Civic Si Pricing

zroger73

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Doc fee is the same on any vehicle. Same as the other Honda dealer I bought my Fit from. And yes, it's added profit for the dealer, but I lump it in with tax, tag and title as the cost of purchasing.
Imagine going to Walmart and being charged a fixed, $5 "checkout fee" on every purchase to cover the cost of the cashier's wages and the receipt paper whether you bought a $1,000 television or a $10 box of rubbers.

Sales tax, title fees, and registration fees, on the other hand, don't belong to the dealer and they can't charge any more or less than the effective rates or amounts. The amount of sales tax you pay varies since it is a percentage of the purchase price.

I would never consider a doc fee to be a "cost of purchasing"...because it isn't. Ultimately, it doesn't matter how much the doc fee is - the number at the bottom of the page is the only one that matters. I don't care if a dealer charges a $4,000 doc fee as long as they take another $4,000 off the purchase price. :)
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boosted180sx

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There's no minimum for doc fees. They are fees charged by the dealer that stay at the dealer. They are not levied or required by taxing jurisdictions outside the dealership. They are pure profit for the dealership - plain and simple.

There are, however, maximum limits for doc fees.

Here in Texas, for example, a dealer is permitted to charge a doc fee, but if they do they must charge every customer the same amount. If they choose to waive the doc fee, it must still appear on the paperwork and be offset somewhere else (lower the price of the new car or raise the value of the trade-in).
you right. Idk why I put minimum lol.

What I shoud've said was most dealerships has an amount they always tack on to every single car no matter what car you buy.
I would never consider a doc fee to be a "cost of purchasing"...because it isn't. Ultimately, it doesn't matter how much the doc fee is - the number at the bottom of the page is the only one that matters. I don't care if a dealer charges a $4,000 doc fee as long as they take another $4,000 off the purchase price. :)
But that is not always the case unfortunately lol.
It really doesn't matter most of the time anyways since I'm negotiating OTD prices which would include doc fees, taxes, and everything. As long as I get an OTD price of what I want they can tack on tons of doc fees if they want lol.
 

zroger73

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Thanks, that explains a few things. Noticed that on mine (and many others posted here) and didn't understand why would they keep the fee but drop the MSRP, instead of just waiving the fee. Figured it was some sort of bureaucratic necessity making for easier accounting/paperwork, but had no idea it was legally required.

We have way too many laws in this country. :p
That part can be confusing as doc fees aren't legally required, but can be legally permitted. As another example, here in Texas...

- A doc fee isn't legally required.
- A doc fee is legally permitted without question up to $50.
- A doc fee above $50 and up to $150 must be disclosed to the State, but does not require "approval".
- A doc fee above $150 requires a cost analysis to be submitted to the State for determination of reasonableness.
- A dealer doesn't have to charge a doc fee, but if they do they must list the doc fee on every sale even if they end up offsetting it by reducing the purchase price.
- I've never seen a Texas dealer charge more than $150 because that would involve them providing a cost analysis to the state to justify the expense. If the State determines that the costs are unreasonable, they can order the dealership to pay restitution.
- Virtually every dealer elects to charge a doc fee. I mean, it's extra profit and legally permitted, so why not? However, they have to charge every customer on every sale. It is rare to find a Texas dealer that doesn't charge a doc fee of $150.

http://texreg.sos.state.tx.us/publi...c=&p_ploc=&pg=1&p_tac=&ti=7&pt=5&ch=84&rl=205

The limits and details vary by state, but no state requires doc fees - they are completely optional by the dealer and most dealers choose to charge them.
 

Design

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I agree that OTD pricing is really the magic number here. CA taxes are a whopping 7.5% on MSRP. Plus $300 registration, plus $80 doc fee (it's VERY rare that our So Cal dealers wave this, but can't charge more than $80 due to state trade laws).

So in factoring total price, I look at it this way:
  • Target purchase price: $22,500
  • Doc fee: $80
  • Registration: $300
  • CA State Tax from MSRP: $1782.50
  • Target OtD price: $24,672.50
I usually rely on Costco fleet pricing to eliminate the hassle. But none of the dealers are budging yet on the Si. Might try my hand at the end of next month.
 


xbbnx

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"Nevada collects a 8.1% state sales tax rate on the purchase of all vehicles. Some dealerships may also charge a 149 dollar documentary fee. The maximum tax that can be charged is 950 dollars. In addition to taxes, car purchases in Nevada may be subject to other fees like registration, title, and plate fees."

If the sales tax is 8.1 of purchase price, why does it then say that the maximum tax that can be charged is $950? Why even put a percentage on it, when you have a fixed rate? Can somebody clear that up?
 

CivicSi84

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"Nevada collects a 8.1% state sales tax rate on the purchase of all vehicles. Some dealerships may also charge a 149 dollar documentary fee. The maximum tax that can be charged is 950 dollars. In addition to taxes, car purchases in Nevada may be subject to other fees like registration, title, and plate fees."

If the sales tax is 8.1 of purchase price, why does it then say that the maximum tax that can be charged is $950? Why even put a percentage on it, when you have a fixed rate? Can somebody clear that up?
Would you want to pay 8.1% of a $5000 car or $950?
 

Mugenbound

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Can you define 'bumper-to-bumper'? Is it the standard Honda Care or something more?
Bumper-to-Bumper means anything that goes wrong with it excluding events that cause the car to malfunction due to acts-of-god or negligence such as crashing the car.
 

zroger73

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hockeymutt

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Paid 23900 out the door, this included 400 in negative equity, 300 dealer options, and 300 doc fee
 

1.5CivicEX-T

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On a side note, looks like the price of these Si's aren't dropping as fast as people thought. Some deals out there, but not the $3k off MSRP people were hoping for. Maybe winter will change that. There are a lot of them out there now. Time will tell.
 


 


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