"The Search".. not what i expected.

[dminus]

@SKINNIE is spot on. I'm often blown away that people are at their wit's end to find a car in CA for a "fair" price, but are diametrically opposed to buying out of state. I don't follow the logic.

The reasons you listed above aren't real reasons. This sounds like self-sabotage more than anything. It would be ideal to buy one in California for $1K - $1.5K, but which dealerships are consistently selling for such a low markup? I think you know the answer or you wouldn't have started a thread asking for help. And shipping doesn't have to be $1,500. It can also be $700, which is what I paid to ship my car 1,200 miles. It depends on where the vehicle is coming from, time of the year, type of transport, and other factors. Or it could be a lot less if you drive it back.

the reasons aren't written very well i will agree. but there is definitely an almost undescribed feeling of unease as you don't even get to see the car before you sign for it and it's shipped to you in a box. everything is kind of left up to hoping it all goes well and you don't find some kind of problem with the car once it's here. but like i said, i get what you're saying completely and in many ways, i agree with you. thanks for the reality check.

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[dminus]

@SKINNIE is spot on. I'm often blown away that people are at their wit's end to find a car in CA for a "fair" price, but are diametrically opposed to buying out of state. I don't follow the logic.

The reasons you listed above aren't real reasons. This sounds like self-sabotage more than anything. It would be ideal to buy one in California for $1K - $1.5K, but which dealerships are consistently selling for such a low markup? I think you know the answer or you wouldn't have started a thread asking for help. And shipping doesn't have to be $1,500. It can also be $700, which is what I paid to ship my car 1,200 miles. It depends on where the vehicle is coming from, time of the year, type of transport, and other factors. Or it could be a lot less if you drive it back.

the reasons aren't written very well i will agree. but there is definitely an almost undescribed feeling of unease as you don't even get to see the car before you sign for it and it's shipped to you in a box. everything is kind of left up to hoping it all goes well and you don't find some kind of problem with the car once it's here. but like i said, i get what you're saying completely and in many ways, i agree with you. thanks for the reality check.

 

[dminus]

Sometimes you have to pay to play. Good luck with the MSRP deal. Anything is possible with some diligence and patience.

this statement is so true. pay to play.
but i'm sick of paying all the time. i want to play without paying for once.
or at least paying msrp, HAHAHA!!

thanks for the warm wishes!

 

[dminus]

Yeah some dealerships don’t want to sell to non-locals because they lose all potential to continue to make money from servicing the car. This might be more important to smaller dealerships than the big ones, but you never know. Some of the small town dealerships may be sitting on a car because there’s so few local buyers for this kind of car. You just have to do your homework. There’s no easy way about it.

i appreciate the advice. and you're right, the research, (homework) on this vehicle and it's current market is a difficult thing to tackle. but thanks to your advice and perspectives, it's giving me hope to carry on. hahahha. thank you!

 

[dminus]

That's true, but I wouldn't dissuade anyone from calling on out of area dealerships for that reason. In my experience contacting many dealerships it was less than 10% who weren't willing to sell out of area.

this is real good to know. i just happened to come across that 10%. i will continue my search. thank you for your encouragement!

 

[dminus]

Sorry if I wasn’t clear. I’m definitely not trying to dissuade. I’m just saying it can be VERY hit or miss. All dealerships will have different “policies” as well as circumstances about selling cars non-locally. That’s why it boils down to just doing your homework. Calling a couple of dealerships in TX and getting turned down is not what I’d consider doing homework.

AGREED!

 

[dminus]

It's because we have a pretty big crowd who are into cars want to buy the Type R. Can't fault us for that. It's basic supply and demand, unfortunately.

HOWEVER, there are good deals to be had. Don't give up! When I was hit with a bunch of BS accessories, I basically looked at the paper with the list of crap and said, "Okay, there are a lot of dealbreakers on here." The sales manager took my requirement of zero accessories and indeed gave me a decent deal without them. I was completely expecting and prepared to walk out of there and I didn't even bother bringing my checkbook.

Not all dealers are willing to remove the accessories. One salesperson said she simply wasn't allowed to remove them and that was that. So that was one dealer off the list for me.

very good information. thanks for the heads up on the accessories. i wont' give up! thanks for your encouragement and break down. i really hope i'll find the right dealership to deal with.

 

[dminus]

What people don't understand about CA is that we don't really neighbor states where you an find the car cheaper/msrp. Shipping to/from CA is also more expensive because of location - we're on one side of the coast, unlike KS which is closer to middle of the country--which can be a stop gap for carriers.

The whole fly and drive thing is also an issue; if you live in any metro area in CA, you're pretty far from any neighboring state that may want to sell MSRP. I've seen tons of deals in TX. That's a 1,700+ mile drive back to any metropolitan area in CA. I get that some may see that as fun, but to me, thats a 2+ day drive with hotel, wear and tear, etc..

this is very true. neighboring states aren't much cheaper. any dealerships willing to go lower is very far away and although i wouldn't mind the wear and tear, leaving the business unattended for days isn't ideal. thanks for your insight!

 

[Clark_Kent]

Sorry if I wasn’t clear. I’m definitely not trying to dissuade. I’m just saying it can be VERY hit or miss. All dealerships will have different “policies” as well as circumstances about selling cars non-locally. That’s why it boils down to just doing your homework. Calling a couple of dealerships in TX and getting turned down is not what I’d consider doing homework.

Yeah, all good. I know you weren't suggesting people not call. My dealership contact spree didn't entail CA and I covered FL begrudgingly so those dealerships may have that practice as well. The dealerships I found unwilling to sell out of state were in the Midwest. YMMV.

 

[dminus]

I bought fl5 last month. My first email was told 20k over. Then I made a phone call and got them to go to 5k over. Wasn't about to pay that so I went down to the dealership.
Once there sat with the salesman for 20 minutes. Literally got msrp plus doc fee.
Don't hesitate to hammer them on getting a deal worked.

that is amazing!! i will definitely try to be more assertive when speaking. i'm not wanting anything outrageous. this is what the manufacture deemed fair for this vehicle! right?! damn it! hahaha. thanks for your advice!

 

[Bbfl5]

that is amazing!! i will definitely try to be more assertive when speaking. i'm not wanting anything outrageous. this is what the manufacture deemed fair for this vehicle! right?! damn it! hahaha. thanks for your advice!

It more has to do with having the information and market data to support your efforts.
Then being a qualified buyer. Have cash, trade with equity, good credit and be ready to take delivery" right now"

 

[Gansan]

It more has to do with having the information and market data to support your efforts.
Then being a qualified buyer. Have cash, trade with equity, good credit and be ready to take delivery" right now"

Yes I agree with this. You (OP) have to be ready to commit to buy "now." So pre-decide on what you can commit to, whether it's MSRP only or +2000 or whatever, and then you can tell them, "I'm willing to pay MSRP + xxxx. If you do that, I'm willing to buy right now." That's pretty powerful and they'll still try to work you higher than that, but if you are firm and only budge a tiny bit, then they'll eventually have to tell you yes or no.

If they don't, just remember the market is slowly cooling and you're not going to die without the car so just wait longer if you have to. I basically told them that I'm willing to wait until the market cools down, I've already got an FK8 and I have no problem waiting. And they came back with only +200 on my offer and that was good enough for me.

 

[rob495]

that sounds actually pretty amazing! i would love to do something like that. but i own a small business and i'd have to close the shop because i don't have any employees. hahaha. every mile of the type R experience i would relish in would be followed by an unsettling feeling of having a closed business. i do plan vacations, but they're pretty far out where i know i got someone to cover while i'm gone. but, yeah, that sounds like an amazing drive. congrats and thanks for the share.

Cali is a huge state, let’s say you decide to buy an FL5 4 hours from you. You may have to close up shop anyways due to commute, getting the trade in price, getting financing, and doing the paperwork. If you don't have a trade it'll speed up the process and you will have more transparency. I got my FL5 for 4K over MSRP more than a year ago. I had no trade, had financing ready to go, and was willing to drop everything I was doing at a moment's notice. I got to the dealership as soon as the Type R came off the truck.

If you don't have a trade, get your financing in order, try to do as much of the paperwork as possible via Fed-Ex, and fly out to an out of state dealership. I'd close up shop on a Sat and use the weekend to come back. Put up a sign in the window "Closed due to an emergency"

 

[dminus]

It more has to do with having the information and market data to support your efforts.
Then being a qualified buyer. Have cash, trade with equity, good credit and be ready to take delivery" right now"

all of those things are all aligned. then all that's left is to sharpen my information and market data. thanks again!

 

[dminus]

Yes I agree with this. You (OP) have to be ready to commit to buy "now." So pre-decide on what you can commit to, whether it's MSRP only or +2000 or whatever, and then you can tell them, "I'm willing to pay MSRP + xxxx. If you do that, I'm willing to buy right now." That's pretty powerful and they'll still try to work you higher than that, but if you are firm and only budge a tiny bit, then they'll eventually have to tell you yes or no.

If they don't, just remember the market is slowly cooling and you're not going to die without the car so just wait longer if you have to. I basically told them that I'm willing to wait until the market cools down, I've already got an FK8 and I have no problem waiting. And they came back with only +200 on my offer and that was good enough for me.

wow! $200 over is a great deal! love it, thanks for info. can't wait to put all this information to use!!

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