Buying my first Wrangler (Price Advice)

[Steve JLUR]

Just wondering is the Costco auto program any good? I have a membership and I have yet to use that. At this point I'll take any advantage I can.

In my area Wranglers are excluded from Costco pricing, I tried.

I did get 4% below invoice (NOT MSRP, with TL membership) from Rob Trachtman at Tuttle Click in Irvine, CA. I live 15 minutes from the place and haven't even met the guy yet. Two and a half weeks, Wrangler is built exactly as I want it. Just waiting for it to ship.

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[SASQUATCH3000]

What is the MRSP or Model/options this price includes?

The Wrangler was a JLU Sport S:

They had it listed at 44k.
I just got them down to 45k total after tax , title extra.

Automatic Transmission
Push to Start
Heated Seats
7 inch Screen
Trailer Hitch
All terrain tires
18 inch fancy rims
safety package
advanced safety with adaptive cruise
hard top

 

[SASQUATCH3000]

In my area Wranglers are excluded from Costco pricing, I tried.

I did get 4% below invoice (NOT MSRP, with TL membership) from Rob Trachtman at Tuttle Click in Irvine, CA. I live 15 minutes from the place and haven't even met the guy yet. Two and a half weeks, Wrangler is built exactly as I want it. Just waiting for it to ship.

This one had everything I wanted and it was on the lot. I figured why not I can be cruising tomorrow, haha

 

[SASQUATCH3000]

I was lucky enough to find last December '20, a 2018 JL Sport with only 13k miles on it, electronic start, partial hybrid, hard top, Rubicon wheels/tire upgrade, Iron Cross winch bumper, backup cam, automatic transmission, 2.0 Turbo (awesome), and it's Mojito green! It was $32k perfect showroom condition. I love it!

Thats a sick deal. basically a new car.

 

[SASQUATCH3000]

I was lucky enough to find last December '20, a 2018 JL Sport with only 13k miles on it, electronic start, partial hybrid, hard top, Rubicon wheels/tire upgrade, Iron Cross winch bumper, backup cam, automatic transmission, 2.0 Turbo (awesome), and it's Mojito green! It was $32k perfect showroom condition. I love it!

$40k+ for a JLUS? Every time I see folks posting the prices of new Jeeps, makes me think I should go see what I could get to trade mine in I paid $27k for a brand new 2018 JLUS (plus tax), off the dealer lot in Dec'18 - are discounts like that not around any more? I do love it tho, would only trade for another!
Anyway good luck with your purchase, enjoy the car

That's insane especially being the first model. was there good dealer discounts at the time?

 

[YerMaun]

That's insane especially being the first model. was there good dealer discounts at the time?

Yeah there was something going on because it was right at the end of the year, maybe they needed to make numbers or something like that. They just had a couple of particular Wranglers with deep discounts, perhaps trying to get people 'in the door' to upsell them a different one. Or maybe they didn't like the nacho colour Don't know. Anyway it was new, perfect spec and colour for us (wife's pick, of course) - so we grabbed it and love it.

 

[SASQUATCH3000]

Yeah there was something going on because it was right at the end of the year, maybe they needed to make numbers or something like that. They just had a couple of particular Wranglers with deep discounts, perhaps trying to get people 'in the door' to upsell them a different one. Or maybe they didn't like the nacho colour Don't know. Anyway it was new, perfect spec and colour for us (wife's pick, of course) - so we grabbed it and love it.

For years I wanted an orange Wrangler and now that I'm getting one my girl was likes "No way I will not be seen in that." lmao. Going with Sting Grey now.

 

[johngalt312]

Just custom ordered JLUR today, window sticker about $900 more than yours. Got 6% under MSRP with TreadLightly and the requirement to standard finance for a minimum of three months. Vehicle prices are up right now and I would expect a dealer to show more price flexibility as respects stock on hand versus a custom order. Also, I presume that one’s market (geographic location) factors in (e.g. many things in IL are a rip). Could I have gotten a better deal? Maybe, but satisfied with the price paid.

 

[RusM]

I agree depending on my conversation with CraIg I'll probably wait a couple months.

If you can wait a couple months to buy, you can wait max 60 days for a custom order at 6-8% under invoice.... They're not dealing at all on cars right now, custom order is the only way to get a deal.

 

[YerMaun]

For years I wanted an orange Wrangler and now that I'm getting one my girl was likes "No way I will not be seen in that." lmao. Going with Sting Grey now.

you can't win. Just go with the colour she wants ;-)
To be fair - initially I *really* didn't like the nacho, but my (designer) wife really did. So we bought it. And now I love it. So I wouldn't stress too much about the colour.

...and yes, I'm originally British, hence the extra 'u' in colour :-P

 

[RubiSc0tt]

Some advice i've posted elsewhere. the only other piece I'd add: Go with Orange. your girl won't be driving it (and even if she does, will she be paying for it?)...

Welcome to the forum!

First, Check out threads here and here. They helped me greatly while getting ready to order m y JLUR (First vehicle I've ever ordered as well). In short: Read, learn the terminology (Invoice vs. MSRP, Dealer holdback, allocation, inventory, etc), and the numbers attached to each.

That said, I was in a similar position, albeit with a Jeep worth significantly less (04 Rubi). Here's my advice I always post


I had a quote from a larger dealer farther away, along with a ball park estimate for trade for my Jeep. I ended up going local because my sales rep (smaller dealer) was able to get as close to those numbers as possible. I did the math, and the hassle of me traveling 8+ hours on a week day after working a full 12 hour night shift, plus the logistics of limping my old Rubi down there for the trade weren't worth the hassle. I had my local guy look at my old Jeep, and give me a number based on VIN and condiiton. I tried to sell before hand but again, ultimately it wasn't worth the hassle to me. I ended up stripping my old Rubi of pretty much everything I could, trading it in and selling all of my aftermarket parts (soft top, half doors, duster deck, winch, seat covers, etc) to fund the Build of my JLUR.
Side note: I was amazed that people would buy piecemeal the parts from my Jeep to put on their beat, busted,clapped up piles of rust instead of just dumping it and getting a turnkey build for a decent price, but hey, what do I know? /shrug

Short answer: Yes, because they can be. If you REALLY want a Wrangler JL and your current tactics aren't working? Change it up.
I've posted this rant elsewhere, but in short: You need to be smart, leverage your advantages, and be respectful but absolutely ruthless. Don't take any shit.

I say this all the time, maybe not as much on here as I do in other Jeep groups, but- a few things to remember:
1). DO YOUR RESEARCH. 100% the most important part of buying any vehicle, especially something like a Wrangler. The people selling these rarely discount them because they're popular and have an enthusiast market- and if they do, or are advertising a discount? Probably not really a discount.

2). YOU HAVE THE ADVANTAGE. You're the consumer. It's your money. You don't need to buy a Jeep from them. You can buy it from someone else. Or not at all. Jeeps are a dime a dozen and now that JL production is in full swing, you can always get exactly what you want. Will you get it for 30k? probably not. Be reasonable, be respectful, but don't take any crap. Good dealers and sales people will work with you and cut you a break. Bad ones will insist you pay sticker because, well, they suck.

3). USE THE INTERNET. Seriously. hit every single dealer within a 200 mile radius using the Autotrader or CarGurus app. Get a good feel for options and pricing. Do your negotiations by email. I was ruthless, and kind of a prick while shopping. I wouldn't set foot on a lot until i had a ballpark trade value for my old Jeep and a rough idea of how close they could come to my number for my Jeep, and if they couldn't hit that, the conversation was over. (More on that below). Sometimes bad dealers feel if they get you on the lot, they can give you the old press to sell routine and you'll cave. BS. Good dealers will work with you to get the deal done and make sure you're both happy.

4). SET YOUR NUMBER. Once again, be reasonable, but know what you're willing to pay and don't be afraid to walk. I've read a lot of horror stories on here where dealers think they have you because you want to buy a Wrangler, especially a fancy new JL, you'll pay whatever they want; again, BS.

That said: if a 2018 is still there, it's essentially a leftover, as the order banks for 2020 will be opening soon I'm guessing (ordered my '19 in Sept of 2018). Dealers pay taxes and fees in most states on inventory that sits there. There's some other stuff that people way smarter than me could probably explain (Dealer inventory, allocation, etc.. feel free to search for those threads. They made my head spin a little). Many reputable dealers were going with 5-7% below invoice on factory orders when I bought last year. I've heard it's higher now. May want to use that as leverage- "Why would I want this Jeep that's already a year old and has been sitting on the lot when I can get one specifically made for me for cheaper?" kind of thing.

Again, just some points I followed when I was shopping. I always offer, and the offer still stands: I made a Google spreadsheet with a ton of information and just about every metric i could think of when I was shopping. I kept plugging info in and doing price comparisons for invoice vs. MSRP, discounts, and travel if i was going elsewhere to buy. If you (or anyone) wants to check it out, feel free to DM me and I can give you access to the sheet.

Remember, You didn't "lose out" on the Jeep you wanted- you made out by not getting ripped off.

 

[dalema]

So far this is the best offer I received. They beat Koons sale price by $1200 but I didnt get tax, title. extra from Koons yet. What do you guys think off this offer?

Have them send you the build sheet that shows both MSRP and FWP (invoice). Hard to know what we’re looking at here.

 

[dgoodhue]

The Wrangler was a JLU Sport S:

They had it listed at 44k.
I just got them down to 45k total after tax , title extra.

Automatic Transmission
Push to Start
Heated Seats
7 inch Screen
Trailer Hitch
All terrain tires
18 inch fancy rims
safety package
advanced safety with adaptive cruise
hard top

It seems like a fair deal to me, it sure beats MSRP that you were originally talking about.

 

[rhjeep89]

In my experience, it was also beneficial to tell the salesman that you were referred to them by this forum. When I was looking for a dealer to work with, I essentially got nowhere until I name dropped this forum. Their attitudes quickly changed and they were much more straight forward with their best pricing strategy...at least in terms of factory orders...not sure how they treat inventory on their lot. I find most of the salesmen in the recommended dealers section are fairly active on this forum, so they are familiar with what users on this forum are looking for in a deal. I also feel that they also think you are a more informed buyer than your regular Average Joe down the street, as this forum is a wealth of knowledge, so they are less likely to give you the runaround. In my search, I scoured the recommended dealers thread and contacted 3 different salesman at 3 different dealers...one of them being Koons. Your best contact there is Craig Benner. However, I ultimately ended up working with Leon Travis at Criswell.

This is great advice. I mentioned this forum when I emailed my salesman as well and I imagine that helped facilitate the process to be as easy as possible. Emailed him my PDF build sheet as well (don't forget to add Gorilla Glass option GMA for $95, it's not on Jeep website yet as option, but it's in the build sheets posted on these forums.. I forgot this sad). He emailed me back within a couple hours of the FCA 4% below price. Easiest thing I've done in a long time.

 

[Phillipu]

Not sure where you are located but for what it’s worth, I ordered one a couple weeks back as got 12% off MSRP at a dealership near Seattle. I initially found a dealership that would do 10% off MSRP in Boise, ID and planned to go there but a local dealership came back with 12% off so I went that direction. Happy to pass along those the contact info for the people I’ve worked with if it would be helpful.

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