Future Purchase
 

Hey guys. I've been contemplating about trading in/selling my 2009 Corolla S for a different car. Mileage is at 38k, so I'm assuming I can get around 9k-11k for it depending if I'm trading it in to a dealer or private selling.
And that will be roughly half of my budget. I have about 3k (for the car) saved up so far which isn't a lot but will be financing the rest to be paid off next year.
I have another 1.5k set aside for insurance+repairs and expenses for the next year. I work parto time so hopefully I'll manage to save more by the end of this year.
Only thing left is looking for the right car and insurance quotes. And also researching more about the Rx8. :)



My budget is probably around 20k. With that amount I'm sure I can find a Rx8 09+ model. Only problem is I'm looking at the R3 or a Grand Touring with Navigation. I prefer colors in either Black, White, Grey, or Blue
I live in Northern California and while looking for the right one on autotrader.com or cars.com, I've come across two that caught my eye.

1. 2009 Mazda RX-8 R3 | Used RX-8 | Tacoma, WA | JM1FE172690401803
And
2. 2011 Mazda RX-8Grand Touring, $26,789 - Cars.com

I do not mind flying out to either of the locations and driving the car back. I would like some opinions or suggestions on what you guys think. Both are over my budget but I'm sure I can try to work some deal as I won't be purchasing them until the end of the year or early January .
Test driving is one of the biggest concerns since I'll be wasting a airplane ticket if I go there, test drive, and I feel like somethings off and not purchase the car. Along with arriving there and the car is not in as good/perfect condition as the post stated.

What do you guys think?

Both seem doable.

Yes, buying long distance is indeed a concern. Not something you can really get past unless you get a member local to your prospective car to go and test drive it for you to check it out more thoroughly. I've done that a few times for people and requested the same of others a few times.

Feel like a road trip? No affiliation with this seller, but have you seen this R3? He's got it down to $18k.
https://www.rx8club.com/rx-8s-sale-w...rx8-r3-234415/

^^
Yea, I saw that post and was considering it. Assuming the car is still available in two months and he's located all the way in Michigan, while I'm in California =/. I'm up for a road trip but...that is wayyy too far and I don't know how much it would cost to ship a car over here.

Anyone else?

The one for sale in MI has a really nice price for an R3, but ask the typical questions. I haven't been looking around a lot, but that's the first one I've seen below $20K.

Shipping isn't too bad if you're okay with using open transport (more transporter availability, cheaper, and easier). I paid $925 for WA to FL so I'd expect less for you. Enclosed quotes were double. It wouldn't hurt to shop around for transporters now in case you get interested later. It'll be more stress-free on your end having a transporter lined up weeks early rather than buy the car and wait for transporter availability like me.

^^
I'll keep the R3 in MI in mind if it's still available. I'm okay with open transport. I'll do some research when I get the chance. Thanks for the advice.

Ok. There's one available near my city.

http://www.oaktreemazda.com/certifie...54aa987362.htm

It's buy as is but it's Certified Preowned and still under warranty.
The price itself is too much as there are physical imperfections to the car itself.
There are two scratches one near the front fender above the wheel (Passenger side), looks like someone keyed it and is a little over a foot long. (He said he can talk to a mechanic and have them buff it out but I doubt that it will work since I felt how deep it is)
And another scratch on the rear door same side. This scratch is about 2inch long.
Another small issue is that there's a fly stuck in the rear tail light on the right side.

After we talked for awhile he offered $28k out the door but it's still too expensive considering just two of the scratches. Oh and the rims itself. I really dislike them. Anyone know what brand they are and how much I can get for them? I like the standard R3 rims and will try to get those if I manage to sell these. Assuming I can get him to lower the price more.

overpriced even with tax included. if you're financing, banks like mine place a maximum financing value on a car even if you've been approved for a higher loan. you could still get the car if you put a down payment and the leftover amount is within what the bank will finance it for.

I suggest looking on autotrader or something and find someone here or hire a reputable company to check the car out for you. shipping isn't that bad. there's a 2011 R3 about 60 miles from me with 12K miles at a dealership for $6K less than that.

Thanks. I will continue to look.

Can extended warranties be purchase?

Yes. There are some companies that you could buy extended warranties from...search for "Insurance with extended warranties", good luck.

I see. Thanks!
Is there a whole lot difference between buying a car that is CPO or not? Assuming it's the 2011 model, shouldn't they be under warranty either way?

I bought my 8 from Ohio, shipped to Florida for $475.

ORLY?

gives me an idea when i buy a FD in NC from Allrotor... :evil_laug

Did you get a warranty from were you bought it? Did you buy it as-is? Is it a used car dealer?

Oh no I didn't buy it. I went to take a look at it. It's sold as-is which is total bullshit. It has two scratches on it, one being almost 1 feet long in length and they are asking for $28k out the door and it's Certified Preowned. It's a Mazda dealer.

If I can work it down to 23k-24k then I may reconsider. But those scratches are pretty noticeable to me at least.

Scratches don't cost a lot to repair, unless they have to do more than wetsand and buff. You could probably knock off a few hundred, but I wouldn't expect the dealership to knock off thousands for 2 scratches.

Even when cars are being sold as is, you can negotiate items to be done to the car into a price. You just have to do so prior to signing papers. I was able to negotiate a new spoiler and other parts solely for aesthetics into a deal I ended up not taking. That amounted to $2K in new parts for a car I negotiated down an extra $3K. I didn't end up taking that deal because the b2b warranty was out and the mileage was more than I liked.

The most I would be willing to pay for the car you posted is $26K w/ taxes and that's because it's a CPO and I prefer cars with extremely low mileage. See if you can add an extended warranty on top of the current warranty, a compression test, and the removal of the scratches along with keeping the $28K out the door. That would make the price more reasonable.

I see. Thanks. The rims are what keeping me away from it. And it'll set me back even more if I look for the regular oem R3 rims even if I sell those.
If it's CPO then I assume I wouldn't need an extended warrranty?