Invoice Price

[mathemagic9]

Does anyone know where I can check the Canadian invoice price of a vehicle? Does the salesman show you the invoice price if the customer asks to see it?

Thanks!

[jww]

You can get CDN invoice costs at:

http://www.apa.ca/template.asp?lang=english

or

http://www.carcostcanada.com/1104/en/asp/default.asp

Depending on how good a negotiator you are as well as the relationship you develop with your sales rep, you may or may not get a chance to see the dealer invoice. If you do get to see it, it is not likely to reflect factory-to-dealer rebates.

jww

[mathemagic9]

Thanks jww!

[jww]

Thanks jww!
No problem - but I forgot to add that they are pay-for-service sites. I think it's worth the investment - especially when compared to the overall outlay of a new vehicle.

jww

[elfremi]

You can get CDN invoice costs at:

http://www.apa.ca/template.asp?lang=english

or

http://www.carcostcanada.com/1104/en/asp/default.asp

Depending on how good a negotiator you are as well as the relationship you develop with your sales rep, you may or may not get a chance to see the dealer invoice. If you do get to see it, it is not likely to reflect factory-to-dealer rebates.

jww

You can also get dealver invoices at

www.carquotes.ca

It does require paying, like APA and CCC, but it does give you an advantage when trying to get the best price for a vehicle.

With CarQuotes, you get one quote for $21, 3 for $32, or 5 for $42.

CCC costs $39.95 for 5 reports.

APA will cost you $26.50 for one quote without a membership. If you get a membership with APA, you get 5 quotes with your membership, which costs $68.90 (renewable for $41.34, 6th and 7th quote are $10.60 with membership, and anything above 7 is $26.50).

[Huggyd]

out of all of them which one would be the best to pay for? I guess they all would give you the same info eh?

and even with the invoice price how do you handle that info. when talking to the sales rep. I wouldn't think that you come right out and say "I know what the dealship paied so I'm not paying a cent over $$$$.$$" There would have to be a more tackful way of going around it.

[jww]

out of all of them which one would be the best to pay for? I guess they all would give you the same info eh?

and even with the invoice price how do you handle that info. when talking to the sales rep. I wouldn't think that you come right out and say "I know what the dealship paied so I'm not paying a cent over $$$$.$$" There would have to be a more tackful way of going around it.
Any sales rep that isn't aware of invoice pricing availability via the web is plain ignorant and doesn't know his market or industry. When we bought our 06 Sonata in January, I made it clear - without being rude - that my price point would start at invoice "plus" and let the sales rep's imagination work at it from there.

[elfremi]

out of all of them which one would be the best to pay for? I guess they all would give you the same info eh?

and even with the invoice price how do you handle that info. when talking to the sales rep. I wouldn't think that you come right out and say "I know what the dealship paied so I'm not paying a cent over $$$$.$$" There would have to be a more tackful way of going around it.

Well, I'm looking at getting a Nissan Versa, and I've used all three as part of my research. Since I'm new to the car buying game, I wanted as much of an advantage as possible when I go to buy.

The invoice/wholesale price quoted from CarCostCanada and APA are identical, while CarQuotes has slightly lover invoice prices, and even include the supposed dealer cost for the metallic paint. The dealer cost of the tech package is also lower with CarQuotes.

Here is a sample of a car quote from CarQuotes

http://www.carquotes.ca/sample.html

Here is a sample of a car quote from CarCostCanada

http://carcostcanada.com/1/en/wpr_sample.asp

There's no actual example that I could find on the APA website for their quotes. Essentially, its a no-frills spreadsheet with the basic info. They didn't mention any factory incentives on the quote, although on the website they say if anything is available they would mention it.

Both CarCostCanada and CarQuotes mentioned some factory incentives, in the form of lease/financing rates.

Personally, considering APA and CarCostCanada have the same information, I think CarCostCanada has the better presentation and also the better price/value for quotes. APA's presentation more or less looks like something I could have done with Microsoft Excel, but like I say, the figures are the same as CarCostCanada.

I like CarQuotes' presentation also, but since the numbers are lower then the other two (-$187 in total to be exact), I'm not sure if their information is as accurate. They even provide some advice for buying a vehicle (although you can surely find that info and more in the forum).

When I go to the dealership at the end of the month, I'll be using CarQuotes' figures to calculate the "mark-up" I'm willing to pay. I'll start at 2%, which I won't get of course, and work my way up from there. I won't go higher then 5.5% (its a new model after all in North America, so its unlikely I could get less then 5% because of the popularity of the vehicle at the moment).

I'll bring along my CarCostCanada quote also, but I'll only show those figures if they start saying the other figures don't add up. I'll also bring my trusty scientific calculator to help with the figures, and with the ficance calculations once I've negotiated a price for the vehicle.

Hmm, maybe I've said more then was needed. I recommend CarCostCanada if you want to be on the safe side and CarQuotes if you don't mind the fact their figures are slightly lower then CarCostCanada. For the price of the APA quote, and its presentation, I personally wouldn't recommend it, but like I say, their figures match those of CarCostCanada.

[airbalancer]

I do not think you will get much off list price for a Nissan Versa since they are new to the market

[Huggyd]

Thanks for the sample sheets elfremi.

Please excuse the thinking out loud here. Going by the http://www.carquotes.ca/sample.html price $24 225 for example your saying no more then 5.5% above so your willing to pay $25 557.38 that’s a difference of $1332.38 and the MSRP $26 650 so your cutting out $1093 by doing your homework, now that’s money saved.
The two things that I don’t get
One- For example Ford Focus a semi- popular car low-end family auto. If I walked in there and said these are the facts, take this is your price so add 3.5% above and you got yourself a deal. What’s the point of beating around the bush? They know all these facts are available to you so……
Two – On the http://www.carquotes.ca/sample.html page, around the bottom it said “Avoid adding unnecessary cost by declining the dealers offer to ……. Extended warranty…..” I understand the three year 36000 K but cars were one thing that I always figured having a extra warranty is a good thing.
I’m guessing its not?????

[jww]

I do not think you will get much off list price for a Nissan Versa since they are new to the market
Yup - I would tend to agree with this. It can take 6 months - or longer in some cases - before dealers are willing to play ball on brand new models. Remember when the PT Cruiser first came out? Dealers were essentially auctioning them off to the highest bidder. All my local Chrysler dealers had waiting lists just for the opportunity to bid! This went on for about 8 months and then things settled into the normal regimen.

[elfremi]

I do not think you will get much off list price for a Nissan Versa since they are new to the market

I agree. Its possible my final price might be low, but then again, I've only seen one Versa on the road here in St John's Newfoundland. I'm assuming the demand for the Versa might not be as strong here (which is what I'm hoping).

The two things that I don’t get
One- For example Ford Focus a semi-popular car low-end family auto. If I walked in there and said these are the facts, take this is your price so add 3.5% above and you got yourself a deal. What’s the point of beating around the bush? They know all these facts are available to you so……

Well, depending on the dealership, that might actually work. I can't say from personal experience, but I've read posts in another forum where people have actually done that and got their asking price.

I think it depends on where you live. If you live in an area where there's more then one dealership with the car you want, or more then one car you're interested in, that tactic would have a better chance of working. If you live in an area where you've got limited choices, then that tactic might backfire.

I'd personally think of it as playing poker, and you don't want the dealer to know what cards you have in your hand, at least untill you need to. Also, if you're looking at a domestic, that tactic would probably have a better chance of working since they're really trying to compete with imports. Honda and Toyota are supposed to be especially hard to deal with as far as price goes from what I've read online.

Also consider the time of the month when you buy. Try to buy at the end of the month, because the dealerships will probably be looking to reach certain sales quotas. Also, if you can wait, there are better months to buy cars then others. Around Christmas time and after New Years should be particularly good times to get a vehicle, as most people would not be purchasing at that time.

Two – On the http://www.carquotes.ca/sample.html page, around the bottom it said “Avoid adding unnecessary cost by declining the dealers offer to ……. Extended warranty…..” I understand the three year 36000 K but cars were one thing that I always figured having a extra warranty is a good thing.
I’m guessing its not?????

I'd probably look at not going for the extended warranty if I was buying a vehicle made by a manufacturer that is know to make reliabe vehicles (Toyota or Honda for instance). I might consider an extended warranty if the vehicle or the manufacturer are known to make a less then reliable product. Of course, you can get a car that has no problems from one of the least reliable manufacturers, or get a lemon from one of the most reliable ones.

I'd also consider whether I was planning on keeping the vehicle long term or not. If you plan on selling it, extended warranty might be a nice selling point to a prospective buyer, especially if its a make and model known for reliability issues.

Finally, if you're worried about what kind of hit to your pocket book your car might make down the road, an extended warranty might give you a little piece of mind. Personally, I'd skip it though.

There are so many things you can research online when it comes to buying a vehicle. Its sort of driving me nuts looking up information, but I'm hoping it will help me make an informed purchase in the end. Hopefully everyone's replies to your innitial post will also help you make an informed choice.

[elfremi]

Take a look at this feedback from CarCostCanada:

http://carcostcanada.com/1/en/feedback.asp

Some of the people give some pretty good ideas on how to use the information provided, especially one person that saved over $3000 purchasing an 2006 Accord and Civic.