[nine20eight]

Hey all,

I am getting ready to buy my new Mo. I priced out an '04 SL AWD fullyl loaded with NAV. The dealer quoted $32,500 with the $1k or $33,500 without but with 2% financing for 60 mos. My questions are:

1. Should I wait for the '05 to debut. I read all of the changes on nissannews.com and while some of the added features are nice (ie. intelli key and rear view camera) are they worth the extra $$?

2. I am currently looking at Super Black with cafe latte leather but a dealer close to me has Black on charcoal. Is there any difference (other than color) in the quality of the leather?

As always, all of your pieces of advice are greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

 

[b0xdesigns]

Wow thats a great price...My 04 SE with nav and ent. system was stickered @ 40K

You should grab that ASAP

 

[msfiveiron]

It's an excellent price for a fully loaded SL AWD. I paid $34,500 for essentially the same vehicle under Nissan's VPP plan.

As for the interior color, it's really a matter of taste. I picked the Charcoal interior because:

1. I have kids and the Latte was just a tad too light for my fears
2. I didn't like the way the brushed aluminum looked against the Latte leather
3. Charcoal just looked more sporty to me

Really subjective stuff. Good luck on your purchase. Keep lip balm in the car, as your lips will chap from smiling so much

:2: :2: :2: :2:

 

[jaak]

Less glare off the monster windshield with the charcoal dashboard....

 

[nine20eight]

Hey Guys,

Thanks for the feedback. Well, the deal goes down tonight. I am set to go to the dealership (Clay Nissan in Dedham, MA) to sign for the above mentioned Mo. I was able to get the dealer to fax over a break down of cost with a bottom line drive-out price. The number totals $34,598... period. This reflects the $1000 rebate. So, add a grand if I end up taking the 2% financing for 60 mos.

That's the last piece of the puzzle. Is the up-front rebate a wiser decision or the APR. Otherwise, I am looking at a 4-5% APR.

 

[SIM]

This is a simple computation. But it depends on your numbers. How much is financed? At 4% or 5%, it is easy for you to get a monthly payment on the Internet. Then do the same at 2%. What is the diff over 60 months? Is it more than 1000$ + interests for 60 months? Are you more comfy with a lower monthly payment or prefer more cash up front?

It all depends on you and you alone.

 

[er2s]

I assume the difference between the price of $32,500 and the drive-our price of $34,598 is due to sales tax and documentation fees.

If you were to finance 100% of the vehicle for 60 months, the monthly payment at 2% would be $391.60. At 4.5%, the monthly payment jumps to $442.97. Over the course of the loan, you would pay an extra $3,082.20 in interest at the 4.5% loan rate.

If you were to pay $10,000 up front as a down-payment to drop the loan amount to $24,598, the numbers are as follows. The monthly payment at 2% is $218.91. The monthly payment at 4.5% is $259.30. Over the course of the loan, you would pay an extra $2,423.40 in interest at the 4.5% loan rate.

In the above examples, it probably makes sense to take the lower interest rate instead of the $1,000. However, you should take into account some other considerations.

1. If you own a home, you can get a home equity line of credit with a variable interest rate that is probably somewhere around 4.00% (but subject to rise as interest rates rise). Plus, the interest on this type of loan is tax-deductible (in most situations). If you are in the 25% tax bracket, the net interest rate is really only 3.00%. At 3.00% interest and a loan amount of $24,598, the monthly payment is $235.01. Your savings over a 2% loan is $966.00.

2. If you plan to pay off your loan amount sooner than 60 months, your interest savings are going to be lower than what is shown above. Let's say you put down $10,000 and decide to take the 4.5% loan but make payments of $500.00 per month instead of the minimum required $259.30. In this situation, you would pay off the loan in only 27 months. The interest savings over the 2% loan would be only $1,500.00 (paying $500.00 for 27 months vs. 24 months).

Even with the above considerations, I think I've convinced myself that it is better to take the 2% loan than the $1,000.00. Of course, you may disagree.

 

[dklanecky1]

I assume the difference between the price of $32,500 and the drive-our price of $34,598 is due to sales tax and documentation fees.

If you were to finance 100% of the vehicle for 60 months, the monthly payment at 2% would be $391.60. At 4.5%, the monthly payment jumps to $442.97. Over the course of the loan, you would pay an extra $3,082.20 in interest at the 4.5% loan rate.

If you were to pay $10,000 up front as a down-payment to drop the loan amount to $24,598, the numbers are as follows. The monthly payment at 2% is $218.91. The monthly payment at 4.5% is $259.30. Over the course of the loan, you would pay an extra $2,423.40 in interest at the 4.5% loan rate.

In the above examples, it probably makes sense to take the lower interest rate instead of the $1,000. However, you should take into account some other considerations.

1. If you own a home, you can get a home equity line of credit with a variable interest rate that is probably somewhere around 4.00% (but subject to rise as interest rates rise). Plus, the interest on this type of loan is tax-deductible (in most situations). If you are in the 25% tax bracket, the net interest rate is really only 3.00%. At 3.00% interest and a loan amount of $24,598, the monthly payment is $235.01. Your savings over a 2% loan is $966.00.

2. If you plan to pay off your loan amount sooner than 60 months, your interest savings are going to be lower than what is shown above. Let's say you put down $10,000 and decide to take the 4.5% loan but make payments of $500.00 per month instead of the minimum required $259.30. In this situation, you would pay off the loan in only 27 months. The interest savings over the 2% loan would be only $1,500.00 (paying $500.00 for 27 months vs. 24 months).

Even with the above considerations, I think I've convinced myself that it is better to take the 2% loan than the $1,000.00. Of course, you may disagree.

Nice answer for your 4th Post!

Welcome aboard!

 

[Gonzo]

Welcome nine20eight.

I used to bring my older Pulsar to Dedham Nissan (Called at the time). At the time there service department was OK...

Best of luck and enjoy your new MO. After a year I still love driving this thing! :roadtrip:

 

[pcs15394]

Nice Answer

I agree it is a nice answer. The math seems funny though. Finance of 34598.00 over 60 months at 2% interest is a lot more than 391.60. More in the 600.00 range. I looked at the payment for a moment and thought - Man - I really got ripped off, then I calculated it:

Loan Payments Calculator

Loan Balance: $34,598.00
Loan Interest Rate: 2.00%
Loan Term: 5 years
Monthly Loan Payment: $606.43
Number of Payments: 60
Cumulative Payments: $36,385.51
Total Interest Paid: $1,787.51

I mean no offense . I just thought for a moment that someone really fudged some figures on my loan, because I am paying much more than $391.00 a month on a 60 month loan with 2.9% interest on a loan amount smaller than the $34,598.00

 

[nine20eight]

Re: Nice Answer

I agree it is a nice answer. The math seems funny though. Finance of 34598.00 over 60 months at 2% interest is a lot more than 391.60. More in the 600.00 range. I looked at the payment for a moment and thought - Man - I really got ripped off, then I calculated it:

Loan Payments Calculator

Loan Balance: $34,598.00
Loan Interest Rate: 2.00%
Loan Term: 5 years
Monthly Loan Payment: $606.43
Number of Payments: 60
Cumulative Payments: $36,385.51
Total Interest Paid: $1,787.51

I mean no offense . I just thought for a moment that someone really fudged some figures on my loan, because I am paying much more than $391.00 a month on a 60 month loan with 2.9% interest on a loan amount smaller than the $34,598.00

From before... er2s - yeah, the difference in price reflects the 5% MA sales tax as well as the doc/etc fees. I was assured that this was the final price.

As for a down payment, I am looking at $6k for my contribution as that is what I can afford right now. Since the rebate goes towards the principle, it would actually be a $7k down payment.... bringing the total loan amount to $28,598. That's the point at which I was starting my calculations.

Also, the $28,598 payment means that I went with the $1k rebate and drop the 2% financing. I believe that a typical APR would be between 4%-5%. If I go with the 2% APR, the total loan amount would be $29,598.

Confused yet? I am.

 

[er2s]

OK -- I screwed up my math. Let me try again.

Price: 34,598.00
Down Payment: 7,000.00
Loan Amount: 27,598.00
Interest Rate: 4.5%
Payment: 514.51

Compared to

Price: 34,598.00
Down Payment: 6,000.00
Loan Amount: 28,598.00
Interest Rate: 2.0%
Payment: 501.26


With regard to the purchase price. If the price before taxes and doc fees is 32,500.00 and you add 5% sales tax, you get 34,125.00. If the final price is 34,598.00, that means you are paying 473.00 in doc fees. That seems awfully high to me. I would expect those fees to be more like 100.00. I don't live in Massachusetts though, so they may be higher there.

 

[nine20eight]

OK -- I screwed up my math. Let me try again.

Price: 34,598.00
Down Payment: 7,000.00
Loan Amount: 27,598.00
Interest Rate: 4.5%
Payment: 514.51

Compared to

Price: 34,598.00
Down Payment: 6,000.00
Loan Amount: 28,598.00
Interest Rate: 2.0%
Payment: 501.26


With regard to the purchase price. If the price before taxes and doc fees is 32,500.00 and you add 5% sales tax, you get 34,125.00. If the final price is 34,598.00, that means you are paying 473.00 in doc fees. That seems awfully high to me. I would expect those fees to be more like 100.00. I don't live in Massachusetts though, so they may be higher there.

Pre-tax/doc price is $32,700 with rebate, $33,700 with 2% APR. Sorry for the mess up.

 

[alient]

Which options did you get for the price of $32,700?
Since you said fully loaded, I am assuming

1) Navi
2) VSC
3) Entertainment
4) Roof rack...etc

Is this what you mean by fully loaded?
If so, that price is awesome.