plan on getting for a family member a brand new 2009 honda fit sport or sport navigation.

i dont live there but they do.

i need to have my facts and good background before i make the negotiations.

so whats the best prices people are getting over there and where is the best place to go?

 

most likely msrp +trans fee+ TTR and some goodies if you are lucky/forceful

 

i guess there is no real deals down there huh?

 

I live up at the north end of the state and I can tell you there were no deals up here a month ago when I got mine. Matter of fact, it was all I could do to get them to take off the dealer mark ups. There are between 3 and 6 dealers in the greater NOLA area, depending on how far out you get. Here's a link to Edmunds with their listings:

Find Honda Dealers in New Orleans, Louisiana

 

i had called premier/colonial honda. they are the rudest and some unprofessional people i have yet to talk to.

one of the sales guy there says he is a fleet manager but he wasnt. then the receptionist named rosa or rose, i cant remember, keeps putting me on hold and then hangs up on me. the wanna be fleet manager said he wants to laugh at me and wants to hang up on me.

man i dont know what to say.

 

Well, my Honda dealer up here is very good at communicating over the phone/internet. I got price quotes on two Fit Sports and an Insight before I stepped foot in the showroom. Of course, already owning a CR-V and having just bought an Odyssey EX-L three months before might have influenced their helpfulness! Hey, try the other dealers.

If you go to Bing.com and search for New Orleans Honda dealers, you'll see Royal has one review and it is about as bad or worse than yours.

 

I shopped for Fits in Houma, they were very friendly but Lafayette had the one I wanted.

The problem with fits is that you can't really change the price in the first place because they are marked up very little.

 

actually there is a bit more on the mark up but dealerships dont want you do know this. basically dealership's cost per car is about 60% of msrp.

 

I know a few Honda employee's one of which is a member of the car club I'm in. He's sales at one of the Dealerships near NO and he told us himself that the Fits are hard sales because people want to take money of the sticker and he can't do it because there isn't any flex room at all.

I'm just saying you can't really find a "good price" because they will all be relatively the same no matter which honda dealer you go to, unless you want used.

 

Shop around via the Honda.com site. Enter a zip code and check out dealers, starting with the closest one.

Royal has a mark up:
Royal | Honda | Metairie New Orleans River Ridge | Louisiana

This one doesn't have any added markup (they're at MSRP), but don't list color (they do list VIN though):
Louisiana Honda Used car dealer, Harvey, LA, dealer, new cars, used cars, Insight, Pilot, Odyssey, Auto repair, auto parts

This one is also MSRP and lists color and VIN:
Honda of Slidell | Slidell - New Orleans - Mandeville | New - Used - Pre-Owned Honda Dealership | Louisiana

Stick with the ones that start out at MSRP. At least then you don't have to battle down their dealer markup to feel like you're getting a good deal at MSRP. The worst you can do is end up paying MSRP, at a dealership that starts off at MSRP. There is very little wiggle room on MSRP, as mentioned on the Edmunds site. Like less than a thousand dollars.

 

oh ok, well yeah i agree with you on the fact the dealerships want as much as they can for these or any car. sucks for the consumers.
i wonder why they are being so tight on these because there are plenty of these all over each dealerships.

its not like there is a shortage of fits. also there is a problem with the economy right now, why be azz's about the deal.

 

thanks for the info. i did try looking up those. but im looking for what great deals people have and their experiences. most dealerships in new orleans are just rude and suck.

do you have a feeling these huge companies like honda, toyota, ford, etc, pays sites like edmunds to print what they want us to see?

they give us just enough info to make us feel like we got a chance so we fell like we are gettting the deal.

 

When I purchased my 09 fit sport AT I got price quotes from several area dealers online before I even set foot on the lot. I took the second lowest quote, played it against the lower quote and it didnt really work. I ended up going with one and got it for 16,700. That includes destination. Shop around if you're looking for a good deal, and prepare to wheel and deal.

Another tactic that a client of mine used last time he bought a car was this.
client: "well, I dont really want to buy a car, but I have to. This accord looks nice.... (while sounding reluctant the whole time)
Salesman: "well, make me an offer."
client: "If I make you an offer, and you accept, then I have to buy the car"
salesman: "Yes, that's how it works"
Client: "well, I'll pay 16,000 for that accord." (it stickered for $24,xxx)

the salesman went and talked it over with the manager and came back with 16500. Of course he accepted the counter offer.

It's all about negotiations, really. I dont know if the dealers in louisana are exceptionally horrible or what, but it shouldnt be too hard to find a good price on a fit, especially with how auto sales are down.

 

thanks for the reply.

for 16700 was that also with tax and license?

 

They tend to be actually overstocked on the new fits, they expected them to sale just as fast as the old fits, which sold amazingly fast(around here anyway). But thats the problem, the new fits just don't sale as fast, especially with the slightly higher price tag. Honda use to have a extremely cheap car, but now Toyota, Nissan, Etc are selling cheaper cars and that draws from sales.

 

good insight.

so do you think there is a location that might think this way in LA.

...but the customer service is soo horrible in LA that i am suprised they can sell anything at all.

 

A lot of it is timing! It's often WHEN you buy the car. People that had to be the first ones in their area with a FIT paid MSRP plus dealer markup of a few thousand dollars.

The dealers KNEW they could get the higher price, and the consumers KNEW they would be paying a higher price. Just to be the first.

There are all kinds of articles on when to buy a car. Deals are made on that year's model at the end of the year, just to move inventory. Here's a good one at Edmunds:
When to Buy Your Next Car

When did I buy my car? Dec 19th. I made the deal online by email and by phone. Paid a wee bit under MSRP. The cargo cover was gratis (paid full retail for a few other things, the cargo mat and all-season mats). And they drove 30+ miles to PICK ME UP AND TAKE ME TO THE DEALERSHIP.

I was a cash sale. So no haggling other than the bit via email and on the phone. I went with a check made out for the amount they told me. You've got the holiday factor, the end of the year factor, the cold weather nobody shopping factor (the dealership and the lot were EMPTY).

I bought then because that was when I needed a car. NEEDED. And they had the car I wanted (base white auto). I read online information for a YEAR before buying a car. My old car broke down and I wasn't so sure I wanted to put any more money into it. I WALKED and did online research. I took the bus and did online research. I read and read and read.

Is the car you are looking to buy because it's NEEDED or because it's WANTED? And do you know if the FIT is the RIGHT CAR FOR YOU?
Start over here:
10 Steps to Finding the Right Car for You

Lots of people WANT new cars. As it happens every summer, the price of gas goes up. And every summer, a few more people dump their old car for something that gets better mileage.

The dealerships have enough buyers right now that they can wait for people to pay the price they are asking. Sometimes it's attitude too, that will get you a good deal. Your mood + the salesperson's mood. You never know what goes on at their end. Maybe the salesperson was told "Sell a car today or you're out of here". They do that, you know.

What is your definition of "a good deal"? You have to be able to answer that question before you can get it. And if the answer to your answer is that "there is no way they can do that" then you won't ever get a good deal by your definition.

 

Just a suggestion, but you could try shopping in other nearby states. $250 in gas will easily take you from New York to Los Angeles in the Fit. (@ $3/gal)

 

I know its a bit of a drive, but Moss Motors in Lafayette gave me a great deal when I got my 08 fit. Fast, friendly, etc. Call them and ask for Mark. Plus they have more service awards than any other Honda dealership I checked out. I have yet to have a problem with them. My brother got his 07 fit there as well.

888-261-0075

 

a drive wont be too much of an issue.

i think doing a bit of looking around and searching is worth it, rather than having a salesman laugh at my face while doing a negotiation deal just because he didnt like my counter offer. i have never had a rude salesman before so i was little stunned.

...and yes when i say he laughed, he did the stupid loud laugh just to so others around him can hear it and try to make the customer feel like they made a huge mistake in comming in there. you would never get that stupid attitude in different states or dealerships.