How to bargain for Honda Civic after APA

[espeed]

Hey guys

I'm gonna get an APA quote for a Civic LX.

So please comment on my procedure below.

1. Get APA quote for car, options and freight.
2. Then negotiate a +$200 value on top of that with dealer.
This means, call each dealer separately.
(Also, please tell me if I should talk to the fleet manager first)
3. Buy car from best available deal.

What kind of extras should I ask for from the dealer? (ie. best types of extras)

thanks

[twboy1999]

so how much did u knock off the msrp

[espeed]

so how much did u knock off the msrp

actually I haven't bought yet but will do so within a week's time so anyone who can give advice, it's much appreciated!

[nano]

dont call go to the dealership in person, they get 100's of calls regarding the prices of certain auto's the fleet manager isnt going to take you seriously if you dont go in person.

[Crotchety Old Man]

Move to an alternate universe in which American cars are well made, and Japanese car dealers are constantly trying to sell-off their junky product.

[espeed]

dont call go to the dealership in person, they get 100's of calls regarding the prices of certain auto's the fleet manager isnt going to take you seriously if you dont go in person.

can i get quotes up front, THEN go to the fleetmanager at that particular branch?

Could someone explain to me what a fleet manager does and why he can get you a better price if you talk to him rather than the front guy in person?

What extra things should I buy eg extended warranty?

[needmorefunds007]

Is it really worth while meeting the "fleet" manager? What's the benefits of that?

I was wondering if you get a quote from a dealership, isn't it more time efficient if you just call other dealers telling them "Here is the price I got, can you beat it, yes or no?" ...and then going from there?

It seems like there are quite a few RFder's lookiing for this car, perhaps we should just do one large group buy :lol: . Any infor posted though would prob be appreciated by a lot of people.

[regrus]

Here is how to buy a car. All dealers in Canada pay the same price for their cars with the same options. Freight is the same if you live in Halifax or Vancouver.

Go to the website carcostcanada.com and pay the fee to receive the dealer invoice cost of the Honda you are looking at. It also gives you all the current incentives from the manufactures. Once you KNOW dealer invoice cost (not manufactures retail invoice) you walk into the dealer and ask one question. How much over dealer cost will you sell me this car for?

Don't get sucked in and buy any addon's Eg. paint protection, extended warranty etc. Buy just the car.

From my personal experience the Honda Civic's best price out west is $500.00 over dealer invoice. Early in the model year I bought a 2006 Honda Pilot and had to pay $1200.00 over dealer invoice when in eastern Canada dealers were letting them go for $500.00 over cost but it wasn't worth the time and the effort to buy one in the east.

So maybe you can do better than $500.00 on a Civic but I don't think so. I also bought a 2006 CRV and it was $600.00 over. Hope this helps.

[needmorefunds007]

Here is how to buy a car. All dealers in Canada pay the same price for their cars with the same options. Freight is the same if you live in Halifax or Vancouver.

Go to the website carcostcanada.com and pay the fee to receive the dealer invoice cost of the Honda you are looking at. It also gives you all the current incentives from the manufactures. Once you KNOW dealer invoice cost (not manufactures retail invoice) you walk into the dealer and ask one question. How much over dealer cost will you sell me this car for?

Don't get sucked in and buy any addon's Eg. paint protection, extended warranty etc. Buy just the car.

From my personal experience the Honda Civic's best price out west is $500.00 over dealer invoice. Early in the model year I bought a 2006 Honda Pilot and had to pay $1200.00 over dealer invoice when in eastern Canada dealers were letting them go for $500.00 over cost but it wasn't worth the time and the effort to buy one in the east.

So maybe you can do better than $500.00 on a Civic but I don't think so. I also bought a 2006 CRV and it was $600.00 over. Hope this helps.


Thanks for that. But the thing is, by joining apa or that carcost website, i don't want to join just to see that I can save only 100$ or so by knowing what the invoice price is. How much of a difference could that price possibly be?

[regrus]

Knowledge is everything in a deal. CarCostCanada charges l think $39.95 for 5 searches. Your making a major purchase and you mean to tell me your worried about spending 40 bucks to make sure your not getting screwed.

Car salesmen get paid on profit. The more profit on a car sale the more they take home. They are not looking after your best interests so you've got to yourself.

[icedout44]

This website makes me laugh. I work for a car dealer. High End European import to be specific and if you come in and ask me the price the dealership pays for the car most of the time we will give it to you. Its all in the relationship you build with your sales rep. Just to add a point if you come in and offer me $500 or $1200 above cost I will kindly show you the door and tell you to have a nice day. If you want to be reasonable about it then normally we will negotiate something that is reasonable for both parties. No matter if your a member of that website or not you will not get a bigger discount the anyone else that walks in.

[ElvaSoShexai]

i joined that apa thing just to find out i already had a better deal than they had... wasted $70

[airodus]

This website makes me laugh. I work for a car dealer. High End European import to be specific and if you come in and ask me the price the dealership pays for the car most of the time we will give it to you. Its all in the relationship you build with your sales rep. Just to add a point if you come in and offer me $500 or $1200 above cost I will kindly show you the door and tell you to have a nice day. If you want to be reasonable about it then normally we will negotiate something that is reasonable for both parties. No matter if your a member of that website or not you will not get a bigger discount the anyone else that walks in.

Generally they recommend 3-5% over cost. I have found it works very well. Never been rejected with a 3% over cost offer. Hell, I don't even have to talk to anyone, I generally just fax an offer over and give the dealership a day to accept it. The key for the buyer is:

DO NOT SPEND TIME TO BUILD A RELATIONSHIP

Wham, bam, thank you ma'am relationships work the best. Salesmen will be less and less inclined to give you a deal, the more and more time you spend with them. Cause time is money, and by using their time, you are costing them money. However, if you've test driven all the cars you want, make your decision on how much each one is worth to you. Then wait a couple weeks for them to forget you (or look for a different dealer). Then fax a bunch of offers over and you will get calls off the hook.

No dealer going to scoff at making an easy sale. If all it takes is a phone call and the word "Deal!" to make $1000, they will jump at the chance to do it.

[Neovingian]

i joined that apa thing just to find out i already had a better deal than they had... wasted $70[COLOR=Navy]...I wouldn't say an APA membership is waste since you are paying for more than just a quote. Also many RFD members have saved a tonnes of $$$$ by having it. I have had one in the past & found the membership to be extremely valuable. In addition to quotes they provide you with legal consultants, preferred network of body shops & dealerships, discount on Krown rustproofing, quarterly newsletter, car magazine, and they are readiily available to address yur concerns or questions you may have. If anything being a member of the APA saves you time & hassle of haggling with sales people & managers.

[MrDisco]

High End European import to be specific and if you come in and ask me the price the dealership pays for the car most of the time we will give it to you. Its all in the relationship you build with your sales rep. Just to add a point if you come in and offer me $500 or $1200 above cost I will kindly show you the door and tell you to have a nice day. If you want to be reasonable about it then normally we will negotiate something that is reasonable for both parties. No matter if your a member of that website or not you will not get a bigger discount the anyone else that walks in.

Perhaps for luxury car dealers bargaining is frowned upon, but for the general masses having that info is absolutely essential. If APA (i.e.) can give a car for $300-$500 over invoice (which doesn't even factor hold-backs) then more power to the customer for having that info. There is little reason why competiting dealerships can't be given the opportunity to match (or beat) that price.

Your post is an example of why people just don't like the car buying process. :|

[MrDisco]

1. Get APA quote for car, options and freight.
2. Then negotiate a +$200 value on top of that with dealer.
This means, call each dealer separately.


When you get the APA quote it will already include a dealer markup so Step 2 is not needed. Just take the final price in the APA quote and shop it around with competiting dealers to have them beat it. If not, buy the car from the APA referral salesman.

[espeed]

What other fees are required on top of this? ie. tax, etc? just so I can be sure.

Also, isn't GST supposed to be 1% less in July? But I need my car before then and I heard that some place in Scarborough is willing to waive the 1% now.

[plymouthhater]

[COLOR=Navy]...I wouldn't say an APA membership is waste since you are paying for more than just a quote. Also many RFD members have saved a tonnes of $$$$ by having it.

I joined, got the dealer cost on the base vehicle I wanted + the options + got the cost of freight (I never expected that the dealer would add $300 to the cost of freight).

When the APA provided me with their designated "no haggle price" dealer and the "no haggle price", I used that as a base line to email 10 dealers within 50 miles of my home - offering a few hundred less than the APA price.

In the end I did NOT buy the vehicle I set out to purchase. I ended up visiting one of the two dealerships that responded favourably to my email, and I purchased a slightly different vehicle (last new 2005 that the dealer was sitting on for $9800 off MSRP on a $33K vehicle).

Would I use the APA again? DEFINATELY!

[MrDisco]

What other fees are required on top of this? ie. tax, etc? just so I can be sure.

Also, isn't GST supposed to be 1% less in July? But I need my car before then and I heard that some place in Scarborough is willing to waive the 1% now.

an example of what an APA invoice looks like

http://img109.imageshack.us/img109/2432/example1pi.th.png (http://img109.imageshack.us/my.php?image=example1pi.png)

all you do is add the column up, throw in your 15/14% tax and that's your offer.

GST is 1% less in July, however many (if not all) car makers are offering a 1% reduction immediately. Personally I'm waiting till after the cut so that they can't use it as an excuse not to bargain further (i.e. let the government give me the reduction and not the car maker's financial arm).