Offical "Si Dealer Naughty List" thread

[dmitri]

I'm in the process of buying an Si and was given an accessories list with installed prices way above the numbers on Honda's website. Is this something that belongs on the dealer naughty list?

Hah unfortunately that's a very common behavior. One of the benefits of buying early is that you get a better chance of finding a dealer that is willing to sell you one before they put a bunch of accessories on the car. Of course, that comes at a cost (i.e. you generally pay more early on). But I think all dealers would eventually put at least some accessories on, once the car's of the truck and on the lot.

If getting a "clean" car is a priority for you, I would probably wait till the 2018 ones start arriving.

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[PilotZero]

Hah unfortunately that's a very common behavior. One of the benefits of buying early is that you get a better chance of finding a dealer that is willing to sell you one before they put a bunch of accessories on the car. Of course, that comes at a cost (i.e. you generally pay more early on). But I think all dealers would eventually put at least some accessories on, once the car's of the truck and on the lot.

If getting a "clean" car is a priority for you, I would probably wait till the 2018 ones start arriving.

Sounds like good advice, and I even mentioned that to my dealer salesperson, but she said the Si's just came out a few months ago so the 2018 models could be a long while away, if there even are any, right?

 

[dmitri]

It may be, but it may also be that they come out in Oct/Nov. Nobody really knows that, but one thing we do know for sure is that a salesperson wants to sell one to you ASAP.

Shop around if you can, -- different dealers vary dramatically in many ways, even when they are reasonably close to one another geographically, and since there are a lot of Si's out there on the lots now, which should definitely be in your favor.

Bottom line/back to my point -- most, if not all, of them are very likely to have some accessories installed at this point. One of the ways for dealers to make more money, and also serves as a bargaining chip. As was suggested by several people on several threads (and what I did in June to get mine) -- decide on the out-the-door price that you believe is reasonable and contact as many dealers as you can with your offer.

Good luck!

 

[zroger73]

I'm in the process of buying an Si and was given an accessories list with installed prices way above the numbers on Honda's website. Is this something that belongs on the dealer naughty list?

Not really. If you click the "i" next to the accessory on Honda's "build & price" page, you'll see:

"Prices shown are manufacturer suggested retail prices only. Installation cost for accessories is not included. Dealer costs may vary. Prices exclude applicable taxes."

 

[PilotZero]

Not really. If you click the "i" next to the accessory on Honda's "build & price" page, you'll see:

"Prices shown are manufacturer suggested retail prices only. Installation cost for accessories is not included. Dealer costs may vary. Prices exclude applicable taxes."

I noticed that but $425 for the auto-dimming rearview mirror just seems like a lot compared to the $217 on Honda's website.

 

[zroger73]

I noticed that but $425 for the auto-dimming rearview mirror just seems like a lot compared to the $217 on Honda's website.

Right. That's because the $217 is Honda's suggested retail price for the mirror. That $217 price does not include installation. Honda has no knowledge or control over what dealers charge for installation labor, so they are unable to show the installed price, which will vary by dealer.

Example:

$217 mirror
+ $208 installation charge
= $425 installed price

$208 for installation labor is about right considering the typical labor rates and how involved this installation is. The dealer is also free to advertise the mirror at $425 with "free installation". It all comes out the same.

 

[Design]

I'm in the process of buying an Si and was given an accessories list with installed prices way above the numbers on Honda's website. Is this something that belongs on the dealer naughty list?

You can use Honda's website to track inventory and spot models that are designated 'in transit'. Best chance of grabbing a fresh one before the dealer adds accessories.

 

[PilotZero]

You can use Honda's website to track inventory and spot models that are designated 'in transit'. Best chance of grabbing a fresh one before the dealer adds accessories.

Oh, interesting. I always just relied on the dealer's website but the info on Honda's website is probably updated sooner.

 

[dmitri]

I would guess (may well be wrong) that by the time the dealer puts it up on their website it probably already has the accessories on.

 

[splat]

You can use Honda's website to track inventory and spot models that are designated 'in transit'. Best chance of grabbing a fresh one before the dealer adds accessories.

This. I kept watching Honda's site and when my local dealer had the right color coming in I put a deposit down on the agreement that the dealer wouldn't do or add anything to it.

 

[jian9007]

This. I kept watching Honda's site and when my local dealer had the right color coming in I put a deposit down on the agreement that the dealer wouldn't do or add anything to it.

It's the only way to know what's in transit without talking to the dealer. However, it's not completely accurate, as one dealer in North Texas (Freeman Honda) allows you to click on the link on their website to see what's in transit. The Honda site shows one Si Coupe in transit, but on Freeman's site, it shows there are currently 14 coupes in transit. Also, my current Honda dealer has an Aegean Blue Metallic one I'm waiting on (and still negotiating the final OTD price on), that's in transit (due between 9-20 and first week in October), but not listed on the Honda website. Just an FYI.

 

[zroger73]

It's the only way to know what's in transit without talking to the dealer. However, it's not completely accurate, as one dealer in North Texas (Freeman Honda) allows you to click on the link on their website to see what's in transit. The Honda site shows one Si Coupe in transit, but on Freeman's site, it shows there are currently 14 coupes in transit. Also, my current Honda dealer has an Aegean Blue Metallic one I'm waiting on (and still negotiating the final OTD price on), that's in transit (due between 9-20 and first week in October), but not listed on the Honda website. Just an FYI.

It only takes about two weeks to transport a vehicle from coast-to-coast. If a vehicle is not due to be delivered until 9/20, then it's possible it hasn't even been built yet or if it has, it could still be sitting at the staging area at the factory. It's unlikely to actually be "in transit". Usually, vehicles deliver to dealers a week or more early, but sometimes they are delayed by weeks for various reasons (i.e., production problem, defect found and runs of vehicles are set aside and fixed at a later date, etc.)

When Honda's website shows "in transit", that means the vehicle has been manufactured and has left the factory and is on a rail car, OTR transport truck, or somewhere in between on its way to the dealer. When a dealer's website shows "in transit", that could mean anything from "scheduled to be built" to "built" to "shipped" to "in route to the dealer" to "it's been delivered, but is still sitting at the back of the lot".

 

[jian9007]

It only takes about two weeks to transport a vehicle from coast-to-coast. If a vehicle is not due to be delivered until 9/20, then it's possible it hasn't even been built yet or if it has, it could still be sitting at the staging area at the factory. It's unlikely to actually be "in transit". Usually, vehicles deliver to dealers a week or more early, but sometimes they are delayed by weeks for various reasons (i.e., production problem, defect found and runs of vehicles are set aside and fixed at a later date, etc.)

When Honda's website shows "in transit", that means the vehicle has been manufactured and has left the factory and is on a rail car, OTR transport truck, or somewhere in between on its way to the dealer. When a dealer's website shows "in transit", that could mean anything from "scheduled to be built" to "built" to "shipped" to "in route to the dealer" to "it's been delivered, but is still sitting at the back of the lot".

True. I was just pointing out that the dealers in transit means they are due to receive the car, even it may be more than 2 weeks away and hasn't actually been built yet or hasn't left the factory. So with the rare dealers who have a list on their website showing vehicles in transit (only Freeman Honda out of several North Texas dealers here shows vehicles in transit), you can at least see if they will have one in the color and trim you are looking for on the way sometime in the (hopefully) near future. All I know is the one I want is just a few weeks away or so, unless for some reason my dealer can't meet my OTD price. If they can't, another dealer has one Aegean Blue one that just hit their lot, and two more Aegean Blue ones on the way as well (along with 12 other Si Coupes in every other color), so I'll snag one from them.

 

[blkfa5]

For you DFW, TX potential buyers. Stay away from David McDavid Irving


http://www.civicx.com/threads/do-not-shop-at-david-mcdavid-irving.15577/#post-286483

 

[Luckyarmpit]

Hello all, new to the forums, wanted to say hello and also share my buying experience -

TL : DR – Bought a 2017 Civic Si for below sticker and got the extended warranty for a great price after a lot of heartburn.

Long version - Leith Honda in Raleigh, NC had several 2017 Civic Si coupes on the lot... red, grey, and blue. I even drove the Si 4-door but decided what the hell... I'm in my mid-40's, no kids, so why not a coupe? The blue Si coupe I drove had less than 100 miles on it - 106 by the time my GF and I both drove it on a long loop that included highway and street driving. The dealer, of course, had installed the trunk tray and something else (can't remember) on it to the tune of several hundred dollars. The sticker on the car, with the included options, was $24,900 - don't remember the exact number but that's real close. This was Saturday the 21st of October.

We left the lot and the salesman called me later that night and offered the car at sticker price (of course) with almost $2000 added on for tax/tags/destination/paperwork, etc., making the price about $27,000. Long pause as he awaited my reply. I told him my counter-offer was $23,000 out the door. He sputtered and stuttered and asked if I were serious? I said I was absolutely serious. He asked where I possibly got that number from? My reply was:

1. It's a 2017 and you need to make room for the incoming 2018's and

2. (most importantly) This would me my 3rd car... I WANT the car but I don't NEED the car and would be perfectly content to walk away from it, because I don't NEED the car.

I thanked him for his time and hung up.

On Monday, I got a phone call from the salesman who said that they were willing to sell the car for $24,700 out the door. That's a couple of hundred bucks below sticker, and that included the stupid add-ons I didn't want, and all tax/tags/destination/paperwork costs. Told him I'd take it, called my FI, and they gave me 2.39% for 60 months. Got the check and went to pick it up last Wednesday (a week ago today).

This is where the story goes sour.

I see my car… shiny and clean, blue paint glistening in the morning sun, gassed up, just begging me to get in, adjust the seat, tune the radio to Liquid Metal, and drive off. I had my check for $24,700 in my hot little hands just dying to hand it to someone, sign some papers, and get my keys. I was then taken into the Finance Guy's office who slid a piece of paper across the table at me. Listed on said piece of paper were four extended warranty/add-on packages, ranging from almost $7000 to an "a la carte" option of $800. I wasn't asked, "Do you want one of these?" but was instead asked "Which one do you want?" I told him 'none' which then began his extremely high-pressure sales pitch ("Don't you see the value?" "What if I reduced the price?" Etc., etc.). I told him “no thank you” many times, enough times that I was quite literally a few seconds away from snatching my check off the table and walking out of there WITHOUT the car. He then gave up, printed up a piece of paper that I had to sign that acknowledged I declined everything. He spoke to me like someone who was disappointed with his dog because it peed on the carpet again.

I then opened by big mouth and said that I might be interested in the 10 year/150,000 mile warranty but I wasn’t going to pay $3,900 for it. He reduced the price to $1,700 and I said that’s fair, but I didn’t have $1,700 laying around (I did, I just didn’t want to pull it out of savings). He then asked, “Well, why can’t you just put it on your credit or debit card?” *sigh* Told him I’d call my FI and see what they could do. FI said that they’d have to reissue the loan, get the check back, etc., and I decided it was way too much trouble. Called Finance Guy back and told him to forget it, and thanks anyway.

Meanwhile I’m stewing over Finance Guy’s high-pressure sales tactics and overall bad attitude and how it put a black cloud over my car purchase. I called and spoke to a manager that politely listened to me vent and he promised to get to the bottom of it. Sure enough, several hours later, he called back and said that he made some calls to his bank and Honda beat my FI’s rate (2.32% vs. 2.39%). Big deal, you might say, but that meant that I could roll the extended warranty into the cost of the loan and finance it… and my payment only went up by ~$30/month.

The moral of the story? Overall I got a really good deal on a new Civic Si and extended warranty but it almost wasn’t worth the heartburn. I recommend Leith Honda because the salesman and manager were awesome, but watch out for the Finance Guy.

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