I know this is a scion board but since we have ties to the car world I thought id put it out there that im looking for a new car. Im looking to buy from a dealer because I need to make payments.


Just wanted to get it out there that im looking for an IS300. Looking to buy between June and September. Preferbly June! :-)

Requirements

Colors; Black, Charcoal or Blue
Transmission: Manual
Cost: Under 20 g's
Mileage: preferbly 85,000 or less

 

Good luck, ran a quick search on autotrader.com and came up with 1 car, in Seattle, private seller, 88K, black/tan $16,000, sweet car, searched 200 miles from my zip in Kelso, so that covers a good portion of the area, lol.

 

Good choice!

 

There are a bunch at dealers in Cali between 16k and 19k plus you can negotiate it down. Used and New cars are cheaper in Cali because of the higher population there is more inventory. The dealers can afford to make less of a margin per car because they sell in volume.

Or if you want my friend has a dealer license and can get you the car from a dealer auction in CA.

Try to get pre-approved by a local bank, but don’t run too many credit checks.

Let me know if I can help. Good luck, The IS300 is an awesome car. I may be joining you in owning an IS someday..

 

Lexus does major "buy backs" each year. You might call a few dealers and find out when they plan to do the next one and tell them what you are looking for. I bought mine through Beaverton Lexus, after about 6 months I started receiveing bi-annual letters about their buy back program.

ps.. nice car, I miss mine dearly...

 

ooh and if i bought it from cali I could have a reason to go to SoCal and then i can drive back an awesome car.


i have very few mod plans for the car

-very dark tint
-lowered 1.5 - 2inches
-custom made mandrel bent exhaust
-wheels

 

BTW: you can still finance a private-party sale. Just go to a bank or credit union.

 

^ i know but I just feel better goign thru a dealer for some reason.

 

why would u feel better going thru a dealer? dealers have higher interest rates for used cars

 

yea do your financing privitly. figure out what you want to pay and get financing otherwise you are gonna get screwed over by a dealer..

 

I dont know i just like the idea of going thru a dealer than some private seller. What if the car ends up being a POS dont I have a better chance of taking it back to a dealer within a months time than i do a private seller?

 

Really, there are pros and cons to both. I've done it both ways, and there's usually way less pressure in a private party sale.

Really, why limit yourself to the dealer markups?

 

The truth is you don’t really know what you are getting either way so do what makes you feel comfortable. Make sure you run a CarFax to make sure it was not crashed no matter where you get the car from. When the IS300 came out in 2000 it was the car to have and I remember hearing of many of them getting in to accidents because the young kids got them (thanks to their parents) but the kids did not have the skill to drive it.

Many people feel more comfortable dealing with a dealer vs a private seller that is fine.

Just keep in mind not all dealers are the same. Depending on what kind of dealer you are going to. If it is a no name dealership or independent dealer they will sell you anything they can. If it is a major branded dealership one that specializes in a make of car they tend to be a little more careful about what they put on their lot. The branded dealer will do more to make sure the care meets their minimum requirements. Many of them do offer a limited warrantee for 2-30 days. If you do go to a Lexus dealer you can even get a certified used one.. I know of people who have traded in crappy cars at dealerships and the dealer has to try and sell it they really don’t know the cars issues or they wholesale it to some other dealership that will sell it.

With private party it is hard to get the car and have it looked over by someone or a shop.

As for financing it is best to know what you qualify for and how much it will cost you before you go into purchasing. Getting pre-approved will be one less thing to worry about when you do finally find the perfect car. You will know what your monthly payment is, how much you can spend, and what your interest rate will be. Watch out for any fees they may try to add on for the loan. Capital One for example will charge the dealer $500 if you use their blank check loan. This will prevent you from getting the best possible price because the dealer will not eat $500 for you to use Capital One as a lender. They will in most cases increase the price of the car so you end up paying $500 more.

Dealers may try to add a half percent or full percent to the interest rate this is another thing they use to make money. Also the dealer gets money for each loan they make so if you go in with your pre-approval see what the dealer can offer you first, and then if you have a better deal you can use it to negotiate a lower rate. Sometimes if you purchase the extended service contract they will lower your interest rate a half percent, you can then cancel the service contract within 3 to 10 and sometimes 30 days (read the contract). I have done this a few times, it gives you a few days to drive the car and make sure it truly does not have any problems, once you cancel you then get a check from the company that provided the service contract for the full price and you get a half point off of your interest rate. If you use that check from the service contract company to pay off your loan balance you will not incur any interest on the amount, but you will have a higher monthly payment (5-10 dollars)

 

also the IS300 has one of the highest insurance premiums of any car out there

 

Insurance wont be a problem. Parents are paying for my celica now which is probably about 150 bucks and then ill just make up the difference

 

Just out of curiousity, what made you decide on a used IS as opposed to a new, let's say, tC?! As far as colors and cost, tC fits right?

 

and with a tC you can get it new...