In the search of my yellow p5

L

LambOfSilence

Member
This is sort of a diary of how i got my p5.
I have just moved out from my parents house, and the 96 sidekick sports started to give me problems. (the speed sensor needs to be replaced, $400) and also the alignment is screwed (well, it's been screwed for at least 3 years) Since I am budget tight, i went back to the suzuki dealership to find out how much my parents have paid for the repair and maintence. They gave me, $17781!!!, and that is more than $2500 a year!! (well, if you consider the first 3 year parts and labour were free, the average is much higher), the number could be wrong, but i did have an engine swap back in 1998 because of a piston failure, they got me a 1997 engine, the bill? $4333. (and the engine was supposed to be the only part that is imported from Japan) After a long consideration, i decided to go out and shop for new wheels (or used wheels). I always wanted to get a 1994 Blue Honda Civic HB, but the bad experience with the sidekick worries me, used cars may not be reliable and will cost lots in R&M. So, i have decided, NEW wheels.
 
So, the first stop was the Automall, and i have narrowed down my selections to a Honda Civic LX and a Mazda Protege 5. The Civic backroom was surprisingly big (flat floor!!) and its safety rating is among the best in the class. The Protege 5, on the other hand, is more expensive, but has all the feature i want, disc brakes, abs, and yes a Hatch back. The only reason i did not choose P5 right away was because i talked my best friend into buying a P5 last year, i did not want to get a buddy car.
 
There are a couple of things that I should find out before I actually decide which car to get.
1. The price of the car, of course I will try to talk it down
2. The price of my sidekick, and i will try to talk it up
3. The financing rate, i can't afford either car with cash
I went to richmond honda to check if i can get a good deal out of it, all sales were busy, and i finally managed to talk to one. We set down, and in the end, he is giving me 7050 for my trade in and no price cut for the civic. I said forget it and left.
Next, I went to Signature Mazda, the sales was mad at something for some reason, and kept on blah blah about how much he has to pay for his car sales license. In the end, i gathered that he is not willing to negotiate the price and left. (That guy swore repeatly, not at me, but just image what his service attutide will be in the future)
 
Later that week, i went to the Metrotown Mazda. The first sales i set with left when he got a phone call and passed me to another guy. The second guy kept on saying no to everything i know about the car. (can you get me a better price, no, are there going to be white p5 in canada, no, did anyone actually pay equal or less then MRSP on their yellow p5?, no) I figured there is no point talking to him after spending 15 min agruing with me about the existence of white p5 in canada. So, i left.
 
I figured that i should get the dealers cost online so that i have some number i can bargain with. I paid 32.10 online and get 3 quotes, one for civic lx, one for p5, one still unused. It turns out that the MSRP is about 1500 - 1700 than the dealership cost. I also check the trade in value for my sidekick, it turns out it should worth 8000-9000, (damn that bastard in Richmond Honda, kept on saying, "we are paying you premium for your sidekick")

With that information equiped, I went to Summit Mazda and set down with the sales manager from 5:30pm to 8:00pm. I didn't get exactly what i want. (i got full package while i did not want moonroof) I got the P5 at MRSP price (23795), and trade in my car for 8845, which translate to 4000 down, 300.50/month for 48 month.

In the end, I got the color the want with a little more feature than i want, payed 1800 more than i planned to pay. I am still glad that I got this car though. Just have to eat Kraft for 4 years though. :)

Oh! if you are in Canada, definitely check out their graduate program, 750 cash.
 
there are WHITE mp5's in Canada!

FYI, they do have white Protege5 in Canada, I picked up a Pure White Protege5 last week ( it was one of the first) Mazda Canada just introduced the color about 3 weeks ago (feb2002). It looks awesome!

BTW, $23,795 seems quite high!! I paid only $21,695 and then on top we got $750 cash back, so the car only cost me $20,950 which is almost dealer's cost....thats with auto, a/c & moonroof

:D
 
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Re: there are WHITE mp5's in Canada!

awake, the dealer's cost for your car is about 21315(yellow, ac, at)- 100(metallic paint)+700(moonroof)=little less than 22000, so yes, you got a really good deal.
 
Good info, Lamb! So what would dealer cost be for your car minus the auto tranny? I want a yellow with 5 speed, air and sunroof.

I just talked to Derek Louie of SUmmit Mazda this morning :) He said one that matches my wants just came in!

And I saw the white when I was in Washington last weekend. It looks nice!!
 
sux 2bu, hmm... the quote i have includes metallic paint(for yellow), ac, and at, freight, and air tax, the at dealer cost = 929, but the moonroof is around 800 MSRP, i will assume its 749, so your yellow p5 will cost around 21415(my quote)-929+749=21325
again, it has metalic paint, ac, moonroof, freight, air tax. Good luck with your hunt!:)
 
21325 inclusive of freight and air tax. Cool! Thanks. Oh, the yellow paint isn't metallic so them charging extra for it is bunk :cool:
 
i thought yellow is not metallic, but if you go to mazda canada website and try to "create your own mazda", it says that yellow is metallic paint, go figure.:confused:
 
Lame if you ask me. There is no way I am paying for a metallic paint when it's not metallic! The sales guy can eat it :D
 
you can definitely try. come to think of it, i paid around 5.8-7.0% commission, damn it, but i was kinda desperate, my old jeep's brake is starting to make noise. (well, actually, i paid 1300 more than i should ($30 more each month), but i did get colour i want)
 
All I can say about that is.....IF you got what you wanted....and YOU think the price was fair.....you did good.

The fact remains that dealers are NOT supposed to be charging extra for ANY color....and it sux that they will do that just because they know that the yellows are popular.....I feel lucky in that respect.....I didn't pay a dime extra for it.....and got an exceptional deal in my opinion.....even got the book value for me trade in.... :D
 
The extra cost for certain colours comes from Mazda, not from the dealer. Here in Canada, anything except red or white has an extra $105 metallic (silver, blue) or primary colour (yellow, black) paint charge. That's part of the MSRP and not something the dealer is adding on. For the skeptics this is easily confirmed at www.mazda.ca in their 'Mazdamaker'.
 
I know you are just relaying the message but it's still BS. The red, yellow and white are not metallic. Screw that if I'm paying an extra charge for non-metallic paint. And red and yellow (along with blue, but not the metallic blue on the P5) are primary colors so that's BS too. And, black is a metallic black (and I'm suprised at myself that I don't want the Mica black as metallic black is probably my favorite color and rare to find on a factory paint job but for some reason it just doesn't appeal to me on the P5).
 
Charging extra for metallic or special colours is pretty much the rule when you get into higher-end cars (want metallic paint on your Mercedes C230? $800!) but it's really never done on economy cars, where price matters. Kind of strange for Mazda to stick us with it on a $20,000 car, but that's the way it is, b.s. or not. Since it's only $105, maybe you can get your dealer to eat it. ;)
 
You darn right he's gonna eat it! :D My truck has a pearl coat paint to it (amber fire) and no extra charge there. I actually see it kinda the other way you do: I would expect to see it on economy cars rather than high-dollar luxury cars because they are making on average 20% mark-up on a luxury car.

Ah well. The amount of profit the manufacturer (and not the dealer) actually makes on a car is sickening anyway.:mad:
 
Well, manufacturers charge what the market will bear. People who are shopping for a luxury car are buying based on performance, or features, or image. Generally the price isn't one of the top three concerns, so the customer will accept an extra charge for certain paint colours. Economy car buyers, on the other hand, tend to be very price-conscious. Having to pay extra for paint could be the one thing that makes an economy buyer say no to a particular car, so the manufacturers don't do it. That's why it's kind of funny that Mazda's doing it with the P5, and even funnier that it's only in Canada. I'm gathering that in the US all colours cost the same. Weird stuff.
 
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