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So I spent 5 hours at a Honda dealership today

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hans007 said:
That is odd since the fiesta has a dsg. I've never driven a fiesta only been in it during the fiesta tour they had before it came out in a manual one while a friend drove who was thinking of getting one. Heard the dsg was great strange. Maybe you should they another ford dealer .
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Eh, the Ford DSG isn't great. I don't have any comparison as I haven't tried VW/Audi but I did not like the trans the Focus I test drove. As much as I dislike automatics I would have preferred it to the powershift.

Franz316 said:
Whenever I see dealer addons such as pinstripes, wheel locks and nitrogen filled tires all for the great price of $1000+(in your case 1690) I cringe. They usually will hide them on the right side of the window sheet. It is also a red flag for me towards the dealership that they are willing to be vague in their pricing.

I tell them flat-out, I'm not paying for that shit.
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The one time a car I was buying had that crap the salesman told me straight I could keep the stuff or have them take it off and I wouldn't have to pay for it. Of course, I was also getting the car at invoice so clearly they knew that if they forced me to pay for it they'd be losing a sale.

rommelrommel said:
And Honda is known for it's fabulous automatic transmissions... and good luck getting anyone to warranty a 10+ year old transmission whether you think it's s defect or not. Also Ford Fusion is an expensive car?
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There have been no major defects with the vast majority of Honda automatics. Those found in the Civic, CR-V, Fit, Accord 4-cylinder have all been fine overall. I'm also convinced they learned their lesson and that current 6 cylinder autos are up to the task.

Oh, for the OP. If I was in the market for a small hatch, as much as I love Hondas I would be hard pressed to not seriously consider a Sonic with the turbo motor and 5MT. Talk about power potential and the little sucker is pretty comfortable too.
 
When you've figured out the car you want, contact all the near-by and not so nearby dealers via e-mail to ask them the price of a car with the exact options you want. The pre-negotiated price is great because you can bring a printout of the e-mail with you, and save time because there's no need to haggle.
 
Right now Ford is having a sale on Focus with 0%APR on 2013's. Based on Truecar (for my area SoCal) a 2013 Focus SE Hatch is going for 15909 which is quite a bit below invoice. It is a pretty nice car too.

With $2k down that puts your payments at around $240/mo for 60mo.
 
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NutBucket said:
Eh, the Ford DSG isn't great. I don't have any comparison as I haven't tried VW/Audi but I did not like the trans the Focus I test drove. As much as I dislike automatics I would have preferred it to the powershift.
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interesting. i've only driven 1 car ever that had a DSG though and it did seem a little grindy feeling and jerky. maybe its the dry clutch, (it was a gti mark V) which the ford also has. i mean the newer 6-8 speed autos are way way smoother than that DSG felt and seem to shift fast enough that its not a big deal anyway (maybe 200ms slower)
 
Ferzerp said:
Use www.truecar.com to get an estimate of what people are reporting paying. Do this *before* you visit a dealer.
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One thing that's important to keep in mind about TrueCar is that it does include incentives in the purchase price. You may see that people are paying far below MSRP, which is true, but it's because the incentives subtract from the overall price. For example, people are mentioning the Focus, which has $2,500 cash back right now (you get that or the 0% APR), and that would be counted in TrueCar's value.
 
I've driven 2 cars with DSG, a skoda roomster (comparable to golf) and a vw tiguan (always 7 gears, recent models).
I don't even notice it, it definitely doesn't feel jerky, but I've never driven any other kind of automatic and I'm used to stick so that influences my sensations. Also americans are used to soft rides while german cars aren't exactly designed for that so that may count too. Different expectations. That's why you have to absolutely test drive cars.
 
Test drove a Fiesta this morning briefly. Didn't have a whole lot of time since there's a narrow window between after my morning workout and when I have to be at work. The Fiesta SE model has a 1500 dollar cash back or 1.9% APR. In the brief time I was there, they were dangling both to get me to sign.

On the Fiesta vs the Fit, I like the Fiesta a little more. Its not as spacious as the Fit, nor does it have the cargo capacity. But its much, much quieter inside and it has more standard features than the Fit does.


Aikouka said:
For example, people are mentioning the Focus, which has $2,500 cash back right now (you get that or the 0% APR), and that would be counted in TrueCar's value.
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Didn't know this when I was at the Ford dealership this morning. The Focus is more car than the Fiesta is, and with that incentive, it would be cheap enough to seriously consider.

Since the Honda dealership has called me twice since I was there Saturday, and I do like the roominess of the Fit, I've scheduled another test drive of the Fit tomorrow morning.

I'm shooting to make my final decision some time on Wednesday on which vehicle I want, once I do that, I'll be able to throw much more seriousness behind any pricing negotiations.
 
Bateluer said:
Test drove a Fiesta this morning briefly. Didn't have a whole lot of time since there's a narrow window between after my morning workout and when I have to be at work. The Fiesta SE model has a 1500 dollar cash back or 1.9% APR. In the brief time I was there, they were dangling both to get me to sign.

On the Fiesta vs the Fit, I like the Fiesta a little more. Its not as spacious as the Fit, nor does it have the cargo capacity. But its much, much quieter inside and it has more standard features than the Fit does.




Didn't know this when I was at the Ford dealership this morning. The Focus is more car than the Fiesta is, and with that incentive, it would be cheap enough to seriously consider.

Since the Honda dealership has called me twice since I was there Saturday, and I do like the roominess of the Fit, I've scheduled another test drive of the Fit tomorrow morning.

I'm shooting to make my final decision some time on Wednesday on which vehicle I want, once I do that, I'll be able to throw much more seriousness behind any pricing negotiations.
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What's your zip? If you like the Fiesta why not the Focus? Will have about same cargo room as the Fit and around the same price if Honda is only offering you MSRP on it.
 
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gus6464 said:
What's your zip? If you like the Fiesta why not the Focus? Will have about same cargo room as the Fit and around the same price if Honda is only offering you MSRP on it.
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85392.

I'd only given the Focus a brief glance because the starting prices were higher. And I haven't been behind the wheel of one yet.
 
Bateluer said:
85392.

I'd only given the Focus a brief glance because the starting prices were higher. And I haven't been behind the wheel of one yet.
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Can probably get the focus cheaper than the fit. Also, if you're not good at negotiating, you can actually use true car to get a set price. (See the "estimated true car price" ). If you go in, and put in what you want, it puts up pricing that the participating dealers have to honor which is going to be near or at that price.

I think it's a good solution for people are aren't so good at negotiation. You might be able to do better on your own, but you aren't going to get ripped off that way a least.
 
Raizinman said:
I wanted a cetain Honda model and did the same thing you did. They refused to budge. There had to be a way to get them off that MSRP. Costco is the answer. Costco has programs with many of the dealers in our city including Honda. After I checked with Costco, found the Honda dealer that works with Costco, got a new better price and then purchased the vehicle. I got the same low Honda financing and even had enough extra to purchase the extended warranty. No negotiating, no dickering, just one price Costco shopping.
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This.

http://www.costcoauto.com/

http://www.az.aaa.com/automotive/car-buying

A few years ago I helped someone buy a new Toyota Corolla for $500 below dealer invoice. We visited CostcoAuto.com, setup appointment, get paper quote, take to another dealer and ask them to match or beat the first offer. Took about 3 hours total including travel time but it saved $$$. When we buy our next car, we'll definitely use costcoauto.com.

If you're a member of a local credit union, most offer auto buying services as well. Personally I would give CostCo or AAA a try. If you're not a member of CostCo, it's $55/yr and you could easily save $$$ easily paying for the annual membership fee.
 
dbk said:
Check out Mazda3s maybe even a 2012 model
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This. I love my mazdaspeed 3 but i like the regular 3s a lot too. The new mazda 3 skyactive's get 40mpg.

Definitely check out the mazda 2 though. Are you willing to drive manual or auto only?
 
CA19100 said:
My 2002 Chrysler, which I owned since new, blew its transmission at 83,000 miles a few years back. Chrysler said, "Out of warranty, not our problem," despite an obvious manufacturing defect. (A tooth in the transmission's hydraulic pump snapped off.) Absolutely inexcusable, and I'll never purchase another Chrysler product because of this incident.

I replaced it with an Ohio-built 2006 Civic 4-door (about four years old when I bought it), and the difference in build quality is like night and day.

The US is definitely doing better, but we have a long way to go. Some of the more expensive domestics that I've rented recently, like the Ford Fusion and Buick Lacrosse, have been fantastic to drive. But they're also much more expensive than what I can afford.
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Manufacturing defect? On a car with 83k? 🙄:whiste:🙄
 
Pretending that Chrysler is representative of the other domestics is like pretending Chinese made cars are representative of foreign cars.
 
kitatech said:
As an aside, I did find a suitable replacement...an 05 Camry LE @ 98k miles with a manual tranny and new clutch! A fine car...and highly recommended.
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That makes 2 people I know with a Camry equipped with a manual transmission.

I have a 2002 LE with 63(ish)K miles.
Its a great way to get a mechanic to say "WTF?!?? Never seen that before"

Its my station car and its in better shape than our family car (06 Mazda6 wagon - which we are considering replacing this year)

(except for the dent some jerk in the parking lot gave it...)
 
Plot thickens a little. I went back to the Honda dealer this morning to take the Fit on a longer test drive than I did previously, wanted to see how it accelerated with the 1.5L engine and gauge its cabin noise first hand. Good news is, the cabin noise is a non-issue for me. And it makes highway speeds without a problem and handles well.

But, I learned something new. On the base Fit, the drivers seat doesn't go back far enough for me. My legs feel cramped, and with my twitchy left knee(runner problem), the base model is a flat no-go. Period. The Fit Sport, next model up, the drivers seat slides further back to a comfortable spacing. This obviously raises the price.

Since the Honda and Ford dealerships are owned by the same people, the Honda guys offered to pick up a Fiesta SE from the Ford place and bring it to the Honda place tomorrow morning so I can see both side by side. Which I think will be immensely helpful for me, because I'm still on the fence.

But, with the Fit Sport model being needed for the driver leg room, that high price may influence my decision. I have not had a chance to test drive a 2013 Focus yet and the higher price of the Fit Sport puts these two vehicles closer together in price.

I'm hoping to make my decision before the end of the week. Work schedule makes getting to the dealers difficult in the morning, and they're closed after I get off the clock.

If this site is reputable, the Fit's much higher reliability score vs the Fiesta is a major point in its favor.

http://usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/cars-trucks/Honda_Fit/
http://usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/cars-trucks/Ford_Fiesta/
 
You seem to be interested in the Focus, but you're having them bring a Fiesta over. The Focus is a slightly bigger car (98" vs 104.3" according to Ford's website), and that may suit your longer stature a lot better. Although, the Focus is #3 on that website that you linked right behind the Fiesta.
 
Aikouka said:
You seem to be interested in the Focus, but you're having them bring a Fiesta over. The Focus is a slightly bigger car (98" vs 104.3" according to Ford's website), and that may suit your longer stature a lot better. Although, the Focus is #3 on that website that you linked right behind the Fiesta.
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I'm more interested in the Fiesta. The Focus entered my sights because of the $2500 rebate, which brings the price down enough for me to consider. Without it, with options and TTL, it's more than I want to spend.

Should clarify, I'm not poor. 😛 I drop 1000/month into a savings account, I just don't want to deplete that figure with a 600/month car and insurance payment.
 
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