scotts
Member
- Thread starter
- #1
Hi everyone,
My wife and I just bought our first Jeep and we couldn't be more
excited! It's a red JLU Rubicon, pretty loaded. Heading to Fresno
right now to pick it up. I wanted to share our buying experience and
tips.
We started our search on Saturday (Jun 31) and bought one Monday night,
(Jul 2).
Here's my debrief:
Configuring the Car
-------------------
Test drove a Sahara (only one on the lot) and eventually a Rubicon.
Spent hours on the forums learning about the different options...finally
came up with a plan.
What we wanted
==============
1. Wanted a car on the lot; I only had about 3 days free to do this.
Backup plan was to order a JLU. Found out timing is 4-8 weeks.
2. Red, white, orange or sting-grey colors.
3. Top packages: black leather, cold weather, trailer, LED,
8.4", safety group, steel bumper, auto
proximity entry (damn key fob needs it's own valet)
Did not want
============
1. Dual top: we thought we wanted both tops, but we only found one on
the west coast that was on the lot (San Leandro 209-965), granite
(wrong color). We're happy to wait (a year?) for aftermarket soft
tops. Also: we only found ~3 Rubis, on lots, with the dual top
option.
2. Really didn't care for the $895 "polished lip" wheels, but it's on
about 80% of the Rubicons we found. I like the stock wheels much
better.
Keyless vs. Proximity
=====================
This is really confusing. Wife will be keeping the fob in her purse;
digging it out is a pain. I don't mind carrying the fob, but I'm a guy.
The terminology used for the stock feature "remote keyless entry" vs the
$495 upgrade "remote proximity keyless entry", is just poor naming.
Our search process
------------------
We got to be pros at using jeep.com to search dealer inventory. Only
ended up on the dealer's own site if we found a good match. The dealer
sites are pretty poor and hard to use. They appear to be based on one of
a handful of templates.
The search began here, so many times that we ended up bookmarking it.
https://www.jeep.com/new-inventory.html?modelYearCode=IUJ201810&radius=150
1. Type in a zip code (more on this later)
2. Set 150 mile radius
3. Models: select Rubicon
4. Doors: 4
5. Colors: skip this part. It's not possible to generate an "exact
match" if you choose more than one color. So we left it empty then
just visually scanned the results for our colors.
6. Powertrain: 8-speed auto
7. Packages:
x LED Lighting Group
x Cold Weather Group
x Trailer Tow
x Electronic Infotainment
x Dual Top
x Active Saftey Group
x Steel Bumper
8. Interior:
x Remote Proximity Keyless Entry
Ideally, you get an exact match. But most likely the car says "IN
TRANSIT". I called on a few of these, just in case--both were still on
the train (Nebraska and Montana).
Sometimes a car IN TRANSIT was already spoken for. Only dealer knows;
for Dillon, it was clear on their web site.
For the cars found on the lot, salesperson was happy to walk over to
visually verify the car is there, and send a photo.
At one point, I had 180 tabs open in Chrome!
Our best matches:
-----------------
I'd save the window sticker as a PDF named with last 6 digits of VIN
(and location + color), and note the details in little list like this
(using a mono-spaced font).
+/- prox: which ones had, which ones didn't have the proximity unlock
-lip: was willing to buy the polished lip wheel, but preferred not
+flare: preferred body color flare, but no big deal
San Leandro: 209-965 granit (ggg) DUAL, +prox, +lip avoid these guys
Colma : 235-528 firecr (brr) -prox, +flare, -lip -3% $49k; can't find?
Fresno : 210-117 billet (bss) +prox, +flare, +lip
Hillsboro : 210-065 firecr (brb) +prox, -flare, +lip [TAN!]
Fairfield : 212-287†firecr (brb) +prox, -flare, +lip (worst phone service)
San Jose : 211-108†white (www) DUAL +prox, +flare
Medford : 212-355†white (bww) DUAL, +prox, "Lithia" 877-520-1807
Vegas : 241-847†firecr (brr) +prox, +lip
Vegas : 189-362†white (www) +prox, -lip "Anderson" 928-237-4282
Glendora : 235-192†sting (sss) +prox, +lip 909-451-8768
†indicates IN TRANSIT
ZIP CODES
---------
Since we're limited to 150 miles, I figured out the smallest set of zip
codes that would reasonably cover most of the population west of Chicago
(our outer limit for travel).
I had these tools up to help:
http://maps.huge.info/zip.htm
https://www.freemaptools.com/radius-around-point.htm
94707 local
98205 everett, wa
99217 spokane, wa
59601 helena, mt
97303 salem, portland, eugene, bend
96001 redding, medford
95361 fresno, reno, sacramento, SF, san jose
90037 (la, bakersfield, san diego)
89101 (las vegas
85007 (phoenix, mesa, tuscon)
87107 (albquerque, santa fe)
84116 salt lake, provo
80216 denver, fort collins, colorado springs
81504 grand junction, co
83702 boise, twin falls
79905 el paso
79108 amarillo
73118 oklahoma city
76470 dallas
78956 houston, austin
70501 lousianna
22182 virginia
30303 atlanta
42101 nashville
55404 minneapolis
61102 chicago
51458 sioux falls, des moines, omaha
44707 pittsburg, cleaveland, columbus
Atlanta had the most number of exact matches, but too far for us.
Making the calls
----------------
I probably phoned 15 dealers? "Can I speak to a jeep-specialist sales
person please?". With sales person, I'd let them know that we were
serious buyers, trying to close before EOM, calling about a specific
VIN. If they had it, I'd ask for their first and best offer, looking for
a % under invoice. 1-3% below was fine; they knew the car was in demand.
# End-of-the month motivation
Turns out if the final day of the month is on the weekend, Jeep
considers the true EOM the following business day, Monday. So although
we started our search on 6/30 and 6/31, there was still closing pressure
to get a deal done by 7/1.
# Ghosted by a dealer
I found a great JLU (VIN JW-235528); jeep.com showed it "in transit",
but I thought I'd ring dealer anyway. Main sales guy at Colma said they
received it the night before and hadn't processed it yet. Said he'd send
photos, but it was in the service bay, it was late, and couldn't get in.
After talking for two minutes on phone, he asked if I was purchasing by
7/1 EOD. I said yes, and asked how many % points below invoice. He went
right to 3% below invoice then rounded down to $49k. Not bad for
literally no negotiation. And this is for a car that was (supposedly) on
the lot.
Next day, I ring ~11am and he says he can't find the car(!). Was
dispatching a driver to go to some offsite storage to look for it and
that he'd ring me back in an hour. Never heard from him again.
When I told the story to another sales guy at different dealer, he
offered to look in to it...he couldn't find the car either. Said it was
either already bought, but not updated, or it was flagged for bad welds
and recycled back in to the factory or something.
Weird.
# Three great sales people
I had the best phone experience with these folks:
Jeremy DeHaven
Hillsboro, OR
(503) 860-5745
A 20+ year experienced sales guy at this dealer. He had the exact car
we wanted except for one little detail: tan leather, a show stopper. He
gave me some advice, was fun to talk to. Turns out he literally has the
same all-red JLU we ended up getting. He also owns a red Ram and red
Charger, so yeah, he likes red. I got his permission to send out his
cell.
Reno (didn't get last name)
Walnut Creek, CA
20+ year sales guy at Walnut Creek. I called about two white in-transit
cars, but weren't available. We then talked for about an hour about
jeeps! He answered a ton of questions. He's gonna get our follow-on
service business for sure.
Manuel
Jim Manning Dodge in Dinuba, CA (south of Fresno)
Really professional and responsive. Ultimately the car we went with.
He's picking us up from the Fresno train station (with our new car) in
literally 15 minutes from now. It's just him and the two sons of the
owner. Really small dealer but great to work with. He was firm with his
(fair) price.
Turns out the car we got didn't come from a big city dealer with lots of
inventory. Just a guy doing his (good) job.
Anyway, hope this helps you in your search!
Scott
My wife and I just bought our first Jeep and we couldn't be more
excited! It's a red JLU Rubicon, pretty loaded. Heading to Fresno
right now to pick it up. I wanted to share our buying experience and
tips.
We started our search on Saturday (Jun 31) and bought one Monday night,
(Jul 2).
Here's my debrief:
Configuring the Car
-------------------
Test drove a Sahara (only one on the lot) and eventually a Rubicon.
Spent hours on the forums learning about the different options...finally
came up with a plan.
What we wanted
==============
1. Wanted a car on the lot; I only had about 3 days free to do this.
Backup plan was to order a JLU. Found out timing is 4-8 weeks.
2. Red, white, orange or sting-grey colors.
3. Top packages: black leather, cold weather, trailer, LED,
8.4", safety group, steel bumper, auto
proximity entry (damn key fob needs it's own valet)
Did not want
============
1. Dual top: we thought we wanted both tops, but we only found one on
the west coast that was on the lot (San Leandro 209-965), granite
(wrong color). We're happy to wait (a year?) for aftermarket soft
tops. Also: we only found ~3 Rubis, on lots, with the dual top
option.
2. Really didn't care for the $895 "polished lip" wheels, but it's on
about 80% of the Rubicons we found. I like the stock wheels much
better.
Keyless vs. Proximity
=====================
This is really confusing. Wife will be keeping the fob in her purse;
digging it out is a pain. I don't mind carrying the fob, but I'm a guy.
The terminology used for the stock feature "remote keyless entry" vs the
$495 upgrade "remote proximity keyless entry", is just poor naming.
Our search process
------------------
We got to be pros at using jeep.com to search dealer inventory. Only
ended up on the dealer's own site if we found a good match. The dealer
sites are pretty poor and hard to use. They appear to be based on one of
a handful of templates.
The search began here, so many times that we ended up bookmarking it.
https://www.jeep.com/new-inventory.html?modelYearCode=IUJ201810&radius=150
1. Type in a zip code (more on this later)
2. Set 150 mile radius
3. Models: select Rubicon
4. Doors: 4
5. Colors: skip this part. It's not possible to generate an "exact
match" if you choose more than one color. So we left it empty then
just visually scanned the results for our colors.
6. Powertrain: 8-speed auto
7. Packages:
x LED Lighting Group
x Cold Weather Group
x Trailer Tow
x Electronic Infotainment
x Dual Top
x Active Saftey Group
x Steel Bumper
8. Interior:
x Remote Proximity Keyless Entry
Ideally, you get an exact match. But most likely the car says "IN
TRANSIT". I called on a few of these, just in case--both were still on
the train (Nebraska and Montana).
Sometimes a car IN TRANSIT was already spoken for. Only dealer knows;
for Dillon, it was clear on their web site.
For the cars found on the lot, salesperson was happy to walk over to
visually verify the car is there, and send a photo.
At one point, I had 180 tabs open in Chrome!
Our best matches:
-----------------
I'd save the window sticker as a PDF named with last 6 digits of VIN
(and location + color), and note the details in little list like this
(using a mono-spaced font).
+/- prox: which ones had, which ones didn't have the proximity unlock
-lip: was willing to buy the polished lip wheel, but preferred not
+flare: preferred body color flare, but no big deal
San Leandro: 209-965 granit (ggg) DUAL, +prox, +lip avoid these guys
Colma : 235-528 firecr (brr) -prox, +flare, -lip -3% $49k; can't find?
Fresno : 210-117 billet (bss) +prox, +flare, +lip
Hillsboro : 210-065 firecr (brb) +prox, -flare, +lip [TAN!]
Fairfield : 212-287†firecr (brb) +prox, -flare, +lip (worst phone service)
San Jose : 211-108†white (www) DUAL +prox, +flare
Medford : 212-355†white (bww) DUAL, +prox, "Lithia" 877-520-1807
Vegas : 241-847†firecr (brr) +prox, +lip
Vegas : 189-362†white (www) +prox, -lip "Anderson" 928-237-4282
Glendora : 235-192†sting (sss) +prox, +lip 909-451-8768
†indicates IN TRANSIT
ZIP CODES
---------
Since we're limited to 150 miles, I figured out the smallest set of zip
codes that would reasonably cover most of the population west of Chicago
(our outer limit for travel).
I had these tools up to help:
http://maps.huge.info/zip.htm
https://www.freemaptools.com/radius-around-point.htm
94707 local
98205 everett, wa
99217 spokane, wa
59601 helena, mt
97303 salem, portland, eugene, bend
96001 redding, medford
95361 fresno, reno, sacramento, SF, san jose
90037 (la, bakersfield, san diego)
89101 (las vegas
85007 (phoenix, mesa, tuscon)
87107 (albquerque, santa fe)
84116 salt lake, provo
80216 denver, fort collins, colorado springs
81504 grand junction, co
83702 boise, twin falls
79905 el paso
79108 amarillo
73118 oklahoma city
76470 dallas
78956 houston, austin
70501 lousianna
22182 virginia
30303 atlanta
42101 nashville
55404 minneapolis
61102 chicago
51458 sioux falls, des moines, omaha
44707 pittsburg, cleaveland, columbus
Atlanta had the most number of exact matches, but too far for us.
Making the calls
----------------
I probably phoned 15 dealers? "Can I speak to a jeep-specialist sales
person please?". With sales person, I'd let them know that we were
serious buyers, trying to close before EOM, calling about a specific
VIN. If they had it, I'd ask for their first and best offer, looking for
a % under invoice. 1-3% below was fine; they knew the car was in demand.
# End-of-the month motivation
Turns out if the final day of the month is on the weekend, Jeep
considers the true EOM the following business day, Monday. So although
we started our search on 6/30 and 6/31, there was still closing pressure
to get a deal done by 7/1.
# Ghosted by a dealer
I found a great JLU (VIN JW-235528); jeep.com showed it "in transit",
but I thought I'd ring dealer anyway. Main sales guy at Colma said they
received it the night before and hadn't processed it yet. Said he'd send
photos, but it was in the service bay, it was late, and couldn't get in.
After talking for two minutes on phone, he asked if I was purchasing by
7/1 EOD. I said yes, and asked how many % points below invoice. He went
right to 3% below invoice then rounded down to $49k. Not bad for
literally no negotiation. And this is for a car that was (supposedly) on
the lot.
Next day, I ring ~11am and he says he can't find the car(!). Was
dispatching a driver to go to some offsite storage to look for it and
that he'd ring me back in an hour. Never heard from him again.
When I told the story to another sales guy at different dealer, he
offered to look in to it...he couldn't find the car either. Said it was
either already bought, but not updated, or it was flagged for bad welds
and recycled back in to the factory or something.
Weird.
# Three great sales people
I had the best phone experience with these folks:
Jeremy DeHaven
Hillsboro, OR
(503) 860-5745
A 20+ year experienced sales guy at this dealer. He had the exact car
we wanted except for one little detail: tan leather, a show stopper. He
gave me some advice, was fun to talk to. Turns out he literally has the
same all-red JLU we ended up getting. He also owns a red Ram and red
Charger, so yeah, he likes red. I got his permission to send out his
cell.
Reno (didn't get last name)
Walnut Creek, CA
20+ year sales guy at Walnut Creek. I called about two white in-transit
cars, but weren't available. We then talked for about an hour about
jeeps! He answered a ton of questions. He's gonna get our follow-on
service business for sure.
Manuel
Jim Manning Dodge in Dinuba, CA (south of Fresno)
Really professional and responsive. Ultimately the car we went with.
He's picking us up from the Fresno train station (with our new car) in
literally 15 minutes from now. It's just him and the two sons of the
owner. Really small dealer but great to work with. He was firm with his
(fair) price.
Turns out the car we got didn't come from a big city dealer with lots of
inventory. Just a guy doing his (good) job.
Anyway, hope this helps you in your search!
Scott
Sponsored
