Dealer Doc Fees

https://youtu.be/axko6_OHREU

 

Common knowledge.

 

The fees associated with ownership in motor vehicles are worth billions of dollars. The car dealer is the facilitator of that ownership and it all starts when you surrender the MCO for a certificate of title. Then the true illusion of ownership begins...

 

Dealer Doc Fee = another way of saying "Dealership Fees"

When I purchased my truck at AutoNation I had to pay a dealership fees but there was no extra doc fee, the dealership fee was $799 but ive seen on the AutoNation website that other states have lower dealership fees and some even had $1,500 cash rebates on Tacoma's that Florida didnt have. I used the $1,500 rebate that the other states had as leverage to negotiate the price down on my Tacoma.

Other local Toyota Dealerships had Dealership fees as high as $1,200.

 

With so many different dealer fees, taxes and extra charges, I make sure I always ask for the their best price ‘out the door’ when comparing prices on a new vehicle. That way I never have to do math, read fine print and worry about it....

 

I was fortunate with my 2019 as last year in PA the max doc fee was $141 and now in 2020 they are allowed to charge over $350 .

 

Dealership and Doc fees are pretty much the same thing in most cases (added profit to cover administrative/office expense and state and local registration fees/requirements etc).
I don't blame dealerships for trying to charge these fees, (though admit they can be greedy at times) as they are in business to make money.

I believe much of the problem is that so many car buyers just pay them without question. You don't have to pay them in most cases you can always just walk away from the deal. You'd be surprised how quickly dealers can make these fees disappear in many cases as you walk out the door.

I have a friend who is a GM at a large Ford dealership and you would be surprised how many new car/truck buyers will drive onto a dealership, pick the vehicle they want and pay MSRP and any fees the dealer adds on without any negotiation at all.

As I'm sure some others do, I ask the salesman what his/her very best "out-the-door" price is and then I state what I will pay. They can get to my figure in anyway they choose whether it's reducing the vehicle price or reducing/eliminating the fees. This has always worked for me.

 

'out the door' is the best way to buy a vehicle. The dealership is going to win most of the time if you sit and dicker over every 'fee' and 'cost' they throw at you. If everyone were to buy this way it would change the way they do business and would be better for the consumer.

 

So true, too many vehicle purchasers use the same mentality to purchase a vehicle as they do to purchase a loaf of bread.
Don't blame the dealership that you paid too much, blame yourself.

 

I do wonder what fees you're all talking about because there aren't really any except one;

1. Price
2. Taxes
3. Doc fee (the one I'm referring to above)
4. DMV

Done.

 

Bought my truck in boston ma....they nailed me for nearly $500 for this fee. Only good thing was a $1500 rebate from toyota.

 

Dealers around here all try to charge an inventory tax. Usually $75 or so. They hide it in the Total Taxes line item.
I asked the guy in the finance office why the total taxes were more than the sales tax, he explained the inventory tax and said everyone has to pay it.
I then showed him on the contract he had just presented me where it stated these inventory taxes could be refused.
They took an additional $75 off the purchase price but still charged me the inventory tax, so it was a wash.
So read everything they put in front of you.
FYI, the dealer doc fee was $150.