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#1 2006-10-27 9:25 am
- bastion72
- Member
- From: purgatory
- Registered: 1999-10-21
- Posts: 261
Sleazy car dealer tactics...
OK, so I went to see a Mazdaspeed3 GT. I look at the sticker and it has the usual Mazda MSRP pricing, but next to it there's another one from the dealer. It has an MSRP of $24,590 but it also has an "ADM" of $2995 and a "Shipping Fee" of $495.95. So I ask the guy why they're charging an additional shipping fee. He said "Oh, they swapped it around by accident and it's hard to correct it". Says the $495.95 "ADM" is an administration fee, pays the secretaries, light bills etc, and not negotiable. Also the $2995 is an adjustment, obviously since the car is quite hot. So the one on the lot isn't negotiable on that price...$28,xxx plus tax, title. I can order one but still have the "ADM" fee plus $1000 over MSRP. So $1500 over MSRP.
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#2 2006-10-27 12:38 pm
- nannyandnutro
- Who's your nanny?

- From: Minis Tirith, TN
- Registered: 2003-02-12
- Posts: 1752
Re: Sleazy car dealer tactics...
I hate that. Buying any car for over MSRP is an unwise financial decision because you'll never stop being upside down in it. Is there another way for you to find one at a fair price?
Carl: Meat-man... ever since my son was... never born, because I've never had consensual sex without money involved... I've always kind of looked at you as... a thing, that I could live next to... in accordance with state laws.
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#3 2006-10-27 12:42 pm
- bastion72
- Member
- From: purgatory
- Registered: 1999-10-21
- Posts: 261
Re: Sleazy car dealer tactics...
Well, good news...my GF contacted a dealer in Orlando. They have a silver one coming in soon. She put a deposit on it for me. She's the best!
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#4 2006-10-27 1:11 pm
- ConnertheCat
- 7 Months Later

- From: Penfield, NY
- Registered: 2001-07-21
- Posts: 13405
Re: Sleazy car dealer tactics...
Indeed. I was looking at a used car here, and they wanted 2.5 over bluebook on it - it was pretty bad (it's quite a bit for something that's only supposed to be 8k anyhow, like 25% extra).
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#5 2006-10-27 7:54 pm
Re: Sleazy car dealer tactics...
Dealers have a bunch of made up fees these days that are tacked on after the negotiated price. They have a lot of competition from the internet so its not suprising they are trying different ways of reeling people in.
Just like back in Saigon! Eh, slick?
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#6 2006-10-28 7:44 am
- icebook1
- That college kid

- From: Virginia
- Registered: 2001-05-27
- Posts: 1384
Re: Sleazy car dealer tactics...
Interesting how they tack on tons of extra fees, wonder why nobody's buying from them, and then offer incentives on top of the fees to lure more buyers.
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#8 2006-10-28 8:58 pm
- bloomsday
- Mmber

- From: edge of ledge
- Registered: 2001-04-13
- Posts: 4040
Re: Sleazy car dealer tactics...
they can't be sleazy if you know your smurf.
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#9 2006-10-28 10:56 pm
- icebook1
- That college kid

- From: Virginia
- Registered: 2001-05-27
- Posts: 1384
Re: Sleazy car dealer tactics...
wph -- a fellow "Escapee!" If you have any questions or whatnot, come join the nuthouse over at escape-central.com.
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#12 2006-11-02 1:51 pm
- DukeofNuke
- Free Radical

- From: Hazard
- Registered: 2003-05-02
- Posts: 2563
Re: Sleazy car dealer tactics...
(I guess I'm a little late...)
"ADM" stands for "Additional Dealer Markup", and if it's not the first thing to go, then you should be.
If the sales guy says it is non negotiable, turn on your heel and walk out. "...pays the secretaries, light bills etc,..." is bullsmurf.
Start your negoations at the sticker price. Don't get so hot for the car that he can push you around. No matter what the car, they made thousands of 'em, and you can do better that this.
Research "How to Buy a Used Car" websites and books. Some of them expose these dealers dirty tricks.
"If you want to kick a tiger in the ass, you better have a plan for dealing with his teeth."
- Tom Clancy
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#13 2006-11-02 2:30 pm
- bastion72
- Member
- From: purgatory
- Registered: 1999-10-21
- Posts: 261
Re: Sleazy car dealer tactics...
Well I found a dealer willing to sell at MSRP. I'm getting one in a week or two.
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#14 2006-11-04 11:59 am
- dmceleney
- Member
- Registered: 2004-05-25
- Posts: 52
Re: Sleazy car dealer tactics...
MSRp is still too high, you can negotiate it down, You are the one with the money and should have control to walk away, if you do not have control
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#15 2006-11-04 4:10 pm
- bastion72
- Member
- From: purgatory
- Registered: 1999-10-21
- Posts: 261
Re: Sleazy car dealer tactics...
Well Mazda only made 5000 of these cars and are in high demand. So getting one a MSRP is good. I'm picking it up tomorrow also.
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#16 2006-11-06 5:19 am
- Orion
- Bovi-sapiens

- From: America's Dairyland
- Registered: 2000-09-12
- Posts: 2958
Re: Sleazy car dealer tactics...
The car dealer I always dealt with (and my parents, and my grandparents) was great in that he refused to negotiate. He would price the car as low as he felt he could and then you decided if you wanted it or not. I hate negotiating prices, so it worked out great. He was always below sticker price, and in the case of my Jeep, it was almost 1400 below sticker. The list was 8400, but he said "I really hate sticker prices. All the other sales men here want to negotiate a price. So, how does 7000 sound?" The guy would tell you straight where the car came from, who owned it, what he paid for it, how much he put into it to do any repairs, and then what price he wanted. He sold more cars than the other 5 salesmen combined each year. The dealership finally decided that he should charge more money for the cars he sold (probably so they could buy their new beach house!) and when he refused, they kicked him out. He was part owner of the business when his dealership was merged with a bigger one (Chrysler was going to pull his dealership unless he expanded or merged). What a way to treat a guy. 
He is sending people who ask him to another dealer in a nearby town. I surely won't give that dealership my business anymore. Bastards!
Farming is easy when your plow is a pencil and you are a thousand miles from the cornfield. -Dwight D. Eisenhower
Don't curse the farmer with your mouth full.
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