Hey people,

I’m looking to get a new car before the end of the year, and so far I’ve got my eye on the tC. The mazda3 is still in my mind, but the tC is ahead. My biggest issue with the tC is the thing that so many people seem to love: their ‘pure pricing’ concept. I personally LOVE the haggling process, but that might be because my mom and dad are in marketing and retail respectively.

What I wanted to ask you guys is this: Since the price is going to be the same everywhere I go and the dealer fees aren’t probably too different from place to place, how do I choose which dealer to go with? What incentives should I be looking for? What concessions have you guys gotten your dealers to make to get your sale against the scion dealer next door to them? I have about 8 dealers in less than a 45 minutes drive from where I live. Any help from what to look for, what to ask for, etc. would be really appreciative. Thanks.

Hoping to join you guys full time soon.

 

Welcome. As yourself, I was also considering the Mazda3 (5-door) when making my tC purchase. As for the dealership, I just went to the one that has a lot of my friends working there lol. Also going from dealer to dealer, I also went with the one with the friendliest staff.

 

Just dont go to the ones that lie...

 

If you have a car to trade in, look into that. One dealership offered me 7k for my trade it, my dealership gave me 10k. Also, check out the service department. My last dealership i had to call ahead more than a week most times. My current dealership can get me in the same day most of the time. Just a few of the points i like.

 

some dealerships offer convient services that others don't. like my dealership is cool because they have a free loaner car program for anytime they are working on my car. even if it is just an oil change. i can drop my car off, take the loaner, bring it back at he end of the day, and get my car back.

check with consumer affairs and such and see which dealerships have more or less complaints against them by their customers.

which one has the best service department, easiest shortest drive? maybe near some shopping malls to keep you from getting bored when your car is there for service?

 

Good point drax, my dealership does that too. My last dealership always told me that their insurance wouldn't allow them to loan cars.

 

perhaps you can go into your regional area, and throw a post up in there about which dealer people recommend. theres definitely dealers out there that are you stand-outs, and others, not so much.

 

I went with the dealer who was most helpful and friendly. My salesrep even helped me sell my Excursion private party! That to me was exceptional customer service. Before I found that dealership I went to 2 dealerships where the sales reps were complete A holes. Sorry but I don't want my hard earned money going into their pockets for commission.

 

As far as price goes - check with the dealer's internet sales manager. That's the person I spoke with and wound up getting my wife's rs4 xb for invoice. *shrug* Might also have had something to do with the color since they had 4 on the lot... Still worth a shot.

 

I went to 5 local dealerships and all were helpful,friendly,and I told them all up front the one withthe lowest interest rate was most likely gonna get my money.......i had $9000 down,so i figured somebody was gonna want my cash,and my business.......

In the end i got a great interst rate 4% lower than everyone else too........and my sales man is the best......he knows his Scions too.......that is what impressed me the most.......and he loved seeing it after 2 months and seeing all the mods done to it.......

Service department takes the time to pay attention also to the fact that car is important to me and they either give me a loaner or drive me to and from wherever I need to go.........

Also Scion seems to sponser more car shows,cruises,get togethers than any other car company I have ever seen.........and the owners around here really are some of the coolest people I have ever met.......joined the local club and made a lot of new friends.......

 

bought my first tC from a dealership that gave me the most for my trade in.

bought my second tC at a different dealership because they're totally awesome, and I know them all, lol.

 

Just curious, why did you buy two tC in a row?

 

her rs2 was totalled in an automobile collision, just in time for her to get an rs3, and now you know the rest of the story.

 

If you feel you know more about scions than your dealership... RUN!!

 

My dealership has free soda and donuts in their waiting rooms.

 

The Mazda3 is nice, but I'm not ready for a family car. I still want something sporty.

Can't beat the tC's sunroof.

When I have a kid, I'm probably going to get a Mazda5.

 

well my dealership has .................................. . nothing it seems other than cars

 

When I bought my car, the only thing that sold me on one dealership over another was the BS "documentation fee". I saved $100+ at my dealership. But beyond that, it absolutely didn't matter to me. I hate the dealership and spend as little time as possible there. Actually, I spend absolutely ZERO time at the dealership. I agree with you on pure pricing, though= ___. I think that accessory prices can vary from dealer to dealer, so you might want to look into that. Don't quote me on that, though.

I suggest doing your own maintenance and such, so you never have to hassle with the douchebags at the dealership. That's what I do.

 

I chose my dealership because I felt more comfortable there. The one closest to my house (closer than work, and I only work 15 min away in bad traffic) had the scion part of the dealership in a corner of the building (at the time, now the scion dealership is still somewhat in a corner, but the building itself is now the largest dealership I believe in NA). Granted, when I went there it was Memorial Day, but I felt I knew more about the car than them, and I had just started looking that day! My mom had called others in the area and they wren't the most helpful on the phone, other than the one dealership I went to. I haven't regretted it since. Also, the service department usually can get me in very fast (even though for standard repairs, I give myself a couple of weeks lead time).

Basically, where do you feel comfortable? (and price wasn't an issue for me, because of the pure pricing, my dealership does the MSRP for accessories, and I had no trade-in since I damned well knew that our 1985 Grand Marquis was going to be a liability with 200k miles and original engine).

 

sporty?! Only in the looks dept perhaps.
If you dont need the space, and not planning to keep the car for long, get a tC, otherwise get a Mazda 3.
Like most, I chose the dealer that was the most friendly and was able to get inventory faster since there is pretty much no price haggling.