So anyone out there qualify for the s-plan but manage to get lower prices by negotiating? I know the s-plan is invoice cost before TTL, so I was wondering how you go about doing this. Do you just keep it hidden that you get the S-plan and barter back and forth, and if they don't budge to below invoice just pull out the S-plan and call it a day?
S-plan vs Negotating
- Thread starter Isobar
- Start date
S-Plan is good if your don't want to bicker about pricing. If you enjoy the back-and-forth of the negotiation process, you could try your method first - see how low they will go, and if its not quite to the s-plan price, pull out the numbers. The dealer will still get kick-backs from Mazda with the s-plan price, and you are still entitled to any current promotions with the s-plan price.
- :
- 23 CX-5 Premium
Theoretically, that's a decent plan, but your best bet is to shop multiple dealers by phone or internet, keeping your S-plan secret in your back pocket until you need it. Anyone can get invoice price, the real trick is to get under that and it's not always easy. Your best bet right now is to bargain hard for a "leftover" 2013 if you're in an area where dealers still have a decent supply of them. Good luck! Oh, and don't let them try to stick you with bogus charges like #3 above!
Last edited:
Perro del Sol
Member
- :
- 2003 MSP, Spicy Orange, 2004 Mazda 6 Hatch, 2004 Mazda 6 Wagon
I advised my dealership that I had S-plan, since I have dealt with the delaership before and I have sold cars before it was a haggle free process for me. I called several local dealers and asked for their S-plan pricing the 2013 Mazdaspeed 3 with the Tech Package and I then went back to my local dealer and he beat the best price, as they offered an additional $1,500 off of the S-plan pricing. I have found that the more information you have in front of you, the better deal you get, do your homework!
So you went to multiple dealerships and said "I have the S-plan discount, what else can you throw my way to make me choose your dealership over XXX dealership?" That seems like it is much easier to do when compared to straight up haggling.
Perro del Sol
Member
- :
- 2003 MSP, Spicy Orange, 2004 Mazda 6 Hatch, 2004 Mazda 6 Wagon
Make them earn your business, I don't go in telling them what I want my monthly payment to be or anything like that. I told them exactly what I want and to give me their best price and to send me a copy of the S-Plan invoice....I also tell them that I do not want to pay any "junk fees" either. You will also be in a better position to bargain if you already have approved financing too! I told the dealer that I wanted to pick up the car on January 28th and the sales person said he had another delivery that day and asked if I can pick it up two days later, because they wanted us to sit down with the finance person...I said you know we have been approved and I do not want to pay for an extended warrany, additional "fluff" items. I told them that if we could not do the deal that day, I will just go to another dealer. So, they had one of the lot guys drive the car to my wife's office and she signed the paperwork and she had her no car and I sent them my S-plan pin number.
Now, that is what I call service!!!!!!
PhoenixINX
Member
- :
- 2013 Mazda CX-5 GT
You landed a great deal - In the SPLAN directions it is clear you're to notify the dealer coming in that you're eligible for that pricing.
Congrats!
backpackerx
Member
- :
- 2014 CX-5 Touring w/Tech
What exactly is the S-plan? First time I've seen it mentioned here. Thanks.
It's the Mazda employee discount plan. From what I've read, you get the vehicle at invoice price with no negotiating needed.
http://www.mazdausa.com/MusaWeb/displayPage.action?pageParameter=ProgramGuideline
I think you can do better than SPLAN by negotiating. I can get it and after I made the final deal I did asked if I could do better. The answer was ......do you want me to raise your OTD price. There is a lot of BS when it comes to the real prices that people paid. I get a kick out of the people who think they got something close to a grand under invoice which is not going to happen when the hold back is only a point or so on MSRP.
CR3 Motorsports
Member
Yea, where I live at the S-Plan is a savior. The dealers here charge thousands of dollars more than anywhere else that I have seen.
Subbed for this as I am looking into getting a CX-5 soon.
One way to get S-Plan pricing is the Mazdaspeed Racing Program, If you race 2 races like SCCA or HPDE in your current Mazda you are able to get S-Plan pricing.
Subbed for this as I am looking into getting a CX-5 soon.
One way to get S-Plan pricing is the Mazdaspeed Racing Program, If you race 2 races like SCCA or HPDE in your current Mazda you are able to get S-Plan pricing.
If you look on the forums, s-plan (invoice?) isn't the lowest price if you compare to some of the deals that posters got. But if it's the best deal "you" can get and you don't even have to negotiate for it, why not go in with the s-plan as a starting point? It beats using MSRP as the starting point.
Withholding info isn't going to help as much as you think. Dealerships are used to customers lying and being sneaky- after all, they did write the book on it. "Deals" at the dealership don't come from negotiating skills alone. It takes the right place, right time, right manager for it to happen.
Why do you say that?
Didn't you get a deal similar to the type that you "get a kick out of" other people saying that they got? If you got that kind of offer, what makes you think other people didn't get a good deal also? People do embellish their own personal purchase prices, but you aren't the only one who gets a good deal.
Withholding info isn't going to help as much as you think. Dealerships are used to customers lying and being sneaky- after all, they did write the book on it. "Deals" at the dealership don't come from negotiating skills alone. It takes the right place, right time, right manager for it to happen.
Why do you say that?
Didn't you get a deal similar to the type that you "get a kick out of" other people saying that they got? If you got that kind of offer, what makes you think other people didn't get a good deal also? People do embellish their own personal purchase prices, but you aren't the only one who gets a good deal.
Basically what I was asking is if I should try and barter before or after telling the dealer I get the S-plan. I can see it going both ways, I've seen numerous people saying they got below invoice pricing, so it seems like it would be beneficial to at least try and negotiate before hand. But I also don't have a lot of experience, as I've only ever bought used cars. I had a friend who worked at a dealership say that once someone tells them they get an employee discount, they don't budge off the invoice price. I've also had some here who mentioned they were able to negotiate after mentioning they get the S-plan discount. So it sounds like it's hit or miss no matter what... just like every other aspect of this business. I guess maybe what I will do is use two different email accounts and send out quotes to different dealerships at different times so they don't assume i'm the same person, one with the S-plan and one without it and see which one I am able to get down to a lower price. There only seems to be 3-4 dealerships in a 60 mile radius of me, so hopefully they are fairly competitive against each other and I can get a good price.
I don't plan on buying for about 4-5 months, so I'm in no rush and have plenty of time to get some research done. So any more advice would be awesome.
strictly speaking as outlined in the s-plan guidelines you're required to disclose that you're making an s-plan purchase immediately, before any test drives or negotiations.
But considering that this car has an overly inflated invoice price I dont think youre even gaining much by doing s-plan to begin with, so it probably doesnt matter.
and there is no requirement under s-plan that the dealer waive their processing/documentation fees (unfortunately) so make sure to factor that in. "final price before TTL" is what i always negotiate to.
But considering that this car has an overly inflated invoice price I dont think youre even gaining much by doing s-plan to begin with, so it probably doesnt matter.
and there is no requirement under s-plan that the dealer waive their processing/documentation fees (unfortunately) so make sure to factor that in. "final price before TTL" is what i always negotiate to.
"Customer Obligations:
All Plan participants should immediately identify themselves to the dealer as being eligible for the S-Plan and present a copy of the printed PIN Certificate to the dealer.
All Plan participants should schedule an appointment with their dealer of choice to maximize both the participants and dealers time.
All Plan participants should schedule their appointment for vehicle test drives, purchase and delivery during the week. Plan participants should avoid weekends to maximize both the participants and dealers time."
What you should do and what is required to do are not the same things legally speaking. Dealerships SHOULD treat customers with integrity and respect... but we all know this rarely happens.
iced_theater
Member
Just make sure you know the actual S-Plan pricing for all the options you get. When I had bought a 3 back in 2007 I went to the dealer in Ft. Collins, Colorado and told them I had the S-plan pricing and they print out a sheet in microsoft word or some similar program and the price is much higher than what I was showing for S-plan. So I get on their computer and bring up the plans pricing and they still were trying to fight me on price. I should of left then but I didn't.
