iclimb513 Posted February 7, 2006 Share Posted February 7, 2006 Hi. Been lurking for over 6 months during my time of contemplation on what car I will eventually buy. My current ride is a 94 toyota 4x4 pickup which is beat all to hell in side and out. Still runs fine though. 148,000 miles and never needed much of anything. But, it needs tires, ball joint, alignment and a bunch of other upkeep maintenance (first time ever lol) just to be a sound running ugly pile. So, once finances are in order it will be replaced. The budg is $22,000 max (before taxes) and I knew I wanted a sedan, AWD, and fun to drive MANUAL. The truck even when new was not fun to drive. The usual prospects have all been interviewed over the last 6 months: 2002 Audi A4 1.8T - Nice looking car, but common place. Couldn't get out of its own way below 10mph. Decent acceleration therafter (sorta). Nice handling at speed. Great interior. 2002 - Audi A4 3.0 - Much more acceptable thrust. Everything else seemed the same. Eventually I removed this car from the list of possibles because of the abysmal reliability record I discovered in my research. A 2002 is going to be very close to, if not actually off warranty. 2002 BMW 325Xi (and 330 XI) - Love the timeless looking design of the exterior. Even though the 3 series is as common as the A4, I always appreciate one when I see it. Awesome paint job. Interior is pretty nice. Lots of crap on the steering wheel. That's always nice. Adequate acceleration (to be nice about it) but real good handling at speed. Nice and serene with a bit of a "cockpit" feeling inside. The 330Xi is out of the price range. This car would be a contender one day. And blah blah same deal with Volvo and Saabs models (unimpressed with those). So, like many here the search led me to the car which seems to do a lot of things nicely. I've decided its going to be a 2005 Legacy GT. I've been on 2 test drives and they've both been real impressive. I'm sold. The last time I went, the local dealership offered me the test car. A 2005 "factory" car with 19,000 miles on it. Sticker said 23,000, first offer from sales guy was 22,000 Everything seemed fine but you never know how bad it may have been beat on. Then again it is a Subaru under waranty for at least another year (during which time I'll be hammering it too I suppose). Car is Silver / Black limited, but no rear spoiler (don't want one anyway). Is this an acceptable price for this car? I know it's been there for a while, apparently everyone around here wants the automatic. IS 22,000 right now a decent deal? If I wait another 2 months and it's still there, what would a good "take it or leave it" offer from me be? Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cptaebphd Posted February 7, 2006 Share Posted February 7, 2006 Keep hunting. You should be able to get a new car for nearly that price. Mine was $22K and $24030 OTD last month. I think the rebate is now $2.5K for leftover 2005s. I'd offer 19K for the car you're looking at. But you should really try to find a new one and get the best deal of your life! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melayout Posted February 7, 2006 Share Posted February 7, 2006 +1, hunt for leftover new 05s. I keed I keeed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Two-Five Sti-L Posted February 7, 2006 Share Posted February 7, 2006 I agree that price is high for a "demo" w/almost 20k miles. If you must get this rather than a new w/no miles, at the very least negotiate for a FREE extended warranty for peace of mind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iclimb513 Posted February 7, 2006 Author Share Posted February 7, 2006 Keep hunting. You should be able to get a new car for nearly that price. Mine was $22K and $24030 OTD last month. I think the rebate is now $2.5K for leftover 2005s. I'd offer 19K for the car you're looking at. But you should really try to find a new one and get the best deal of your life! Well, I won't find one around here. There's 2 dealerships and one has NO '05's whatsoever. The other has a handfull of them new and used, but the only one with a manual tranny was the one I test drove. So that would mean traveling to find one. Which means the added expense of doing that PLUS I have to pay this state its taxes one way or another. If I buy the car out of state then (after paying the taxes of the seller state) I still have to pay it here in vehicle reg fees too I believe. That's an extra $1500 (plus the traveling expenses) which could quickly make it not worth doing. I've been looking on autotrader.com and other websites and it seems like the price they are asking is more or less in line with everything else I see out there. Or is it just that everyone else is also trying to rip me off too? What does OTD stand for? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ilh Posted February 7, 2006 Share Posted February 7, 2006 I don't think you typically pay the selling state's taxes if you are going to be immediately registering it in a different state. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Two-Five Sti-L Posted February 7, 2006 Share Posted February 7, 2006 OTD = out the door, inclusive of all taxes, title and registration/license fees Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MDork Posted February 7, 2006 Share Posted February 7, 2006 I don't think you typically pay the selling state's taxes if you are going to be immediately registering it in a different state. depends if the states have reciprocity or not. i bought mine in AZ and drove home to CA and did not have to pay double tax. I thought i might have to and was pleasantly surprised not to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cptaebphd Posted February 8, 2006 Share Posted February 8, 2006 Well, I won't find one around here. There's 2 dealerships and one has NO '05's whatsoever. The other has a handfull of them new and used, but the only one with a manual tranny was the one I test drove. So that would mean traveling to find one. Which means the added expense of doing that PLUS I have to pay this state its taxes one way or another. If I buy the car out of state then (after paying the taxes of the seller state) I still have to pay it here in vehicle reg fees too I believe. That's an extra $1500 (plus the traveling expenses) which could quickly make it not worth doing. I've been looking on autotrader.com and other websites and it seems like the price they are asking is more or less in line with everything else I see out there. Or is it just that everyone else is also trying to rip me off too? What does OTD stand for? I would strongly recommend spending at least a little time investigating the option of buying a new car. I really don't think you would EVER pay sales tax twice -- even with the cost of a plane ticket (or a road trip!), you could still get a great deal. No, I don't think all the folks on autotrader are trying to rip people off, they are simply trying to get the best price possible (remember, most of those folks paid MUCH closer to MSRP than you will for a new car and have a larger loan to pay off). What I found interesting is that I paid less for a leftover 05 than I would have for a used 05. I think those new car deals are still out there for you and are only getting sweeter. What have you got to lose? If you let folks know where you are, some of the members here may help you find a car. What are your requirements? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBT Posted February 8, 2006 Share Posted February 8, 2006 "OTD" means total cost of the vehicle (purchase price, plus tax, title, license (TTL) and other fees), "out the door" where you buy it. Also, as was mentioned, most states offer reciprocity in their taxing arrangements with other states. For instance if you buy a car in CA, depending on what county you buy it in, you could pay anywhere from 6.5% to 10.5% in state sales tax. Now if you bought the same car in LA (at 8.75% tax), but took delivery of it in Phoenix where you intended to register it, you would not pay CA sales tax or any CA fees for that matter (check with the local dealer to make sure on potential "other" fees though to make sure). If you bought and took delivery of the car in LA (even if you were not going to register it in CA), then you would pay the full sales tax but would not have to pay any sales tax to AZ when you registered the car unless the tax rate is higher then you would just pay the difference. Also, you'd have to check on it but some states will only charge you the amount of tax that you WOULD pay in the states that you intend to register the car so you don't get screwed by paying over what you would pay in your state of registry. Some of this has changed since I bought my car last year and I was helping others in the tri-state area work deals with a local dealer. It pays to check out all the aspects so you can ensure that you're making the most of your hard-earned money. SBT - Pro amore Dei et patriam et populum - Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
konrad Posted February 8, 2006 Share Posted February 8, 2006 +1 keep looking there are some sweet deals on 2005 out there. You can do much better then 22K Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iclimb513 Posted February 9, 2006 Author Share Posted February 9, 2006 Man, I must be missing something... http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/searchresults.jsp?advanced=y&bkms=1139445563924&certified=&isp=y&search=y&lang=en&search_type=both&body_style=SEDAN&make=SUB&model=LEGACY&make2=sel_one&start_year=2005&end_year=2005&min_price=&max_price=&max_mileage=&distance=0&address=84106&engine=&fuel=&drive=&transmission=Manual&doors=&color=&x=147&y=14 Look at the price ranges. The asking price on new ones is close to 30 grand in some cases. Used ones from dealerships are 25,000+ in most cases. Is anyone really going to accept 22,000 for a new 05 when their asking price is 8,000 higher than that? I don't really require much. The only thing I have to have is a manual. After that I guess I'd like a black interior. Exterior can be black, white or silver or i guess dark blue. I don't need leather or a moonroof or any of that, though I wouldn't mind. Why do I feel like once I'm ready to try and buy one it's going to be a total war to not get ripped off? What a pain in my ass... I would strongly recommend spending at least a little time investigating the option of buying a new car. I really don't think you would EVER pay sales tax twice -- even with the cost of a plane ticket (or a road trip!), you could still get a great deal. No, I don't think all the folks on autotrader are trying to rip people off, they are simply trying to get the best price possible (remember, most of those folks paid MUCH closer to MSRP than you will for a new car and have a larger loan to pay off). What I found interesting is that I paid less for a leftover 05 than I would have for a used 05. I think those new car deals are still out there for you and are only getting sweeter. What have you got to lose? If you let folks know where you are, some of the members here may help you find a car. What are your requirements? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mphat Posted February 10, 2006 Share Posted February 10, 2006 A couple months ago my local dealer had a 05 GT (not the limited) with a spoiler that MSRP'd for $27+K and they had it with a posted in the window price of $23+K. Since then the rebates at least in Washington State have jumped to $2500 (up from $1500) for 05 GT's. So it is possible to get cars WAY below MSRP and with the rebates a couple grand below invoice. If your a Costco member go to their website and find their "auto buying" services - if they don't have a dealer in your zip plug in some other ones in other parts of the state that might allow you to find a dealer who will offer pricing at or close to invoice... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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