the dealership that i went to had exactly what i wanted (new '05 base model 6 speed MT in my color). here's the problem. i think i've been convinced to get the sport package (https://www.rx8club.com/series-i-trouble-shooting-95/dynamic-stability-safety-everyone-lead-feet-78836/) for the safety features. but they don't have it in my color on the lot. so not only do i have to pay fees for the dealership to find one and deliver it to me, they say i won't get as a good a deal because apparently it's better for them to sell one off their own lot.

i could, alternatively, go a bit further myself (futher than is reasonable to go whenever i have a problem with the car) to a dealership that DOES have exactly what i want. but i'm scared i might not get as good service from the dealer i originally was going to buy from since i "went behind their back" and bought it from someone else.

they've offered 23,500 for the base model on their lot (initial offer, no negotiating, no trade in talk, no nothing). that's already much better than i thought i was getting anyway. so if i DO ask them to deliver me what i want and then negotiate, i still may be paying less than what i thought i would. so should i just feel at east with that and go that route?

the invoice price i found online (reliability of source questionable) is about 24,400 for the base model. what do you think the price should be for both base model off their lot, and sport package from someone else?

btw, i live in oklahoma, if that helps any.

 

You can buy from any Mazda dealer and get service from any Mazda dealer. It doesnt have to be the same guy you bought from. The service dept. is different from the Sales dept. They will never know you came there to buy a car.

Go to Mazdausa.com and do inventory searches. Let us know the price you get. Dealer cash right now is $1500.

 

comforting to know.

$1500?!? one dealer offered $500, another didn't offer it at all.

the salesman who did offer the $500 cash back also offered to go get the model that i wanted. he was trying to charge me 400+ to go get it, and he kept dodging every time i asked him where it came from. the other one who didn't offer cash back said it would be about $300 to get what i wanted from another dealership.

the other issue with going to another dealership to get exactly what i want as opposed to having a local dealer get it for me is that i can't drive stick yet. i was planning on having a friend drive it back for me. if i go to, say, dallas, it will be much more complicated.

 

Do you have a Costco membership? If so you can go through them (can buy a basic membership for $45 a year online if there isn't a store in your area) and get a great deal. My car has an MSRP of well over $36,000 and by doing the Costco thing I am saving at least $3500 off the price. You only pay $400 over invoice as quoted to me when I placed the special order. No further dealer discount, though. They will be making about $1000 bucks off my car anyway.

 

costco? really? interesting. unfortunately we don't have costco in oklahoma. we're dominated by wal-mart. sounds like you got a good deal.

 

Nope they made more off you car. $45(membership)+$400(over invoice)+1500(dealer cash)+$538(holdback)+different rebates (mac($1000, if you used it),gerber($500),zoom-zoom($500)) and any other dealer cash/rebates/incentives during the month you bought it and you obviously didnt know. Costco is always $300-$500 over invoice. You forgo all the rebates/incentives with them.

Costco car buying is for wimps and you shouldnt be driving an RX-8 if you're a wimp. Aaaarrr!

 

Go online. You can buy a Costco membership, but if I were you, I would look to see if there are any contracted dealers with Costco to sell near you first. But you can also shop online with your Costco membership.

 

The rebates they are offering right now are if you by a 2005 because they are trying to clear out the inventory. (I already checked. They don't apply to a 2006 unless Mazda offers incentives when they arrive, but RX-8s are usually excluded from most of them, as are Miatas). Most of the other rebates are not not available unless you finance through MAC, which I am not going to do. I am using my credit union where I can get a really low interest rate as opposed to through Mazda, which is a minimum of two points higher than my credit union, and a least one point higher than my usual bank is offering. My car is technically not "purchased" since I am not making payments on it yet. It is considered presold since I gave a deposit on it and they are holding it for me, basically like layaway. It isn't here yet. It is on special order and I have about six more weeks to wait for it. It is supposed to be here around the last week of January or first week of February.

Besides, I shop at Costco a lot so I didn't waste a thing. I use my membership anyway. I already had one.

MSRP $36,100, invoice $32,720, my price $33,120.

The dealer also told me that there might be a Mazda special when they first start arriving that I could get. I would have bought a 2005 but the dealer did an inventory search for at least 20 states and there were only two that were even reasonably close to what I wanted that were showing up. Plus, since none of them had navigation or other things in them it would have cost me more than the package option price since they were on year end clearance. When I added up the "after-purchase" price for those things that were missing I was just as well off, if not better, to order the 2006 and wait.

Does Wal-Mart have an auto program, like through Sam's Club or something? (I personally would not buy through them since I disagree with their business practices, though. I won't even shop there normally!)

By the way, what is a Gerber discount?

 

By the way, there is also no sales tax here, so no additional price added for that, either. The only thing that costs more here than in most states is that when you buy a brand new vehicle in Oregon you now have to do your licensing for four years instead of the standard two years that everyone else does. I suppose that's fine since it saves the trouble of having to do it in two years and if they raise the price before four years are up you have already paid so it won't affect you yet.

 

When I was shopping a year ago, the only extra cost I was quoted was for flatbedding a car from another dealership. If they want more than that, do the inventory search and go directly to the dealer who has the car. Maybe someplace warm like Florida.