First time Purchasing Wrangler!

[txj2go]

MSRP on Window Sticker (w destination charge): $43615
They offered $36000 + tax + doc fees

I could almost guarantee you that a price like that in my area would be bogus. I've read where people got a price like that and went all the way through to signing the finance papers when they spotted an additional $3k charge hidden in there. And other people have said that they were quoted that price but only if they financed through the dealer for a high interest. I was told long ago that if a dealer is selling cars that cheap, why haven't they sold all of them. I see dealers with advertised prices 7 or 8% lower than any other dealer, but yet they have a large inventory left. That tells you that there is something wrong with the dealer. Unfortunately the only way to really find this out is to go all the way through the process. Sometimes you can read past yelp or google reviews on a dealership and find where other people have complained about dishonest practices. I agree that it is dishonest and I don't know how they can do this in good conscience, but some people have better tolerance of that sort of thing than I do.

Sponsored

 

[Notorious]

It’s a good deal. Do it. @Adieu_

 

[JEEPIDON]

State it as many times as you want. It is not profit it is covering expenses. From the website you quoted:
The fee is charged by a dealership to process the paperwork related to a vehicle that has been sold. Primarily, the doc fee is used to cover all the expenses associated with the back-office employees at the dealership mentioned above. These are the individuals who handle the registration, title, and deal with the state's motor vehicle registrar.
That is not profit it is an expense. Don't argue with someone with an MBA and experience od buying 27 new cars over 50 years.

I usually like your input but adopting the elitist attitude of having an MBA and don’t argue with me is beyond childish and degrading. There are plenty of folks on here without an MBA and are just as smart and as qualified to provide constructive input. I know a lot of MBA’s that couldn’t find their ass with both hands at the same time (not directed at you). I’ll take a good dose of common sense, persistence and determination any day.
you must have had a bad day, we all have them!

 

[JEEPIDON]

Are you saying the dealer has to pay the state or government the doc fee they collect? I have not heard that before.

The doc fee is non negotiable as I have already stated because the litigation that would happen. IE. That man paid the doc fee and this one did not and its not fair.....
Yes the doc fee has to be a stand alone fee in the paperwork and one can not get rid or it or negotiate it lower.
As I have already stated those dealers with high Doc fees over $100, one can negotiate the price of the vehicle lower to overcome the doc fee itself.

I'm very good friends with a family that owns 14 dealerships in the area and after a phone call I can tell you that it is for profit. Yes there are state by state limitations but it's a profitable line item. After all, what investment (other than a little labor) does a dealer have in document fees? I've always avoided them by doing the document work myself. There may be some states that don't allow that but I doubt it. It's your new car, your new documents. It's just easier to have the dealer do it! Why would anyone think that a dealer performing a service should not have a profit attached?

 

[Szy_szka]

Found this gem while looking around:

https://www.ourisman.com/new/Jeep/2020-Jeep-Wrangler-b078bdca0a0e0a6b10e26e51ee816e98.htm

2020 Wrangler UNLIMITED SAHARA (MSRP: $54,375) on sale for $36,446 after massive $12,482 Dealer Discount and further $5,447 Employee Discount (supposedly ends today). This is a post from a dealer's group website (they own a number of dealership around).

When you actually look up the same exact car on a dealer's website; here is what you get:
https://www.ourismanchryslerdodgeje...bowie-md-b078bdca0a0e0a6b10e26e51ee816e98.htm

The price listing shows only 41,893.

I confronted the dealer about that discrepancy over another ridiculously discounted model (Gladiator) and they replied that the price on the 'dealer's group website' is erroneous and should be disregarded. So they can essentially post any number they want and it means literary ... nothing.

 

[BeachNJeep]

It sounds like a good deal... if those are all the options you want. If there are options you don't want, like the hard top, then don't pay for it. For me, I had to have the tow package and auxiliary lighting package and a manual transmission. The dealer tried to push me into an automatic and send me to U-Haul to get a tow hitch. Uh, no. Get what you want. If you want a certain spec and can wait for a 2021 build the way you want it, don't settle. Don't just get what they have, get what you want.

 

[txj2go]

So they can essentially post any number they want and it means literary ... nothing.

Exactly! Advertised prices mean nothing. If it seems too good to be true, it is probably too good to be true.

Until you are sitting in the chair with final papers in hand ready to sign, you do not know the final price. This is the same old dealer game- advertise a low price to get customers in the door then put on the pressure to sell them something more expensive. Dealers will tell you that if they advertised the real prices they would be on the last page on car.com and customers wouldn't come to see them. And if they freely gave the real price the customer would take that price to another dealer and ask them to beat it by $50.

 

[Richtor]

I'm very good friends with a family that owns 14 dealerships in the area and after a phone call I can tell you that it is for profit. Yes there are state by state limitations but it's a profitable line item. After all, what investment (other than a little labor) does a dealer have in document fees? I've always avoided them by doing the document work myself. There may be some states that don't allow that but I doubt it. It's your new car, your new documents. It's just easier to have the dealer do it! Why would anyone think that a dealer performing a service should not have a profit attached?

Thank You.

Im sure they also mentioned they don’t make money, or very little money, on new car sales. They make their money on financing, used car sales, and parts and service!

I have no problem with the dealer stating the cost of the Jeep is $40k including their charge for docs. What bugs me is when dealers say the price is $39,300 and the when you go to pay it’s $40k and they won’t take out the doc fee. This is total misrepresentation.

 

[txj2go]

This is total misrepresentation.

That's what car dealers do, they've done it for a long time. This is a lot kinder than some of the things they try to do to you. I was talking to a dealer once, one of the few dealers that really strived to be truthful and ethical. He said a customer complained about being lied to by a competitor, but said that his prices were lower. The honest dealer asked the person if he would like to deal with a person who would lie to him then go ahead. He told the customer that if it cost him a sale to tell the truth then he was still going to tell the truth. If people continue to buy from the dealers that lie then the dealers will continue to do it.

 

[Notorious]

That's what car dealers do,

The point is, honest or not, they’re trying to get attention. Your attention is free publicity for better or worse and once they’re the topic of discussion, their name is in the air. Information travels quickly, time passes, people forget the event but remember the name and when it comes time to purchase, where do they go? They go to that dealer because they “know” the name. Yes, people are that stupid. In the end, the dealer wins.

 

[JEEPIDON]

Thank You.

Im sure they also mentioned they don’t make money, or very little money, on new car sales. They make their money on financing, used car sales, and parts and service!

I have no problem with the dealer stating the cost of the Jeep is $40k including their charge for docs. What bugs me is when dealers say the price is $39,300 and the when you go to pay it’s $40k and they won’t take out the doc fee. This is total misrepresentation.

You're spot on! Roger has been saying that for years. New cars is too cut throat but if you have a lot of volume you can take advantage of factory inventory movement specials offered to only the high volume dealers. It's a cash flow play. Financing and leasing is where the decent money comes from. If a dealer asks what you can afford per month.....well you know what happens there!

Good luck, make sure before you sign on the "scratch pad" you have all of the details of the deal. The finance team likes to be the bad guys and the can be very good at it.

Sponsored