Help me buy a small SUV

I've never done this on my own before. My mother has always gone with me to do the haggling and be a cosigner (her credit was better than mine). We are going to buy cash, so credit is not a worry. We aren't 100% set on what vehicle we want, but I'm going to use the Mazda Tribute as an example.

I was looking at Consumer Reports online. They said the base MSRP is $20,555. The Invoice is $19,250. Then it says to subscribe to see what the dealership paid. Uh, that's not really something I should do, is it?

Someone suggested asking for their invoice price, then preparing to pay $500 above that (starting the haggling at $200 above). And that because we're paying cash, they may even throw in some extras.

I'm looking at getting the base model, but automatic, not manual. The only extra I know we want is the floor mats.

Check out this site: http://www.truecar.com/

It will tell you what people in your area are actually paying, and what's considered a good/great price. Car manufacturers hate the site, which means it probably works, LOL.

If you don't want to deal with haggling, go through the Internet/fleet department. They'll email you with their price, and you take it or leave it. You can get quotes from lots of different dealerships to see what the best deal is for you.

LISmama810 said:

Check out this site: http://www.truecar.com/

It will tell you what people in your area are actually paying, and what's considered a good/great price. Car manufacturers hate the site, which means it probably works, LOL.

If you don't want to deal with haggling, go through the Internet/fleet department. They'll email you with their price, and you take it or leave it. You can get quotes from lots of different dealerships to see what the best deal is for you.

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Perfect advice. I couldn't have written it better myself.

Ok, I went to that site and got an awesome quote of $18000 at 3 dealerships. I spoke with 1, and they said they've discontinued the Tribute, but they still have some 2011s. He asked what trim level and i said the lowest, but automatic, not manual. Here's the thing... Since they only have a few left, and we will be buying cash.... does that give me more bargaining leverage? Might we be able to get a higher trim level at the same price?

NannyMom said:

Ok, I went to that site and got an awesome quote of $18000 at 3 dealerships. I spoke with 1, and they said they've discontinued the Tribute, but they still have some 2011s. He asked what trim level and i said the lowest, but automatic, not manual. Here's the thing... Since they only have a few left, and we will be buying cash.... does that give me more bargaining leverage? Might we be able to get a higher trim level at the same price?

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Doesn't hurt to ask.

Most of the time paying cash doesn't get you anything, and honestly I wouldn't even mention it up front. They make money off of financing so they stand to make nothing extra when you pay cash!

I have a 2000 Durango that is on it's last leg. It has damage to the tailgate and bumper from a crash, and There's a rod knocking in the engine....so I'm not sure it can even drive. My plan was to call a salvage yard. It doesn't do me any good taking it for a trade in, right?

To my knowledge the current Tribute/Escape body style is being phased out after 2011. And for some reason I think the Tribute is being phased out entirely. Any 11's you find should be discounted already, but if not then at least you know they should be...If that makes sense. Also keep in mind fees and taxes added onto the final number you come up with. $18k could easily turn into $20k by the time all is said and done. Not sure I'd pay $20k+ for a base model 'old body style' (possibly discontinued) unit, unless it was my dream vehicle and had an incredible warranty. I must have missed it, but why a Tribute? Nothing wrong with them at all, but I thought I'd read you wanted to get away from domestic? A Mazda Tribute is a Ford Escape, in a slightly different outfit.

Eta: still thinking about this, and I guess my main concern would be the enormous amount in depreciation you're going to pay because it's discontinued. I mean, you pay an insane amount on any new vehicle the second you drive it off the lot, but especially on something discontinued you're going to lose your shirt, unfortunately. Any chance you'd consider a 2009 or 2010 something or other (Hyundai Sante Fe?) low km's, not just a base model (any step up in trim level will make it more saleable down the road), and then someone else has paid the depreciation already... You'd likely get more for your money, in the end.

As a rule of thumb, invoice is a starting point on vehicles that are not in high demand or low supply for some reason. The Tribute has been around in its current form for a long time and is not in high demand. It should sell for invoice or less, much less if there is a rebate.

In addition to truecar, also check out carsdirect.com. Carsdirect prices aren't particularly good, but you should never pay any more than that for any reason. Carwoo.com is another cool service. There's a free and pay version that helps you negotiate with dealers online before you go to the showroom with no obligation.

As for paying cash, yeah, what EmmaGrace'sMom said. Don't mention it. They want you to finance with them because they get a kick back. Paying cash might not hurt your bargaining power, but it probably won't help.

The same is true with a trade in. They are going to make money on the new car sale and the trade-in also. Not having a trade may not hurt you and it certainly makes it easier for you to keep track of the deal, but not having a trade won't help you either.

Do you have a local Carmax? Get a guaranteed quote on the old one. It's good for a week or something. Even if it's only $500 or $1000, it's a cash offer and better than nothing. If you do want to trade it in, you know this amount comes off the top and you then cut your state taxes a little that way, too. Or donate to one of the cars charities and get a tax deduction.

Tribute was cuz DH decided he liked it. But last night he decided helices the CX7. That is scheduled to be discontinued when they bring out the CX5 (scheduled for feb). Truecar gives me a price of $17000 for a 2011 (dealership still has a few), which is about a thousand less than they were telling me last night

Buying models that aren't due for a refresh or all-new model is usually the best way to get a good deal, especially around this time of year when deals are usually even better! As you probably know, the Ford Escape is identical to the Tribute so it might have good deals, too.

NannyMom said:

Tribute was cuz DH decided he liked it. But last night he decided helices the CX7. That is scheduled to be discontinued when they bring out the CX5 (scheduled for feb). Truecar gives me a price of $17000 for a 2011 (dealership still has a few), which is about a thousand less than they were telling me last night

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are you sure the CX-7 is going away? I thought the CX-5 was to replace the Tribute (which really isn't a Mazda at all).

crunchierthanthou said:

are you sure the CX-7 is going away? I thought the CX-5 was to replace the Tribute (which really isn't a Mazda at all).

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Well, 1 guy told me the Tribute is being replaced by the CX-5. But the sales guy we did the test drive with said they were going to keep making the CX-7 until the CX-5 came out. So...I don't know.


Thank you for all the help and suggestions. We bought a CX-7 today The sales guy was awesome, but they were sooooo slooowwww about everything. They did get us a vehicle from out of state, and honor the TrueCar price though. I told them I could just as easily go buy from the other dealership (which offered me the same price on TrueCar), because I was about halfway between both places.

I installed a Radian, FF center. I figured by looking at it if I could get that, I could get a 3 across with any of my other seats. I feel like we need a pretty new seat to go in the pretty new car. But that won't happen I just need to decide if I should put the Nautilus in the CX7 or put a Cargo in there and put the Nautilus back in Grandpa's CRV (which currently has a My Ride). I'm very excited about the opportunity to use center latch