How much did you pay for your MS3??

[ComeBack]

Hey ive been back to the dealer like 3 times and it seems we arnt comming up with anything. I was wondering what you guys are playing and for how long.

I was looking at a 2008.5 sport

they were saying 13500 for my trade in (which is like what i owe)

$2000 down

23,090 + fee's and 8%

they said my payments would be 460 for 60 months and i said f that.

So post what you guys got yours for =]


BTW i am in CA =X

[PsychoJim]

I live in Southern Cali and I got mine for $24000 out the door. I got a good deal because it was an unwind.

However, I don't think you can get it any less than $23090. That's the cheapest I could find it...other than the one I bought. I think that's pretty much invoice.

[MicaSp33d]

08 MS3 sport - 21700 + tax/licence = 23500 :)

not exact numbers but close enough, i don't have the exact numbers in front of me.

[08cosmic3]

This thread has been done several times now but I'll post again.

$21,033 + TTL for new 2008 sport. I think it is was around $22,700 out the door.

[SwampAss]

MSRP.. and that was a mild feat in late 06.

[Garzilly]

2008 MS3 Grand Touring

$22,560 before TTL. $23,800 OTD, after 6% CT sales tax. I got a pretty sweet deal.

[ComeBack]

Haha sorry i didnt search to hard My bad lol. well thanks a lot this helped me. im going to go to another dealer in oakland and try and see what kind of deal they can hook me up with since the ppl up here suck! lol

[D_Roc7822]

The sticker was 22,900 for 08 Sport in Nov of 07.. they didnt have the color I wanted.. so they took 500.00 off... so that came down to 22,400. The tax tag title and extra goodies (gap insurance etc) came to like 23,6?? and I put 2k down... 8-9% interest... 420.35 a month... and its scheduled to be paid off by the time im 30 lol. I still dont know if I got a good deal or if I got ripped but Im just enjoying the car to the fullest. Everyone at the dealership was super cool to me.. considering I look like im 16-17 and had to beg the salesman to test drive the thing.

[zilch321]

You need to do the math yourself and see where you stand. Your commend of "they said" is a big red flag.

You're leaving it up to the dealer to do all the math and all the banking for you which is probably more trusting than you should be. Known their fees up front (all of them), know your taxes up front, do you're own math and then act upon your findings. Knowing what the car will really cost you will let you see exactly what kind of interest rate is acceptable, not in your head but down on paper where you can really see it.

Interest rates are sticky as we need to know lots about your financial background to even comment on such things. If you are looking for financing and the dealer offers you no better than 8% you should apply for some on your own. As long as you inquire for financing on the same day this wont effect your credit rating in a negative way. Making lots of inquiries over many days however will so keep that in mind.

FWIW I got my MS3 GT with wheel locks, cargo net, cargo tray, and homelink mirror for 24K.

Good luck with your purchase.

[zilch321]

Something else to keep in mind, some folks are posting their interest rates for you to see. These are completely irrelevant unless their credit score and history closely matches yours. Some folks here might still be in school, others might be fresh out of college, others my be old farts who are home owners with equity and a long and established credit history. Ignore the interest rates posted here. Know what your credit rating is and that will tell you exactly what kind of rate you should expect.

[FrequentFlyer]

$23k for a Sport? Maybe it's a CA thing, but that' sounds like robbery in today's MS3 market. I was quoted $20,900 for a Sport over the phone with zero haggling, which is pretty much "invoice". I went with a GT for $23.6k + TTL, so it wound up being $25,577 out the door with 7% sales tax and I think I could have haggled for at least another $500 off that but I can't stand haggling (I was in an out in less than an hour). I also got free oil changes for as long as I own the car. I put $10.5k down, 5.39% interest for 60 months and my payments are about $285 a month.

Another thing, did you tell them how much you owed on your trade? Even if you didn't, they probably found out anyway. Car dealers conveniently like to offer you about as much as it takes to pay the car off. If it's worth more, fight for more or tell them you'll take your business elsewhere. If I were you, I'd wait and sell your car privately. I got about $3,000 more that way than I would have if I had traded. Trading in is your achilis heel. If you ask for more for your trade, they'll just take it out of your ass somewhere else or vice versa. It gives them more leverage on you, which is something you want to limit to the max extent possible.

[Kain]

$23k for a Sport? Maybe it's a CA thing, but that' sounds like robbery in today's MS3 market. I was quoted $20,900 for a Sport over the phone with zero haggling, which is pretty much "invoice". I went with a GT for $23.6k + TTL, so it wound up being $25,577 out the door with 7% sales tax and I think I could have haggled for at least another $500 off that but I can't stand haggling (I was in an out in less than an hour). I also got free oil changes for as long as I own the car. I put $10.5k down, 5.39% interest for 60 months and my payments are about $285 a month.

That sounds really similar to my deal. $24.3k OTD (including TTL/freight, sales tax here is 3%). Put down ~$10k, about the same interest rate on a 60 months, payments are ~$288/month.

[gtlaw]

mine was 24k OTD
I put 10K cash down my payments are $433 for 36 months at 6.4 interest rate

[Kain]

mine was 24k OTD
I put 10K cash down my payments are $433 for 36 months at 6.4 interest rate

Dunno what your credit situation is, but I could've gotten 3.5% for a 36 monther at my credit union. Might want to check since interest rates are stupid low right now, see if you can refi. Make sure your current loan doesn't have a pre-payment penalty first, though.

[gtlaw]

Dunno what your credit situation is, but I could've gotten 3.5% for a 36 monther at my credit union. Might want to check since interest rates are stupid low right now, see if you can refi. Make sure your current loan doesn't have a pre-payment penalty first, though.

auto loans at my credit union are 5.99. there is no penalty for early payment. the interest over the entire loan is $1,400 I can handle that besides I plan on paying it off in 2 years

[Kain]

auto loans at my credit union are 5.99. there is no penalty for early payment. the interest over the entire loan is $1,400 I can handle that besides I plan on paying it off in 2 years

Good deal. I thought about taking the 36 month loan @ 3.5%, would've cut 2 points offa what I have for my 60-monther, but I always send extra in to pay off just principal anyway. On my last car, I had a 60-month note but had it paid off in 46 months.

[FrequentFlyer]

That sounds really similar to my deal. $24.3k OTD (including TTL/freight, sales tax here is 3%). Put down ~$10k, about the same interest rate on a 60 months, payments are ~$288/month.

But you guys in VA have to pay property tax on your cars every year, right? My parents live down there now and I remember them saying something about that.

[Kain]

But you guys in VA have to pay property tax on your cars every year, right? My parents live down there now and I remember them saying something about that.

Yeah, it's FTL. I pay property tax to the city/county where the car is registered. I believe they go offa KBB or some other assessment. At least it goes down each year as the car depreciates. Probably looking at >$200 this year in PPT for the car.

[punch]

I paid 21,100 before tax/title for my 08 sport. Could have gotten another sport for 20,900 but it didn't have the compass mirror.

[imac]

$25,443 out the door for an 08 GT with the cargo net an wheel locks ($90 worth of options)

[MicaSp33d]

$23k for a Sport? Maybe it's a CA thing, but that' sounds like robbery in today's MS3 market. I was quoted $20,900 for a Sport over the phone with zero haggling, which is pretty much "invoice". I went with a GT for $23.6k + TTL, so it wound up being $25,577 out the door with 7% sales tax and I think I could have haggled for at least another $500 off that but I can't stand haggling (I was in an out in less than an hour). I also got free oil changes for as long as I own the car. I put $10.5k down, 5.39% interest for 60 months and my payments are about $285 a month.

Another thing, did you tell them how much you owed on your trade? Even if you didn't, they probably found out anyway. Car dealers conveniently like to offer you about as much as it takes to pay the car off. If it's worth more, fight for more or tell them you'll take your business elsewhere. If I were you, I'd wait and sell your car privately. I got about $3,000 more that way than I would have if I had traded. Trading in is your achilis heel. If you ask for more for your trade, they'll just take it out of your ass somewhere else or vice versa. It gives them more leverage on you, which is something you want to limit to the max extent possible.

Lol they are trying to rob us here in CA. Almost all the dealer had a damm $3,000 mark up on top of msrp. Sticker on my 08sport was $23,300. Got them to give it to me for 21,700. I should of haggled some more, but i couldn't wait to drive my baby home. Some of the dealers did not want to budge with the 3 grand mark up, i guess they have no issues what so ever selling MS3's here

[Super X]

I got my CWP GT w/ cargo net, sirius sat, wheel locks and extended war. till 75k for $25,050 otd in south florida. Paying just alittle over $400 a mth.

Only bad thing about Florida is that they don't have something called "GAP Insurance coverage" that mean that if your car is totaled in an accident your insurance only covers the value of the car @ the time of the accident, not how much you owe on the car. So I had that added to the purchase of the car (was about $1100 extra added to the otd price).

[Reyan]

Something else to keep in mind, some folks are posting their interest rates for you to see. These are completely irrelevant unless their credit score and history closely matches yours. Some folks here might still be in school, others might be fresh out of college, others my be old farts who are home owners with equity and a long and established credit history. Ignore the interest rates posted here. Know what your credit rating is and that will tell you exactly what kind of rate you should expect.

Agreed ........you could have a good score and a higher interest rate or a lower score and a better interest rate, it's all depends on what's on your credit report, debt to income ratio and credit limit.

[Reyan]

$23k for a Sport? Maybe it's a CA thing, but that' sounds like robbery in today's MS3 market. I was quoted $20,900 for a Sport over the phone with zero haggling, which is pretty much "invoice". I went with a GT for $23.6k + TTL, so it wound up being $25,577 out the door with 7% sales tax and I think I could have haggled for at least another $500 off that but I can't stand haggling (I was in an out in less than an hour). I also got free oil changes for as long as I own the car. I put $10.5k down, 5.39% interest for 60 months and my payments are about $285 a month.

Another thing, did you tell them how much you owed on your trade? Even if you didn't, they probably found out anyway. Car dealers conveniently like to offer you about as much as it takes to pay the car off. If it's worth more, fight for more or tell them you'll take your business elsewhere. If I were you, I'd wait and sell your car privately. I got about $3,000 more that way than I would have if I had traded. Trading in is your achilis heel. If you ask for more for your trade, they'll just take it out of your ass somewhere else or vice versa. It gives them more leverage on you, which is something you want to limit to the max extent possible.

This guy owes money on his trade, you haggle for the best price when you bought your car, the guy who comes to buy his car privately will haggle, if he is offered less for his trade the he will have to come up with the difference out of his pocket to pay off the bank on his trade and also he will loose the money he would have save on the tax if he trade in his car. Check out the kelly's blue book trade in value on your car that will give you and idea as to your car's value, if it is less than what the dealer gived you then you are getting a good deal if it is more then negotiate more. the best way to get a good deal is to stay calm during the negotiations, staying calm help you to think more rational.

[Reyan]

I got my CWP GT w/ cargo net, sirius sat, wheel locks and extended war. till 75k for $25,050 otd in south florida. Paying just alittle over $400 a mth.

Only bad thing about Florida is that they don't have something called "GAP Insurance coverage" that mean that if your car is totaled in an accident your insurance only covers the value of the car @ the time of the accident, not how much you owe on the car. So I had that added to the purchase of the car (was about $1100 extra added to the otd price).


$1100 for gap..........which dealer was this?

[FrequentFlyer]

This guy owes money on his trade, you haggle for the best price when you bought your car, the guy who comes to buy his car privately will haggle, if he is offered less for his trade the he will have to come up with the difference out of his pocket to pay off the bank on his trade and also he will loose the money he would have save on the tax if he trade in his car. Check out the kelly's blue book trade in value on your car that will give you and idea as to your car's value, if it is less than what the dealer gived you then you are getting a good deal if it is more then negotiate more. the best way to get a good deal is to stay calm during the negotiations, staying calm help you to think more rational.

Even with tax savings, I made about $2,000 more when I sold my car privately than I would have gotten on a trade.

[DAC17]

Invoice for 2008.5 GT, which I think was like $23,200(?) in April, 2008.

[Reyan]

Even with tax savings, I made about $2,000 more when I sold my car privately than I would have gotten on a trade.


I totally understand, if you get more hell yeah ....take it, just be careful because when you advertise a car you don't know who's comming to your house to look at your car and if they are for real or not.

[ComeBack]

Thanks guys =] im picking mine up friday! 23,000 otd for a 2008.5 cpw with 7.3 miles on it.

[Super X]

$1100 for gap..........which dealer was this?

WPB/Penske. $1100 is too much? I don't know much about Gap, besides the coverage, but not so much the pricing.

[chacon101]

25.3k OTD. Fully loaded GT with every option and a 5 year extended warranty. 5% interest rate though my credit union. Oh, and the MS CAI installed.

Gotta thank my brother who works for Mazda :)

[D_Roc7822]

WPB/Penske. $1100 is too much? I don't know much about Gap, besides the coverage, but not so much the pricing.

My gap coverage was like 695. 1100 is kind of crazy to me.

[slo4now]

Stickerprice was $22,995, they gave me $500.00 off, i said where do i sign
And drove off like in 1hr or so. Btw they also gave me $18,000.00 for my
trade in.

[Reyan]

WPB/Penske. $1100 is too much? I don't know much about Gap, besides the coverage, but not so much the pricing.

$795 is the highest i have seen but that covers the insurance deductable, so you don't pay anything out your pocket.

[Reyan]

Thanks guys =] im picking mine up friday! 23,00 otd for a 2008.5 cpw with 7.3 miles on it.

Good luck with your car man.

[Jasnall]

2008.5 TR GT no Nav
i think sticker was 24900 or somthing I forget
I got it for 23,300 = 25500 ish OTD
6k down+ 2500 for my trade

l got 4.99% through credit union

I think payed average on a scale of cheap to expensive

[Galvatron]

I have gap through my insurance company for an extra $20 every 6 months. You are paying WAY too much.

[Mike240SX]

I paid MSRP and not a penny less for mine. Something just under $28k out the door. I'm happy with it.

[Super X]

$795 is the highest i have seen but that covers the insurance deductable, so you don't pay anything out your pocket.


I have gap through my insurance company for an extra $20 every 6 months. You are paying WAY too much.

I didn't feel comfortable with that amount either but being that I didn't know anything about gap I figured it was the norm. Does where you live have or the same variables that are used in determining regular auto insurance has anything to do with the pricing of gap? Because i'm located in Aventura which is close to North Miami Beach aka the "highest insurance area of FL".

[Dumb Azz Kracka]

Hey, I just picked up my MS3 today...I went in last weekend to get my car appraised for a trade-in value. While talking to the sales manager I asked him what the MSRP on the 8.5 MS3 Sport Metro Grey and he said $23,090...to which I replied wow, that's pretty low isn't it? Of course this guy thought I was a total azz clown and probably figured he'd rape me pretty bad. So, he said yeah it's a great deal and he doesn't have any leeway on the price of the car since they're going like hotcakes at, or even above, MSRP...the guy was laying it on thick. He said he'd give me a pretty good deal on my trade-in instead.

After quoting me about $800 bucks over trade-in blue book value for my car I said thanks and left. I went on Edmunds.com and sent out a mass quote request to every Mazda dealership within 100 miles and within two days had dozens of replies. I got their internet guy to quote me $20,999 with no additional fees besides title and license. Since there is no tax in NH the title and license was $220.

I also got financed through my own credit union and went into the dealership today after work and told them my loan is approved based on a max amount of the MSRP. Since I was $2,700 upside down on my trade-in I ended up walking out the door with my new car $23,140 since it came with the wheel locks for 50 bucks.

All in all I bought the car for 600 bucks less than invoice and got 800 bucks more than blue book for my trade-in...there was no sales tax and zero hidden fees. The car had 8 miles on it and I just got home from the dealership and it's got 24 total now.

I didn't do any negotiating what-so-ever, I think I just used a perfect blend of playing it dumb and using their own internet sales guy against them afterwards. Whatever the case I don't think I could have possibly gotten a better deal anywhere else.

DAK

[08cosmic3]

Hey, I just picked up my MS3 today...I went in last weekend to get my car appraised for a trade-in value. While talking to the sales manager I asked him what the MSRP on the 8.5 MS3 Sport Metro Grey and he said $23,090...to which I replied wow, that's pretty low isn't it? Of course this guy thought I was a total azz clown and probably figured he'd rape me pretty bad. So, he said yeah it's a great deal and he doesn't have any leeway on the price of the car since they're going like hotcakes at, or even above, MSRP...the guy was laying it on thick. He said he'd give me a pretty good deal on my trade-in instead.

After quoting me about $800 bucks over trade-in blue book value for my car I said thanks and left. I went on Edmunds.com and sent out a mass quote request to every Mazda dealership within 100 miles and within two days had dozens of replies. I got their internet guy to quote me $20,999 with no additional fees besides title and license. Since there is no tax in NH the title and license was $220.

I also got financed through my own credit union and went into the dealership today after work and told them my loan is approved based on a max amount of the MSRP. Since I was $2,700 upside down on my trade-in I ended up walking out the door with my new car $23,140 since it came with the wheel locks for 50 bucks.

All in all I bought the car for 600 bucks less than invoice and got 800 bucks more than blue book for my trade-in...there was no sales tax and zero hidden fees. The car had 8 miles on it and I just got home from the dealership and it's got 24 total now.

I didn't do any negotiating what-so-ever, I think I just used a perfect blend of playing it dumb and using their own internet sales guy against them afterwards. Whatever the case I don't think I could have possibly gotten a better deal anywhere else.

DAK

Great deal, I did the same thing. Went to Edmonds and sent out quote requests and ended up paying $21,033 for my Sport. I never went to any dealership until the deal was done and I went to pick it up. I had to drive 3 hours to the dealership but saved a thousand bucks

[ComeBack]

yea i got my 2008.5 cwp with 7 miles on it for 21,155!! im stoked =] ill take some pics tomorrow and post them =]

[ms3jake]

I got my red 07 sport ms3 with 5300 miles from a toyota dealer for $19.3 mint condition.

[USMCEvan]

$24K, off the lot, with about 380 miles worth of test drives. Not including state tax and licensing, etc etc

[Dumb Azz Kracka]

$24K, off the lot, with about 380 miles worth of test drives. Not including state tax and licensing, etc etc

What's up Devil?

DAK

[navyagspeed3]

Hey, I just picked up my MS3 today...I went in last weekend to get my car appraised for a trade-in value. While talking to the sales manager I asked him what the MSRP on the 8.5 MS3 Sport Metro Grey and he said $23,090...to which I replied wow, that's pretty low isn't it? Of course this guy thought I was a total azz clown and probably figured he'd rape me pretty bad. So, he said yeah it's a great deal and he doesn't have any leeway on the price of the car since they're going like hotcakes at, or even above, MSRP...the guy was laying it on thick. He said he'd give me a pretty good deal on my trade-in instead.

After quoting me about $800 bucks over trade-in blue book value for my car I said thanks and left. I went on Edmunds.com and sent out a mass quote request to every Mazda dealership within 100 miles and within two days had dozens of replies. I got their internet guy to quote me $20,999 with no additional fees besides title and license. Since there is no tax in NH the title and license was $220.

I also got financed through my own credit union and went into the dealership today after work and told them my loan is approved based on a max amount of the MSRP. Since I was $2,700 upside down on my trade-in I ended up walking out the door with my new car $23,140 since it came with the wheel locks for 50 bucks.

All in all I bought the car for 600 bucks less than invoice and got 800 bucks more than blue book for my trade-in...there was no sales tax and zero hidden fees. The car had 8 miles on it and I just got home from the dealership and it's got 24 total now.

I didn't do any negotiating what-so-ever, I think I just used a perfect blend of playing it dumb and using their own internet sales guy against them afterwards. Whatever the case I don't think I could have possibly gotten a better deal anywhere else.

DAK

I wish I had read that before I bought mine. I got my 08.5 B MS3 GT for $23.5 k plus TTL OTD for around $25 k. I guess big down payments don't help anymore either because I dropped $19k and they still didn't drop the price at all. Before I found that deal I was looking at a Tacoma and they wouldn't budge even with huge down payment like that. Anyone else drop a big downpayment and not get any help from the dealership?

[Dumb Azz Kracka]

I wish I had read that before I bought mine. I got my 08.5 B MS3 GT for $23.5 k plus TTL OTD for around $25 k. I guess big down payments don't help anymore either because I dropped $19k and they still didn't drop the price at all. Before I found that deal I was looking at a Tacoma and they wouldn't budge even with huge down payment like that. Anyone else drop a big downpayment and not get any help from the dealership?

The trick is understanding how the dealerships do business, I guess. I'm not going to say that it would work anywhere because every town bases its business off of the local market. If you lived in an area where sporty little hatchbacks were really popular then I'd imagine it would be harder to get a great deal on one. I'm not originally from New England, so I couldn't say whether they're very popular here, but I haven't seen nearly as many as I'd imagine I would in the sunny southwest.

The trick I used played two competing salespeople against each other even though they worked for the same damn company. If I would have gotten the quote from the internet guy first and THEN went into the dealership for a trade-in quote then they would have low-balled the hell out of me. In turn what they did was give me an overpriced quote, so they could pretend like they needed to sell me my ms3 at msrp. Playing it the way I did turned their sales manager and their internet guy against each other competing for my business. In turn what it ended up doing was giving all of them the lowest possible commission you can get and they have to split it three ways now.

Overall, I kinda felt like a d*ck about it because these people were EXTREMELY nice and help full with everything, even after they realized I played them. I know they aren't your friends, I used to sell cars for Ford down in Houston, but something about their attitude just seemed real. But the bottom line is I don't owe them anything and I'M the one spending 23 grand.

I'd like a future MS3 buyer to take this game plan and use it again in their local market to see if it works again.

DAK

[mrjoshyman]

paid 22,875 for an 08.5 GT with power dimming mirror. That price was b4 TTL.

[Dumb Azz Kracka]

paid 22,875 for an 08.5 GT with power dimming mirror. That price was b4 TTL.

If the only "extra" that you got with the car was the mirror then it sounds like you got a helluva deal also. The invoice on that car is $23,240 and I'm assuming you meant "auto" dimming mirror, which goes for $200. If you paid $22,875 then you got it for $565 below invoice...

Nice Job

DAK

[mrjoshyman]

yeah, i meant auto dimming mirror (sry..very tired..)

and the invoice is actually more than that b/c that does not include destination. the actual invoice for the car is more like 23,600ish

thanks -- yeah it was a pretty solid deal...took me about a month worth of shopping around and talking with about 15-20 dealerships, but in the end I think it was worth it...

[Dumb Azz Kracka]

yeah, i meant auto dimming mirror (sry..very tired..)

and the invoice is actually more than that b/c that does not include destination. the actual invoice for the car is more like 23,600ish

thanks -- yeah it was a pretty solid deal...took me about a month worth of shopping around and talking with about 15-20 dealerships, but in the end I think it was worth it...

Sweet deal regardless, but I'm curious where you are getting your info. I get mine off of kbb.com and edmunds.com and they're both exactly the same down to the dollar of each other.

Where they differ is that edmunds gives their invoice quotes WITHOUT the shipping charge, which according to them is $22,590. They have a standard shipping charge of $650, which puts the total invoice at $23,240. Kbb.com does their invoices with the shipping charges already added (which is explained by a link next to the prices) and that site has your car at $23,240 also. These are, of course, based off of minimum standard equipment.

Either way you made out pretty damn well, but like I said I'm curious where you're getting your info. from, because I find kbb.com and edmunds.com to be pretty accurate with their info., but if there is something better out there I'd like to know about it.

As far as I'm concerned it doesn't matter how long you "look" or negotiate with various dealers, because in the end as long as you own that car you'll always know what you paid for it and either feel like you got away with something or you paid too much. That feeling never really goes away, and it sounds like you'll enjoy your ms3 even more.

On a side note I went over to a buddy's place today to show off my new ride and took him for a spin on some of his back neighborhood streets. I wasn't even pushing it that much and the next thing I know I was driving past this big azz truck on the right side of the road and noticed a stop sign that was being hidden by the rig. Before I had a chance to do anything I was flying through the intersection doing about 60 and thank God nobody was around. The crazy thing about this car is that it drives so smoothly that it felt like I was doing about 35. When I looked down at the speedometer I said "Damn, I better lock it down or I'll kill myself, lol."

Speed is addicting.

DAK

[USMCEvan]

What's up Devil?

DAK

Whassup man. Prior or active? (rockon)

[Dumb Azz Kracka]

Whassup man. Prior or active? (rockon)

Prior...served active from 95-99. Was stationed in Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii for 3 years.

DAK

[mrjoshyman]

Sweet deal regardless, but I'm curious where you are getting your info. I get mine off of kbb.com and edmunds.com and they're both exactly the same down to the dollar of each other.

Where they differ is that edmunds gives their invoice quotes WITHOUT the shipping charge, which according to them is $22,590. They have a standard shipping charge of $650, which puts the total invoice at $23,240. Kbb.com does their invoices with the shipping charges already added (which is explained by a link next to the prices) and that site has your car at $23,240 also. These are, of course, based off of minimum standard equipment.

Either way you made out pretty damn well, but like I said I'm curious where you're getting your info. from, because I find kbb.com and edmunds.com to be pretty accurate with their info., but if there is something better out there I'd like to know about it.

As far as I'm concerned it doesn't matter how long you "look" or negotiate with various dealers, because in the end as long as you own that car you'll always know what you paid for it and either feel like you got away with something or you paid too much. That feeling never really goes away, and it sounds like you'll enjoy your ms3 even more.

On a side note I went over to a buddy's place today to show off my new ride and took him for a spin on some of his back neighborhood streets. I wasn't even pushing it that much and the next thing I know I was driving past this big azz truck on the right side of the road and noticed a stop sign that was being hidden by the rig. Before I had a chance to do anything I was flying through the intersection doing about 60 and thank God nobody was around. The crazy thing about this car is that it drives so smoothly that it felt like I was doing about 35. When I looked down at the speedometer I said "Damn, I better lock it down or I'll kill myself, lol."

Speed is addicting.

DAK

with the autodimming mirror, edmunds says $23,400 -- but in NY there is an assessment fee on all vehicles which brings it up to about 23,600ish.

I know those numbers are correct b/c I have seen the actual invoice sheet at more than one dealership.

[USMCEvan]

Prior...served active from 95-99. Was stationed in Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii for 3 years.

DAK

Ahhhhhh so then you can relate to the YouTube video of "navy pilots make fun of Marines" huh? LoL If you havent seen it, do a search for the quoted phrase on youtube. ;)

[Dumb Azz Kracka]

with the autodimming mirror, edmunds says $23,400 -- but in NY there is an assessment fee on all vehicles which brings it up to about 23,600ish.

I know those numbers are correct b/c I have seen the actual invoice sheet at more than one dealership.

Ok, yeah the #'s I came up with were completely stock with no additional goodies. As far as each state's fees and what not I guess that would make a difference. Are those things considered under the invoice really, or is that a customer expense? Doesn't really matter either way, it's semantics if you really think about it, because the money is having to be paid regardless.

Enjoy your ride bud.

DAK

[Dumb Azz Kracka]

Ahhhhhh so then you can relate to the YouTube video of "navy pilots make fun of Marines" huh? LoL If you havent seen it, do a search for the quoted phrase on youtube. ;)

I just took a look....damn squids. I'm still trying to figure out what the hell yut is. I guess I would have to ask the seamen what it is exactly they were trying to imitate with that one, cuz it made no sense to me. It actually was pretty comical in all good fun until the whole gay thing came in the end...I was kinda grossed out, so I had to shut it off. Reminds me of being in the corps though...you couldn't joke with anybody without throwing some kind of gay joke in there.

I don't have anything against the Navy, I actually got along really well with quite a few corpsman that served in my ground unit, but I just chose not to join a branch where they'd be calling me something that I usually tried to aim at a girls forehead.

DAK

[koston33]

07 gt 4K miles for 18,400

[USMCEvan]

I just took a look....damn squids. I'm still trying to figure out what the hell yut is. I guess I would have to ask the seamen what it is exactly they were trying to imitate with that one, cuz it made no sense to me. It actually was pretty comical in all good fun until the whole gay thing came in the end...I was kinda grossed out, so I had to shut it off. Reminds me of being in the corps though...you couldn't joke with anybody without throwing some kind of gay joke in there.

I don't have anything against the Navy, I actually got along really well with quite a few corpsman that served in my ground unit, but I just chose not to join a branch where they'd be calling me something that I usually tried to aim at a girls forehead.

DAK

Youre serious, youve never heard YUT? Maybe its a little newer, but its jsut another moto call like oohrah and kill. As for the "embarassing drunk story" well, you have probably never been to Thailand. LoL Ive never been out in town out there (got stuck in the airport for 3 days on the way to Iraq though) but thats where they all come from. LoL

Navy guys can be pretty cool, I can admit. I have alot of Navy friends - Corpsman or not - and most are pretty cool, hoever every now and then one gets drunk and starts shit and needs to be shut up. LoL

[Dumb Azz Kracka]

Youre serious, youve never heard YUT? Maybe its a little newer, but its jsut another moto call like oohrah and kill. As for the "embarassing drunk story" well, you have probably never been to Thailand. LoL Ive never been out in town out there (got stuck in the airport for 3 days on the way to Iraq though) but thats where they all come from. LoL

Navy guys can be pretty cool, I can admit. I have alot of Navy friends - Corpsman or not - and most are pretty cool, hoever every now and then one gets drunk and starts shit and needs to be shut up. LoL

Ha, sounds like almost every jarhead in my unit too...we couldn't have a night out in Waikiki without some idiot getting into a fight with a local. It would always be the smallest guys in our unit drinking too much of that liquid courage/loudmouth soup and trying to get it on with some 400 lb Samoan. Not a good idea. I never really was around any Navy guys that weren't corpsman...we were pretty secluded. Hell the only time I actually ever saw a girl was when I went to chow or the px.

And no, I've never heard of yut as a moto term. It must be a post-crucible thing. I think that skit on youtube would have made more sense/been funnier if I had been familiar with the term, but oh well.

DAK

[USMCEvan]

Ha, sounds like almost every jarhead in my unit too...we couldn't have a night out in Waikiki without some idiot getting into a fight with a local. It would always be the smallest guys in our unit drinking too much of that liquid courage/loudmouth soup and trying to get it on with some 400 lb Samoan. Not a good idea. I never really was around any Navy guys that weren't corpsman...we were pretty secluded. Hell the only time I actually ever saw a girl was when I went to chow or the px.

And no, I've never heard of yut as a moto term. It must be a post-crucible thing. I think that skit on youtube would have made more sense/been funnier if I had been familiar with the term, but oh well.

DAK

Yeah, I was probably the only small guy in my unit that WASNT getting into drunk fights every weekend. I just blacked out and got carried home. LoL

Yut is most common for formations - "FALLOUT!" "YUUUUUUT!!" lol gay :P

[xboxlivemonkey]

i skipped most of the reading but fuck i cant bring myself to a lease ,just renting a car that i might ever own unless i have alot of money and plan on buying it out

also i found an 07 speed 3 15k miles gt i believe for 18 grand in miami

[Young Roids]

paid $19,940 for mine new, it's a sport.

[dokx]

Okay, well after weeks of reading the forums, I am finally posting something. I just picked up my new ms3, and here's what I got for what:

2008.5 mazdaspped3 GT
Black Mica
All-Weather floormats
Wheel Locks
Sirius radio
1 free oil change

All said and done, I got it for 23,590...OTD. The amount covered the price of the car (with midyear re-design), sales tax (3%), and all of the other misc. fees. From what I can remember, the fees included a dealer doc fee, inspection, title and registration (tags), and some other kind of usage fee. I think the only reason I managed to get is as cheap as I did was because they just got a shipment of MS3s a couple of weeks ago. From what I can tell, this means that they were able to get more of the 2% dealer holdback from Mazda and, in turn, take my offer of less than invoice. If you're looking to buy an ms3, I would highly suggest you google "dealer holdback" and learn how the dealerships work.

The technique that seemed to work best for me was to handle the whole deal via the internet by requesting "the best price your dealership can offer me". I knew what each dealer had, including options, thanks to Mazda's inventory area on their website. I went back and forth with them for a week. Once I had the terms I wanted, I called the "winning" dealer and told him I wanted to test drive the car, and as long as there was nothing wrong with it, I would buy it on the spot. I also made sure to let him know that I already had my financing in place, and had a check in hand. This let him know that I could buy the car, if he gave me what I wanted. We were pretty straight forward with one another. I told him that the only reason I was going through him was because he had the best price. He told me that if I had walked in, rather than contacting them through the internet, I would likely have paid more for the car.

The car already has almost 200 miles on it, even though it had 32 when I picked it up. I just can't stop driving it. I never thought I'd say this, but I can't wait to go to work tomorrow. (cabpatch)

[Dumb Azz Kracka]

Okay, well after weeks of reading the forums, I am finally posting something. I just picked up my new ms3, and here's what I got for what:

2008.5 mazdaspped3 GT
Black Mica
All-Weather floormats
Wheel Locks
Sirius radio
1 free oil change

All said and done, I got it for 23,590...OTD. The amount covered the price of the car (with midyear re-design), sales tax (3%), and all of the other misc. fees. From what I can remember, the fees included a dealer doc fee, inspection, title and registration (tags), and some other kind of usage fee. I think the only reason I managed to get is as cheap as I did was because they just got a shipment of MS3s a couple of weeks ago. From what I can tell, this means that they were able to get more of the 2% dealer holdback from Mazda and, in turn, take my offer of less than invoice. If you're looking to buy an ms3, I would highly suggest you google "dealer holdback" and learn how the dealerships work.

The technique that seemed to work best for me was to handle the whole deal via the internet by requesting "the best price your dealership can offer me". I knew what each dealer had, including options, thanks to Mazda's inventory area on their website. I went back and forth with them for a week. Once I had the terms I wanted, I called the "winning" dealer and told him I wanted to test drive the car, and as long as there was nothing wrong with it, I would buy it on the spot. I also made sure to let him know that I already had my financing in place, and had a check in hand. This let him know that I could buy the car, if he gave me what I wanted. We were pretty straight forward with one another. I told him that the only reason I was going through him was because he had the best price. He told me that if I had walked in, rather than contacting them through the internet, I would likely have paid more for the car.

The car already has almost 200 miles on it, even though it had 32 when I picked it up. I just can't stop driving it. I never thought I'd say this, but I can't wait to go to work tomorrow. (cabpatch)

If you paid that much OTD then it sounds like you got a RIDICULOUS deal. Unless you want to keep it private I'd like to know some of the breakdowns and specifics of the #s, for my own personal curiosity. That way we can find out the actual price you paid below the invoice, which sounds like it was a bunch.

DAK

[dokx]

I asked the dealer for the exact same thing...keep in mind, NC sales tax. By my calculations, it was about $227 less than invoice as listed on Edmunds, but that invoice price doesn't include destination, which is listed right around $650. That means that it is around $887 less than the invoice you will see from the dealer, given that (At least in my area) most of the other dealers were quoting invoice, but including the destination charge.


$25,363.00 MSRP

$22,363.00 SALE PRICE
0 TRADE
$22,363.00 DIFFERENCE
$670.89 TAX
$23,033.89 SUBTOT
0 Rebates
$28.00 FILE
$9.75 NCSI
$450.00 DOC
$74.00 REG / TAG / TITILE

$23,595.64 TOTAL