Murano Price Paid / Lease Rate Thread

[Timmbo]

Keep the feedback coming everyone! This had been an EXTREMELY helpful thread for many buyers! I really appreciate everyone that has posted here, thanks a bunch! Keep them coming!

[broth]

Just drove it home yesterday.

- 2009 Murano LE (Graphite, Black Interior)- Splash Guards, Moon Roof, Cross Rails, Towing Pkg, Floor Mats- No Nav or DVD- $35,173

[johnsonbr333]

2009 Murano LE AWD (black exterior, beige leather interior)Navigation, Dual Panel Moonroof, Splash Guards, 3 Carpeted Floor Mat Set, Illuminated Door Sills, Black Roof Rail Crossbars, Cargo Area Protector, Wheel locks (dealer threw in the locks)

154 miles on it at the time of purchase MSRP quoted by dealer: $41,060.00 E-Price initially offered by dealer: $37,228.00 (before tax, title, etc.) Total Selling Price Including Accessories (before sales tax, title, all other fees, before the $500 rebate & before my $300 trade-in): $35,220.36

[Note: As you can see, I was able to knock $2,000 off the E-Price initially being offered] Total Drive-out Purchase Price I Paid (including sales tax, title, all other fees, after the $500 rebate & after my $300 trade-in): $37,199.52 [Note: Keep in mind the number of options included in this deal]

Additionals the Dealer Threw In: First oil change free

Additional comments: I purchased this LE on February 5, 2009 at Team Nissan of Marietta (Georgia). From January 21 - February 4, I emailed 15 Atlanta area Nissan dealerships and didn't settle on Team Marietta until all of the 14 other dealerships had dropped out of the bidding, leaving me with Team Marietta as the only one still standing (I got treated very decently by Team, I might add). I believe I got an excellent price for this FULLY-LOADED and brand new LE (seven Murano options total). The fact all the other dealers finally dropped out when we got down to the nitty gritty was pretty telling. By the way, my extremely cheap $300.00 trade-in vehicle was a 1995 Acura Integra LS with one foot in the grave (believe me, when it came to this trade-in, I couldn't have done any better than I did). So the trade-in factor was basically non-existent.
Modified by johnsonbr333 at 7:20 PM 2/17/2009

[Cargal]

Hi John. Sounds like you got a great deal. I am looking for the exact same car but getting pricing of over $38k. Can you tell me if you leased or bought and what those monthly payments are? I live in Charlotte and don't mind driving to Atlanta to get a better deal.

[johnsonbr333]

I purchased it on 2/5/09. My down payment was $12,290.65... leaving me with a balance of $24,908.87. My monthly payments are $400.00 (4.9% APR for 72 months). The 4.9% APR option for 72 months was one of two low-financing specials that were part of the 2009 Murano customer incentives for February (the other was 2.9% APR for 60 months). It's a rare combo of incentives: low financing PLUS a $500 rebate. Don't let any dealers try to tell you that you can't get both of those customer incentives for the 2009 Murano this month. You can get BOTH low financing and the rebate during this month of February (this was a January combo of Murano incentives that was carried over into February).

What I did was contact 15 Atlanta area Nissan dealerships by email only. Initially, I resisted all their efforts to bait me into calling them or visiting them and kept all my communications to emails only... until I got some solid numbers from them (their asking price and their drive-out price, along with a breakdown of ALL their fees, taxes, etc.). I also asked each of them to give me the VIN number of the vehicle they claimed to have in their lot... what I found was that several dealerships were claiming to have the very same vehicle in their lot (what they planned to do was a dealer purchase or dealer trade-out to get the vehicle in question over to their lot).

I pitted the dealerships against each other and forced them to bid for my business. This had the net effect of bringing down the price quotes while adding up more optional equipment for the vehicle.

Once I finally boiled things down to four dealerships that were in serious competition for my business (after the other 11 had dropped out), I made my first phone calls to them and paid my first visits to their dealerships. Any sooner than that and it would have been a waste of time and effort.

Cheers
Modified by johnsonbr333 at 7:23 PM 2/17/2009

[Cargal]

Thanks for your advice. I've had so many dealers tell me to come in before they would give me pricing. I keep telling them that this is n ot the purpose of internet sales, I want to make the deal and come in just to sign the papers.

Can you tell me how you checked the VIN numbers and whether the dealer had that car on their lot? Thanks so much!

[johnsonbr333]

When you get one dealer to give you pricing (and price breakdowns) via email, you use that as leverage with the other dealers, telling all of them that so-and-so dealer was willing to give you that information (this should prompt them to do the same). Be honest and tell them you are in touch with X-amount of area dealerships by email (in my case, I was in touch with 15 area dealerships and I let all of them know that). Then they will know that they are going to have to work to earn your business.

Put your foot down and be firm with them: that you are not calling a single one of them or going in to see a single one of them until you have narrowed your list of dealerships down to the ones who are in your numbers range. Let them know you have not yet called or seen one single dealership yet (then they'll know the playing field is level, all are being treated the same, and that therefore they've still got a shot with you). Basically what you're saying to them is: I've already decided which vehicle I want and which options I want at a minimum... now all I'm doing is selecting my dealership... and the dealership I go with will obviously be the one who gives me the best drive-out price for the kind of vehicle I have my eyes on. Tell them that. Be completely upfront and honest with them. Whenever I got a VIN from a dealer, I simply did a GOOGLE search on that number. All you have to do is put the 17-digit number into the GOOGLE search window. If the vehicle is being advertised online at a dealership then it will come up immediately (you're likely to get more than one GOOGLE result, in fact). So you'll be able to check over the information concerning the vehicle itself and which dealership it's really located at. Also, you should get a Carmax result from your GOOGLE search that should also verify the make and model, etc.

You want to avoid problems like some dealer switching you (either accidentally or intentionally) to an SL when what you're talking about is an LE. Knowing the VIN number will help keep things on the straight and narrow. The only time they won't have the VIN is if they haven't ordered the vehicle yet from groundstock.

When I did this, I learned that several area dealerships were offering me various price quotes for the same exact vehicle that was located at a local dealership lot. Nothing wrong with that as long as they didn't lie to me by saying it was, at that moment, at their lot when it really wasn't. If dealers want to try to get a car from another dealer's lot, by way of a dealer trade-in or dealer purchase or whatever, and then sell it to you at a lower price than what the dealer who actually has the car is willing to sell it to you for, that's perfectly fine. Just make sure you know what's really going on concerning where that vehicle is really located and what the dealership is planning to do to get you a better price. Don't be afraid to ask them why they can offer you a lower price for the same vehicle than the home dealer.

Knowledge is power. You want as much information as you can get. Get the information. Then make a great deal by pitting the dealerships against each other to bid you the best price you can get for the vehicle you want.
Modified by johnsonbr333 at 7:27 PM 2/17/2009

[shocker10]

So much easier to just make an appointment, pay $500 over invoice, and move on with life. I can't believe the things some of you go through to buy a car.

[jbmc59]

2009 Murano LE Glacier White 20 inch wheelsNavDual MoonRoofMats41305.00 MSRP35,500.00 I Paid w 500 incentive4.9% finance x 72 months6yr 100,000 waranty 750.00

[johnsonbr333]

Well, Shocker10, you are certainly welcome to pay $500 over invoice if you like. But that was unacceptable to me and I was able to negotiate a deal that was well below invoice. Had I taken your advice to pay $500 above invoice then I would have ended up paying around $3,000 more than I actually paid for this wonderful vehicle.

Taking your advice (paying $500 over invoice), my sales price would have been somewhere between $38,000 and $38,900. That's just the sales price, before taxes, tags, etc.

To see that, go to Edmunds.com and look up the MSRP and Invoice figures for the 2009 Nissan Murano LE once you add all the options I received with this vehicle: U01 NAV, J01 Dual Panel Moonroof, P93 Illuminated Door Sills, R92 Black Roof Rail Crossbars, B10 Splash Guards, L92 Carpeted Floor Mats (3 Piece Set), N93 Cargo Area Protector. If you leave out the destination fee of $780, the total MSRP is $41,090 and the total Invoice is $37,595. If you leave in the destination fee of $780, the total MSRP is $41,870 and the total Invoice is $38,375.

So again, by your method, if I pay $500 over the total Invoice for such a loaded vehicle as this, I would pay a sales price (before taxes, title, etc.) of somewhere between $38,000 and $38,900.

Why would I prefer your method when my method got me a much lower sales price of $35,220.36? Again, take note that this is my selling price for a 2009 Nissan Murano LE with the seven options I listed above (plus wheel locks that the dealer threw in, if you want to get really specific about it). Compare this to others who paid a sales price similar to this but for a Murano with less options. Once you do that, you realize how great a deal this really was.

Yet you would have me just simply call and schedule an appointment and go into the dealership and pay $3,000 more than I paid. I don't understand that kind of reasoning but you're welcome to it.

You seem to think I went through a lot of things to buy this vehicle ("I can't believe the things some of you go through to buy a car"). Friend, it was no effort whatsoever, I can assure you. The Internet makes it very easy to do all this. So it's easy and it's much better than your old-fashioned way of just going into the dealership, first things first, and paying $3,000 more than you really have to pay.

All I did was email 15 Atlanta area Nissan dealerships between January 21 and February 4. Easy as pie. I was put into email correspondence with most of them via Edmunds.com. As for the rest, I was able to get their email addresses simply by finding their individual dealership web sites via Google. It took no time whatsoever to be placed in email touch with all 15 dealerships.

I saved a lot of needless time, effort and gas money this way. I simply emailed all of them and was able to get them to confirm for me the breakdown on the offer they were making to me and confirmed the VINs for all the vehicles being offered to me.

By the time I was finally ready to make my first phone calls and visits to the dealerships (note: when "I" decided it was right for me to see them, not when "they" decided it was right for me to see them), I was in a very powerful position as a customer.

Final results: My sales price of $35,220.36 was whittled down to $34,720.36 (after the $500 rebate) and there was yet a further deduction of $320 for my 14-year-old junky trade-in... $34,400.00. After taxes, title and all other fees, my drive-out price was $37,200.00 (or $37,199.52 to be exact).

Again, compare the price I got for this FULLY loaded 2009 Nissan Murano LE with the prices you've seen others get for a 2009 Murano LE that did NOT have all the options I received.

And ask yourself... which method is better? Yours or mine?

Mine was time-saving, effort-saving, gas-saving, frustration-saving, confusion-saving and ultimately MONEY-saving. And it was all very easy to do... easy as pie.
Modified by johnsonbr333 at 11:57 AM 2/20/2009

[shocker10]

I hope you at least gave your salesperson an extra $100 because he certainly didn't make anything on the car deal. I just believe in paying a fair profit, in my business if people did that to me I'd have to close up shop.

[johnsonbr333]

I didn't "do" anything to them. I was simply a customer looking for the best deal I could get.

Go ahead and ask my salesperson yourself whether he was happy with the deal we struck. His name is Michael Rezi and he's at Team Nissan of Marietta. I think you'll find that he (and his boss Dwight Parrish) was/were both pleased with the result of our negotiating. They can be reached at 770.422.4546.

Bottom line: I'm not running a charity. I'm trying to buy a car and get the best price for it. I don't worry about the salesman and the salesman doesn't worry about me. I worry only about myself... and I let the salesman worry about himself.

If the negotiating doesn't look to be a winner for a salesman, believe me he'll drop out of the bidding (as 14 other dealerships did). They don't need me to look out for them and worry about whether they are going to come out all right. They're all adults and perfectly capable of looking out for themselves. And believe me, they will look out for themselves. If the deal is too rich for them, they will drop out and move on to other customers like you who are willing to pay more in order to help them out.

After dealing with 15 dealerships, then whittling it down to four dealerships... Team Nissan of Marietta was finally the last dealership left standing. They simply had what it took to make this deal while the others did not. When the others couldn't do the deal, they simply dropped out.

Capitalism at its finest. It's part of what made this country great and if we don't abandon it completely and become a bunch of socialists (given the tough times we're in right now) then it will eventually help make us even greater.

Approach this stuff as a red-blooded American Capitalist and you'll succeed every time, my friend.

[shocker10]

Let's do it!!! and I'm done tipping at restaurants too!!!

[johnsonbr333]

Being a Capitalist doesn't mean you don't tip at restaurants.

I always tip my waiters and waitresses 20 % of the bill. Always without fail, unless their service is horrible.

You and I (all of us) are selective when it comes to tipping. If we applied your rule of charity, we would be tipping everyone all the time. At the grocery store, we would be tipping the employee who showed us where the soup aisle is located, then we would be tipping the cashier AND the bagger, even if we carried our own groceries to our car without any assistance.

Do most of us do all that? Of course not. So we are selective about who it is that we tip and who we do not tip. In the case of buying the Murano, I chose not to tip my car salesman. You consider that wrong. But back that up... go ahead and call the salesman at the phone number I gave you earlier and ask him directly whether he thinks I owed him a tip. Then report back to us in this forum what he tells you.

We are free to tip those we wish to tip and to not tip those we wish not to tip. Most of us tip some here and there but not always. We do it selectively. I doubt you are an exception to that.

So by all means, go out and practice Capitalism ("Let's do it!" as you say). But please don't assume that practicing Capitalism means imposing a moratorium on all tipping. It doesn't mean that at all. It never has meant that and it never will.
Modified by johnsonbr333 at 7:35 PM 2/17/2009

[Cargal]

Ok, sounds like a disgruntled car salesman or a troll. A car dealer won't make a deal if they lose money on it. If there is not some sort of compensation, then it would not be a good deal. No need to be upset with a good deal, no one forced the dealer to sell it at that price.

[Timmbo]

Welcome all new NICOclub member to the Murano Forum. Glad to have you guys here.

It sounds like there are some very good deals to be had on the Murano. Nice work getting the dealers to DEAL!!!!! Congrats on the new rides!

[shocker10]

Not even close to a car salesman, proud business owner. Also, dealerships do make deals when losing money fyi.

[johnsonbr333]

Exactly right, Cargal.

Just as you say, there must have been some form of compensation that the dealership, Team Nissan of Marietta, was able to get that afforded them the opportunity to sell me this brand new Murano with the seven options at the low price we agreed on.

Even though they sold me this well-loaded vehicle at a price well below Invoice, there must have been good reason for them to do the deal or they surely would have dropped out like the other 14 dealerships eventually did.

If, in the end, the dealership actually did take a loss on this (that is, if there was no compensation for them even through my decision to take financing through Nissan or through some other kind of Nissan corporate reward for dealers) then that particular dealership simply decided it was better to let that particular vehicle go rather than keep it on the lot. Again, whatever the case happened to be here, obviously the dealer made a decision that it felt was in its best interest. That's what mature adult businessmen do every day in this country.

I just don't buy this nonsense that I have some politically correct obligation to watch out for the dealer and make sure he's getting a tip or something for his hard work. He's a grown-up and perfectly capable of watching out for himself. As a businessman, if it's not worth it to him to do the deal, then he simply won't do it.

Besides, I worked harder than the dealer did. He only had to deal with me. I had to deal with 15 dealerships. I worked harder than they all did to make this deal and I deserve the great results that I achieved. If anyone deserves a tip for working hard to make this deal happen, it's me!

If other customers want to gripe because they didn't do as well with their Murano deal as I did, then let them gripe. If they want to try to make me feel guilty because I had the nerve to watch out for only my own interests as a customer (and didn't watch out for the interests of the dealer too) then theirs is an alien philosophy that I certainly do not agree with.

So I think you are dead on, Cargal, and thank you.

[apc611]

Hi all -

Sorry, I'm not sure of the proper way to create a new posting, so I just hit Reply. Anyway, I'm looking at leasing my second Murano. I go to a dealership that wants to give me $100 over invoice on an SL AWD, with Tech, Prem, Leather. I've dealt with the same dealership forever, but have never questioned the pricing, as I am a "friend of the family". Well, my cynical nature has lead me to the NICO site. From what I'm reading, I might not be geting close the best deal I can.

A few questions: What is a reasonable amt to pay? Is "Invoice" really the amount dealers pay? Below Invoice, how does the dealer make money? Is Feb really the best time to buy/lease from Nissan?

Thanks!

[johnsonbr333]

When it comes to this stuff, always be cynical (or at least skeptical) otherwise you'll be unarmed.

Best way to test this deal being offered to you is to check with all the other Nissan dealerships in your area to see whether any of them can beat what's being offered to you.

Save yourself gas money, time, effort and a lot of nonsense-talk by emailing these other dealerships. You can go through Edmunds.com or other similar services that place you in touch, by email, with the dealerships in your area. Or you can go to Nissan's corporate web site and get a list of all the dealerships located near you and then get their individual email addresses by going to each dealership's web site.

However you decide to do it, make sure to get in email contact with all of them. It won't take much effort to accomplish that. Once you're in touch with them by email, simply outline all details of the deal being offered to you and ask each dealership to beat that deal.

Resist all efforts by the dealers to get you to call them or get you to visit them... until you have whittled your list of offered deals down to best ones. Once you know which dealers are really offering you the best deals, then it will be time to call them and visit them.

In the end, you might find yourself going with another dealership other than the one you're talking to now. Or you might find yourself able to get a much better deal from the original dealership than the deal they're offering you now (once they see you've done your homework and can get a better deal elsewhere).

So plan your work. Then work your plan. And you should do well.

All of this is amazingly easy. The Internet has revolutionized the whole process for you. It's now there for you to use. So use it. And you will be glad that you did.
Modified by johnsonbr333 at 1:49 PM 2/19/2009

[apc611]

I did already request a quote through Edmunds. I'm very interested to se what comes back.

[johnsonbr333]

Edmunds will get you in touch with some of the dealerships in your area but probably not all of them. For the rest of the dealerships, you can go to the Nissan corporate web site to locate them. It's in your interests to email ALL of them, because the more "players" (that is, dealers bidding to earn your business) means the greater likelihood of your coming through this with an excellent deal.

Good luck and let us know how you come out.

[Cargal]

Since there are some many knowledgeable people here, I'd like to ask your opinion. With the way today's economy is and auto companies cutting production, do you think that the current special on leasing muranos is going to get better or worse?

My current lease is ending in May and I know Nissan currently has a special mf rate of .00154 for 39 months, low by today's standard. We want to lease a murano but really don't want to take the hit for the last 3 payments. We were going to wait until May to get a new car but the way the economy is, are not sure if mf rates will get better. The industry is moving away from leasing and I'm afraid Nissan will follow suit. For example, there are phenomenal prices on 09 RX 350's, 10k under MSRP however their financing, lease or buy, is very high, making payments up over $600/month for 48 months.

We are just not sure what to do. If this mf stays in place for the next 3 months then we are fine and we really want to lease. I just want to hear what your opinion is. Thanks all!

[shocker10]

You should be good until 3/31, anything after that you're gamb|ing...

[Timmbo]

I did already request a quote through Edmunds. I'm very interested to se what comes back.

Welcome to NICOclub! I am the Moderator here and I want to formally greet you to the Murano Forum. We are glad to have you here!

Looks like the some members have already given you some fantastic advice! Nissan's fiscal year ends at the end of March, that is why you want to purchase/lease by then. Good luck, be sure to post what your end deal is. Let us know if you have any more questions!

[Cargal]

Hi Tim, I know you weren't responding to my post but can you give me advice as well? After March 15th I'll only have 2 more payments left on my current lease. In your opinion, should pull the plug and lease a murano since it's fiscal year end? I'm just so worried mf rates will go up, not down even though cars are not selling. I do know muranos are only down 8% in January as composed to all the other cars in Nissan's fleet.

I would rather "lose" the last 2 months of my current lease vs being financed out of a murano. Please advise, I also know that it's just your opinion and won't hold you to your opinion. Thanks!

[Timmbo]

Hi Tim, I know you weren't responding to my post but can you give me advice as well? After March 15th I'll only have 2 more payments left on my current lease. In your opinion, should pull the plug and lease a murano since it's fiscal year end? I'm just so worried mf rates will go up, not down even though cars are not selling. I do know muranos are only down 8% in January as composed to all the other cars in Nissan's fleet.

I would rather "lose" the last 2 months of my current lease vs being financed out of a murano. Please advise, I also know that it's just your opinion and won't hold you to your opinion. Thanks!

I tend to agree with you on this one, loose the last two months of your current lease. I did that when I bought my Armada last year. My lease wasn't up until the beginning of April, but I found the exact Armada I wanted, at an AMAZING price, so I jumped on that. With the fiscal year end close, I would work the best deal possible, and pull the trigger on that.

[Jaun]

In this market, you should be able to convince the dealer that they want to absorb the final two payments - especially if you're staying in the Nissan family!

[Cargal]

Does anyone know what the dealer holdback percentage is on the Murano? And is that percentage based on MSRP? Thanks in advance.

[johnsonbr333]

According to Edmunds...

The Nissan dealer holdback percentage is 2% of the total invoice.

The following web page gives you the Edmunds list of holdback percentages per Make...

http://www.edmunds.com/advice/....html
Modified by johnsonbr333 at 8:30 PM 2/21/2009