avex

This is my first time logging in here in a long time, so forgive me if this post is out of place. I can't seem to find any other pricing threads.

I bought my current 2008 IS350 back in January 2008. At that time, the best price you could hope to get from a dealer was INVOICE + Destination charge + $500.

Have things changed since then? Is it possible to get an IS at (or under) invoice now?

neomedic

iTrader: (5)

In my recent talks with the dealerships, seems like you can get a IS 250 out the door (with tax and registration fees) for about $37K. This is for a 2010 model as they would like to get rid of remaining inventory.

I would assume a 350 would cost another $4-5K on top of the $37.

Phresh2010

iTrader: (3)

^^i believe you can get it for much less out the door now, i bought my is250AWD 2010 brand new last nov in 2009 out the door premium pckg for a little over 36k all taxes and fees included, no navi tho but had heated/cooled seats, pref leather, and black wood trim

neomedic

iTrader: (5)

Opps...sorry. Forgot to mention the IS250 for $37K has Navi, camera, heated/cooled seats, perf leather, black wood trim, 18" wheels.

avex

Thanks for the feedback guys. FYI, I find it hard to compare IS prices due to the varying options offered in different areas. I find it easier to compare +/- invoice price, so it applies across the board.

I'm trying to do some research on Edmunds and others sites, and it looks like most people are getting well under invoice, somewhere around $1,000 under.

My plan is to special order an IS350 with no packages or options other than 18" FT wheels. In fact, I'm not sure if the special order will affect my ability to get a good price.

Kurtz

iTrader: (1)

Depends entirely on the dealer.

Many won't special order period. Many more will demand MSRP for it.

The occasional rare dealer will be sane and realize he's making an easy sale just for a little paperwork and sell it to you for a reasonable price (which these days ought be at or below invoice on a 2IS sedan except maybe the AWD350 since it's brand new)

2000LEX

iTrader: (2)

I just bought my 350 with nav 5000 below msrp seems like a great deal to me.

Fizzboy7

Depends on which region and city you live in. In Socal, there are a dozen Lexus dealers. Getting under invoice was possible back in 2008. I am sure conditions are even better now as the car has aged three more years.

avex

What other options are there if your local dealer won't do a special order, or if they demand MSRP? Will the "internet sales manager" at other dealerships be able to give a price quote on a special order vehicle, or do they deal strictly with what is on the lot?

Kurtz

iTrader: (1)

Your other option is to find a better dealer. Next city over if yours only has one, next state over if your state only has one, then further out if necessary.

If the guy at your local dealership is too dumb to get an easy guaranteed sale for filling out one form you'll give your business elsewhere.


Depends on the dealership. Mine had no problem with it, in fact I did everything over email for my special order. First time I ever met the guy I bought it from was the day I picked it up.

avex

How do I do things via email? Do I just fill out the contact form on the dealership web site, or do I have to find a specific person who handles internet sales?

I'm sure if I give them my phone number, I'll be inundated with calls. Should I leave my phone # off the form? What's the best way to approach them with a request for a price quote?

Kurtz

iTrader: (1)

Yup, leave the phone # off. If they question this during the email exchange you can explain you prefer email as you're often too busy during the day to take calls, and/or you prefer to have written records of transactions.

In my case I emailed area dealers saying I was ready to buy, but I wanted to special order as what I wanted was otherwise unavailable (ML without nav, and sport package which nobody in the southeast gets normally).

I got pricing back and it all kinda sucked.

I replied back that dealers in CA were selling at invoice (which they were at the time, though mainly on 250s) and that I was going to fly out there to buy but if a local dealer could sell to me for a small "profit" over the invoice it'd be worth it to me to avoid driving back from CA.

One of the locals said he'd be willing to do that since he recognized a sure sale. Then it was just a matter of waiting till it was built and shipped over.

Keppie

I have bought many cars over the internet and I always include my phone number. This is another way to seperate yourself from the masses that won't share information. If they call with a legit question I will either call or write back. Taking a few minutes on the phone is a good way to build a relationship and you can get a feel for whether you think this person/dealer can handle a special order.

Lexus makes great cars but they are not user friendly for special orders. Don't expect BMW, Audi type updates. Give it about 4 months for delivery.

MBTC

When I bought, I talked to a couple of car buyers agents, because I had a good experience with buying a car this way back in the mid 90s. The agent I ended up with turned out to be kind of a jerk. He found the car I wanted at one dealership, and the price he negotiated was about what I expected, but it had a damaged (in transport) windshield that needed replacing and in order to seal the deal, that Lex dealer wanted a credit card deposit over the phone site unseen and said they needed the deposit by end of day. I said screw that, called the other dealer which was closer to me anyway, asked for the dealership manager, and explained the whole experience and said if they can get me an un-damaged car with the specs I wanted for the same price, we could deal. So he handed the call off to a salesguy and let him know they were going to do a price match, so I sort of bypassed all the haggling except for the details of my trade-in. I told them what I needed to get for my trade and they said it probably won't be a problem, but I need to bring my car in for inspection to confirm the trade-in part of the deal. That went as planned, and I put the deposit down on the car. It was one that just happened to be the color/config I wanted that was already headed for their inventory before I called them. I had to wait about a month for it to actually arrive though. Good buying experience overall with the exception of the buyers agent douchebag, but he was not affiliated with the Lexus dealer at all, just a guy doing it part time on the side. It was kind of fun cutting him out of the deal by dealing with a different dealership than he was talking to.

But basically aside from having to take my trade in by for them to inspect, the whole deal was over the phone.

Kurtz

iTrader: (1)

If I wanted to speak on the phone I would've called him in the first place.

There are no legit questions he could possibly be calling here. I want to special order, I told him exactly what I want to order, and now I just want an answer on the price.

The only thing giving him my number does is let a dealer who doesn't understand the clear english in my email call me and try and badger me into buying something he's stuck with on his lot instead.


after he establishes he's willing to provide what I specifically asked for, at a reasonable price, then I'd be willing to provide him a phone number if he really wants one.

That I'd generally agree with... it took a while of searching till I found a dealer who was willing, able, and reasonable on pricing for it.

Mine took 2.5 months. I got updates as follows:

Order has been submitted (right after we agreed on price)
Order has been built and is being shipped (after 2 months)
Order has arrived at dealership, please come pick it up. (2 weeks after the previous update).

I'm told BMW is generally faster, but I've no personal experience as I find their cars stupidly overpriced generally.