Toyota dealership won't budge on price...say they can sell vehicle anyway!

[Kickapoo Joie Juice]

Those who say that Toyotas and Hondas do not negotiate I would suggest you look around. I have never paid close to sticker price on any of my new Hondas.

Yeah, the Lexus guy opens with "We don't negotiate because we price our cars right and we have much better product than our competitors" (while holding up the JD Power book) .

Yeah, buddy, what turnip truck do you think I just feel from?

to which my MIL replied, "I'm glad you like your cars so much, I'm still not paying more than X."

He spent the next hour talking about being a war veteran, until we just got over the whole thing and said we had to think about it. I swear they try and beat you down so you'll sign stuff to get out of there. I don't CARE about you getting shot in DaNang, sir, really, I don't. I just want a freaking car. All that time and he still couldn't close the deal with us because he wouldn't play straight.

 

[EMom]

My DH refuses to go car shopping with me. He's says that I'm too forceful with the sales idiots...oops, I mean salespeople.

I do all my research up front, know exactly what I want to buy (maybe in 2 or 3 different brands) and exactly what I'm willing to pay for it. THEN I go in. I tell them what I want while DH remains either mute or at home.

First strike is when the sales idiot tries to talk only to my DH. Second strike is when the sales idiot tries to play the "woman" card with me. Third strike is when they try to negotiate the price with my DH. By then, I'm gone and won't come back to that sales idiot ever!

I just loved it one time when one suggested that I bring my DH or dad with me.....!

I've never bought a Toyota or Honda as the sales idiots I've encountered at my local dealerships seem to think you must have a specific type of anatomy to buy a car !

Now, when the Volt comes out...I think I just might be interested in going through the torture of purchasing a car again....but to do it in the cash-for-clunkers era...no way!

Good luck though....I hope you get the car you want at the price you think it is worth.

I do agree

We ought to go car shopping together, just for grins. My favorite was when we went to a Mazda dealership and the guy pulled the, "I'll have to go back and see if my manager will go for this deal. I'll do my best to make it happen for you folks," or some line like that. We'd already given him the speech about what we wanted and what we were willing to pay and that we were FIRM about it. Obviously, he did not take us seriously.

As he got up to leave and go back "to his manager," I said, "Before you wander off back there, let me make one thing clear. I know you're probably not even going to talk to your manager about what you can sell that car for. You already KNOW exactly how much you can take for that car and so does your manager. So there's no need for you to run back to him. You're probably just going to go back there and have a doughnut or a Coke while we sit out here and wait. Now pay attention......You get to do that ONE time and ONE time only. When you come back out here, I want to hear you say your manager has approved our offer and we can buy that car at the price we wanted. We'll sign the papers and be done. But if you walk out here and say he didn't agree to the price, we're leaving. And we won't be back. You won't get a second chance to 'go back to your manager' and try to get him to approve the price. One time. That's it."

So Doofus goes back and swigs his Coke and scarfs down a doughnut. He walks back to us and says the manager just can't go for the offer we made, but what about the counter offer he made? Hey, let's take a look at it!!!! I looked at DH, rolled my eyes, shook my head and said to Doofus, "I told you before you walked back there that you had ONE SHOT to make this deal and then we were walking out. I have a movie to go to and getting there in time is more important to me than messing around with you. Now we're going." DH and I walked out. He chased us, pleading with us to come back.

That night, another dealership met and bettered the offer. Doofus called the next day and miracle of miracles, HE COULD MEET THE PRICE from the day before. I told him, "Another dealership beat you to it and they didn't jerk me around. If you had taken my warning seriously yesterday, you'd have made a sale, but you just had to pull the old 'I've got to get approval from my boss' one too many times, even after I told you we were only giving you one shot. I meant what I said and I said what I meant. You blew it. And even if the other dealership hadn't met my offer, I wouldn't come back to you because you pissed me off." Click.

DH still gets a chuckle out of that one.

 

[Pixie Dust for Me!]

We ought to go car shopping together, just for grins. My favorite was when we went to a Mazda dealership and the guy pulled the, "I'll have to go back and see if my manager will go for this deal. I'll do my best to make it happen for you folks," or some line like that. We'd already given him the speech about what we wanted and what we were willing to pay and that we were FIRM about it. Obviously, he did not take us seriously.

As he got up to leave and go back "to his manager," I said, "Before you wander off back there, let me make one thing clear. I know you're probably not even going to talk to your manager about what you can sell that car for. You already KNOW exactly how much you can take for that car and so does your manager. So there's no need for you to run back to him. You're probably just going to go back there and have a doughnut or a Coke while we sit out here and wait. Now pay attention......You get to do that ONE time and ONE time only. When you come back out here, I want to hear you say your manager has approved our offer and we can buy that car at the price we wanted. We'll sign the papers and be done. But if you walk out here and say he didn't agree to the price, we're leaving. And we won't be back. You won't get a second chance to 'go back to your manager' and try to get him to approve the price. One time. That's it."

So Doofus goes back and swigs his Coke and scarfs down a doughnut. He walks back to us and says the manager just can't go for the offer we made, but what about the counter offer he made? Hey, let's take a look at it!!!! I looked at DH, rolled my eyes, shook my head and said to Doofus, "I told you before you walked back there that you had ONE SHOT to make this deal and then we were walking out. I have a movie to go to and getting there in time is more important to me than messing around with you. Now we're going." DH and I walked out. He chased us, pleading with us to come back.

That night, another dealership met and bettered the offer. Doofus called the next day and miracle of miracles, HE COULD MEET THE PRICE from the day before. I told him, "Another dealership beat you to it and they didn't jerk me around. If you had taken my warning seriously yesterday, you'd have made a sale, but you just had to pull the old 'I've got to get approval from my boss' one too many times, even after I told you we were only giving you one shot. I meant what I said and I said what I meant. You blew it. And even if the other dealership hadn't met my offer, I wouldn't come back to you because you pissed me off." Click.

DH still gets a chuckle out of that one.

I think that if you and I got together, we could start a heck of a car buying service that would make sales idiots run and hide ! Come to think of it....I like that idea...I really like it!

K

 

[SharpMomOfTwo]

My dad just had something like that happen to him, but with a good turn out.

He went to the Lexus dealership that he has been going to for years and years. He picks out a car, and starts the haggle on the price. He says one price, they say another, its only a $1500 difference. They wont budge, and he leaves. They call him back 2 weeks later, and sell him the car for what he wanted.

Its not a Toyota, but its still made by the same people. Hopefully you'll have better luck elsewhere.

 

[mickey&minnie04]

What you're referring to here is the "holdback". Dealers do technically pay "invoice" for their inventory, but for each vehicle they take delivery of the auto maker sets aside a certain dollar amount as a "holdback". For domestic makers it usually 3% of the total MSRP. When the dealer actually sells the car, they are given the "holdback" money from the car maker.

I work there....I know what it's called, I was trying to put it in terms everyone can understand. but, Thanks!

 

[BCV513]

I've owned one Corolla, one Camry, and six Avalons. Toyotas can drive circles around any GM vehicle any day. Toyota will and should negotiate with you. I'm of the firm belief that no one should ever pay sticker price for a car. BUT, Toyota will never discount as much as GM will. They simply don't have to.

 

[Darsa]

Pixie Dust, EMom, will you PLEASE take my husband with you next time he goes shopping for a vehicle??!?!?! When I'm with him it's not such a big deal, but last time... Ugh, I can't even think about it, it kills me. Kills me every month when I make the argety-blargety car payment....

Oh, and I had a Toyota in the early 2000's.... I loved that vehicle and miss it DAILY

 

[Pea-n-Me]

I was avoiding wrapping presents two days before Christmas several years back. I was out and decided to look at a car whose maker was offering a $25 check for taking a test drive (which I'd learned about here on the Dis). I figured, what the heck.

I didn't like that car, but they happened to have one of another which was what I was really looking for (though not planning to buy for a few months).

The salesman was very congenial and respectful. He told me to take the car for the day and see how I liked it. I told him I couldn't because I had my puppy with me. He said to take the dog along, that was fine. So I took the car for the day and got to like it quite a bit. (My dog is sitting in it in my signature.)

While I was home, he called to ask how I liked the car. I told him I liked it a lot, but wasn't planning to buy right now (which I'd told him at the outset). Long story short, they drastically lowered their asking price, met my trade in request, beat the financing rate I had through AAA, offered to put in a DVD player (worth $1700) and met me halfway for the cost of putting in a remote starter (reasonable, I thought). They also filled the tank, replaced all the wipers, detailed the car and repaired two small rips in the leather. (It had 8K miles on it, which is generally how I like to buy.) Like new. I was happy.

Why the great deal? They were trying to make their end of the year sales quotas. Late December is a great time to buy!

Later, when DH was looking for a car, we went back to this same guy and they were not offering anything close to what we got with the other car. We left (and later got a great deal through a private sale).

I got the car I bought last year (my dream car) for about half it's original cost. It was 2 years old and had under 10K miles on it. Still looked and smelled new, owned by an elderly man who gets new cars every 10K miles. Nobody believed me until I showed them the paperwork and original window sticker which I found in the glovebox. Kind of lucked out there, too. Bought it from a dealership which sold cars different from the make of mine. They admittedly didn't know much about it and had just reduced the price, it was in the newspaper just that day. I further lucked out when they made a mistake in the cost which I suspected was done on purpose (slick move). I was tempted to walk away, but instead I contacted the owner of the dealership to tell him what'd happened. He looked into it, apologized, told me he was embarrassed about it but that he felt it was an honest mistake (probably was, once I learned the details) - and then further lowered the price of the car. They also gave us what we were asking in trade, sight unseen (and they got what we promised them). I was very happy.

But in the search leading up to this purchase, I encountered some real doozies. One guy sent us out with his "assistant", who we really liked and did a good job. But the salesman himself was a We sat and negotiated but there was no way he was budging on anything, even though we were only about $1500 apart and I was ready to buy on the spot. So I left, albeit reluctantly, as I did really like that car. The assistant called me later to see what happened, and I told him (poor guy, having to work with Eeyore, LOL). Eeyore himself called me at the end of the month, sure enough, now willing to negotiate, and I told him he blew it; that I was already driving my new wheels.

 

[Lanshark]

Yep! I've always owned Toyotas. My first car was a 72 Celica. I've had a Supra, Camry and currently have a Sienna and an Avalon. My Sienna just hit 160,000. I wanted a new car and looked at a 2008 Highlander. They wouldn't budge on the price. In fact, they were a bit rude and seemed insulted that I would even consider making them an offer. The car was a year old with 30,000 miles.

I left the dealership and went across the street and bought a Lexus RX series. I love it. It's still a Toyota but I bought it used and didn't have to deal with the obnoxious salesmen.

 

[AnnR]

Try shopping around. I think at edmunds.com if you look up information on that vehicle they have a place that shows what people are actually paying for it. Tell them that's what you will pay.

I am buying a Toyota Prius and am on a waiting list for it. Since there is such a high demand, I will be paying sticker.

Many dealerships have a depleted inventory due to Cash for Clunkers. Does the highlander qualify as a car that can be purchased?

which Prius are you waiting for? I really wanted a sunroof but have been told that they are very difficult to get and I will wait 12 weeks. A dealer found a Prius III in the color I wanted (black) that I can have in 1-2 weeks so I put a deposit down. Now I am not sure, I found a car with a sunroof in black at a local dealer - just been sold!

I had to pay sticker price but they did give me a good amount on my trade.

 

[Hercules10]

Both of my Toyotas I haggled down. Does take time and homework.

I'll find the one I want with the oldest inspection sticker which indicates it's sat on the lot the longest and they'll be more willing to move it.

I do my homework on sites like edmunds.com to find lowest prices.

I approach one dealer and get a price and take it to another and ask if they can beat the first one.

Usually takes at least 2 weeks. But eventually they do call and will negotiate.

 

[hopemax]

Why the great deal? They were trying to make their end of the year sales quotas. Late December is a great time to buy!

This was our experience as well. The last time we bought a car was in mid-Dec. We were looking for a pre-owned Honda Civic, I did my internet research and found 2 nearly identical vehicles. The only difference was the color and about 750 miles, but one was $1000 cheaper. Both were "internet/fleet" sales, because I really don't like the haggling part. We went to look at the one with the color we liked better, but was the more expensive one. I had a printout of the cheaper one with me, and showed it to the salesman, he took it to the back and said as long as this car was still available they would match the price, which it was. I had already checked Edmunds, Blue Book, etc, and knew that at their original internet price it was already a good deal, the $1000 was just a bonus.

While we were waiting for them to wash it, which was right before closing time, so basically no one left in the store, the salesperson said, he couldn't believe they matched the price. They never change internet prices, but the dealership wanted to be some higher level of store with Honda, and so they needed to sell a certain number of certified pre-owned Hondas before the end of the year.

 

[AKL_Megs]

When I bought my '09 Malibu a few months ago, the dealership told me that the MOST they could give me for my trade was $300. I told him that "XYZ Dealership would give me $800 for my trade." (XYZ actually DID tell me they would give me $800, but the salesman was a shyster, so I moved on.) They told me, "Well, you will probably be buying your car from XYZ."

I waited a few minutes, and finally said, "I won't accept less than $800, so I guess we end it here." I got up to walk away when the salesman stopped me. His appraiser came over and told me that he "...just found a $500 check that he can use, and he'll use it for this sale."

Sure, you just HAPPENED to find that, didn't you?

My point is, if they won't agree, then walk. Car dealerships are a dime a dozen. Go give XYZ Toyota a try!

 

[LoraJ]

which Prius are you waiting for? I really wanted a sunroof but have been told that they are very difficult to get and I will wait 12 weeks. A dealer found a Prius III in the color I wanted (black) that I can have in 1-2 weeks so I put a deposit down. Now I am not sure, I found a car with a sunroof in black at a local dealer - just been sold!

I had to pay sticker price but they did give me a good amount on my trade.

The IV w/NAV also in black. Have you been on priuschat.com? So many people are having a hard time getting the ones with solar. I really wanted a III w/NAV but they don't sell them in my region. Our car is supposed to arrive next week. It will be one month since I put the deposit down which isn't so bad. I was originally told 2 weeks. Some people have been waiting since June for the fully loaded V or IV's with solar.

 

[Carole]

We love our Prius, Camry and Tacoma. We negotiated a very good deal on the Prius right before gas prices went up in 2008 based on a price we found on the internet. I wouldn't hesitate to buy another Prius.

 

[LaurenLC]

My DH refuses to go car shopping with me. He's says that I'm too forceful with the sales idiots...oops, I mean salespeople.

I do all my research up front, know exactly what I want to buy (maybe in 2 or 3 different brands) and exactly what I'm willing to pay for it. THEN I go in. I tell them what I want while DH remains either mute or at home.

First strike is when the sales idiot tries to talk only to my DH. Second strike is when the sales idiot tries to play the "woman" card with me. Third strike is when they try to negotiate the price with my DH. By then, I'm gone and won't come back to that sales idiot ever!

I just loved it one time when one suggested that I bring my DH or dad with me.....!

I've never bought a Toyota or Honda as the sales idiots I've encountered at my local dealerships seem to think you must have a specific type of anatomy to buy a car !

Now, when the Volt comes out...I think I just might be interested in going through the torture of purchasing a car again....but to do it in the cash-for-clunkers era...no way!

Good luck though....I hope you get the car you want at the price you think it is worth.

I do agree

Gee, I wonder how you would feel if people referred to you as an idiot?!?!?! If you treat people the same way as you speak about them I wouldn’t want to go shopping for anything with you.

 

[MrsPete]

I have always bought General Motors vehicles and have always been able to negotiate a deal. I am now interested in a Toyota Highlander, so we went to the dealership and talked. They gave us the price off the window and when we offered them less the salesperson said, "Sorry, we can sell that vehicle at our price with no problem. Toyotas are not like other vehicles" Anyone else found this to be true trying to purchase a toyota?

When I bought my Honda, the dealership near my house said essentially the same thing. We drove 20 miles down the road to another dealership, and they were willing to deal -- they got our business.

 

[MrsPete]

So Doofus goes back and swigs his Coke and scarfs down a doughnut. He walks back to us and says the manager just can't go for the offer we made, but what about the counter offer he made? Hey, let's take a look at it!!!! I looked at DH, rolled my eyes, shook my head and said to Doofus, "I told you before you walked back there that you had ONE SHOT to make this deal and then we were walking out. I have a movie to go to and getting there in time is more important to me than messing around with you. Now we're going." DH and I walked out. He chased us, pleading with us to come back.

I have a similar story: We were $300 away from "our price", and we walked out. We were driving away when our own personal Doofus came RUNNING out and JUMPED IN FRONT OF OUR CAR, physically preventing us from leaving the lot. If DH hadn't been paying attention, Doofus would've been a salesman pancake.

DH said to me quietly, "You're fixin' to get your car" -- and he was right. They'd decided they could come down $300.

Here's another good one: When I was a college senior, I bought my first new car. I had an old, ratty trade-in, which they'd taken around back to "size up". (I hadn't wised up yet to the idea that they cheat you on trades.) Negotiations weren't going too well, and I'd decided it was time to leave . . . but they "couldn't find my car keys". It was an obvious lie, an attempt to keep me there a little longer, to put themselves into a stronger selling position. I walked over to phone (1988, no cell phones) and loudly announced that I was calling 911 to report that my car was being stolen. They found my keys in a big hurry.

 

[LoraJ]

I have a similar story: We were $300 away from "our price", and we walked out. We were driving away when our own personal Doofus came RUNNING out and JUMPED IN FRONT OF OUR CAR, physically preventing us from leaving the lot. If DH hadn't been paying attention, Doofus would've been a salesman pancake.

DH said to me quietly, "You're fixin' to get your car" -- and he was right. They'd decided they could come down $300.

Here's another good one: When I was a college senior, I bought my first new car. I had an old, ratty trade-in, which they'd taken around back to "size up". (I hadn't wised up yet to the idea that they cheat you on trades.) Negotiations weren't going too well, and I'd decided it was time to leave . . . but they "couldn't find my car keys". It was an obvious lie, an attempt to keep me there a little longer, to put themselves into a stronger selling position. I walked over to phone (1988, no cell phones) and loudly announced that I was calling 911 to report that my car was being stolen. They found my keys in a big hurry.

WOW!
I really cannot wait until we can order the exact car we want online, with the exact options and have it shipped to our homes.

When I was buying my Corolla, I had dealt with a nice salesman for a long time. He was nice and helpful and i liked him. When it came to haggling, he got the "manager". This guy was awful. I told him my price. He said no, i said I know this is what other people are paying. He asked how did I know and I said I had researched on the internet. He gave me the classic "the internet is wrong" line. I asked if he was feeding me these lines because I was female and there alone. He was very condescending to me. He then told me my negotiation tactics were like the DC sniper, who was on the loose at the time. I should have gotten up and walked out right there. The salesman looked absolutely mortified. I really wanted that car though. The ones with manual were becoming rare at that point. I point in some complaints to Toyota about how I was treated by the manager. Not sure if they ever id anything about it. I think I complained to another manager when I went to pick up my plates. I also fell for the classic "we can only give you this % rate if you buy the extended warranty" line. I never set foot in that dealership again.

 

[EMom]

I have a similar story: We were $300 away from "our price", and we walked out. We were driving away when our own personal Doofus came RUNNING out and JUMPED IN FRONT OF OUR CAR, physically preventing us from leaving the lot. If DH hadn't been paying attention, Doofus would've been a salesman pancake.

DH said to me quietly, "You're fixin' to get your car" -- and he was right. They'd decided they could come down $300.

Here's another good one: When I was a college senior, I bought my first new car. I had an old, ratty trade-in, which they'd taken around back to "size up". (I hadn't wised up yet to the idea that they cheat you on trades.) Negotiations weren't going too well, and I'd decided it was time to leave . . . but they "couldn't find my car keys". It was an obvious lie, an attempt to keep me there a little longer, to put themselves into a stronger selling position. I walked over to phone (1988, no cell phones) and loudly announced that I was calling 911 to report that my car was being stolen. They found my keys in a big hurry.

ACK!! We studied that old trick in law school. Dealerships used to do this, but it's probably fallen out of favor since........The person at the dealership in the case was found guilty of false imprisonment for not handing over the keys.