It’s only only fair that I close this loop. After much shopping around and nearly signing for a new 4Runner we decided to take a drive to talk and come back. We have a RAV4 and our dilemma was we have had nearly similar vehicles now for 6 years. We had 2 Mini Coopers in the past got rid of the last when we had our daughter. Drove past the lot and they had a 2018 Countryman Hybrid for a great price (more than half of the new 4Runner plus it was getting > 65 mpg and is perfect for how my wife will drive mostly local). Plan is to pay this off, see how much the 2021 changes in the 4Runner and eventually trade in the Rav.
Had a similar experience this last time when we bought my wife’s Mazda CX-5. Sales-guy was awesome, finance guy was a shitbag who came out of the gate with a snarky “this cx5 is a big upgrade from the subaru!” Comment. I was in holy athletic shorts, a hoodie and chacos, just to give you my appearance that that fucker was judging on. We were looking with no intentions of buying at the time but wife liked it so went ahead with it and as I said before the sales guy was awesome. Once her credit was ran the finance guy instantly changed gears(shocker when I know what our credit score is at all times) and was overly helpful and tried to sale us all the extra bullshit. After saying no and him continuing to pressure I got up and said “we’re fucking done here.” I was already on a short fuse with how our first interaction and couple others after that were. Sales guy came in and jumped all over the finance guy for being a condescending asshole who has already cost him 5 sales that month with his similar attitude bullshit and just went off on him which made me feel a little better. He went got gm and the gm finished the paperwork and it was much smoother after that. TL:DR fuck car dealerships. If I wanted to play games I’d be in that business.
Fyi next car I'm paying straight cash so I don't have to deal with that bullshit anymore. Just pisses me off how they all act similar unless you know them.
I drove a Ranger for 15 years and it was big enough to handle pretty much anything I needed it for, along with being fun to drive. I would feel weird driving a F150 size truck for no reason. Saw a new Bronco in a parking lot the other day and it looked pretty sweet. Better than in pics.
Word of advice: If you're considering financing through a dealership, make sure they only run your credit report one time through a single credit vendor. Most of them will run it through literally 10-15 at once and that's the shit that will take your credit score down 50-75 points with the quickness. And if you can avoid it then don't go get financing for a car if you're planning to apply for a mortgage in the next few months. Do it after if possible.
You guys that (like me) hate the dealership experience, should seriously consider Carvana I went that route with the wife's car and it was fantastic
It’s such an odd redesign to me, still not sure how I feel about it. The new M5 competition on the other hand...
Yeah it’s more than double the price though. How does the Mach 5 compare to model 3 for example? Is tesla still the only way to go for a decently ranged electric in the us right now?
Costco Auto Program was pretty great to use. They have a preset local dealer base so they will direct you to one of those places and essentially cut out the negotiations. So for those not interested in the bullshit negotiations then that would be the way to go. I did all of my research first and contacted some dealers. Essentially knew what the lowest price they would go. Used costco as leverage to get an even lower price than what Costco was offering. From other threads on here, everybody said to get preapproved from your bank and then separately negotiate the sale, financing, trade in. They will try and pull the 4 box negotiation which is designed to screw you.
It's so shitty but tons of dealerships do it. New and used. They'll say they're shopping for the best interest rate for you but it's not worth a major credit hit like that.
USAA has always been the best for me with loans as far as ease of applying and low interest rate. A parent needs to have served in the military at some point to qualify. At the very least you can take it into the dealership and have them beat it. Just got 2.89% with them. You also get a .25 reduction with automatic payment set-up. Just got the 100th Anniversary edition Mazda Miata RF. If you are in the market for a cheap sports car then the Miata IMO is hands down the best value. The newest model has the right amount of HP and torque in it for the weight. The hard top RF model also looks so much better than the regular soft top.
I sold my miata after nearly getting killed by jackasses in lifted trucks 3x in one week but i miss that car every day.
No one expects it. I would never have known if I didn't regularly see people's credit reports with 10-15 inquiries on the same day. It's so shitty.
Old_Gregg Just seeing this. We bought a '11 E350 wagon. Had a price in mind of what I wanted to spend on a car, but have a bunch of kids...didn't want an SUV. Led to the wagon. It's pretty high mileage (over 100k when we got it), but clearly was a special order car (it has all the luxury features available, but none of the "autonomous" stuff) and had been kept very well (it was single owner before this broker bought it) and had a full maintenance history on Carfax. Seemed super solid, and has been a great car: the ride by itself will spoil you for life. Lots of utility, too, and plenty of power (it is the last year before direct injection; DI cars have much better gas mileage and about 30 more hp). Maintenance is a breeze. Engine bay is designed to accommodate the V8, but since this has the V6, lots of room to work. You can change the plugs in 30 min, air filters 15min, oil about the same, and so on. It's been very reliable. There are occasional electrical gremlins (ours has the "adaptive seat", and I still haven't tracked down what's wrong with it...and I'm not paying the dealer $1k for the pump for it; HVAC is acting weird lately, but I think the interior temp sensor needs to be replaced, etc.) but nothing big driveability-wise. I think they are an excellent buy if you like to wrench a little bit; a good buy if you don't mind taking it to an indy mechanic; terrible buy if you're going to use the dealer (just because of labor rate). Also, MB has a brand-specific scan tool you need to use for larger diagnostic issues, but you can get one of those for like $200. Before I forget: There are some ongoing issues with these cars that are different than domestic/Asian cars. The motor and transmission mounts are basically a wear item: try to make sure those have been replaced if the car has more than 75k on it. All fluids should be changed every second or third oil change (brake/coolant, not transmission). Costs a little more, but if you stick to the maintenance, they are good. The engineering is much better than in an Audi or BMW, so a Merc is a decent buy after lease...other Germans, not as much. Plus, there's a great online community, so you can find a YouTube video on basically anything. My Saab is the same way, which is great if you like older cars with a little less electronic nanny-ing.
Thanks for the breakdown. I have always had a weird love of the German wagons and have been looking at E classes the most(love the look of the Audi but feel like they have more issues). My biggest fear is due to driving a 4Runner for the last 6.5 years. It is a tank with absolutely zero issues no matter how you drive it so the possibility of more maintenance has me a little worried. Granted it sounds like yours may be easier to work on than my 4Runner since Toyota made simple things like changing spark plugs to be a pain in the ass now(dealers want like $600 to do them). I’m also looking a lot at the Volvo V90, but need to find someone who owns a newer model to see what it’s like over regular ownership.
1. Bought a Hyundai Palisade this summer and love it. Great choice for those with kids. 2. I remain confused by the choice of "car/vehicle" in the title.
The magazine coverage of the V90 has been big and seems accurate. Not gonna lie, I'd have bought one if they had a third row. But the cargo area is a lot smaller, and you have to be OK with the super and turbocharged motor (I wouldn't have an issue, but it seems like it might as things age). VAG cars like the Audis just don't hold up. If you buy one (and they are sometimes gorgeous), I think being willing to put up with odd engineering is part of it. I find MB to be the least random of the German brands in this regard. Pricey parts, but things do what they should, and you don't have to take apart the front end to change a headlight bulb, etc. I think the key is, "Do you care about maintenance?" If so, and you're fine with staying on top of it, you'll be good. Only other issue I forgot is air shocks in the back. But to be honest, those can be changed in your driveway with a set of jacks. Way easier than, for example, a brake job. There's a kit you can buy for like $400 to do them both, too. But again, there are telltales for the repair, and it's easy to see if it's needed (or not).
So I was bored today and went to go test drive the Ranger to see if it's what I wanted to start saving for and planning for. The salesman tells me he had a guy come in three days ago and sell back his fully loaded XLT after five months and 3k miles because he realized he needed a bigger F150. Of course I have some doubts but he gives me the car fax and sure as shit, sold in July and sold in December. A hair over 3000 miles. Meanwhile I'm talking to my friend from high school who owns a Ford dealership back in Iowa and he tells me that shit happens all the time and said the price was great. I end up battling them for a bit on my trade in but feel I got a fair amount for it. TLDR I own this now and I'm really happy and proud of myself. I deserve to have a nice car.
Love mine as well and nothing beats volvos for cheap leases. The only thing I don't love is the climate control. It's so weird not having dual zones in 2020
I just bought a used 2018 Audi A4 with about 35k for miles. I feel like a bitch driving it, but she handles like a beauty.
I have dual zones. Didn’t know that was an option also leased it had 3k miles because the dealer CFO had been driving it. 45k sticker new that we were able to lease on a 35k price
Weird. I think mine has most of the options, but I guess they didn't pick that one. But the lease deals are silly. So much cheaper than even the rav4 or cx-5 or really anything in that class