Targeting A Dealership?

That is exactly what I'm being told by the dealerships I'm currently getting quotes from; at the bottom of the discounts tally, they have been quite clear that you can choose one of either what is currently $2000 in Mazda cash OR the promotional financing arrangement pegged now at .9%. You cannot take both

Have the dealer show you a print out that if you were to finance using .9% vs taking the $2,000 cash and financing at a standard rate. If the interest paid with the standard rate is more than $2,000 higher than the interest when using .9%, you take the .9%.

The only reason to take the $2,000 would be if you know for a fact you would be satisfying the loan early enough to not acrue more then $2,000 in interest. Not everyone can guarantee when they would pay it off.
 
I got 0% for 5 years on a $15.999 loan for my 2002 Protege5. MSRP for the P5 was 16k.
This was just after 911 though.

Rates are going up again. I dont think we will be seeing 0% or .9% for much longer. It will be too costly for manufacturers to buy down.
 
Thanks to all for taking time and the great responses. I have already talked to #2, 4, and 5, and #2 with the exact match is coming in with an initial Truecar quote that is in the "unusually low" range. It seems we're off to a good start with phone and email. I can already tell that #5 is not as eager to land the sale. I will give report on the final outcome. Again, thanks.

My experience buying a Mazda was that the small dealer closest to me didn't have exactly what I wanted, but they traded with the big dealer an hour away to get the car I did want, and they gave me the price I asked for.

I'd call or email them all and tell them exactly what model and options you want and then go where ever you get the best deal.
 
My dealer has many CX9's on special pricing. New Signature models are priced around $36K.
What's wrong with these cx9's?
 
That*s not true at all. You need to be really careful about passing opinions as facts when people come here for information.

There are cases where the manufacturer, not the dealer, offers the customer an *either or* when it comes to an incentive. You can choose either the cash incentive or the 0% financing.

For those who cannot pay cash for a car (80% of vehicle transactions) the 0% is the most affordable option because taking the cash incentive and then paying an interest rate (3.9%-4.5% for a 60 month term right now) you will pay more in interest than the cash incentive will give you.

Always look at your total exposure and transaction total (including interest if you*re financing). That*s how you determine the deal you*re getting.

That's all I was trying to say, but didn't do it effectively.
When looking at the 0% financing option, you still need to do all the math.
In one example above, paying $2,000 more for the car when going with a 0% financing option versus paying cash, tells me that it's not really 0%. It's costing you $2K to finance it.
Plus, why do people assume that if someone is paying cash to the dealer, that they are borrowing the money from somewhere else, and paying interest on it?
Borrowing the money from the bank (example) so that you can pay cash to the dealer is not really paying cash. I get that.
When I compare cash versus financing, I'm assuming the buyer actually has the money, and is not borrowing it from somewhere else.

Anyway, I agree with your final assessment: Look at the total exposure. Every deal is different.
 
Apparently Mazda USA does not have their own finance division. Mazda Capital Services is run by JP Morgan Chase Bank. In any case, if there is a subsidized loan rate, the auto maker is doing the subsidizing for their marketing purposes.

Paying cash has an opportunity cost. The cash isn't coming out from under the mattress for most of us. It is out of an investment, or would otherwise be invested at some rate of return.

edhchoe, if you put your state or other regional location in your profile it maybe helpful to others.
 
Paying cash has an opportunity cost.
The cash isn't coming out from under the mattress for most of us. It is out of an investment, or would otherwise be invested at some rate of return.
This is true. Not many people have a bunch of disposable cash lying around for a new car purchase.
Investing is always risky (another subject entirely), and fixed interest investments (like savings accounts or GIC's) yield very little, and usually give less than the going borrowing rates.
Anyway, for most folks, it comes down to getting the best price at the best financing rates.

My situation was a little different. I paid cash for my new car last year, and got more dealer and Mazda incentives as a result.
I did not have to borrow the money to pay cash, as I was lucky enough to come into some money from an inheritance.
The timing turned out to be right, as I was definitely in need of a new car.
I would have had to finance it if the inheritance wasn't there. I got lucky, plain and simple.
 
This is true. Not many people have a bunch of disposable cash lying around for a new car purchase.
Investing is always risky (another subject entirely), and fixed interest investments (like savings accounts or GIC's) yield very little, and usually give less than the going borrowing rates.
Anyway, for most folks, it comes down to getting the best price at the best financing rates.

My situation was a little different. I paid cash for my new car last year, and got more dealer and Mazda incentives as a result.
I did not have to borrow the money to pay cash, as I was lucky enough to come into some money from an inheritance.
The timing turned out to be right, as I was definitely in need of a new car.
I would have had to finance it if the inheritance wasn't there. I got lucky, plain and simple.
It is always true that paying for a car in all cash comes with an opportunity cost. However, there may be people that don't/won't take advantage of those opportunities to invest that cash, rather than have it sit around earning nothing.
 
It is always true that paying for a car in all cash comes with an opportunity cost. However, there may be people that don't/won't take advantage of those opportunities to invest that cash, rather than have it sit around earning nothing.

Yup, having cash sitting around doing nothing is probably the worst thing one can do with it. The value of the cash in your jar is worth less every day.
Five bucks today will probably be worth around $4.50 in five years, and maybe $4.00 in ten years (give or take) at current inflation trends.
I'm sure there are folks who still stash their cash out of fear, and those folks are definitely missing out on some opportunities, as you say.
It doesn't mean they should throw it into high risk or shady investments and possibly risk losing it all, but there are ways to safely grow the money at reasonable rates of return.
In our case, we chose to use the money to buy the car, given I didn't want to finance, plus I believe I got the better deal paying cash (as well as negotiating with two dealers).
So far I have no regrets paying in cash. No debts or outstanding loans is a nice feeling.
 
My dealer has many CX9's on special pricing. New Signature models are priced around $36K.
What's wrong with these cx9's?

I don't think there's anything wrong with the vehicles. My guess is that the dealership is not getting 2019 allocation if they don't get their 2018 inventory reduced to a certain level. Or, there is regional incentive that motivates the dealer to sell the vehicles at those prices.
 
I didn't see any new listed there sub $40k?

I am also finding that the floor for Sig models in SW PA is $39,600; and this appears to be a rather hard floor.

It's possible that the dealer sold it already. They were priced below $37K from a dealership in WA state.
 
It's possible that the dealer sold it already. They were priced below $37K from a dealership in WA state.

No, I am getting EXACTLY (Silver Sig) what I want for $39,412; the $39,600 floor that I have found is common to at least 3 regional dealerships here in SW PA for any Signature. My sense is that this is a rather firm line in the sand. The "aggressive" offers are to get the sale are for an additional $100 "courtesy" discount from your current quoted price. Honestly, they appear to be at the bottom of the range within 1 or 2 hundred dollars. Based on all those posted $40k+ prices, I think it does in fact, add up.
 
No, I am getting EXACTLY (Silver Sig) what I want for $39,412; the $39,600 floor that I have found is common to at least 3 regional dealerships here in SW PA for any Signature. My sense is that this is a rather firm line in the sand. The "aggressive" offers are to get the sale are for an additional $100 "courtesy" discount from your current quoted price. Honestly, they appear to be at the bottom of the range within 1 or 2 hundred dollars. Based on all those posted $40k+ prices, I think it does in fact, add up.

Sorry for the confusion, but I was replying to your comment about not seeing any of the sub-40k new listings. I said it was possible that the dealership already sold them and is the reason why they didnt show up when you checked.

Having said that, I think that the deal you have is really good.
 
I have not been car shopping in 12 years, and that last purchase was our 2007 CX-7 GT AWD. (It is BTW, the most fun and pleasurable vehicle I have ever owned & driven! I have been a fan of the Mazda turbo 4 configuration since the beginning,) It was purchased from a friend who had been in the business for years, and we naturally traveled a distance to the dealership where he was manager. Unfortunately he is no longer in the business.

I am now looking to buy a 2018 CX-9 (GT AWD or Sig) and in a bit of a quandary as to what dealership I choose to begin this process, and I*m curious as to thoughts by those of you who have had more recent experiences.

- Dealership #1 is closest to home, less than 30 minutes away but has only 3 9s in inventory * none of which I would want and not much to for my wife to see.
- #2 in distance (but more than 45+ min) has only 4 in stock. Two could be of potential interest, but similar to #1, there is very little to see and compare.
- #3 is where we bought the 7. It is also close to an hour away, and again only 4 on the lot with no contenders.
- Dealership #4 (about an hour away) has 20 9s on the lot. They have been the most assertive in emails & phone calls since a search thru CR/True Car a couple of months ago. No real name-based contact is established and no 1st choice color/trim candidates on their lot.
- #5 is about 45+ min across town, and has 24 2018 CX-9s on the lot. One or 2 could be of interest.

I am leaning toward #5 because they have much more to actually see to compare, and I*m betting they will be the most eager to deplete an inventory glut of 2018s. Dealer #4 on the other hand seems to be most assertive in follow-up for the sale, at least in terms of the CR/TrueCar lead generation. The ONLY dealership with my ultimate 1st choice in color and trim on the lot is #2, and this is likely where the others will go to swap out for the sale. This will be a straight cash purchase with no trade. So where would you go, and why? Or does it matter?


It is simple. Visit the dealer with the absolute rock bottom price available and buy from them. If it happens to be 3,000 miles away, consider it a good Break In Drive on the way home and don't forget to subtract the fuel and hotel expense from the purchase price - let them pay for your travel cost. If they balk, go somewhere else.

I will travel across country to get a rock bottom price that cannot be obtained elsewhere, as long as my travel expense does not cancel any gains obtained in doing so. The vehicle has to be broken in anyway. So, no big deal if the drive home is long - it just means that I get home with a vehicle already broken in.

At the end of the day, preserve as much of your personal wealth as possible no matter what you buy. Target $44k for the Signature. They will think you are crazy but go for it anyway and be tough in negotiations. Sometimes the absolutely best deal can be done by phone, if you hold your own private blind auction and stick to your guns. Get agreement from the Finance Manager or Fleet Manager by fax or email complete with their first and last name before you visit. Walk in with an 'electronic agreement' in hand and don't budge from that bottom line number when you arrive.

You should not pay more than $45.5 for a new Signature, if you play your cards right and that's on the higher side of what should be possible.

Grind. Grind. Grind the deal. Wear them out. They think they are going to wear you out - just turn the tables and be ready for war when you arrive.

Growl as you walk in. It helps, LOL!


The out-of-the-gate quote for our 1st color choice Signature is $40,150 BT;...

$40K on a 2018 Signature? Buy it. Why wait.


I am also finding that the floor for Sig models in SW PA is $39,600; and this appears to be a rather hard floor.

What the hell? Did you say $39.6 for a Signature? Man you guys got it easy in PA. Buy the damn thing already. That's nearly 5 grand below what you can sniff them for out where I live. Geepers.


No, I am getting EXACTLY (Silver Sig) what I want for $39,412; the $39,600 floor that I have found is common to at least 3 regional dealerships here in SW PA for any Signature.

Heck, that's worth a trip to PA for me. I might be in for a new Black Signature soon and that's nearly $6 thousand below what they sell for around here. That differential covers my travel expense entirely and I get to drive across the country taking in nice views along the way back home.

Anybody know of any dealers selling Signatures in Black for less than $39K? Have checkbook. Will travel. These prices are unheard of around here.
 
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Seriously. Look into a good Auto Broker. Mine charges a flat 200 bucks to get any car you want and he definitely gets better pricing than anyone walking in off of the street. He buys dozens of cars a month and they want his business like no one else. He also can get crazy amounts for your trade in value. I got almost 5k trade-in for a Jeep Cherokee with a blown transmission. No haggling either. He does that crap for you.

Win-win and it feels SO good to pull up to his shop and see your brand new car waiting for you. (yippy)
 
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