my car came with the illuminated kick plates. one day, I dropped the iPod on it and that created a big dent. I went to the dealer to get it fixed and it cost big bucks. If you are going to order those kick plates, you have got to be extra careful not to drop things on them. They are softer than a soda can. Knowing what I know, I would rather not have them.

5-9 seems to be about right

Yeah, they are SUPER thin... I have seen many a dents on those

Thanks!

Check out truecar.com. They'll show you the prices that people are actually paying for 370 Z's in your area. You can configure it with options and get an idea of MSRP vs invoice vs market prices.

It's just another tool in your negotiating toolbox, but I and a few friends have found their numbers to be generally pretty good. You may be able to do better, but it's a start and gives you an idea of where you "should" be. If nothing else, the "Certified Dealer" numbers you give you something you can print & take to your salesman, "beat this". I've had a couple of salesmen gripe at me about using Truecar numbers from other dealerships, which I take as a good sign. ;)

FYI...

2013 370Z Touring + Sport + SatNav + Kick plates = $43,990 MSRP. Invoice = $40,857. TrueCar has "certified dealers" that say they'll do the deal for $39,154 (in my area).

Good luck!

I second the TrueCar.com suggestion. Once they see you know the numbers it pretty much cuts out a lot of the sales BS.

I just ordered a 13 Z for invoice + tax & fees. Now comes the wait...

Another tip is to talk to more than 1 dealer. First dealer told me they would order for invoice + $1000. Then I went to a 2nd dealer and asked if they could beat another dealers price of invoice + $500. Then went back to 1st dealer and told them another dealer was willing to order for invoice, but I wanted to give them a shot to win the business, which they jumped on and agreed to order at invoice price. It took a lot of back and forth and patience, but well worth it.

What was the otd price? Did they want to charge obscure fees? I'm in the market for a 2013 370z touring + sport, rear view camera. Carsdirect lists the invoice as 39125 and I'm sure I can talk the dealer a little below that but then I'm scared the actual otd is gonna go skyrocket. :rolleyes:

Again, I'm not sure if I should post this here or not. But, I got a call today from my dealer telling me the vin number of a car they found at a distribution center. Well I'm having trouble looking it up online. Where is the best place to look? And, is there a chance that it's so new that the vin number isn't in a database yet?

No need to really be "scared" of an OTD price. Yes, some sleazy dealerships can play games with fees & surcharges, especially if you're letting them arrange the financing. But IMHO, most won't if you present yourself as a mature & reasonably savvy buyer. They prey on the people who don't understand how financing & taxes work. Don't be one of those people.

If you're really worried about the OTD price, just insist on negotiating the OTD price. They can easily roll in the required fees & taxes as part of the "4-square" game. Even if you're financing and negotiating by payment (be careful...), just be very clear about the interest rate & term, but still, "OTD".

This way, there are no surprises in the title/warranty/finance office when you sign the paperwork. Whatever terms you've agreed upon should be clearly documented in the paperwork. If not, or they try to sneak in other fees, just walk out. Oh sure, they'll try to sell you extra stuff; etching, rust-proofing, service plans, extended warranty, pin-striping, blah, blah, blah, but you just have to say "no thanks" to all of it and you'll walk out paying exactly what you negotiated.

Good luck! :tiphat:

Augustus,

I just order a 2013 370z fully loaded set the OTD price and gave a $1000 deposit. But I never set the interest rate, however they run my credit and i'm real close to 750, what kind of APR do you think I should be looking at? I know my parents were able to get a .9% APR in subaru and honda (a few months ago) and my parents told me that my credit is better than them. Do you think I can get this from Nissan or should I go to a bank and get a loan from them instead? Thanks for any help.

PS
This is my first car purchase so I'm new to all this experience any tips will help.

Sorry, I can't really help you with whether or not you'd get financing. I'm not a banker, just someone who's bought or has been "on point" with family members buying new cars every year or so for the past 20 years. :roflpuke2:

A credit score of 750 is pretty good, but there's more to it than that. Your job status, age, employment history, banking history, residential history, & debt-to-income ratio all play a role. Every bank has different standards, and standards are a bit tighter than they were a few years ago.

I don't think NMAC has any special financing on the 370Z right now, so you're looking at "normal" financing. The dealership will likely try to steer you towards a bank that they have a relationship with. Banks give dealerships a cut of the financing fees, so they don't have your best interests (pardon the pun :shakes head: ) in mind when setting up your financing. Interest rates are historically low - a local credit union is advertising 1.9% for up to 60 months on 2010-2013 model-year cars. That's pretty crazy for a non-incentive rate.

The .9% that your folks got through Honda or Subaru was probably an incentive rate that was backed by the finance arms of the respective companies. You probably won't be able to get that low of a rate on the open market unless perhaps you're looking at a very short (12-24 month) term. Nissan has done 0% for up to 60 months on 370Z's in the past. I know last year they had it last spring on 2012's. You could want to wait a week and see if something special is announced in February.

In the absence of special manufacturer financing, I would at least look into arranging your own financing. Talk to your bank where you or your family have an existing relationship. They'll be happy to talk to you about a car loan. You can get real & honest answers about what it means to finance a car; amounts, required down payments, interest rates, terms, insurance requirements, and monthly payments. That removes the pressure of this from the dealership ritual, as you will walk in knowing exactly what that $xx,xxx OTD price means to you in terms of a monthly payment. It gives you a bit more negotiating power with the dealership, as it takes away an avenue for them to rip you off. It also potentially removes the embarrassment of being denied a loan at the dealership. One caveat though - don't go applying for car loans at a half-dozen banks all at once. That will ding your credit rating. If you've already filled out a credit application with the dealer (sounds like you did, since they told you your credit score), you might want to wait and see what they say.

I shouldn't assume anything, but if this is your first new car and if you're somewhat youngish, I would humbly suggest that you call your insurance agent before you buy the car. Insuring a Z sometimes isn't for the faint of heart. It will be considerably more than your 2012 Forester. ;) Make sure you can afford the insurance premium before you buy the car. :tup:

Good luck! :tiphat:

Thanks for the advice!!, yeah i did contact my insurance a few times before i went to the dealership. I know the payments are going to be a little high for the insurance but looking at my expenses I saw that I was able to manage it and still save money at the end of the month. :happydance:

However, I also calculated my payments for the car but after reading a few other treads (that somehow were hiding when I was doing my research) I'm getting a little worried about the finance. I do appreciate your help very much and never knew how much was into your credit score. :shakes head:

I was thinking about going to my bank and my parents to see what I can get . Do you think if my parents cosign the car will I be able to get the a low APR in case Nissan or the Bank can't help me? Also, will then the title be in both me and my parents name if they cosign? Sorry to bombard you with questions but i'm new to this and right now i'm really appreciating your help a lot!! Thanks!!

Should I start a new thread on this? I searched "VIN" and not much came up.

I sense that tempers may start to flare when the phrases, "first new car", "buying a Z", "parents", and "co-sign" start being put in the same post. Not from me, but just to give you a heads up on what may be coming... :wtf2:

To answer your question, yes, a co-signer can help you qualify for better interest rates.

I would really suggest that you just go talk to your bank. They'll lay out what the terms are, and you can discuss whether a co-signer would help the rate. Because yes, there are definitely cases where you might qualify for the loan in general, but a co-signer would lower the APR.

I don't know about the names on the title. As joint-buyers, I would think that both of your names would be on the title. But I do believe that this varies from state-to-state. It may also depend on the bank too, since they're the ones who will have a lien on the title. I don't really know. :icon14:

I'd try to finance it on your own, first. It's nice that your parents would co-sign for you, but if that's required to make the deal happen, then I see that as a sign that you're perhaps not financially ready to take out a $40K car loan. I don't mean to offend. Just a random forum poster's :twocents:.

Once again thanks so much for your help!,

yeah i'll be definitely be contacting my bank and see what they say...sorry if it sounded "off" on my previous posts (im new to this forum stuff too), guess i should triple check my post before i submit them lol.

I guess i have to wait and see when the car gets here to see whats on my best interest. Thanks for the help!

Edit:
Thanks for the extra advice, I just want to clarify one think and i appreciate your advice very much.

I did my finances and I can afford the car payments + paying back loans + gas & transport to work+money for what ever i need... I have to thank my parents for that and for pushing me to study since I was a little kid and now I'm working as an engineer. I just wanted some extra cash to be able to pay more than the minimum on my loans and not over pay on the car as well with the APR, that's whats worrying me the most and thought i just ask to for advice

Thanks Augustus. I did some research and actually you can find pretty much anything online :tup:
Edmunds, carsdirect and the DMV site were helpful in determining what a fair price for the Z I'm looking to buy would be.

Tip for my fellows in California: https://www.dmv.ca.gov/FeeCalculator...VehicleForm.do should give a good estimate of OTD price (licence plate fees not there..) based on the most recent tax laws.