What is a good price to buy a '05 at right now in So Cal?

[RLiu818]

What is considered a 'Good Price' for a '05 4Runner in SoCal?

Im not sure if this is the place to ask but I was wondering what price is considered a good deal?

This is from edmunds with the options i wanted.

-------------
MSRP
40,660

Invoice
36,107

TMV
39,356
-------------

Is the TMV an accurate figure for what's considered a 'good deal'?

Some say edmund's figures are accurate and some say to avoid it. What are your opinions??

 

[Biff]

Try to save money and buy an 04, only difference is the updated V8.

 

[Faeylyn]

Forget Edmunds. Go to carsdirect.com. Price out the vehicle you're thinking of. Take that to the dealer and ask them to match it or you'll go to someone who will. Generally, you'll find that every model 4Runner with every option combination will be the same base price at any given time. For example, $500 over invoice, $500 above invoice, etc. Today's price in so cal seems to be $450 over invoice.

You can definately get it for that price because carsdirect.com itself will sell one to you for that price. Just go to the dealer with that info and make them deal with you.

 

[rando]

Do your research and figure out what you're willing to pay. Then go in and negotiate with confidence knowing that you wont pay a penny higher. Carsdirect is a great resource for setting an upper bound on the price. I wouldn't take that (or any other) price along with me while negotiation however. Your unlikely to walk away with a deal more than $50 better if you do that.

I think you can get a $500 over invoice deal any day of the week at just about any dealer in the country. It all comes down to you convincing the dealer that you will buy the car at YOUR stated price right then. If they dealer doesn't believe you're a real buyer, you're never going to see their best price. On the other hand if you act like an overeager idiot, they'll know they can gouge you too -- so don't do that either.

Just walk in, ask to be shown the car you want (it helps to know they already have it in stock -- do your research) and discreetly guide the salesperson to the exact one you want. If you do this right, he should still think that your just shopping. Take it for a test drive and then go in and make the deal happen.

Let him make the first offer. It will be silly. Follow his offer with the deal you want. On these trucks, I'd start at $500 under invoice. The salesperson will look at you like you're being absurd. Just tell him to write up the deal and take it to his supervisor. Make sure (at that point) he knows you're not interested in games or rounds of negotiations. It helps to act hurried. He'll come back with a counter (at least once). Stick your ground . He'll beg and plead for you to raise it just a little. Tell him it's your final offer and repeat that you need to get home (maybe start to stand up).

You should be standing ready to leave, when he gets back. Don't be suprised at all if he comes back and tells you he'll take your first offer. I've had this happen on several occasions. If he tells you flat out "No", then you're probably not close. If he still wants to talk, then you can decide if you want to raise your own offer $500 or not. Don't do this more than once. If you don't make a deal, walk slowly on your way out. I actually had them rush out to meet me at my car before they'd take my deal once.

Make sure you know the complete invoice and all fees that will be charged (to the penny) before you ever step onto their lot. That first offer you make will signal to the sales manager that you've done all of your research and that you're working with all the same numbers that he is. He will do the math (backwards) and see that your number is EXACTLY $500 under their invoice and will be stunned and curious as to how you came up with that number. Don't bother explaining it to them. They'll just use the details of anything you say to work against you.

So your offer looks like this....Literally! Make them write it up exactly this way. That way there is ZERO chance they can add things on afterwards.

Precomputed Invoice cost - $500 (or whatever you want)
+ 45 doc fee (never pay more than this...it's pure profit)
+ CA license fee (something like 1% of deal cost -- look it up at dmv site)
+ 5 tire fee (yes you have to pay this in CA)
+ CA use tax (same as sales tax in the city you will garage the car in)
- Rebates (yes rebates are subtracted after tax in CA, not before)
- trade (hopefully you're not trading)

Your invoice cost should be (nearly) the same as what you'll see on Edmunds, cars direct, kbb, etc. You have to add the destination fee. There are also a couple of other small fees that all Toyota dealers in SoCal pay. Search for the post about my deal last Februrary. It has all these details. All of this stuff should be prefactored into your invoice-$500 price.

Good luck.

 

[RLiu818]

Do your research and figure out what you're willing to pay. Then go in and negotiate with confidence knowing that you wont pay a penny higher. Carsdirect is a great resource for setting an upper bound on the price. I wouldn't take that (or any other) price along with me while negotiation however. Your unlikely to walk away with a deal more than $50 better if you do that.

I think you can get a $500 over invoice deal any day of the week at just about any dealer in the country. It all comes down to you convincing the dealer that you will buy the car at YOUR stated price right then. If they dealer doesn't believe you're a real buyer, you're never going to see their best price. On the other hand if you act like an overeager idiot, they'll know they can gouge you too -- so don't do that either.

Just walk in, ask to be shown the car you want (it helps to know they already have it in stock -- do your research) and discreetly guide the salesperson to the exact one you want. If you do this right, he should still think that your just shopping. Take it for a test drive and then go in and make the deal happen.

Let him make the first offer. It will be silly. Follow his offer with the deal you want. On these trucks, I'd start at $500 under invoice. The salesperson will look at you like you're being absurd. Just tell him to write up the deal and take it to his supervisor. Make sure (at that point) he knows you're not interested in games or rounds of negotiations. It helps to act hurried. He'll come back with a counter (at least once). Stick your ground . He'll beg and plead for you to raise it just a little. Tell him it's your final offer and repeat that you need to get home (maybe start to stand up).

You should be standing ready to leave, when he gets back. Don't be suprised at all if he comes back and tells you he'll take your first offer. I've had this happen on several occasions. If he tells you flat out "No", then you're probably not close. If he still wants to talk, then you can decide if you want to raise your own offer $500 or not. Don't do this more than once. If you don't make a deal, walk slowly on your way out. I actually had them rush out to meet me at my car before they'd take my deal once.

Make sure you know the complete invoice and all fees that will be charged (to the penny) before you ever step onto their lot. That first offer you make will signal to the sales manager that you've done all of your research and that you're working with all the same numbers that he is. He will do the math (backwards) and see that your number is EXACTLY $500 under their invoice and will be stunned and curious as to how you came up with that number. Don't bother explaining it to them. They'll just use the details of anything you say to work against you.

So your offer looks like this.

Precomputed Invoice cost - $500 (or whatever you want)
+ 45 doc fee (never pay more than this...it's pure profit)
+ CA license fee (something like 1% of deal cost -- look it up at dmv site)
+ 5 tire fee (yes you have to pay this in CA)
+ CA use tax (same as sales tax in the city you will garage the car in)
- Rebates (yes rebates are subtracted after tax in CA, not before)
- trade (hopefully you're not trading)

Your invoice cost should be (nearly) the same as what you'll see on Edmunds, cars direct, kbb, etc. You have add the destination fee. There are also a couple of other small fees that all Toyota dealers in SoCal pay. Search for the post about my deal last Februrary. It has all these details.

Good luck.

Thanks.

So you are saying i should negotiate the price AND THEN after the price is confirmed THEN they add in the fees etc.

INSTEAD of negotiating an out-the-door price right or negotitiate a price where i demand them include the fees.

 

[rando]

No! If you state your offer the way I've shown, your price and the fees you will pay will be listed. You will already know the sales tax and license fee so you can double check that on the contract before you sign. You've already given them a fixed documenation fee of $45 and the mandatory $5 tire fee. There are no other fees. If you want, you can just offer an out the door price but that doesn't leave them with the same impression that you know EXACTLY what you're doing. You see, that's the key. You're acting like a serious buyer AND you've demonstrated you fully understand the ENTIRE process. There is ZERO opportunity for them to mess with you and thus you quickly get to a yes or no decision.

When you're looking over your contract, whip out your calculator and double check everything before you sign. There shouldn't be any numbers on there that I haven't mentioned here.

 

[rando]

If at any point in the transaction (before signing the contract) you feel confused or uneasy about anything, just excuse yourself and politely walk out. Don't feel compelled to explain yourself. You're about to spend a boatload of cash -- there is nothing wrong with taking a breather to make sure you've done it right.

Except in rare occasions, any deal you make today will still be available tomorrow. Cars are not a scarce commodity. Worse case you've pissed off a salesman or a dealer. There are many many more in SoCal to deal with. It's your money!

 

[Faeylyn]

Well, then there's the 100K warranty. And the Simonize warranty. And the after-market alarm. And the undercoating. I can let you have them all - a $2,500 value, for just $1,995. Sign here please....