I went to a friendly Florida dealer and was inquiring about their 8's and prices involved. He gave me a sheet with "dealer invoice prices" on the cars along with equipment packages and options. I wish I had a scanner to post but here are a few prices. The dealer invoice prices have a statement that says it includes dealer holdback and uniform marketing charges. It also does not include $520.00 destination.

I did not know there was so much profit for the dealer when they sold a car at "window sticker".


invoice msrp
RX8 automatic $23274 $25180
RX8 6 speed 24659 26680

auto gran touring 3957 4600
auto touring 3011 3500
auto sport 1549 1800
6speed gran touring 3355 3900
6speed touring 2323 2700
6speed sport 946 1100
navigation 1721 2000

 

the dealer invoice has been scanned and added to this website, give it a search..

EDIT:
http://www.rx8forum.com/showthread.p...dealer+invoice

 

You can also find this info at any car pricing site, like edmunds.

 

True, and kbb.com had it well before the car came to the states.

 

Can someone clarify for me:

If the invoice price listed "includes" dealer holdback allowance, does this mean if the dealer paid $30,000 ("invoice price") for a car including a 2% holdback, the dealer actually paid $30,600 and $600 is given back to them by the car manufacturer after the car is sold to the customer?

I'm sure this is a simple concept, but I've never completely understood it.

 

NO! The 'dealer holdback' (2% in Mazda's case) is an amount that is credited back to the dealer. Meaning that if the dealer
invoice was $30,000 the dealer actually ends up paying $29,400
after all is done and said...so, the dealers profit is the sum of 2%
holdback plus whatever you pay over invoice.

Regards, Last_D8

 

This is according to a General Manager/golfing buddy at my local Infiniti dealer. I showed him the printout that's posted regarding invoice/MSRP. He said that the holdback comes once/month from Mazda paid to the dealer. That holdback should be ADDED to the price paid by the dealer. In addition, he said marketing dollar payments are real that the dealer must, indirectly, pay to Mazda in the form of what the final price of the car is from Mazda to the dealer. It varies from region to region. He said he's seen it varry from $300-$800 depending on manufacturer and model. Let's say marketing costs roughly $400 for the RX8.

So, what this all means is that on an RX8 which has a $30K sticker (for ease of my feeble math) you add to the invoice numbers posted $600 holdback (2%) and $400 marketing....total of $1,000 give or take.

I paid $100 under MSRP for my 6MT GT with Nav. That means the dealer probably made around $1,500 on my particular car. I'm sure they're loving it because every other model in their showroom is going for a couple hundred above invoice.

I can live with that to have one of the best sports cars that, even priced at MSRP, is a relative bargain.

 

www.carbuyingtips.com

Enjoy

 

Actually, the deal is even sweeter considering you're getting $500 back plus free service.

 

Yea, I've gladly opted for the $500 and free maintenance, so that does sweeten the pot. If you add that in, I got the car well below invoice. Anyone buying the car now won't come anywhere near that kind of deal.

I've been watching the "carbuyingtips.com" web site for several years. It started during the "dot com" mania. It's really grown and it looks like the author has made himself a nice business out of it by the looks of all the advertising that's there.

While I think there are some really good ideas on the site, I do question the idea of looking at buyer and seller as an adversarial relationship from the outset. I don't think that makes for a "win-win" situation which is what any deal ends up being. Will it save some people some money? Absolutely....particularly if an inexperienced consumer goes up against an unscrupulous dealer. If you've been buying cars for a while, the likelihood of "getting screwed" by the dealer isn't going to happen.

Personally, I like to have all my research done, with invoice and MSRP prices in tow before I go to the dealer. That way, I can focus on the dealership's pluses and minuses (service dept, if there's any "game playing" they like to do, how I'm treated, etc). I usually check with all dealers within a one hour driving distance of me. Tell them what I want and ask for their price. That way, I can negotiate with the dealer I felt most comfortable with.

In the case of the RX8, I knew up front that all dealers started at MSRP and above. I quickly dismissed those that were asking above MSRP. The rest told me they wouldn't budge from MSRP. Once I made up my mind on the dealer, I started offering "invoice" to buy. That offer didn't even end up on the Manager's desk. Not until I offered $500 under MSRP did the manager get involved. He said he would let me walk at $500 under MSRP, but agreed to throw in some winter floor mats and take $100 under MSRP. Could I have got another $150 off? Maybe, but I wasn't going to go the adversarial route.

I would think that the strategies on the WEB site would prove more worthy if you aren't dealing with a car that's in high demand like the RX8 is.

Truth told, I was able to negotiate $1,200 off a 350Z, but it was my 2nd choice.

 

However, if you bought the car after Aug. 26 (like I did...), you don't get the free maint.

 

Thanks for the info!

 

is this true? only owners before August 26 get the free maintenance?

 

I have read different opinions of the cut-off date, but that's about right. After that date, they figure you knew about the horsepower deficiency. Pre-orders are still covered, I believe, even if their cars haven't arrived.

 

I had to sign something when I bought the car and the date on it was 8/26/03.

 

I'll be that Z was a 2003 model though and that the dealer wanted to sell it off his lot to make room for the 2004's.