maxzma

Salesman tells me there is no hold back to the dealer if a trade in is used? In all my research on the net I never once came across anything that said this. When I questioned his honesty about that, he became defensive of course and asked if I was questioning his integrity. Well yes, actually I was. Afterall, we all know how up front and honest they are. He suggested that if I felt I could get a better deal somewhere else, then I should just go someplace else. No pushing me out the door, I had both feet out anyway. Never really had any plans on buying from them, just wanted competitive pricing.

Other dealer in town has a loaded SE demo with 5400 miles that I'm interested in. Anyone have an educated guess as to how much you should deduct for the mileage? Salesman was talking like I might be able to get it at invoice. I expect to do better then that with the 05's coming soon and an 04 demo with 5400k on it. Oh yeah, and the so called "demo" was driven by the dealers wife, who by the way, had a small fender bender in it. Someone backed up at a light and bumped her. No major damage just a few small paint chips. Dealer is going to repair. Should I start from the invoice price and deduct from there?

lightonthehill

maxzma - things work differently with each dealer. I see you are in slllooowww moving Charleston SC, where dealers may not yet be selling the '04 Max for invoice. But we can still make some assumptions.

This is the first time I have ever heard that a tradein 'nullifies' the dealer holdback. But then I have only been buying cars for a little more than fifty years.

IIRC, most posters on this board have recently been getting their '04 Maximas generally in a price range between $500 above invoice and $300 below invoice, with invoice now sort of an average goal.

But with half a year's driving (5,400 miles) on the clock (between 15 and 20% of the warranty mileage gone), and already a dent repaired, the situation is totally different than buying a 'new' car. Unless I fully trusted the dealer, I would assume most of those miles may have been put on the car by someone other than the dealer's wife.

If I really wanted this particular car, my negotiations would range somewhere between $1200 below invoice and $2000 below invoice, with a goal of $1600 below. If I wasn't dead-set on this vehicle, I wouldn't offer more than $2,200 below invoice. Even at that level, the dealer is doing very well in this situation.

If you have your heart set on this vehicle, I still say your paying anything more than $1000 below invoice is a big win for the dealer. But even if you get 'taken', at least you will still have an '04 Maxima. That fact alone can soothe a lot of financial pain.


edit - I should warn you that I have never been in the situation you are in, and my numbers may be way off from 'official market data'. You should try to find an 'official' price on a used low-mileage '04 Maxima from Edmunds or Bluebook.

SilverBelle04

What a marooooon ! Run away and don't go back.

IMO.....This would be worthy of consideration for the "right" price but it would depend on the extent of the damage, the quality of the repair and if it has everythnig you want. I know some people who have had good success with low mileage demos. I think that the approach that Lightonthehill is suggesting would set you on the right track.

Bob

kms007

My wife works at a Nissan dealership, and I relayed the info to her. (Best car salesperson I've ever had!) She says that typically you can deduct $0.30 for each mile that the car has been driven. So, quick math:

5400 x 0.30 = $1620 that you can knock off the price of the car.

Personally, I'd recommend trying to get a new car for as close to invoice as you can. You can probably do better in bigger cities. Arm yourself with information from the web (including this site). When we were doing our research, we found edmunds.com and yahoo had sections where you can calculate what the dealer invoice cost is.

Good Luck!

maxzma

Thanks for the insight everyone. I really had no clue where to start since you can't pull any info off of Edmunds or Kelley on the 04's yet. This will be very helpful. Going to the dealership tonight and I'll post back on what happens.

Yep, we are definately slooooooww moving here in Charleston. I've been looking at the Maxima's on the dealers lot for almost 3 weeks, and he has the same 8 Maxima's that he did 3 weeks ago when I started looking. That should work to my advantage I hope.

KMS007, hope I didn't offend you when I made my comment about sales people, I'm sure your wife is upstanding. This guy was a real slime ball. He started out Mr. Nice Guy, but when I pulled the "dreaded folder" out with my numbers he turned into a real Jekyll and Hyde. I should have known when during the test drive he told me how he screwed his best friend out of $1,500 on a motorcycle deal. RED FLAG!!!

wrj

Personally, I would try another dealer (or at least, salesperson). I can't remember what the hold back is for Nissan (typically 3%) but they make money even selling at invoice. The trade-in is an entirely different deal.

Some helpful websites:
http://www.carbuyingtips.com/
http://www.edmunds.com/
http://www.kbb.com/

SHIFT_NY

Do your research - as you clearly are doing - and be sure you feel you are getting a good deal. Don't concern yourself with what they may be getting on the back end from Nissan, a wholesaler on a trade in or whatever, that's between the dealer and the manufacturer / distributor / wholesaler.

I am by no means defending car dealers as a group - with many you have to count your fingers after shaking hands. But they are in business to make money - and should be able to pocket a *reasonable* profit. It is not their business to beautify the landscape by selling 04 Maximas - although that is a nice side-effect

clayman88

iTrader: (1)

When I purchased my Max it had roughly 3200 miles on it. Likewise, the owner's wife had driven it for a short while. At first the salesman only wanted to knock off $500 bucks for it, but there wasn't a chance I was taking only 500. I got 'em to eventually knock off $1000 for the mileage. Now that I think back on it, I think they should have taken off more, but we cant have everything.

kms007

No worries, maxzma -- there are plenty of shady salespeople out there. Thankfully, the dealership where my wife works is on the up-and-up, with no high-pressure tactics - it's a philosophy that the general manager himself follows. She's been working at the dealership for over a year, so we pretty much have the inside scoop as to what goes on. Initially, when she started working there, I had the same reservations because I thought it would be a 'typical car dealership'. Thankfully, I was wrong. The dealership does a lot of volume, through good word-of-mouth from customers, and advertising.

Jeff92se

iTrader: (82)

If the dealer said no holdback then the car is used. If the car is used, it should be sold for an "used" price. See what the local ads and autotrader list for used car with that amount of miles. Negotiate from that price It's probably thousands less than even invoice. As you know, new cars lose thousands of $ in value once you drive off the lot because the car is now considered "used".

maxzma

Okay, go back to the dealer last night, salesman originally tells me the wife drove the "demo" but the dealer himself was actually driving it when the "bump" happened and there was $3,200 worth of damage. Sales Manager comes in and says no, it was the dealers son driving it and there was $5,500 worth of damage. Then he says, but out of the 5400 miles on the car, I (the sales manager) put 4800 on it, because he took the car after the repair. Well that was enough for me. Too many conflicting stories, the service department was conveniently closed so they couldn't pull the records. They weren't going to budge on price of the demo, said they had too much into it now with the repairs, had to get invoice, but they were willing to let me have the hold back of $800. They did tell me that the original paint repair wasn't even done by a certified Nissan place so that is why the front bumper needs repainting (the paint is chipping from around the black grill). Some kind of bar under the bumper was bent and that was replaced, headlights etc. and it just seemed to go on and on. I was starting to feel sick hearing it all. No way was I willing to take a chance on this thing. He did offer to start the warranty back to 0 for me if I decided to take it. Whoopee, from the sounds of this car, I'll probably need it.

So, I have decided to buy new. They said they will give me $99 over invoice. Still going back and forth between the SE and the SL. Right now they have a Smoke with Frost interior SE and a Coral Sand or Spritied Bronze SL, they have other colors but those three are the only ones that interest me. They also have a Spirited Bronze SE but one of the sales managers is driving it, so I'm not even going there!!!! Feel free to offer any opinions on the others because I am having a hard time deciding, they all look so darn good.

jrussell915

You definitely are doing the right thing!!!

Too much baggage and unknowns with that other car. I hope you are considering visiting another dealer.

maxzma

Unfortunately the other dealer is the one that said they don't get a hold back if they accept a trade in. That right there does not sit right with me. They were much too low on my trade and I just felt uncomfortable there. They do offer tires for life though!

The dealer with the demo is offering me a fantastic amount for my trade. The other dealer wasn't even close.

SilverBelle04

Out of the 3 that you mentioned, i'd go for the Smoke SE. But this is a personnal choice and depends what "you" find important to you.

You might want to make a list of the pros and cons for both SE and SL and a list of "must haves" and use that to guide you.

Good luck and let us know what you decide to go for.

Bob