Any experiences w/Auto Brokers in NorCal?

Congratulations on your excellent taste in cars!

However, before we can help, we need a little more information on your location. NorCal covers a lot of territory (Bay Area?, Sacramento?, Tahoe?, Eureka?).

If you're in the Bay Area, try this thread:

http://priuschat.com/Bay-Area-Best-Dealer-t12270.html

Dan

 

Out of curiosity, what does a broker offer that a dealer does not? I have never bought a car from a broker.

 

Sorry, I can't help you with any broker references.

You may be out of luck anyway. IIRC, brokers make thier money by agreeing to buy a quota of cars from the manufacturer in exchange for a volume discount. With the demand for Prii as high as it is, it's unlikely that Toyota needs to rely on broker agreements. Any broker would be told to pay MSRP and wait on the same list with everyone else.

Dan

 

Why would you go to a broker? You can go to a higher-volume dealer and get a Prius in about a month now. (If you're aiming for an '06 Jan delivery, I suspect it might be a longer wait, though, since a lot of people are waiting till Jan for the tax break.)

 

My experience with car brokers is that they don't do anything you couldn't do yourself, and if you do it yourself, you can save yourself their markup (a few hundred dollars).

When I've purchased cars in the past which were not in high demand, I used the CarBargains (not a broker) service from Bay Area Consumer's Checkbook and was very satisfied. They can beat carsdirect.com prices by enough to pay for their service, and still have a few hundred dollars left over. I had a car broker look at the bids I got from CarBargains and admit that the prices they would have to pay (not including their markup) were exactly the same as the figures I had been quoted.

 

That's what I've always thought so I've never dealt with an auto broker.

We bought a 2000 Sienna (and sold it two years ago). The dealer three miles from home wanted $2K over MSRP. We said, $800 over dealer invoice or we walk. Obviously, it was a very short negotiation before we left with no Sienna.

The next step was to e-mail several dealers in the SF Bay Area where we live, and a few thoughout California (Central Valley, So Cal). We got a bunch of quotes and bought from the dealer in Modesto, less than a two-hour drive from home. The price was $800 over invoice.

The Sienna was replaced by a 2003 BMW 325i as my wife hated driving the van. We bought from a Bay Area dealer at the end of 2003 for $2000 below invoice. That was not the first price, but we managed to get the dealer to pass onto us most of the dealer incentives from the manufacturer. The reason is that we had a good price in hand from a dealer in Orange County.

The lesson is this: Get dealers to compete for your business. I'm getting a 2006 Prius for less than MSRP (enough for an iPod and tons of songs). You never need to leave your computer to get competitive quotes. Direct Sales Managers at dealerships tend to be pleasant business people in our experience.

 

Brokers take care of all the negotiations, the paperwork and the dirty work; thus, you don't have to put up with high pressure sales pitch or be subjected to bait and switch tactics. All you get to do is sign the paperwork when the car is delivered to your front door.

Successful brokers deal with several dealerships and can play one against the others in order to get you a better deal. In addition, due to on going business relationships they often are offered "bonus" cars, ahead of people on the waiting lists (that is how I got my car on the first day that the 05 models were on sale). My broker obtained the car for me at MSRP when the same dealer was asking and getting a $3,000 premium from retail customers. Most brokers' fees are paid by the dealers, not the buyers.

 

The last time I bought a car through a dealer, it was a hideous experience. Come to think of it, every time I have bought a car through a dealer I have felt cheated or even voilated by the time I grabbed the keys to the car. So this time, for the first time, I went through a small local broker to buy a new Prius. I was very pleasantly surprised at the difference! No hassle, no price games, no bait & switch. I went to his office (in his house), confirmed exactly what I wanted (able to put in a request for multiple colors/option packages), saw the info on his screen from Toyota regarding MSRP pricing, paid him the fee and that was it. The broker also handled my trade in and got me as good a price for it as if I had haggled for hours with a dealer's used car buyer. I know that I will never buy from a dealer again.

Now maybe someone who has had a bad experience from a broker can chime in to provide some perspective.

 

This is exactly the strategy advocated by carbargains.com:

http://www.checkbook.org/auto/cb-advice.cfm

A small excerpt:

They even include a "script" to use when talking to each sales manager, if you're still unsure what to say.

 

Precisely the point of a car broker.

Can you do as well on your own? Maybe but why bother when someone will do everything for you for $250? A lot of times including delivering the car to your door.

Unless you enjoy the negotiating process (which I do) then you might wanna give a broker a try sometime.

 

To each, his (or her) own.

It took me less than an hour (collectively) to send e-mail to several dealers requesting quotes for a Prius. I replied to a couple of responses and got a lower price than the best quote in the first round. That's not much effort to save $250 in broker's fees. The broker might be able to get a better price due to volume discount, but the broker fee wipes out the price advantage.

As a consumer, you don't need to know about invoice prices and dealer incentives even though their easy to find with the Internet. The market demand and supply dictate the price, and several dealers competing against each other for your business is a free market in action. Some will be motivated because higher sales volume brings them more shipments. Some will ignore you, but it's best to avoid those anyway.

I could have put down the deposit over the phone, but my wife told me to go in person to meet the direct sales manager. Now I'm waiting for the 2006 models to arrive.

I've had good experiences with direct sales managers. Good service brings in referrals so it's good business practice. If the hassle can be eliminated, many people don't mind the buying process. There's a bit of excitement of going to the dealer's showroom and lot, seeing new cars, and taking a test drive.

 

I went through Hammer Auto in Palo Alto to get my 2006 Prius. I put the request in right after Thanksgiving, and picked up my 2006 Prius on 12/07/05.

Was as painless an experience as possible, but it does come at a price, which is $595 and the Prius was purchased for MSRP. I'd recommend them if you're looking for a hassle free experience in looking for a Prius.

www.hammerauto.com

No connection beyond having them find my Prius.