OT: Update on new car(s)...back in a Ford, maybe

[gary s]

sst, not so sure the manual would get a better resale. i do agree that learning on a manual is important , but the way our lifestyles are changing, not so sure it is necessary. my wife drives her manual 350z and i learned how to drive in a 73 vette. also the same car i took my road test on ( against everyones advise! ).

tom, if you are watching your wallet, i would advise you to see a financial planner, as the bottom line is toyota's have proven dependability and much better resale than ford.

if that was not the case, then why is toyota outperforming the big 3 domestics ?

maybe, repeat customers ?

 

[Thomas Rogers]

Gary S,



All good points about dependability and watching your wallet. For Edmunds 2006 (last year they listed this) "lowest TCO":

2006 Chevrolet Aveo — TCO: $27,021



2006 Scion xA — TCO: $28,623



2006 Scion xB — TCO: $29,993



2006 Toyota Corolla — TCO: $30,050



2006 Honda Civic — TCO: $30,068



2006 Kia Rio — TCO: $30,646



2006 Nissan Sentra — TCO: $30,932



2006 Mazda 3 — TCO: $31,052



2006 Saturn Ion — TCO: $31,382



2006 Hyundai Accent — TCO: $31,521

The 2007 Ford Focus I am looking at has an Edmunds TCO of $35,174



And below is the link which explains things a bit about TCO, etc.



P.S. I am also looking at a 2006 Chevy Aveo 4 dr hatchback that is NEW, never titled. The depreciation on those is no where near as bad as the Focus which is why it has a considerably lower TCO.

 

[gary s]

tjr,

thanks. very good info you provided. from my experience as fleet admin for our company,

a few years ago,i had approx 35 focus and 15 impala, grand prix as part of our fleet. when it came time for turn-in, i was taking a bath at auction. a switch to toyota matrix and camry has netted me a 70% residule as well as a 30% reduction in maint. costs. this is my second round of toyota's and they are still running strong, driven hard 6 days a week, 8-14 hours a day. don't get me wrong, i don't hate domestics ( i own one and have my s/t as a company vehicle ), i just think when you are spending a nice amount of money, you go with the proven product regadless of who makes it. just my 2 cents

thanks

 

[Thomas Rogers]

Made an offer and put a deposit on the Cloud 9 White 2007 Ford Focus sedan, manual trans...$12,300 + tax and tags was the out-the-door price. Was told it was about $70 over invoice. I got tired of haggling. It's not totally stripped either, abs, safety package, power windows, mirrors, AC, basic CD/MP3.



A great beater for me to save gas with.



TJR

 

[Josh Langel]

TJR, that's not a bad price.

 

[Tom Schindler]

TJR,



Give me the dealer name, ZIP code, and VIN number and I will give you the X-Plan price. Usually, the X-Plan price is about $100.00 under invoice.



EDIT: I found the car you want on the Ford Direct website. You got a good deal.





Tom

 

[Thomas Rogers]

Thanks Caymen, below is a link to the window sticker, complete with Vin.



After all the rebates and price drops I will get the car for $12,300.



It's a little hard to figure out exact invoice from Edmunds because the packages changed, etc, over time, but I have to think that price is right around invoice. Sure, I might be able to save $100 or up to $200 with a X-plan pin, but I doubt much more than that.



TJR

 

[Nelson Atwell]

The Mazda3 is a great car. I've driven a Focus before and it may be on the same frame, but it isn't the same car. With a lower TCO, I am happy with my choice.

 

[WXMotorSports DecalsPartsAccs]

I don't think you can buy a Mazda 3 for 12,300.00

 

[Thomas Rogers]

Nelson, the 2007 numbers for the Focus and the Mazda 3 are much more closely aligned. Here is what I grabbed from Edmunds.com (I love that site):



[Broken External Image]:

 

[WXMotorSports DecalsPartsAccs]

Interesting on the Insurance TCO...



Increases with the depreciation of the vehicle. I know they are estimating premiums going up, however, it's always the opposite for any of my cars. Plus, I can insure that car for 800.00 a year with full coverage.

 

[shawn stonbraker 2]

TJR, congrats on the purchase. Sounds to me like a great deal. I haven't seen any pics of the Pacifica yet. Congrats on that purchse also.

 

[Thomas Rogers]

UPDATE: If I wasn't so darn busy I would be picking up the Focus tonight. Man the dealer wants that thing gone.



Also, it looks like the standard Ford finance rates are crap (1% over prime...around 8.9 for 60 months). So, I am going to forgo one of the incentives, $500 for Ford financing, and go with a bank or institution loan. I have already been approved for 6.35%/60 mo, and probably can get 5.99%. I already did the math. Anything above 8.0% on the Ford financing makes the $500 incentive actually cost more than paying the $500 extra at even 6.35%.



Will post pics of it and the Pacifica when I can.



TJR

 

[WXMotorSports DecalsPartsAccs]

Ford might have an incentive for paying cash. If so, have the instituition cut you a check for certain amount.



When I bought my Focus they had 5.9 financing or 3500.00 in rebates. I paid with a check through Capital One Auto Finance.

 

[Thomas Rogers]

SST, good thinking. There is no such incentive that I know of or that Ford lists, but I will ask. I already have a check in-hand from eloan.com that I can use for any amount between 5K and 20K....but I'm shopping for a lower rate still.

 

[Thomas Rogers]

Another update:



I got approved for 5.6% 60 mo financing through Capital One. I did this by going through Costco's Executive Membership. By doing EFT and being an executive member, I got this awesome rate.



It will save me just over an additional $150 on the financing. And it's a nice "F-You" to the dealer because I won't be using their brokered financing. I suspect they might change their tune on price when I drop that bomb on them.



Hey, it only took 10 minutes online to apply and they called me within minutes.



TJR

 

[Tom Schindler]

TJR,



60 months?



If I had to finance a vehicle for 60 months, I would buy a used POS and drive that while saving for a downpayment.





Tom

 

[Thomas Rogers]

Yes, Caymen, it is 60 months. I don't mind paying for a car for 60 months...would be nice if it were 0%. I looked at the POS route, and any that I found that I thought were reasonably dependable and got near 30mpg were between $5K and $10K. Whatever I get needs to get me to work and back, everyday, no excuses.



TJR

 

[Tom Schindler]

Maybe that is why gas prices really don't anger me. I have been driving my Trac for over 3 years without a monthly payment. Gas and insurance are my only expense.



Buying a new car to get good gas mileage would cost me more money than I would save.



Even with these high gas prices, the Escort GT still only gets driven about 5,000 miles a year.





Tom

 

[WXMotorSports DecalsPartsAccs]

Another option on finance...



One way to avoid the 60 Mos car loan and all the interest you pay...



Bank Institution Loan and walk into the dealer with a check.



Pay off the loan with a Equity line of credit, the interest is tax deductible. Your car loan is not.