Three Day Delay

Howdy everyone! Long time no see.

I'm buying a car on Saturday, and don't know what that car will be. I've had my little 1999 BMW 328i for 15 years, and she needs to be put down. Great car, RIP.

I'm focusing on sedans instead of SUV's, I don't drive much (6000 miles/year), I'm looking at 2017 used cars, 15-20k.

The car I've been looking at is the Mazda 6 Grand Touring.

Thoughts or suggestions?

MLBFan24

Does the Mazda 6 have AWD or 4WD? (doesn't look like it from my brief google search)

But something you might want to consider since you live in Denver.

Three Day Delay

Good point. The one on the radar is a FWD with 40k miles.

Vibiana

I have a Ford Focus and love it. It's not really a sedan though even though it has four doors; the back seats aren't that roomy.

Three Day Delay

For all two of you that are interested, I got an awesome deal on a 2015 BMW 320 with 30k miles. It is cherry red, matches my sneakers and mid-life crisis perfectly.

I had never felt like an old man until trying to figure out the basics of this car.

Psi

I'm glad you got another BMW. They have a certain driving feel that's hard to find in any other car, except for maybe Mercedes-Benz or Audi. And definitely going from a 1999 to a 2015 must have felt like going from a horse to a plane. The horse now has so many buttons and knobs.

Three Day Delay

I drove several cars. But when I got into the BMW, it was a totally different feel. It absolutely was, and is, like a time-warp.

There is something to say about how much a BMW feels substantial. It's like a comfortable chair vs. just a chair.

parrotheads4

Does a $499 processing fee sound appropriate for a new car purchase?

jpcamb

it depends what it includes but that is about what they get you for as an add on fee these days. Really burns my ass that they do that. It hopefully includes registration and inspection fees but as they say your mileage may vary.

andicus

Sounds nuts, to me, but not uncommon.

I'd look at it this way... If we generously say the person preparing the paperwork is making $50/hr, this would mean they're spending close to 10 hours, just on your paperwork. Of course, that amount of time is ridiculous.

I'd definitely ask for clarification, and try to haggle that charge out of the deal.

parrotheads4

Here is their clarification:

The breakdown for your fee's are as follows,

Documentation fee- $75
Inspection fee- $10
NY Tire fee- $12.50
Process application fee- $499
Registration fee- $350 (This amount depends on whether you are transferring plates or getting new plates)

andicus

Ouch! That's even worse. I had assumed the fee was for documentation, and/or possibly the registration of the vehicle. Even the $350 registration fee sounds high. I don't know about NY, but here you pay About $150 for plates and registration sticker.

To what 'process' are they referring? Are you trying to finance it? Even then, they shouldn't be charging you to process a financing application. At least not $499.

parrotheads4

Hahaha.
I'm not financing. I would be handing them a check.

Noonan

That's why they're putting that "fee" in. They won't be making any money off you in financing. Tell them to remove the random fee with no description or you'll buy elsewhere. They may let you walk.

When I bought my current car, the sales rep and finance guy got real flustered when we went into the office and I then (not a minute before) told them that I have a check and won't need financing. Don't let the consider that when negotiating the final purchase price.

jpcamb

I would def look into the NY Tire fee and make sure you are getting brand new tires. I got curious and googled. Is this a brand new car?

As for the fee that is a common thing at stealerships now a days. We were charged a similar amount for a used car we bought from a ford dealer in MA with a similar break down in cost. the documentation fee is BS but they wouldn't budge on it. I did get them to reimburse me on the state inspection as they could not do it for me. Took them a while but they sent me a check...


The Environmental Conservation Law imposes a $2.50 per tire waste tire and recycling fee on sales of most new tires sold at retail within New York State. The Tax Department is responsible for administering the collection of the fee.Who must collect the fee

If you are a tire retailer, including a car dealer or an auto repair shop, you must collect the $2.50 per tire fee on most new tires sold. You must remit $2.25 for each tire sold when you file the waste tire management fee return. You can keep 25 cents for each tire sold to cover your administrative costs.

parrotheads4

The car is a lightly used 2019 (<5,000 miles).