just not current on actual prices paid as I'm not in the market.
So ... you committed to a gentlemans's deal on the phone ... went in ..... and then reneged on the deal .... very impressive .... very low also ... even when done to a car dealer. Why didn't you just go in and try to pull your little stunt without committing yourself first ? If it was me dealing with you ... I would have told you to go buy your car elsewhere. Sorry ... but a deal is a deal in my neck of the woods. I'm glad they stuck to their guns. I would be embarassed to post the above thread. That's how I'd interpret the events .... By the way ... Prius II's are regularly purchased these days for $20900. Not sure where but there have been several threads indicating that. REV
So, u got a brand new 2012 prius 2 for $21500 out-the-door? If that is the case, it's an incredible deal. The best I have heard. FYI, even $21500 before tax, license & documentation is a damn good deal .
If you actually g0t $21,5 OTD....in LA? It was a good deal. Priuses are in high demand in the City of Angels, and I'm thinking that the sales tax alone out on the left coast is a little higher than it is in these parts---which is 3% of the net price of the purchase or about $630 for every $20,0. If you trade in, it can significantly reduce your tax liability on the new purchase, but you're usually walking away from the better part of four figures when you do that, and some states charge sales tax on the purchase price of the new vehicle regardless of the trade, so it's always, always, ALWAYS better to sell, then buy and pay the tax. Our Toyota dealers are crooks. All of them. I've seen ads in other parts of the country where high volume dealers are selling for $20,9, but this is usually just a teaser price, and they make up for it in high doc fees and non-optional options. If you stick their feet to the fire, and make them honor the teaser price, and you pay the tax.....and you live in a socially responsible part of the country, it's not unreasonable to expect to drive off in a G3 (two) for less than $22.0---all in. Based on what I'm reading from others in the forum.....and people always lie about what they paid for their car....the usual "good deal" in SOCAL is around $24,0 OTD....again, for a G3-two. Either way....it doesn't really matter now! Relax and enjoy the car. Even if you paid a few hundred more than your contemporaries (say that they) paid, the G3 will pay you back in reduced fuel costs rather quickly. Good Luck!
You sound like a dealer. There was nothing wrong with my approach. Why should the dealer assume I'd be naive enough to simply come in and pay a price that we discussed on the phone for 5 minutes and that was advertised? It's common sense to assume that when you get to the dealership there will be games involved. We had to play the game with the dealer or, as I indicated, we'd have never known how low they were willing to go in price. Thanks, I appreciate it! It wasn't $21, 500 OTD. That was the cost of the car itself. However, I didn't get any extra bells and whistles, so it was a simple deal. Also, no trade-in as my other car was a piece of junk. But back to my basic question. Was the dealer getting what they wanted or was I? Did they not try harder because it really was a phenomenal deal? What was going on as far as their strategy?
So .... how did that work out for you ??? You didn't find out ANYTHING except they wouldn't go for your ludicrous deal. Car dealers see these shenanigans all the time. But you DID cut yourself off from getting a LITTLE better deal with your antics ... and then you looked like a fool having to go back in there and buy the car ar their price anyway. Must have been embarrasing .... No ... I'm not a dealer ... a salesman ... or associated with the auto industry in any way. REV
OP, If you had walked into the dealership and the salesman had said "the price we agreed to on the telephone was just BS, similar to what customers like you pull, the real price is <insert outrageous price>" Would you have come here whining and screaming about ethics, bait & switch, wasting your time etc ?
You're both way off. Number one, you're not providing any useful information since you don't seem to have an answer to my basic question. Secondly, you are defending people who are in the business of making money off of the consumer's ignorance about what cars really cost dealerships. Thirdly, there was nothing embarrassing about what occurred. As I said, the only way you can really know what a dealer's situation is, how much they want to get rid of inventory, and how low they are willing to sell a car is to play hardball until you see they won't budge any further. At that point, you know what you're working with and can work out a deal, or walk away for real if you're not willing to pay the lowest amount they will sell the car for. This is one of the oldest rules of bargaining. Being a goody-two-shoes doesn't make the consumer anything but a sucker. Fourthly, I'm not crying and screaming about ethics, etc. I'm simply interested in knowing what things looked like from their perspective. And no, I'm not interested in whether they thought I was a jerk because I was playing the car selling/buying game. I'm interested in knowing how honest they were being with me, and thus whether I really got the car as cheap as they could sell it. By the way, you haven't justified how I could have saved a little more if I had not played the car buying/selling game. I think your moral indignation at my buying process reveals a naive view of how the industry works.
Obviously you've never been in sales .... or had a business of your own, because you demonstrate ZERO understanding of how negotiations are accomplished. Your throwing out a completely ridiculous price accomplished NOTHING (other than showing the dealer that you had absolutely no knowledge of current Prius pricing) .... any more than the dealer saying his Prius was $50,000 would have accomplished anything ... you would have laughed and walked away ... exactly what THEY essentially did to YOUR offer. What did you learn from that absurd offer ??? You learned that nobody will take a ridiculous offer (which you should have known anyway) ... and the dealer learned that you had no idea what current Prius pricing was. They also learned that there was no reason to negotiate one penny from their listed price because you proved you had no idea if they had any room left to negotiate with. You went in ... clearly uneducated about the prices that were 'doable' ... made some assinine offer (which obviously was rejected) ... and then paid their price anyway. I don't see ANY negotiation in that ... as a matter of fact ... your going in there and paying THEIR price would pretty much classify YOU as the sucker you mention above. Had you done your research FIRST, known the numbers, and then gone in with facts, and knowledge that better deals were available because you had done the research ... you probably could have saved a few hundred more dollars with ease. If you had known the deals that were available, worked with that knowledge, and presented a REASONABLE, and 'doable' counteroffer to them .... rather than some ludicrous off-the-wall offer ... the results may have been different. REV
First off it has to be said that your rude and emotional response to my post is completely uncalled for. I wonder why this is such a touchy subject for you? Your argument makes no sense regarding what I actually did. In the first place I had done the research and I did know the price range. What I couldn't know was how low a price they'd be willing to sell the car for until I low balled them. This is how you find limits. You don't seem to comprehend this concept. The other thing you don't seem to understand is that the dealer wasn't willing to negotiate, period. They had a sales price and they weren't going to budge from that. What difference does it make how much knowledge I have about pricing from their perspective? None. Paying their price didn't make me a sucker, because I knew that was the best deal I'd get anywhere in the area (your example of getting them around $20,000 being untrue in most parts of the country). Paying their price was just simply a result of having decided beforehand that I'd pay it anyway, though I was obligated to low ball. The results wouldn't have been different because they were set on a special sales price. So, I got the best deal anywhere around and I left confident that they weren't going to lower the price. So what's the problem? People negotiate like this all the time, especially in most other parts of the world. Not realizing the value of this method is what makes you naive about negotiating. What makes you rude and offensive is your emotional stake in something that's not your business. Can anyone provide me some insight into why the dealership didn't want to negotiate? Someone who knows about sales or who has worked in a dealership or who can explain the dealer's perspective from an economic and supply/demand perspective? Thanks in advance!
Hmm..... Nice dealership. Since you admit that you got a commitment over the phone to an EXPIRED price, then the salesman and the dealership were just being nice. (or desperate for a sale)-probably both. Usually loss leader, advertised prices are about as low as a dealership will go, I think if it was an expired price and I had a customer who agreed to the price...post expiration, then appeared in the dealership and tried a "stunt" to go even lower? Well, yes, I would of let you walk.....and when you returned? I would of said "Sorry, that price has expired"... So you had a nice dealership.....and yeah...you got a pretty good deal.
You asked the question above. You've gotten 3 responses now stating how they interpret the events, and they all pretty much said you acted like a jerk and they wouldn't have sold you the car after your little stunt. You're lucky you found a dealer who was so forgiving, and who obviously desperately needed a sale. You insist on arguing with every response. Did you really want responses ... really ? .... or did you just want to have people pat you on the back for being such an awesome negotiator .... after you got the exact same deal that any schmoe off the street could have gotten just by walking in the door and saying I'll take one ? Enjoy your Prius. You got a great deal ... no one could have done better ... you beat them down within a cent of them losing money ... and they're terrified that you'll come back to rape them for another car .... OK ??? REV
WOW! I just had to chime in. Everyone cool down were all Prius brothers. To get a great deal buy used next time. There’s always a 2010-11 with less than 20,000 miles for around $18,000.
Thanks! Finally an actual answer. What do you mean by "loss leader"? I wouldn't agree though, that they were being "nice". Why not sell it to whoever is willing to buy it at a price the dealership is ok with? I don't think emotions come into this in a way where they'd say the price is expired because they were insulted. Car sales are a tough business and all the dealers, despite what they say, are hungry in this economy. Yeah really. What's that guy so angry about? Issues... By the way I looked into used cars, as I mentioned in my original post. The value isn't worth it when you figure in all variables. Not on the Prius, though true for most other cars probably.
