How to Get the Best Out the door price

I don't think I'd buy from a dealership that put underhanded conditions like that up front unless it was a really good deal and even with the extras I was still paying the same or only a hair more than I would elsewhere.

That said, it's going to depend a lot on what kind of competition you have in your area. I live in a pocket of civilization surrounded by a lot of nothing, so car prices here tend to be a lot higher than elsewhere, and there's only one Honda dealer in the area (albeit a good one), but there's a major urban center about 300 miles away that a lot of people shop in.

I basically looked up one of the jumbo dealers in the urban area, got their price off the web (which was I gather from reading other reports here pretty good), asked via email what it would cost to have them deliver it to where I live ($160), then went to the local place with that number and asked if they could give me something competitive. They came back with a pretty darned close number, so I drove off in a car (without taking the really lowball tradein offer).

So if that's remotely like your situation, you might try it--if you're not in an urban area with a lot of competition, find the nearest one that'll just throw a low price at you because they're going for volume and see which local place will match it. If you are in an urban area, it's probably a lot easier to just see which immense car emporium will throw the lowest offer at you without any stupid strings attached. Let them know if they try to upsell you on junk you'll just walk away.

Aside: I had been intending to buy in cash, but in the US Honda is apparently offering 0.9% financing on a 3-year loan (or was a couple months ago), with no finance charges. Given that I can get 1.5% in a savings account, it seemed flat-out stupid not to finance it unless there's some reason you don't want the extra debt on your credit report.

 

First, I would poll this community in the "price paid" thread and see how much are people paying. How much you pay is very dependant on where you are. Like California seems to have lower prices than in Georgia. So when you poll the community, it will benefit if you specify your location. You may also want to use resources like CarGurus and truecar to get an idea of what people are paying, although that's not always accurate.
Now, when you contact the dealers, ask them for a out of the door price. That's where you will notice extra fees like dealer fee, nitrogen etc. Some even add on some protection packages.
DO NOT mention that you have a trade-in till you have negotiated a satisfactory out of the door price (close to where you want to be). Mentioning that upfront means they will invite you to visit, and have another variable in the negotiating. To know how much your car is worth, take it to carmax. They will give you a free estimate. The dealer should have no problem matching that price, and in some cases even beating that price. If they cannot, then the CarMax estimate is good for a week anyway. Trading in the vehicle saves some taxes in some states, so keep that in mind.
And for what it's worth, your dealership experience is important too. I would gladly pay a few hundred dollars extra if the dealership is honest and upfront about their pricing, vs. negotiating with a dealer that has questionable business practices like the one you were dealing with

 

Any dealer that tried to tell me what I was going to accept in options would get an immediate "Thanks for your time" as I turned my back and walked out. *I* tell the dealer what *I* want and what *I* will pay. Did that when I bought my car in January. They got to within $500 of my price and wouldn't budge anymore. I was 3 blocks away when they called me and said they would give me my price.

 

After an experience like this one (which I walked away from) which included a $200 charge for nitrogen in the tires, I emailed a different dealer with whom I was waiting on a shipment of the basic model about the OTD price that I would be willing pay for one of their several Touring models in stock. The email included a discount on the Touring equivalent to what another dealer had offered and a stipulation that NOTHING besides their administrative fee (which was a flat fee on all new cars and the same at the other dealer), tax and tags be added to the cost. I made it very clear that I found the other dealer insisting on charges for "accessories" which were obviously just a means to inflate the price offensive.

When we went to pick up the car I quickly noticed a $700 fee for fabric protection on the invoice and was ready to walk out. But our salesman just as quickly showed me that they had discounted the price another $700 and my OTD price was exactly what I had asked for. They did try to sell an extended warranty during the financing phase (we took the 1% financing as it came with an additional discount and no prepayment penalty) but quickly and politely gave up.

Overall it was a very good experience. I think what really helped is that I made it very clear at the onset that I felt that non removable "accessories" were dishonest and if they needed a higher price on the car to make a fair profit then just set that price, don't try to trick me. Also they had a number of folks waiting for basic models and several Touring models in stock. We are happy with the Touring as my wife and I both want to drive the car and it's nice not to mess with the seat every time you get in it. We have even used the navigation occasionally when we could not be bothered to connect a phone. Good luck.

 

I contacted about a dozen dealers around the bay area and Sacramento via their websites/email, and I had a uniformly unimpressive experience. I also tried the Consumer Reports pricing service, and the buying service through my credit union. I ending up buying mine though Roadster.com and was completely happy with their service. They give you the price quote online, breaking out base price, destination charge, registration and fees, and sales tax. You don't pay them anything to get the quotes. I got quotes on Touring and Base, purchase and lease, before deciding.

If you like the price, you pay their fee to accept the deal, and then they deliver the car to you. You don't set foot in the dealership at all. I'm on the peninsula, and my car came from Manly Honda in Santa Rosa: Touring for $34.5K including destination but not including registration or sales tax, so not quite OTD but I'm in a high tax county. They deliver the car and the paperwork to you, and there are no add-on charges.

 

See this thread for some pricing.

https://www.insideevsforum.com/community/index.php?threads/price-paid.686/

 

You shouldn't need to buy anything from the finance person, the car comes with an alarm and hybrids aren't hot theft targets, so Lojack isn't necessary. If you want an extended warranty, you can get them from any dealer, generally the going discount rate is about 40% or more off full price. I did just see that 0.9% interest is offered for 60 months, may depend on region.

 

I had a similar experience. I originally contacted the Dealer through their website. Had an email conversation with the sales guy. He quoted me an OTD price including tax. I agreed to the price and made arrangements to have me drive me to the dealer to make the cash, no trade in, purchase.

We arrived at the Dealership and looked over the Clarity Touring model. Looked good (on the showroom floor and fully charged) and confirmed the price. The salesman when off to get the paperwork ready and I told the wife she could leave. Went back to sit in my "new car" and found one of those sticker price ad-on sheets. It had everything, Tinted Windows, Fabric Protection, Tinted Windows, Clear Bra, Floor Mats, etc. I thinks it was about $1800 of add-on's.

Salesman claimed that he did not know anything about it. I told the him that I didn't want any of that stuff and told him I could call my wife to come pick me up. He runs to the manager. They decided that they would not charge me for it but asked if would I consider paying for the floor mats. I agreed to the mats and all was well.

The finance guy did try to talk me into the financing instead of cash. Out the door cost was $39,068

 

Have you tried Costco?