Success Stories
Edmunds.com visitors tell us how they saved money
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Sal D. 12/28/04
Excellent information! I can be a case study. I bought a 2002 Honda Accord SE from Carmax which uses Kelly Blue Book (KBB). The car came with a warranty as it only had 14,878 miles and was in fabulous condition. KBB value with a moonroof was $20,145. Edmunds value was $16,719 (certified & outstanding condition; noncertified was $16,069). The price of the car net of a trade was $16,597. I feel that I did well by Edmunds standards. I feel that my car fit into the certified category so I bought the car for $122 under the Edmunds valuation. I really appreciate the information that you gave me and you provide an excellent service to the public.
Jamey L. 12/22/04
My wife and I used your site for our research. We researched a 2003 Mitsubishi Outlander on your site. Armed with your research we knew that car was worth $15,500. We were able to successfully negotiate from a starting price of $17,495 all the way down to $14,850. Your True Market ValueSM sheet was highly instrumental in helping us to get top discount on the deal. If this had been a pay site it would have been worth every penny. Thank you Edmunds.com, you truly did us a great service.
Rosendo H. 11/16/04
Thank you, Edmunds, for being up to date with regards to incentives. My mid ‘90s Honda Accord had a transmission failure and I needed a commuter car before the weekend was over. I went to Raceway Ford in Riverside, California and with your information in hand I told them I wanted the best deal. So they sold me a 2005 Focus Z4 S automatic with A/C. My choice of vehicle in the lot, for only $12,100 plus tax & lic. with a free Ford factory alarm. $1100 below invoice, then $2,000 in rebates for total of over $4,000 below MSRP.
Christina P. 11/3/04
The "Edmunds.com True Market Value®" and Dealer Quote Request tool allowed me to get a 2005 Honda Civic VP out of the door for True Market ValueSM. Thanks so much!
Ed B. 11/1/04
I just wanted to say thanks for the invaluable help your website provided. I just bought a 2004 Honda Accord based on your suggestion, when I wouldn't otherwise have even looked at Honda, and I couldn't be happier! I also got the car for $1,300 below invoice because of a manufacturer/dealer rebate I wouldn't have otherwise known about. The look on the dealer's face was priceless when he tried to jack me around on the price and I told him about it! Thanks again for all the help.
Pete M. 10/24/04
I just finalized a deal for a 2005 Pontiac Vibe which is now on order. Trading my 1999 Ford Ranger 4WD.The information I got from your site was extremely valuable. I worked with 3 dealers to get my best deal. From the time I started shopping to the time I signed my deal (2-3 weeks), I closed the gap between the final purchase price and the trade in value of my truck by $3,000. Having the True Market ValueSM for the Vibe and trade in value for the Ranger was really powerful information when negotiating. Also very helpful was knowing what offers were available from the manufacturer. One dealer didn't know (or tell me) GM had a "conquest" rebate of $1,000 for non GM owners. My total rebates for this vehicle will total $2,500. Add in another $1,000 from my GM credit card points and this is definitely the best car deal I've ever done. Thank you for your help.
Jason M. 9/26/04
I own a brand new Sunset Orange Pearl 2004 Honda Element mostly due to Edmunds! I used to be a weakling when it came to finding and purchasing a vehicle - but thanks to Edmunds I was so informed that I stayed in control of the entire purchasing process. I felt calm, informed, and most of all - like I was not being cheated.
There are so many things I cannot believe from this purchase:
- (The biggest surprise) I paid $600 UNDER invoice and$ 900 UNDER the Edmunds.com TMV® - and they included a $300 accessory!
- I found a factory incentive on your site and secured a 2.9% loan through Honda (my bank could do no better than 5%)
- I negotiated like a pro (calling internet fleet managers, shopping prices, getting dealerships to beat each others prices) and resisted ANY add-ons (like overpriced extended warranties, and GAP protection). I demanded my price - and walked out with my NEW vehicle at that price.
Thank you so much for your careful and thorough articles, especially the "Confessions of a Car Salesman" and "10 Steps: Buying a New Car." These articles let me know the ins and outs of how dealerships work so that I knew what was going on, what they were doing, and most importantly what every strategy that they attempted to employ really meant. It really was an awesome day when I drove off that lot - and I never thought I would have a new car. Thanks, Edmunds!
Kari B. 8/25/04
Thanks to Edmunds, I saved over $5000 on my "new" used Ford Escape XLT (fully loaded with only 16,000 miles). I spent a month researching and comparing small SUV's, before test driving and narrowing it down to the Escape. I went in, told them exactly what price I wanted to pay (lowballing since I expected them to negotiate the price), that I wanted a base model with only one option (4WD), wanted under 20,000 miles and would not pay for any other options. The general manager told me he was impressed that I was such an informed consumer and that he would find me a car (I needed it within a week.)Four days later, I had my new car, within the budget that I had told them, and it was fully loaded, in great condition! I checked the suggested retail price and was extremely happy to find that the price I paid was over $5000 less than that. Thanks for making me such a smart shopper!
I spent just under 3 weeks researching and test driving and a simple 1 hour, 15 minutes to make the buy and drive away happy. Most of that time was waiting for my new truck to get detailed, washed, and filled with gas! I purchased a 2004 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 4x4 Crew Cab Z71 for $2,635 under TMV!
Tim K. 8/14/04
Just a BIG word of thanks for helping us with our recent purchase of a 2004 Honda Civic EX. I used Edmunds to research the car and related prices. I also read "How to Buy a New Car" and "Confessions of a Car Salesman." Armed with more information than I've EVER had prior to buying a new car, I was successful in purchasing our car for $125.00 above the dealer's invoice (My price: $16,600). Without Edmunds.com, this simply would not have been possible. I am truly grateful.
Russell K. 8/13/04
Just wanted to pass along a thank you, for helping me be an informed consumer. Last week I signed a 4/48 full warranty lease a 2005 Corolla S, automatic, with 6 CD Changer, and the power package for $247 + tax a month, and the only down payment was the first month, with none of the other added fees/costs. It was a long and arduous negotiation process, but having the knowledge of the lease calculator, including the residual, net capitalized cost, and money factor immediately got us the high end manager at every dealership, and immediately dropped their initial quote. It was fascinating to see that the chart I had printed up from Edmunds was the exact chart they were using to calculate the lease payment. I think I got a pretty good deal, and I owe a lot of that to you guys. Thanks.
D.P. 8/8/04
Thank you for the dealer quote service. I found the quotes provided by your dealer networks very good and bought the Toyota Highlander from Rudy Luther Toyota of Minneapolis last week when Toyota announced the $750 rebate.
Cathy H. 8/1/04
I can't even tell you how much your website has helped in our new car purchase. I priced the car I wanted with options, got the price to negotiate with and submitted what I wanted to local dealers. I got three responses immediately. One had exactly the model I wanted (Mazda MPV with the right color & options). A price was reached by email and we went to get our new car today…absolutely no hassles, we got a great deal. Best car buying experience ever!
Cheryl W. 7/31/04
I just wanted to say thanks for an outstanding and informative website, especially the step-by-step guide to negotiating the price with a used car manager. I am a single woman and had hoped to buy through a private party so as to avoid this whole negotiating process.
I was able to deal directly with the Toyota used car manager in my area and I was armed with all the info from your site including the TMV for the certified car I was interested in buying. I also checked all the documents and examined and test-drove the car with all your hints and tips in mind. Within an hour, the manager gave me a price $50 below my ideal "fair" price. How exciting and empowering! What a thrill and a relief to know that I hadn't been ripped off. For $300 more than your TMV certified price, I was able to negotiate a 4 year bumper to bumper wrap around warranty into the final price for extra peace of mind — and the deductible is per visit, not per repair.
I have recommended your site to all my friends. This is truly a great service especially for women!!
Dario A. 7/31/04
Edmunds.com is a priceless resource. I learned the tools needed to make the most well-informed buy possible. The easy, multiple online bids on my financing rewarded me with an exceptional rate I could not have received anywhere else. The TMV resource gave me the reference points to identify reasonable bids from online fleet dealers.
Reese E. 7/30/04
First of all, I'd like to say to the staff and creators of Edmunds.com, that you guys are fabulous, the BEST, and I appreciate all of your great information. It's rare that people have such a wealth of knowledge and are willing to divulge and share it with the ignorant masses (including myself). You all have helped me purchase a 2004 Honda Civic VP, for $2000 down and $129 a month and have made me a very equipped and dangerous young woman in the realm of car salesmen. I am so proud that I've learned so much from this website in the last 3 months. I will share your name and your info with every car consumer I know!
Rhonda D. 7/23/04
Thank you for offering such an awesome service. We used the advice and went with Vandergriff Acura to purchase our daughter's new 2004 RSX. The information on the site was more than helpful and the sales personnel at Vandergriff (Chris, Jason and Josh) exceeded our expectations. I have recommended both to all my friends. Thank you again for helping us sort through the confusion and making our entire family happy.
Sil F. 7/14/04
Bravo, Edmunds! Using your info and links, I got a new Jetta wagon for hundreds under invoice. The salesman looked like he got socked in the gut when I busted out the printout. Awesome. Thanks again!
Ray M. 7/7/04
We had reached the point where we were in the market for a new vehicle. I had heard friends talking about Edmunds.com and thought I would check it out. After doing some TMV pricing and checking out the reviews and specs we decided to go for the Honda Accord EX V6 with leather. Knowing the TMV and what price we could hope to get we decided to go to the local Honda dealership. Thanks to your website (and just a little hard faced bargaining from myself!) we actually purchased the vehicle today for $500 less than the invoice price!!! I will certainly tell everyone I speak to about your website. Thanks again!
Lloyd W. 7/7/04
I have been a long time user of Edmunds.com. I even remember the olden days when all the car facts were text on a white background. I have read many of your tips and tricks to buy cars and be successful and it has helped me not only save myself money but my parents as well.
Most recently my parents decided that they needed new vehicles but hate car shopping, so I began the preparation process, first, by looking up the trade-in value of the Blazer they would be trading, next step was research. Dad just wanted a 2wd extended cab S-10, so that's easy, next was mom, she wanted something economical, powerful, and sporty, I did my research on Edmunds and presented her with my suggested buys. She picked the Ford Focus as the one she liked most (because her friend has one). The next step I took was getting a carfax account.
Now, here's the trick...... I've bought quite a few cars, we decided to look at a place that would have a large enough inventory to be able to find both vehicles....but the trick is, especially at larger dealerships, go on the last day of the month. The salesmen and managers are quivering to get their highest possible volume for the month and it will show. Second part of the trick, have a friend at a computer, ready and waiting on the phone ready to hit Edmunds and carfax to find the retail values and the history of the vehicles you are considering! If you say you need a break and come back with all kinds of hard numbers and history within 10 minutes of looking at a vehicle, on the last day of the month, they will bend, and bend far.
Needless to say, it took most of the day, but that day, me and my mother got the high trade-in for their Blazer, and we left with both an S-10 (got it for trade-in value at a dealership!) and a Focus, total retail book value of around $28,000 and only ended up (including trade value) spending $24,000!
The most important thing is standing strong, tell them what you are willing to pay, if they say no, get up and head for the door, if they stop you before you are out the door, you'll get your price!
Youri L. 6/29/04
I just wanted to thank you for helping me save a great deal of money on my first new car purchase. I had been eyeing the Chevy Equinox and thanks to your TMV report, got a rough idea of the price I was hoping for. Thanks to some great discussions on your forums as well, I was quoted a price of initially $24,200 which was already great for me since it was under sticker price but I was able to bring this down another $500 when I showed proof to the dealer that someone I "knew" was able to get a better deal. All in all I got my car for $2,300 below sticker price and about $300 above invoice which even if better deals do exist, definitely made me happy. Thank you.
Charlie M. 6/25/04
Your TMV pricing report is great. I was looking to purchase a used Ford Escape or Mazda Tribute, and had run a TMV on the new Escapes, which were selling above invoice price, just to get a comparative price. Then when I was ready to go test drive a used Tribute, my wife ran a TMV on a new Tribute which indicated they were selling at below invoice price. When I put that together with the cash-back rebate, the price of a new vehicle was almost the same as a used one.
I used your site to request price quotes from local dealers, and pretty much settled on a price with the dealer over the phone the next day based on your TMV pricing. The price we agreed on was actually lower than the TMV price. I would not have thought I could get a new car for about the same as a used one without the information on your Website.
Erwin R. 6/8/04
I used your research tools on the 2004 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited and did some figuring on my own. For some strange reason the dealers keep wanting to know how I came up with my figures. I mentioned Edmunds.com. They said, "Never heard of ‘em". I said, "You have now."
Kevin W. 6/8/04
I just purchased an Odyssey through one of the dealers I contacted through your site. The internet sales manager was very prompt and courteous. The price quoted was true actual cost without any hidden fees. I am very pleased with this transaction and I just want you to know what a wonderful experience I had. Thank you for your web site. It provides volumes of information and it is much appreciated and please keep up the good work.
Lucia A. 6/2/04
All of my friend's and family and even my mechanic cannot believe the great deal I got on my car. Thanks to Edmunds, I got a great car at a great price and actually found a reputable dealer with no "BS". If you could see the looks on their faces when I would ask, "Now that's your bottom line?" Of course they would say, "Yes," and tell me what a great deal they got for me... then I would hit them with the printout from Edmunds and say "Oh, really? Well Edmunds says this is what people in my region are paying!" It was truly priceless! Not only did I get a great car but it was actually fun. Everyone was impressed at how well I negotiated and I was very proud of myself. I actually got my car for about $200 under invoice. I tell everyone I know, do not buy a car, or even talk to any dealers, without going to Edmunds.com first. I truly believe that had I not searched through Edmunds, I would have gotten ripped off. It felt great to be so well informed before even talking to the dealers.
Ray and Pam M. 5/27/04
We LOVE your website. Yesterday, we went into your website and gained such valuable info on buying a 2004 car. We decided to test drive a car with the mindset of gathering more info and not buying and went to the dealer with such confidence knowing the TMV of the car. It was a pleasure to shop being armed with valid information. They ran some figures and were a little high which we commented on. We never told them what our budget was, even though they asked, but did tell them we were only in the beginning stages of looking and would be test driving other cars. They then gave us a figure below the TMV. We can't wait to test drive the next car. The 10 Steps for Insurance Buying was GREAT, our son can use the dept. of insurance phone # you gave to report the problem he is having with his insurance. It also defined everything so clearly that we will be comparing insurance quotes.
Gary P. 5/24/04
Excellent material…well worth the price. Bought the car mainly based on the information in the InfoPack and the TMV on Edmunds. Thank you for such a helpful, informational web site.
Donald L. 5/11/2004
Your web site was very helpful. We have bought a new truck after getting the information
that was sent to us. Thank you and keep up the good work.
Frank V. 5/7/04
I did my research on your web site for my new 2004 GMC Envoy XL. When you have the same basic number as the dealers, it's hard for them to give you the run around. I paid $200 below TMV and saved a little over $2700 from the dealer sticker price. I'm telling all my friends to do their research here first.
Erin H. 5/5/04
I just bought the first car I've ever purchased by myself. I used Edmunds for research, pricing, and helpful advice. Knowing what to watch out for was a huge help, and knowing what the going price is in the area really made me more confident in making a deal. I negotiated a price right under market value. Even my dad was impressed with all that I learned from your site.
Timothy B. 5/5/2004
Based on the information Edmunds.com provided, I had the smoothest car-buying
experience ever. We bought a 2004 Saturn Vue for $1000 less than the TMV found
on Edmunds.com. The story of how car dealerships work really paid off as I was
able to spot "pressure" tactics. Thanks for the information and the ease to find
it on your site.
Nader T. 5/5/2004
I just wanted to drop a line to thank Edmunds for helping through their Tips &
Advice to buy my wife a new VW Passat GLS, 4-motion, automatic sedan at an unbelievable
price. The MSRP of this vehicle was $27,105, the TMV was $25,538, and I purchased
this vehicle at the rock bottom price of $24,088, and also got $9,300 for my trade
in, a 1999 Honda Accord Coupe EX. So I just wanted to thank you, because your
Tips & Advice did work. It did take a bit longer, but we found the car we
wanted at a great value and we only had to drive only 63 miles to a different
dealership to find this car! Tell your readers that your suggestions do work!
Ron G. 5/2/2004
After using your website to get information on my trade-in and the Jeep Liberty
I wanted, I went to the dealership, made my offer, and the deal was done. I was
very happy with my informed deal, since it saved me $3500. Edmunds.com is an excellent
web site.
Edward P. 4/28/2004
Thank you very much for your assistance in helping me with my car purchase. Based
upon information you supplied, I was able to go into the car dealerships well-armed
with essential information. I was able to use the dealers' web sites to acquire
information on their car inventories, and with it was able to negotiate an excellent
purchase price on a new Subaru. Having so much information readily available certainly
changes the entire auto purchase process. I'm not certain the dealers are fully
comfortable with the changed circumstances!
Ed D. 4/27/2004
I have used Edmunds on all of my new vehicle purchases. It is an excellent starting
point for negotiations. In my case, I was able to acquire a new 2004 Honda CRV
for $75 over invoice, almost $1,000 less than TMV. A great experience.
Tom S. 4/19/2004
Your TMV report should be in the hand of every prospective new/used car buyer.
My new 2004 Chrysler Town & Country EXT mini van was purchased for $26,550,
$569 above the TMV of $25,981.
Robert J. 4/11/2004
This is the second time I've used Edmunds.com to make a new car purchase. The
first was a 2000 Chevy Astro and this purchase was a 2004 Honda Element. The first
experience I found all the info I needed to select trim levels, optional equipment
and so forth and then I purchased through an agent that my credit union was using.
I was very happy with the deal. With my current purchase I decided to try the
online method of locating a dealer since the agent I knew and trusted had retired.
Within minutes of submitting I got immediate confirmation from Edmunds.com, my
local dealer Sherwood Honda of Delray Beach, and their internet Mngr. Louis Morici
all within minutes. This turned out to be the easiest and most non-adversarial
car purchase I ever made in person. I will have no trouble recommending the process
to others.
Lorna M. 3/29/2004
Thank you SO much. We sent out inquiries regarding a 2004 Dodge Ram Diesel Truck.
We received several answers, one of which was from WestOaks Dodge in Thousand
Oaks, CA. Jim Reed, Fleet & Internet Manager worked with us and got exactly
what we wanted. We had awesome service and appreciate Edmunds.com! The Truck is
beautiful and we could NOT be happier. This car purchase was actually enjoyable!
Thanks again!
Scott S. 3/25/2004
I faxed a lot of Toyota dealers to obtain their best price on a Sienna. I specified
the color, options, etc. NO ONE responded by my deadline! I was shocked, but I
assumed it was because the Sienna was hot and no one had them in stock. I went
online at Edmunds and asked for quotes via the website. I assumed that I would
just call around to find the best deal. I live in St. Louis and there are lots
of Toyota dealers. Initially, prices started at the list price, but soon dealers
were undercutting each other by hundreds of dollars. In the end, I got an email
from a deal overing me $2500 below list. As I was pulling into the lot to make
the deal, another dealer called in response to my fax and beat the best price
of the day by $900. I got an XLE with package 14 (leather, moonroof, upgraded
stereo) for $31,000. This was still over $1,500 above dealer invoice, but it was
a lot better than the TMV price.
Jack B. 3/1/2004
Using Edmunds TMV pricing I just bought a Honda Pilot EX-L for $600 below TMV.
I've sold my last three "trade-ins" myself using your pricing and beaten the dealers'
offers by 25% or more. In fact, one was a lease car that I sold for $2000 more
than the buy out price (and got my full security deposit back). Now, that was
found money.
Joey 2/28/2004
I purchased an Explorer Sport Trac XLT today, and I can't thank you enough. I
did most of my research, calculations and quote requests from your site. I found
everything on your website helpful, but most of all, I got outstanding responses
when I requested quotes online. It makes all the difference in the world negotiating
online. Dealers really take you serious. I had no luck visiting the dealerships.
Thank you for helping me have an enjoyable experience purchasing a car.
Bob L. 2/9/2004
Just ordered a 2004 E250 Ford Cargo Van through a dealer in the Detroit,MI.area.
Most of my dealing with the salesman was over the internet through their internet
sales. Used your new car pricing with options, told the dealer what I wanted and
supplied the option codes and the price I got was under TMV ! One dealer kept
insisting I look at vehicles what he referred to as similar on the lot. It is
certainly interesting how they treat you when you do your home work !
Phil W. 2/9/2004
This is the second time I've used Edmunds.com to check invoice prices, obtain
comparisons, and recommendations. This time was even better than the last which
was 5 years ago. Being armed with information, I was able to pit two dealers against
each other... Starting at the manufacturer's invoice! I was armed with my credit
score from all 3 reporting bureaus and had a pre-approved loan from our credit
union as additional bargaining power. It's a heady feeling to negotiate from a
position of strength for a change! We finally made a deal that was hundreds of
dollars less than invoice, and received the dealer's "hospitality" program thrown
in for free. My new '04 Kia Sorento EX was $20,050 Out-The-Door (tax, tags) and
on top of it all, by knowing the incentives that are published on Edmunds, we
won't pay a cent in interest for the next 6 years. Wow. "Whatever they're paying
you guys, it ain't enough!" Many Thanks!
Allison M. 2/3/2004
I want to thank you for your service. I bought a car yesterday thanks to the help
I received from your website. I got a call back almost immediately from a local
dealer with a very reasonable price for the car I was looking to buy. I also used
you website to research the cars I was interested in and it helped me decide on
the right car for me. Thank you again for your website, it is a valuable tool
in the car purchasing maze out there today.
Ron L. 1/5/2004
I want to thank you for your GREAT service. I have always been a user of your
books. I recently went online and researched a 2004 Honda 4 door. Not only did
I use your service to give me a TMV but I also negotiated a price lower than the
TMV. I picked up the car on Saturday and it is great. Thanks again and keep up
the GREAT work.
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