Did I get a good deal - Corolla LE?

[pradal serey]

Hello everyone - I'm new to this forum and just bought a new 2009 Corolla LE. We got the white color with gray interior. The car came with keyless entry, standard LE power package and floor mats. We elected to pass on any other accessories, upgrades or supplemental care items due to our limited budget. The sale price of the car was $15,527 prior to tax, registration, license and dealer fees; out the door the price was $16,984. We purchased the car from DCH Toyota of Torrance. In your opinion, do you guys think that we got a good deal?

Before I committed to the purchase, I got the offer in writing and asked other dealers within the area if they would beat this price. No one would with the exception of Temecula who said they could try. I don't know, I have some doubts and believe that I could've haggled down the price a bit more. I spent a good 6 hours haggling before seeing the finance manager. What do you guys think about?

Any input will be much appreciated. Please chime in so I can put my mental anguish to rest.

[njerald]

Originally Posted by pradal serey

Hello everyone - I'm new to this forum and just bought a new 2009 Corolla LE. We got the white color with gray interior. The car came with keyless entry, standard LE power package and floor mats. We elected to pass on any other accessories, upgrades or supplemental care items due to our limited budget. The sale price of the car was $15,527 prior to tax, registration, license and dealer fees; out the door the price was $16,984. We purchased the car from DCH Toyota of Torrance. In your opinion, do you guys think that we got a good deal?

Before I committed to the purchase, I got the offer in writing and asked other dealers within the area if they would beat this price. No one would with the exception of Temecula who said they could try. I don't know, I have some doubts and believe that I could've haggled down the price a bit more. I spent a good 6 hours haggling before seeing the finance manager. What do you guys think about?

Any input will be much appreciated. Please chime in so I can put my mental anguish to rest.

I would say that you got the car for about $450 under Manufacturer invoice which is a good deal. I would never have/had spent 6 hours in any dealership for a price. I don't go in w/o the final figures, then sign the papers and am gone in 30-45 minutes.

[pradal serey]

njerald - Thank you very much for your input. I very much appreciate it. For a future approach to car buying, what method do you find most satisfying when purchasing a car? How did you go about it personally? Do you cover everything, including the financing terms over the phone or via email? And who would you recommended that I speak with to get the best possible price.

I would like to know what your personal experiences were so that I may take something from it and perhaps utilize it in my next car purchase.

[got-rice]

you got a decent deal...from my knowledge, Toyota of Torrance is pushing to up their sales (my company works with their finance dept.). Before they were DCH Toyota of Torrance (formerly Torrance Toyota), they were selling a lot less cars in comparison to other bigger dealers like South Bay and Carson Toyota. They also got rid of lot a shady people who worked at that dealer, so you didn't do so bad.

[deux1982]

Pradal Serey, you did alright.
Base LE: invoice=$15067, MSRP=$16650
All Weather Guard Package: invoice=$125, MSRP=$150
Keyless Entry: invoice=$196, MSRP=$245
The best method of buying a car is knowing these number ahead of time. Write an email detailing exactly what you want, including these numbers, and send it to every dealer in your area. That way, you don't have to go into the dealership, and the dealer knows that you know what you want and how much it costs.
I recommend using fightingchance.com. They provide all of this info for you.

[yuppicide]

I'm pretty sure I got a crap deal. I had a 1996 Chevy Lumina which died. I need a car bad. I didn't even go shop around. I went there, I tried the Corolla LE and bought it.

I looked at the Scion TC, but it was lower, and the ride wasn't as comfortable.

I paid just over $18,000 for mine.. LE with power option, spoiler, keyless entry, etc. I also went for the 7 year warrranty. In total I was up to like just over $21,000 financed!

I didn't even haggle with the guy and I kind of regret it, but not really since I needed a car, I can afford it, and my loving Girlfriend co-signed for me. My first new car ever.

[deux1982]

yuppicide....don't even worry about it...it's over now and, like you said, you can afford it. Enjoy the new car.

Just don't go and default on the loan and screw your nice girlfriend's credit. she MUST love you, because I would never have co-signed for you. Ha, hang on to her.

[pradal serey]

Guys, thanks for the input. Before I went into Torrance, I negotiated the price down with the Fleet Manager. I got him to fax the quote with the dealer's letter head. I took that fax over to several local dealers (CABE, Cerritos, Penske, Elmore) and none of them were willing to beat it let alone match it. Only Temecula said that they would try to beat it but offer no guarantees. Temecula is about +1hr drive for me so I wasn't really up to going there. I figured since most of the dealers wouldn't even try to match the price, I might as well jump on it and took a trip down to Torrance. Obviously when I got there, they tried to get me into a better equipped vehicle. I didn't budge and stuck with what I original requested.

At the time, I thought I was getting a great deal. But the more I sat in the dealership the more doubts I had. I still feel that I could've gotten at least another $500 off the price.

It was also kind of an impulse buy. We had so much trouble finding a Corolla LE in the colors that we wanted. So when they pitched that offer to me and it came with a color that was pleasant, we just jumped on it. I'm not too distraught by the price however, but I wish that we got a better APR than 6.85%. I spent most of my time trying to haggle the APR down, but they just wouldn't budge for me. I suppose I can refinance it at a better rate, but I can't find any rates better than 6.4% right now. At 6.4%, that would be only $5 less on the monthly payment; not really worth it.

Oh well its done with; no use in fussing over it after the fact. I'm just still beating myself over not getting my own financing before hand.

[pradal serey]

got-rice: Thanks for the reply. This was my first time ever visited or even driving pass the Torrance dealership. I wasn't impressed. It didn't look as elaborate or well maintained as other dealers. It almost looked like a private used car dealership to me. It wasn't that easy to get to either. I'm coming off the 110, and had to drive another 15-20 minutes in traffic on the PCH to get to them. When I got there, they had basically no customers. I figured that since they didn't have any customers at the moment, then maybe they'll better serve me.

duex1982: Very grateful for the input. I check out the fightingchance.com website. It sounds like a good resource and tool. I think I'll definitely use them or at least take away some of their tips. I wish I had know about them before so I can better prepare myself.

[pradal serey]

yuppicide: Congrats on the purchase - good deal or not, I'm not qualified enough to tell you. However it does seem that the car meets your needs and is easily manageable financially; thats something to be happy about. I agree with duex1982 that if you can easily afford it, then there's not much need for giving yourself a hard time over not bargaining or shopping around more. Personally, this car is a large investment for me which is why I'm a little troubled and doubtful about the price I came out with.

[njerald]

Originally Posted by yuppicide

I'm pretty sure I got a crap deal. I had a 1996 Chevy Lumina which died. I need a car bad. I didn't even go shop around. I went there, I tried the Corolla LE and bought it.

I looked at the Scion TC, but it was lower, and the ride wasn't as comfortable.

I paid just over $18,000 for mine.. LE with power option, spoiler, keyless entry, etc. I also went for the 7 year warrranty. In total I was up to like just over $21,000 financed!

I didn't even haggle with the guy and I kind of regret it, but not really since I needed a car, I can afford it, and my loving Girlfriend co-signed for me. My first new car ever.

You can afford it yet you had to finance it and have a co-signer???????????

That's a joke!!!!!!

Those dealers luv to see you coming.......

[njerald]

Originally Posted by pradal serey

njerald - Thank you very much for your input. I very much appreciate it. For a future approach to car buying, what method do you find most satisfying when purchasing a car? How did you go about it personally? Do you cover everything, including the financing terms over the phone or via email? And who would you recommended that I speak with to get the best possible price.

I would like to know what your personal experiences were so that I may take something from it and perhaps utilize it in my next car purchase.

I do not finance a depreciating asset. I pay cash.

I use email now, used to do it by fax. If the dealers don't want to quote, I could care less..

My Camry took 5 or 6 signatures and I was gone from the dealer in 20 minutes..

[deux1982]

njerald, it is nice to say you pay cash for a depreciating asset....I do the same, but not everyone can.

besides, my Corolla is financed for 36 months at 0%. Pradal, I wouldn't worry so much about every dollar. If no one would beat it, then you got the best deal possible. I'm a little confused as to why the financing was so high. Isn't toyota still offering 0% for 36 months? I know a few months ago rates were as low as a few percent for up to 60 months, I think???

[pradal serey]

Originally Posted by deux1982

I'm a little confused as to why the financing was so high. Isn't toyota still offering 0% for 36 months? I know a few months ago rates were as low as a few percent for up to 60 months, I think???

Thats what I believed as well, but they noted otherwise. I could've swear that I saw it in an newspaper ad somewhere. I even called other local dealers to confirm the 0% financing, but everyone said that it wasn't available. Every dealer said that there was no special or promotional financing on the Corolla or the Yaris for this month. The financial adviser even showed me the financing promotions chart and the Corolla wasn't listed as eligible. However, they did have promotional rates for the Camry, Matrix, Tundra and Tacoma. Normally we would qualify as Tier One customers, but I'm not too sure this time around. I wanted to have my younger sister sign in as a co-buyer to help build her credit. She's only a student and doesn't really have much if any credit. That may have been why our rates were somewhat high. Even without her added though, the financial manager said that we couldn't probably get better than 6.5%. I've been speaking with a few local credit unions and it seems I may be able to refinance the only 2-day-old existing loan through them for less 5.5%. That should save me a whooping +/- $10 a month.

I know I'm fussing over $5-10/month here, but I tend to be frugal about every penny. I'm the type of guy who will pick up every penny that he sees on the paved asphalt.

I wish I could pay the car off in cash, but I don't have that much funds allocated for a direct purchase. Besides, I wanted to start building up my younger sister's credit.

[ernest t bass]

I got a similar price:
$15,700 sale price
$16,995 out the door
2.9 % financing
2009 corolla LE with cruise & keyless entry in green