Do the Toyota Dealers really intend to drive off customers?

Don't open up the financial rabbit hole or the "borrowing money is evil under any circumstances" crew will come out. What you did makes perfect sense. It's called interest rate spread and is exactly how banks make money....attract money at one rate and lend it out at a higher one. When I bought my wife's Prius in 2019 they offered me 0% financing, which of course I gladly accepted.

 

Theres enough suckers that will pay what they are asking plus $400 bucks for their $2 sticker protection kit and whatever garbage they say has to go with it.

They play on peoples ego's so that they can talk all kinds of suckers into just about anything. And CA has probably some of the most fragile egos out there.

Same principles as selling time shares.

 

No, I don't even know who that is. Should I? I just think it doesn't make sense to purchase what you can't truly afford, or don't really need on credit (caveat: if you don't have to). I mean if you have to do it, then well, so be it.
Some people so easily fall into the trap of increasing debt in an effort to keep up with the jones (who are the jones anyway?). Everyone's fiscal situation is different. Their ability to exercise self-control different.
Heck, I just purchased something discretionary and not really needed this morning... But I didn't finance it.
"Afford" is nuanced, "need" is nuanced, even "financed" is nuanced as you alluded to. I didn't mean to open up a can of worms.

 

Great point...

 

Regarding financing of necessary or discretionary purchases, if the interest rate is low enough, it is financially beneficial to finance even if you have the cash to pay in full.

 

Any examples of them hiding add on's? I was mulling over a 4Runner last fall and every dealership I looked at had the same overpriced packages on them, but they were completely disclosed.

 

It's not that they don't disclose them, it's that they charge 5 or more times what they are actually worth. Try buying a unit from a SE Toyota Mafia dealership. They are right on the window sticker as distributor "options", like Toyotacare Platinum to the tune of $699. It is just a couple of extra oil changes, tire rotations, and ScotchGuarding the interior. They bend you over, but at least they tell you where and at what angle.

 

This is how bad they are, and they disclose it on their website:

Camelback Toyota in Phoenix adds dealer installed equipment to all of their trucks as follows:
Tailgate script $499 (isn’t that available from several places for less than $50?)
ZakTek Ultimate protection $499;
Tint (lifetime warranty) $699;
Protection Package $2995 (is that for a full time armed guard? almost $3k for something they don’t even provide details on).

Total add ons of $4692 on a truck with a MSRP (including destination) of $40,287.

Grand total before taxes and fees is $44979, more than a 10% markup over MSRP.

So if your were to try to negotiate, you start out way behind the eight ball, this is really painful.

 

Mine was used but I got 0.9% on my 2010 in late 2012. No way I was saying no to that one, came to $201 a month after my trade.

Re the Joneses..I've always been a minimalist with vehicles. This is a result of driving primarily older vehicles and buying them at around 9-12 years old knowing very little about them, so that's around the time that gadgets are more likely to break anyway and I'm just hoping for something that runs right. The 2 vehicles I've financed (my prior truck bought new and this one almost new) have both had almost no creature comforts and that was good by me. I do think people get caught up in that thought you mentioned..my sister is always getting rid of her vehicles after 2-3 years because the shopping instinct kicks in, not because her needs changed. Her motto in life is "who cares how much it costs, what's the monthly payment?"

I'm being stupid I think, what is "tailgate script"?

 

Just my two cents about borrowing money. If you can pay cash do it. Trust me I borrowed before. It sucks. Set your priorities. To the people that say borrowing money is beneficial if the interest is low. That is foolish if you can pay cash do so. Being debt free is beneficial.

For the ones that say most of us can not pay cash. That just tells me you probably can not afford the truck in the first place. Really who takes out $500-700 month payment for six or seven years. If you can’t pay cash I understand put as much down as possible. At least 50% down. Borrow the least amount for shortest term. Then double up payments until it is paid off. TRUST me being free of car payments feels good. But if you can get 0% loan that is a different story. I guess.

 

Sorry, only someone who has no idea how money works would say such a thing.

 

Yea your money today is worth more then it will be next year. So if you like paying your big fat high interest rate loans to the bank. Go for it.

It is your money, stupid is what does does. Hey it is a free country. I will never tell anyone how to spend their money. I just don’t have to agree to it.

 

Move on past this place.

 

LOL Having lived through this with Harley Davidson, it's free market at it's finest. They got it, you want it. How bad you want it dictates how much they charge. Honda did it back in the 80's, The Motor Company has done it more times than I can remember. Everyone says, fuck'em I aint gonna pay them that, then their buddy buys one and they sell a kidney and buy one and the dealers snicker all the way to the bank.

 

I couldn't agree more Paying cash if you’re able, is always better.

Let's think about it, as long as you owe as much as a dollar, it can be taken from you with you paying the attorney’s fee to take it from you. How dumb is it to leave yourself exposed like that if you don't have to?

In the mean time, the financial institution can offer all your equity as collateral to make dumb-ass investments at your peril because until it’s paid off, its theirs entirety not yours.Trust me, by the time the attorneys bill their time, you'll owe them a bunch more lol!

 

That is a good point. Until your truck is paid off, the bank owns it not you. If you get fired from your job the bank don’t care, pay me. If you get hurt and can not work bank don’t care, pay me. If it is paid off though and your wife kicks you out of the house. At least you can live in it lol.

Just a joke on the last part, maybe not for some though.

 

All that happens to someone somewhere everyday. But at least if it's paid off, you can put it up as collateral for a loan or sell it out right.
The point being, you have more options, better options.

 

Moved post