nerium

Have a few questions prior to buying an RX450H this week and thought it might be a good idea to post a few questions here since you guys seemed to know a lot.

1. 2013 for basically list price of $57,180 and they throw in an installed hitch for towing and $500 for another installed accessory. Apparently these RX's are never really discounted off list? I don't mind them making a profit and I would prefer to buy locally, any thoughts?

2. Are there any changes with the 2014? When are they coming out, should I wait?

3. My car is being paid for by my business (Nerium) and covers up to $750 per month. I have $10K cash to put down if neccessary and great credit but like the idea of a 3 year lease because it's only $2,500 down and I get to keep my cash and lower my payment. Terms on lease are $2500 down, 39 months @$770 per month , residual buy back amount is 28,590.

4. They told me all of these came loaded and everything was standard. Are there different options (towing, performance)?

I have more questions but thought I would throw these out there. ]

Thanks in advanced for any help you can give me.

CalBear02

Hi nerium,

I'm new to the forum and should be a 450H owner by the end of the next week.

1. You can definitely get the RX450H for a discount. See this thread:
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/rx-...a-2013-rx.html
You might be asking for a rare package or color or combination, so you might want to check to see whats actually in inventory in your area.

2. I don't know much about the '14 but I don't think there is a change to the body. It's your decision to wait or not but the upside of buying last years model is you can usually get it at a discount.

3. I don't know anything about leases so maybe someone else here can help you.

I see you got 4 squared though, which is a very common tactic at dealerships to obscure your final price. Everyone has a different negotiation style but you should definitely get in contact with some other local dealerships and see if they can offer you a discount. One of the websites I used was edmunds.com just to locate dealerships in the area and to send a quick email blast.

dwlink

A few things

1. If you're going to lease, keep the down payment as low as possible. Having too much equity upfront in a car you know you are not likely going to keep only gives you less flexibility

2. At $57xxx you are getting ripped off badly - like really really badly - RUN!. With regards to leases, the agreed upon price is usually referred to the capitalized cost and is pretty much equivalent to the price you'd negotiate as if you were buying the car. Invoice is usually around 90-93% MSRP so I'd be telling that dealership $53k or else I walk.

3. The residual amount will be based off a specific fraction of MSRP which is fixed by Lexus and is usually adjusted monthly - not much you can do here.

4. Leases have this horrible thing called money factor which is disguised to look insignificant, however its really the nominal APR divided by 2400. I'd be asking what this is rather than what the monthly payment will be. You can usually reduce your money factor (interest rate), by putting down multiple security deposits - each of them being about the cost of a monthly payment. This is a great alternative to giving them a large down payment to reduce your interest rate. The risk is that if the car returns with damage or excessive wear, they have more of your money in their hands that they may refuse to return.

Good luck

nerium

I appreciate it, this is exactly what I was looking for. So regarding price, I would prefer to buy this locally and I don't mind them making some profit but really don't know what final price is reasonable. At this point I am paying list price minus about $1000.

Regarding a lease, I do expect to have the car for a long time, at least 5 years, likely more. Given my free payment allowance is $750 I only pay any amount above that. Another question is I use this car for my Nerium business, are there any tax considerations for a lease vs. purchase when being used for business?

Was also curious if there are any energy credits or government incentives since this is a hybrid?

Thanks again, this is really helpful, would like to have all this figured out and buy this Thursday.

Oh and btw, this is not a special order, it's a standard, on the lot model, having hitch and potentially Thule ski/cargo box written into deal. Any advice on roof boxes? I snowboard and ski and have a small garage

Bayman

I understand that you want to buy locally but keep in mind that dealerships are always making a profit and they are certainly making a profit if you get them down to 53K. They wouldn't be in the business of selling cars if they didn't make profit on sales below MSRP prices. Since you are buying a car at the end of its annual cycle (2014 MY is around the corner), you should try to get it at below invoice if you do your homework.

nerium

I agree, thus all my questions. Thanks again.

Bayman

Good luck and post pictures once you purchase! Welcome to the forum!

patricksr5

I tried to purchase an RX450h this past weekend and all the dealer would do is $3K off a $58K RX...that is not a Golden Sales Opportunity ?!?

nerium

Thanks Patrick, I am sure my list price will be about $58K as well and so far I only have about $1000 off (hitch & accessory). I can't quite figure out what is fair to expect, I want them to make some money but $1K just doesn't seem right.

Thanks for your reply.

azinn

Might want to try http://blog.truecar.com/ or maybe the Costco Auto buying program if you belong to Costco. There are also several other car buying programs that claim to save you a few bucks.

Joeb427

iTrader: (1)

The list price comes into play because there seems to be only one Lexus dealer in Idaho.
The OP has ID as his location.

nerium

Thanks for the reply, yes, we are in Boise.

patricksr5

I know some folks on the GS forum have purchased from S. CA dealer and shipped the car to their State. Probably $700-900 to ship so if you can get $3-6K off maybe a good deal.

nerium

Thanks again. I would like to buy it locally provided I don't pay an extra $5K for it. I am not sure what would be reasonable but $3K off seems to be reasonable? I am still looking around, I have asked them to provide me with an email/fax with the sticker, options included and detailed sales price for all. I am sure to be over 36,000 miles allowed on a 3 year lease so not sure what to expect when they make that change on the lease offer.

dwlink

This depends on your company. First, who will actually own the car - you or Nerium? Second, is this for business use only or personal use also?

If Nerium owns it and you lease it with intent to buy (assuming Nerium would be buying) at the end of the lease, then the lease is considered a capitalized lease instead of a operating lease and deductions and depreciation are treated differently. Too many variables here to give you an accurate answer.

If you own it and use it for both personal and business use there are restriction on the types of deductions you can claim on your W-2. In this particular case, you may be able to claim regular operating expenses such as fuel and maintenance, but cannot "double dip" using the standard mileage rate of 56.5 cents/mile.

I don't know what Nerium is or how big of a company it is, but it is generally more beneficial if the company owns the car if it is a large corporation that is subject to a higher marginal tax rate.

Nope, only for hybrid electrics - thanks obama