[jammadave]

Got a dealer with a very nice salesman who helped me when I was looking at a used Mo, and then when I called to express interest in changing up to a brand new one, the sales manager basically told me, "You pick the car, I'll show you the invoice, and we'll sell it to you for $500 more."

Now, that sounds okay by me, but I noticed that some of their published internet pricing sounds even higher than MSRP (like an SL without leather or any of that stuff, at $31k+, for example).

Getting pricing info from KBB.com, it appears that I should be expecting to see a 2WD SL with Touring pkg and XM Radio, for an invoiced price of $30,569. Hey, if I'm gettin' a nice car I may as well go all out.

What's the trick to getting this deal as stated? I'm admittedly not great at haggling, but the manager's statement made me feel a little more amenable to buying the whole shootin' match as opposed to sticking with as few options as possible, which was my original plan.

thanks!!
dave

 

[HTRK-1]

I'm not sure where you are located, but I wouldn't pay a dime more than the "dealer invoice" they show you. That invoice doesn't include any dealer kickbacks or factory to dealer discounts. As far as the internet list prices. You can look at the MSRP on the sticker or at Nissan's website. Don't let them nail you with the dealer prep etc......fees. Around here (PA) Murano's are going for invoice or less. Good luck.....

 

[jammadave]

Thanks man - I didn't remember I hadn't filled in my location - I'm in Northern Virginia and my dealer (at this point) is Fairfax Nissan.

There's another Nissan dealer near where I work in McLean (Rosenthal in Tyson's Corner), I wonder if they'd give me the same or different numbers...

FWIW, I'm definitely looking to spend under invoice but I just wouldn't know what to do beyond "here's what I'll pay, y'all have a good evening".


(no, I don't normally say "y'all")

=0)

 

[SugarRushMurano]

Fairfax is close to where i am now, in maryland...

try to negotiate at invoice or below invoice..
Lots of postings in this forum and also FA(freshalooy.com forum) about people are getting the invoice price.

Dealer's cost is not invoice price!
They have holdbacks and discounts from nissan when buying bulks.

I got my Murano $700 under invoice, plus a maintenance coupon booklet from dealer. Worth around $200ish to 300 dollar. So basically, it was $1000 below invoice.

Try faxing your offer to some dealers in Maryland area as well.
There are some in laurel, glen burney, or annapolis :0)
Good luck.

 

[Eric L.]

The Edmunds.com invoice was the exact invoice price my dealer also had, so I would use that.

I agree with other posts above - try to get it for under invoice. Call multiple dealers and you should be able to get it for hundreds under invoice (and still have the dealer make a few bucks).

 

[bigt500]

Question for SugarRush,,, a couple of questions:

1. Did you have a trade? If so, the details.
2. What type of financing deal did you get?
3. Did you purchase anything else at the time sale? If so, what.

 

[SugarRushMurano]

answers.....

1. Did you have a trade? If so, the details.

No i dont have a trade, i am selling my other car privately.

2. What type of financing deal did you get?

I got the 3.2% financing.
Some people in this forum get the zero point something apr. Amazing! But considering this is my 3rd car (and acctually the 2nd car i finance), it is a decent rate to me.

3. Did you purchase anything else at the time sale? If so, what.

If you meant accessories or the extended warranty, i did not.

When i went to the dealer, i did not show desperate need of getting the MO. I told the dealer that 2 honda dealers (for a honda pilot) and one toyota dealer already make me a good offer. I also told my nissan saleperson (politely) that to choose a nissan instead of honda and toyota, he must give me a good incentive/motivations.

In the end, we had a bit of price haggling. He went in twice, once with invoice price, told him to do better than that, went in again, the manager came out, shoot $500 below invoice, i took another $500 and start to walk away, he yelled another $200 off from the $500 plus the maintenance coupon. I turned back and smile. Deal!

Oh yeah one more thing, i bought my murano near the end of year 2003, it is the 2003 model. So it might be easier to get a better bargain, FYI.

 

[strafaci]

jammadave,

The holdback is the profit the dealer usually makes, and anything above invoice is usually what the sales person & sales manager's make.

II know alot of people like to talk about how they "never pay above invoice", and it does sometimes happen, but usually there's a reason. (I've done it, but read below).

First, most people trade in another vehicle, so they may get "below invoice" on their new car, but they lose it on their trade in. (You ALWAYS lose money on a trade in. period)

Next, most dealer add phony charges called "Dealer Fees" or etc (usually $200 to $500). So, you might get it for $200 below invoice, but the $500 makes it actually $300 over invoice.

Next, Murano's are new and don't do well in certain markets. They do much better in urban and suburban areas where new trends do well. Hence, if you live in a rural area, you are more likely to get close to invoice.

Next, the value of any car goes down each day it sits on the lot. Dealers only have so much room, and if they have a car that's not selling, it's taking up space for a car that will sell. Turnover is key. So, if a car has horrible options (too loaded, not the right kind of options, awful color, etc), then dealers are more likely to deal.

Further, the dealer gets profit from optiions or services they add on the lot. Usually these things are so inflated that they are almost pure profit. This includes clear bras, undercoating, clear coat protectors, scotch guarding, wheel locks, pin stripping, extended warranties, lojack, etc. The first price they offer is usually extrememly high, and the final price is still bound to have lots of extra profit.

Dealers also make money whenever they finance you. Sometimes this is a win-win situation because the dealer gets a kick back from the bank or finance company, you CAN get a low interest rate, and the bank gets a potential new customer.

Make sure you read the final buyers sheet (when you're signing all the paper work) to understand any extra fees. I have never seen a dealer who did NOT add something on the buyer's invoice or the financing contract. And when somebody says they paid "under invoice", ask to see a copy of this.

Don't believe me? Look on eBay. If dealers were willing to honestly sell at or below invoice, then you should be able to see tons of dealers happily selling below invoice. Usually the reserve starts at invoice, and they still add their "Dealer Handling Fee" on top of that.

 

[jammadave]

Oh, hey, I certainly believe you. I feel I got a good deal at a final price of 33k even, *after* all the "taxes, tags, freight, etc" (you know, the final speed-talked bit on every car commercial.) The actual number on the car was just a few hundred over what KBB said invoice should be, and I got them to lop off the "dealer processing fee" and then a little more. Not the best deal ever, but I wasn't too upset. I could have probably gotten a better deal if we were talking about one that was sitting on their lot, too, but I was stubborn in my quest for Copper.

=0)

Besides, thanks to a fat-down-payment/trade/great-rate combo, my payments are less than my $11,000 Cavalier was (three cars ago, in 1996)

 

[elliotgb]

I just got an '04 Murano last night right at invoice price. I knew exactly which options I wanted, and ran them through Edmunds.com. I also told the sales manager that I didn't intend to go higher that the invoice price and after some hamming and hawing he agreed(might have been a good acting job on his part, lol).

I did all of the research and also let him know that I was prepared to walk away if my demands were not met. I also purchased on the last day of the month 03/31, and I believe that they were aiming to meet or exceed their monthly sales quota.

Pick it up on Saturday: SL AWD, Touring Package, Dynamic Control, cargo mat, splash guards, etc. Pretty well furnished but without the Nav system.

Have to say goodbye and good luck to my 1993 Jeep Grand Cherokee with 138K miles. Got me through some tough miles!

 

[Eric L.]

I just got an '04 Murano last night right at invoice price. I knew exactly which options I wanted, and ran them through Edmunds.com. I also told the sales manager that I didn't intend to go higher that the invoice price and after some hamming and hawing he agreed(might have been a good acting job on his part, lol).

I did all of the research and also let him know that I was prepared to walk away if my demands were not met. I also purchased on the last day of the month 03/31, and I believe that they were aiming to meet or exceed their monthly sales quota.

Pick it up on Saturday: SL AWD, Touring Package, Dynamic Control, cargo mat, splash guards, etc. Pretty well furnished but without the Nav system.

Have to say goodbye and good luck to my 1993 Jeep Grand Cherokee with 138K miles. Got me through some tough miles!

Excellent work using Edmunds.com to get a good price. That is exactly what I did when I purchased my Murano. Isn't it amazing how much less stress there is when you go in armed with information on what you should pay? It took me about a weeks worth of emails, and two phone calls to the internet manager to get the price I wanted. No dealership tricks, thanks to Edmunds.com, my favorite car website (other than the .org of course!)

 

[Joe-Mo]

Want to buy.....

elliotgb,
did you trade in your in your Jeep Cherokee? I have a jeep as well!
I can't decide if I want to trade in the Jeep as well.

I ask because I am looking for a Murano too, and I am having no problems finding dealers who will sell at (or below) invoice with a trade in. (that includes their stupid fees).

Without the trade, the best I've been able to do is $200 over invoice plus dealer fee. I've been looking all over eBay, and I've called dozens of dealers around the country. (I'm willing to travel to find a good deal - i love road trips). Even when I tell them "I'll buy today at invoice - otherwise I'll walk". They always let me walk

Can I get the names of the dealerships that folks have gotten for invoice or less (I am also including those bullsh-- dealer fees in accounting for invoice).

 

[elliotgb]

I decided to do a trade on my Jeep. It was a 1993 Jeep Grand Cherokee, with 138,400 miles, a bad exhaust system, an oil leak, and a power antenna that wouldn't go down.

I had to weigh the good against the bad and make a decision. To fix all of that stuff and then try to sell the car outright may have been very difficult. The blue book is only around $2500 on that model year anyway. I think I may have gotten stiffed a bit by the dealership on the trade value, but I believe all in all that I made the right choice.

Dealerships never lose money, that's a given fact. What they most likely did with my Jeep was to send it across the street to the Jeep dealer that I had it serviced by for the past 7 years and got their cash out of it.

I just made sure that the trade price was kept separate from the target or invoice price that I had in mind. It all worked out great!

 

[elliotgb]

Joe-Mo

Where are you located? I'm in Pennsylvania and I dealt with Exton Nissan.

Just do all your homework first on a website like Edmunds.com. Find out what the invoice is and target that price or lower.

I dealt on the last day of the month and the dealership was trying to make their monthly sales quota, so I got my target price. Take along printouts, TSB's and any other ammo you can find. Also, I read that Thursday evenings are a good time to shop, because for some raeson, the activity level is lower on that day.

I didn't even visit the dealer for a test drive until I had virtually locked in my price and knew that I had leveled out the playing field.

Good luck!

 

[pcs15394]

trade ins

There usually is no way to win with a trade in. Being able to get what you owe is usually a victory. If your loan is paid off and you no longer want to keep the car, a trade in can be helpful. I've found it very helpful to state I am undecided on my trade and negotiate and lock in the price of the dealers vehicle without taking the trade into account.

 

[DoItFun]

Hey Elliotgb

I am working with Exton Nissan, too. Who did you work with there?

My Mo should be arriving shortly, but I still have some negotiating to do since the Mo coming in has Nav, and the original price I negotiated was for a Mo w/o Nav. Those negotiations went pretty well, though, I thought. Here are the details: Their offer for the SE loaded Mo (no DVD, no Nav) less my 2000 loaded 5-spd SE Maxima trade w/57,000 miles was $20,400 (plus tax, tags). That's the Mo for invoice ($33,192) plus my trade for $12,792 (kbb trade value of $10,600 or private party value of $12,460 for "excellent" condition, which is arguable - "good" is probably more accurate). Unless I am missing something, this seems like a pretty good deal, eh?

For the Mo coming in with Nav, I am considering just slapping Nav invoice ($1700) on top and offering them $22,100 as the deal, unless anyone thinks I can do better on a diverted shipment. I am not familiar with the finances behind a diverted shipment - is it like a trade, an order, or a car on the lot??

 

[strafaci]

Invoice Boasting....

Joe-Mo,

I think the last couple posts confirm what I was saying earlier..... You can get a new car for "invoice" if you're willing to lose money on a trade in, or buy maint. coupons, warranties, etc. I looked up the Dealer Retail on the Maxima mentioned above, and it's value was $15,000 (on Edmunds). So, the dealer is able to make profit off the trade in, as opposed to the new vehicle.

The problem is, there is way too much bragging over the whole "invoice" pricing. ("I never pay over invoice - YOU got taken") People love to wear that as a badge of honor. The reality is, the dealerships get their money one way or another.

But look at this way.... If you pay $500 over invoice, or lose $1000 on a trade-in, that is (at best) only a 3% profit margin. If you know anything about retail, you'll know this is considered a very slim profit margin. Credit cards charge over 3% to the retailer whenever you use them! That's why dealers put a limit on how much you can put on a credit card.

Further, I had to pay $400 to register my car (for 1 year only), $600 to county tax, $700 in State tax, $980 a year in insurance, $550 Deliverery cost (included in sticker) and an avg of over $1000 a year in interest.

Bottom line.... Getting invoice without a trade-in (or buying of extras) will rarely ever happen unless there's something wrong with the car. Stop worrying about boasting about invoice, and go get your Murano !!

P.S.

I've worked for GM, my mom works for Chrylser Financing, my Uncle worked
for Ford Dealerships, and I've had several roommates, friends, etc. who were salesman - they all say the same thing.

 

[elliotgb]

I worked with Steven Hague from the internet sales department and he seemed pretty easy to deal with.

The funny thing is that I recognized one of the Service department managers when I was there the other day. I told him he looked familiar. He was formerly a SM at the Jeep dealership across the street where I took my car for 6 years. He jumped ship!

 

[dklanecky1]

Below invoice is available at Carmax in Washington DC. Use their site and prices to start your bargaining with your local dealer. Do it on the last couple days of the month and they'll match Carmax as soon as you've convinced the local dealer your a serious buyer.

http://carmax.com/dyn/compare/comparevehicles.aspx