New Car Buyers

[redpoint5]

For those of you that have purchased new vehicles before, did you buy a car off the lot, or did you order one to be manufactured with options you choose? It seems most people buy a car that is on the lot, and I'm wondering if they end up getting exactly what they wanted, or if there was some compromise in features or colors.

I have never bought a new car, and I doubt I ever will. Although I said I would never buy from a dealer, I did buy my TSX used from one because it was a very rare car that had everything I wanted, except that it had my 2nd choice of interior color. It helps that the only option offered on the TSX was Nav, or non-Nav, and automatic or manual. The TSX is a rare car to begin with, and a 6-speed is rarer yet.

Anyhow, my grandpa is buying a new Colorado 4x4 this weekend and it's being delivered from another dealership. I just figure if someone is going to pay a premium to buy new, it had better be exactly the car they want. It seems unlikely that a dealership would have that perfect car considering the many options available these days.

Does it cost more to configure a car with the options and colors you want, and have it manufactured and delivered to the dealer, or is it simply a matter of having to wait longer?

[user removed]

I just buy what they have as long as the price is great.

First new car was a 84 CRX1.5, serial # 1018 made July 1983, maybe first week of production. 44 mpg for 50k miles, bought for $7k sold for $5k.

I never ordered a car, cost too much, with the internet you can find what you want pretty easy, be a hard arse and you will pay more.

I found that when I went in with a newspaper ad, they never had that vehicle until you started to walk out.

They offered me my Mirage for 90 bucks more than one a year older. I took it as long as it was not black. Would have liked a lighter color but I don't need to run the heat in winter.

regards
mech

[jamesqf]

Maybe your grandfather is just an average new truck buyer, so what he really wants is exactly the standard sort of options that are already on the lot?

[Frank Lee]

I've only bought one vehicle new my entire life- that was after deciding that the prices for used were so close to prices for new that I might as well go new. I shopped the local dealers; they didn't have exactly what I wanted and they also said they couldn't get it. So on a business trip I had several hours to kill in an airport. I called a dealer in that city, told them my requirements, and they said they had one. I had them come and pick me up, bought it, and drove it home.

Now I have that out of my system.

[PressEnter[]]

With my diesel Jetta, I insisted on getting a base manual model, and it came from another dealer over 100 miles away. When I switched to the gas model, I did opt for one that happened to be in stock.

[Andrei_ierdnA]

I never bought a new car before, and all my research indicates it's not a good idea unless you have all the money up-front and understand the instant depreciation hit.

In my opinion if you are willing to pay that kind of money for an asset that will depreciate the instant you sign the papers and drive it off the lot, then it better have everything you want in terms of options, colours, etc. You are paying a lot of money anyway, so the small premium to get everything customized the way you want it is worth-while. Most people will end up paying a lot more than that on the interest over the duration of payments, so then why not get it customized?

The only drawback to customization is that you lose all negotiating leverage over the dealer - you pay what they ask and that's that!

If you MUST get a new car, you can definitely get a great negotiating advantage by choosing one they already have on the lot. They already paid for that car and are losing money on it (interest to the bank + depreciation), so they are willing to make sacrifices to get rid of it. If they order one for you from another dealer, or manufacturer, it's not really helping them on the above constant money loss, so no deal for you.

[Fat Charlie]

Most "options" are really trim levels. The base comes with these, the next up adds some, etc. It's mass production, not a la carte- just try getting the nice trim features with the small (cheap) engine and manual (cheap) transmission sometime!

If a feature is available from the factory, like remote start or a sunroof, it's generally cheaper to get it that way- unless you have to get a higher trim level to do it. But they may do accessories as part of an order like that, which is different than including the accessories as part of the deal. The real downside here is that you generally have to buy the car when you order it. Every accessory added to a car reduces its market (I love the car, but the XYZ on it doesn't excite me. I see it's a $500 add on, can you yank it and take $500 off?), and this is going to be a you specific car- so they probably won't order it unless you're paying that day- why should they be on the hook for your dream car and hope you don't buy something else in the meantime? It also puts you on the dealer's back burner because the sale was already made.

Check out the factory web site and look it up at cars.com or something- filter by exactly what you want and it'll show you how reasonable your dream list of features is, where the nearest ones are and give you an idea as to what they're asking for it. The easiest (and probably best in the long run) is to tell them what you want and if they don't have it on the lot, ask if they can get one with a dealer swap. You won't get a deal on the car because they've got more costs, but you're getting exactly the car you want from the local dealer. Being in their system as having bought it there can pay off huge in intangibles down the road- if there's one part left and two customers need it, who do you think gets it?

You can find exactly the car you want, you can buy what's available and try to turn it into exactly what you want, or you can just settle. None of those are necessarily bad moves, as long as you know what you really want and how much you want it. I wanted a sunroof in my Subaru, but I didn't want to also pay for leather or go aftermarket. I wanted steering wheel audio controls and heated mirrors on my Fit, but I didn't want to pay for a Sport or hack it for them. So while neither was my ideal car, each was exactly the car I decided to buy.

[mcrews]

usually, people who buy new and 'order it from the factory' are 1. upscale buyers buying 2. a new model (2016 corvette for example) with new options.
These people want what they want and want it first. They don't really care about depreciation. A 50 yr old friend at church who clears $500k a year was driving a midsize sedan. Decided about a yr ago that he want the new redesigned corvette. He read up on the options and decided on a particular package (Z06 w race seats) and color. He could have waited for the dealers to have stock on hand and then gone looking, but he wanted it and ordered it.
Understand, he may have gotten a deal or not. A lot of that depends on how often you buy from the dealer, your relationship w the dealer and the scarcity of the model.
I knew a guy who bought an brand new 4cylinder Pontiac fiero back when they were introduced and paid $4k mark up to get the first one. His dad was a judge.

[mcrews]

when you go to a dealer, they are going to look around for what you want and try to get it for you. That's just how the system works. If everyone 'special ordered' there would be overstock on the ground. The car manufacturer business model is to sell inventory. regardless of who has it. Not to 'special order' individual cars.

[mcrews]

I did 'order' a 86 Pontiac 6000 STE in late 85. Completely loaded. all options plus the sunroof and suede leather seats. Sticker was like $16.5k but was ordered thru my company's lease car program and they paid $15.3k. They were a little annoyed w me because they usually paid $14.3k for mid optioned 6000s all day long.
But I had been promised that exact car when I was recruited.