What price is right? (prerun reg cab taco)

[Debellocivili]

I am planning to buy a prerunner regular cab w/ SR5 Package #1 in the next month or two. I've never bought a new car before, so I've been doing my research.

I am not going to negotiate at the dealership (I will email or fax).
I am going to pay cash (I have a check from my insurance company).
Ignoring Sales tax, I want to know how low I can go without the dealer becoming vindictive. (I am going try to not take up a lot of his time, so it should be relatively painless for both of us).

The price I am going to offer will be O.T.D., defined as "including all dealer fees, destination charges, title, license, or any other charges required for me to drive away with this car today." (No sales tax for the purposes of this posting)

Prices of prerun reg cab taco w/ SR5 & destination charges:
MSRP (edmunds, Nada, Kelly, Yahoo, Carsdirect): $17,555,
Invoice (edmunds, Nada, Kelly, Yahoo): $16,080,

Suggested prices:
edmunds TMV: $17,512
Carsdirect Price: $16,668

So, clearly, my O.T.D. is going to be no higher that $16,667.
I am thinking of offering invoice. Would anybody recommend an offer below invoice for an 2007 model?

[flyman767]

I think your on the right track. I like to see a guy who does their homework first. I would find out what your local dealerships inventory is to determine if they even have what your looking for. What I found out, was once the dealer realized what I wanted, they didn't try to sell me a vehicle on the lot that didn't have my desirable options, but rather was willing to do a special order at or near invoice. However; stick to your OTD price because even though I got mine 500 below invoice initially.. they tried jacking with me afterwards by trying to adding several outrageous fees.

[sparkyy]

Like you, I also do tons of online research before a major purchase. Great job! With the internet and cheap printers, it's quick and easy. Before settling on the Tacoma, I seriously considered the Ridgeline by Honda. CARSDIRECT had the best price on a base model at around $24K + tax and license. I was shopping price, and I ended up buying my Tacoma for $2K cheaper by purchasing a "5 at this price" Tacoma loss leader ad truck and am very happy with my decision.

[mp3_e46]

Did you get anywhere with the buying process. The $1000 rebate expires today and I am waiting to see that is renewed tomorrow.

How I normally buy cars is find the right number that I know is hard for them but do-able, call dealerships and say "if you can do this price right now you have a $500 credit card deposit and cashiers check this evening" - you'd be suprised how this gets a dealers attention

Should I offer $500 or $1000 below invoice to start with?

[mp3_e46]

If it helps I just did three test calls:

1st Dealer - fairly willing to haggle, but nailing down on a price was hard
2nd Dealer - would not haggle at all
3rd Dealer - around invoice is certainly possible

Of course they will try to add fees later, but before taking my check to them I'll make sure they fax me paperwork for an out-the-door price.

[Phi Kai]

not that I condone this sort of behavior or anything...but i heard of a guy who had a dealership fill out all the paperwork for a no option truck with the lowest price possible and then had them fax it to "his bank" so the loan could be approved...

well really he had it faxed to his house, adjusted the options and then went to another dealer and told them he had this price with these options and wanted to know if they could match it or do better...

could always give that a try

[Strop]

Hello

I just purchased a regular cab prerunner with the BY option package (A/C, sliding rear window, bucket seats). I would say that getting it for $16,600 or so OTD - less the sales tax would be good. Does it have to be special ordered? It seems that Regilar Cab prerunners are sorta rare and not readily available everywhere. A dealer might dick with you if he has to special order it.

[Debellocivili]

This is all very good to hear. It is great to see the thread alive. I don't have much to report as I have been busy selling off my Saturn. I'll keep everybody posted.

[L R H]

Originally Posted by Strop

It seems that Regilar Cab prerunners are sorta rare and not readily available everywhere. A dealer might dick with you if he has to special order it.

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These don't sell in high numbers, so most dealers won't have one, but they are not really hard to find in the pool of vehicles at the port centers. Don't let them make you think it will be expensive just because they have to turn on the computer, and perhaps pick up the phone.

[Highwayman101]

My advice to you would be to seek out a new car broker and get a price from him/her. 90% chance they can beat any dealer price in your area. I've purchased my last 3 cars through brokers. It's a totally painless process and you get a great deal. You still do your homework, though. By-pass the dealership and save money and your time haggling with them. JMHO

[Debellocivili]

So I bought 1 of the 5 Tacoma Regular Cab Prerunners in the great state of California. It is my understanding, and this has been confirmed multiple times, they are only sold in Southern California.

I got the standard package #2 (ac, bucketseats, no SR5 badge).
MSRP was $17,120. Without sales tax and DMV fees I paid $15,357. (there is a $500 rebate in SoCal)

I tried going through CarsDirect, because of the scarcity of the model, but to be honest Carsdirect kinda jerked me around. I'm not discouraging people using them, because at least one of the salesmen I spoke to was great. Problem was he passed me to somebody who didn't call me back.

After I called back and was told that all the trucks in California were essentially spoken for (I knew this not to be true), I looked online and saw that Mossy Toyota in San Diego had a truck that met my requirements. So I called them up, confirmed the specks and asked if they would meet the Carsdirect price. They said yes.

So after a 10 minute call, we had set a time for me to pick it up. I flew down a few days later and bought it. It took 2 and a half hours to get through all the paperwork, but they were cool. No haggling or anything. They were just slow. Then again, this was my first dealership experience, so what do I know.

I drove up the coast and even stopped at Hearst Castle. It was a good trip.

[NJTacoma]

Congrats on the new truck man.

[SFTundraMan]

Originally Posted by Debellocivili

So I bought 1 of the 5 Tacoma Regular Cab Prerunners in the great state of California. It is my understanding, and this has been confirmed multiple times, they are only sold in Southern California.

I got the standard package #2 (ac, bucketseats, no SR5 badge).
MSRP was $17,120. Without sales tax and DMV fees I paid $15,357. (there is a $500 rebate in SoCal)

I tried going through CarsDirect, because of the scarcity of the model, but to be honest Carsdirect kinda jerked me around. I'm not discouraging people using them, because at least one of the salesmen I spoke to was great. Problem was he passed me to somebody who didn't call me back.

After I called back and was told that all the trucks in California were essentially spoken for (I knew this not to be true), I looked online and saw that Mossy Toyota in San Diego had a truck that met my requirements. So I called them up, confirmed the specks and asked if they would meet the Carsdirect price. They said yes.

So after a 10 minute call, we had set a time for me to pick it up. I flew down a few days later and bought it. It took 2 and a half hours to get through all the paperwork, but they were cool. No haggling or anything. They were just slow. Then again, this was my first dealership experience, so what do I know.

I drove up the coast and even stopped at Hearst Castle. It was a good trip.

I will confirm for you that their arent many of these out there so nobody was yanking your chain. Good job

The last one I sold, i had to special order it and it took 4 months but I got one in with traction control. That was a huge accomplishment, lol