For anyone who has used or got a quote based on S-Plan, is Dest Charge added on top of documented S-Plan base and option prices or is it included? Also, is there no "doc fee" added as it seems to imply? It sounds like the only things added are taxes and title stuff.

 

Destination Charges ($560) are added to the bottom line. Also, dealers ARE allowed to add on "reasonable" doc (crock) fees. They vary by dealer. Seen them as high as $600 . I paid a $260 doc fee. You still get a better deal than if you spend hours haggling...

 

yup, s-plan is right around invoice price. then destination, documentation, tax, tag, and title are added. but, you can use any incentives with the s-plan too, so make sure you look those up so you know what's available right now.

 

I got S-Plan on my 04 back in March....

MSRP = 32,264
S-Plan Price = 29,602

Doc Fee = 160
Taxes/License/Title = 1930.72

TOTAL = 31,692.72

Less $4,500 Rebate = 27,192.72 (Out the door, plus I got them to add Strakes)

 

I overlooked the fact that I was entitled to S-Plan and of course the dealer made no mention of it. I'm sure the dealer knew I was entitled to S-Plan because it's based on my being an employee of a BIG local company. Of course, they tried to get more at first including some special advertising fee but my goal was "invoice" and in fact the sales guy made a comment to the effect "I think we can get you invoice price because you work for ..so and so..". In any case, I eventually got it for invoice + dest + TT&L ( including a $50 doc fee ) so I guess I did ok.

 

If "s" plan is right around invoice then why bother? It seems like most dealers will let you buy the car for around invoice anyway (at least the ones that want to sell cars). I have a friend that said he could be me an "s" plan PIN - but I have not bothered with it.

Am I missing something?

Dennis

 

Nope.

I'm eligible for S-Plan. I've purchased a Mazda6s, a Mazda3s, and will be buying an RX-8 in the next few weeks The only car I used (or plan on using) S-Plan on was the Mazda3s. And that's only because when I bought it there was virtually no negotiating on them whatsoever. With the price I paid and the demand for Mazda3s (even used) at the time I could have bought and resold them and made quite a bit of money -- but broken the S-Plan rules in the process.

But in this day and age of invoice/near-invoice pricing for just about everyone and everything on the lot S-Plan saves you nothing aside from some haggling with a stubborn dealer. But even most dealers freely offer invoice pricing with no problems and many will go under. S-Plan is only good for 2 things -- 1> Cars that are difficult to negotiate on, 2> People who don't want to hassle with pricing at all.

 

I recently purchased a special order 05 RX-8 via S-Plan. And, I have to say that it's been the best buying experience I've ever had.

The factory invoice they showed me already had an S-Plan price on it. I applied Ford's formula: E Plan price + 5.3%, and it was pretty much right-on. They also did not charge me inflated doc fees and did not charge destination.

I think if you want a specific car (special order) or a car that's hard to find, S-Plan is an easy way to get exactly what you want for a great price. If you aren't picky about the color & options and have the time, you will probably get a better deal if you invest the time haggling.

But, S-Plan, in my opinion is a great price already and it's a very enjoyable purchase experience from start to finish.

 

Good point!

But you could modify your statement about being "picky" to be "if you can find what you want on the lot". Most of the options are available as accessories. So if you get the right color(s) the car can be done like you want without ordering it. Buying the stuff from a discount Mazda parts dealer is cheaper on a lot of it than the dealer invoice for the same item.

The opposite to me is the problem, too much stuff on some cars.

For me, I don't care for the "appearance package" (looks WAY tacked on) but I keep finding otherwise acceptable cars with that on there. With a dealer cost of $775 it is a big expense if you don't want it. Ditto $400 dealer cost on the CD changer or $320 for the spare. If you don't want those three items and they are on the car you are looking at, that is $1,495 worth of extra money you are tossing away if you take the car on the lot. They would have to DEEP discount (lose money) the lot car in that case to beat an S plan price on one you ordered without those items.

That said, a dealer offered me $500 under invoice for any of the cars on his lot today :-)

Dennis

 

Amen to that Dwynne.

I'm looking for a Touring model since I'll do my own custom leather install. Damn near impossible to find one. So, I figure I can get a GT model (the power seat would be nice anyhow) and just sell the leather. But almost every single GT model is loaded up. Another $2000 in crap I don't want -- so I end up wanting a Touring, stickering at $30,000 and having to get a loaded GT at $33,800 if I want to get one without having it trucked in from 1000 miles away.

 

Some of us bought our 8's when the dealers were asking and getting $7000 OVER sticker. S plan was the best deal going for the early adopters.

And yes, they are allowed to add the destination charge to S plan. Some dealers insist on charging a doc fee over S but most will back off as soon as they are challenged over it. Every fee that they can collect is pure profit to the dealership.

 

Agreed. You have to (1) find the basic car that you want and (2) find a dealer willing to give you a good deal on the options. (some will charge for installation etc. so u need time to haggle)

And, some options- such as the navigation system- cannot be added or installed. Which is what happened to me. It was impossible to find a black MGT plus Nav without the Appearance in southern cali. Sounds strange, but it's true. To me, the Appearance only looks cool on Lightning Yellow, which they dont' sell anymore.

Good points.

D =)

 

Exactly right! Except, if you haggle with them, you are gonna lose 9 outta 10 times. They know all the tricks to get into your pocket deeper.

With Internet purchasing, S-plans and such haggling is passe.

 

So if I am planning on purchasing my car outright (and it will most likely have to be ordered since there are zero fully loaded white with nav's around CO) do you think I would be able to get better pricing with or without S-plan, remember I am paying cash!

 

I just bought my Shinka at $2k under invoice (out the door for $29.5). If you are paying cash, Freeway will sell it & ship it to you: http://www.freewayautos.com . Look for Jon Chaplow - and you want to get the deal before 7/1/05 - they have $2k rebates from Mazda's on any car you buy.

If you were at the Rocky Mountain meeting, they are the people who sent all the marketing swag with igozoomzoom

Give the guy a call, it should save you a whole lot of money. I couldn't get any of the area denver dealers to budge on price.