Buying Advice? Trying to make the deam come true

It's time to reward my wife for all of her years of hard work and
devotion and putting up with my sh*t. The kids are mostly out of the
house now. The only thing she ever asked for was a Mustang, and then
sort of half-jokingly, but I know she's always wanted one. I'm going to
try to make it happen for her birthday in May. I was going to wait 2
years for her 50th but you never know how long you have with someone,
there have been health issues recently that scare me. Plus our second
car has almost 200k miles and is about to fall over for good and she's
often stuck driving that rat-mobile with the interior fabric hanging
down on her head since I have to travel a lot and use our 'good' car for
that, which is getting old too.

So I'm new at this, and have limited funds, I'm going to have to get
creative, even with financing since I'm still paying for two kids'
college. What are my best options to pick up a new Mustang? Is this the
time of year that dealers start clearing out 2006 models at low prices?
Or is all that just BS? Is ebay the best bet, can you get new vehicles
that way and is it something I should trust? She doesn't need something
super-fast like the new shelby 500gt (good thing, at the over-msrp
prices I'm seeing here!). She just is in love with the style.

Anyway, thanks for any help or suggestions.

Hi, Jerry,
My first Mustang was a 2002 convertible which I bought in '03. It had been
leased by Ford to a car rental agency, taken off lease, & sold to my dealer,
where I found it. It had 23K on the clock, was immaculate, & priced at
$16,700. Love at first sight.
Just a thought of place to look for a good deal. When I go looking again it
will be to the rental returns first.
Cheers.
Clint
"JerryC" > wrote in message
.net...
> It's time to reward my wife for all of her years of hard work and
> devotion and putting up with my sh*t. The kids are mostly out of the
> house now. The only thing she ever asked for was a Mustang, and then
> sort of half-jokingly, but I know she's always wanted one. I'm going to
> try to make it happen for her birthday in May. I was going to wait 2
> years for her 50th but you never know how long you have with someone,
> there have been health issues recently that scare me. Plus our second
> car has almost 200k miles and is about to fall over for good and she's
> often stuck driving that rat-mobile with the interior fabric hanging
> down on her head since I have to travel a lot and use our 'good' car for
> that, which is getting old too.
>
> So I'm new at this, and have limited funds, I'm going to have to get
> creative, even with financing since I'm still paying for two kids'
> college. What are my best options to pick up a new Mustang? Is this the
> time of year that dealers start clearing out 2006 models at low prices?
> Or is all that just BS? Is ebay the best bet, can you get new vehicles
> that way and is it something I should trust? She doesn't need something
> super-fast like the new shelby 500gt (good thing, at the over-msrp
> prices I'm seeing here!). She just is in love with the style.
>
> Anyway, thanks for any help or suggestions.

I'd caution against buying any car that's been a rental. That's why
CarFax specifically flags these (and leased cars also). The plain and
simple facts are that since people that drive these aren't responsible
for them, they beat the crap out of them. I travel almost constantly for
work, as does everyone in my very large group. Seeing what these folks
do to rental cars makes me cringe. Speed bumps? no problem. BAM!

and the rental agencies, despite what folklore says, don't take very
good care of them either as far as the maintenance/upkeep. They know
they will be used up very quickly and that's why they dump them on the
market when they are only a few years old and still have pretty low
mileage. every time i rent a car, i ask for one with low miles because
even at 20k miles these cars are pretty shot and unreliable, i see it
every time i get stuck with one of them. sounds like you got lucky with
yours though!

same thing with leased cars to some extent, but not as bad. you might
get lucky there, but in general i avoid them.


In article <PsRkh.2859$%M1.208@trnddc08>, says...
> Hi, Jerry,
> My first Mustang was a 2002 convertible which I bought in '03. It had been
> leased by Ford to a car rental agency, taken off lease, & sold to my dealer,
> where I found it. It had 23K on the clock, was immaculate, & priced at
> $16,700. Love at first sight.
> Just a thought of place to look for a good deal. When I go looking again it
> will be to the rental returns first.
> Cheers.
> Clint
> "JerryC" > wrote in message
> .net...
> > It's time to reward my wife for all of her years of hard work and
> > devotion and putting up with my sh*t. The kids are mostly out of the
> > house now. The only thing she ever asked for was a Mustang, and then
> > sort of half-jokingly, but I know she's always wanted one. I'm going to
> > try to make it happen for her birthday in May. I was going to wait 2
> > years for her 50th but you never know how long you have with someone,
> > there have been health issues recently that scare me. Plus our second
> > car has almost 200k miles and is about to fall over for good and she's
> > often stuck driving that rat-mobile with the interior fabric hanging
> > down on her head since I have to travel a lot and use our 'good' car for
> > that, which is getting old too.
> >
> > So I'm new at this, and have limited funds, I'm going to have to get
> > creative, even with financing since I'm still paying for two kids'
> > college. What are my best options to pick up a new Mustang? Is this the
> > time of year that dealers start clearing out 2006 models at low prices?
> > Or is all that just BS? Is ebay the best bet, can you get new vehicles
> > that way and is it something I should trust? She doesn't need something
> > super-fast like the new shelby 500gt (good thing, at the over-msrp
> > prices I'm seeing here!). She just is in love with the style.
> >
> > Anyway, thanks for any help or suggestions.
>
>
>

"JerryC" > wrote in message
.net...
> It's time to reward my wife for all of her years of hard work and
> devotion and putting up with my sh*t. The kids are mostly out of the
> house now. The only thing she ever asked for was a Mustang, and then
> sort of half-jokingly, but I know she's always wanted one. I'm going to
> try to make it happen for her birthday in May. I was going to wait 2
> years for her 50th but you never know how long you have with someone,
> there have been health issues recently that scare me. Plus our second
> car has almost 200k miles and is about to fall over for good and she's
> often stuck driving that rat-mobile with the interior fabric hanging
> down on her head since I have to travel a lot and use our 'good' car for
> that, which is getting old too.
>
> So I'm new at this, and have limited funds, I'm going to have to get
> creative, even with financing since I'm still paying for two kids'
> college. What are my best options to pick up a new Mustang? Is this the
> time of year that dealers start clearing out 2006 models at low prices?
> Or is all that just BS? Is ebay the best bet, can you get new vehicles
> that way and is it something I should trust? She doesn't need something
> super-fast like the new shelby 500gt (good thing, at the over-msrp
> prices I'm seeing here!). She just is in love with the style.
>
> Anyway, thanks for any help or suggestions.

Jerry,

You are just about to miss all of the 2006 bargain basement pricing, and
what is left has been well picked over. They have been selling 2006 GT's
for up to 8000 off MSRP for at least a month now. (I've posted scans of the
newspaper adds over at alt.binaries.pictures.drag-racing a little while
ago). As I have posted before, if I were buying an 07 Mustang GT, I would
be paying INVOICE price or less for it.

I posted some very useful information on December 13, 2006 in Tim J's thread
titled "GT shopping" there are even some good 2007 deals being offered
right now before the end of the year.

I would NEVER buy a car not located locally for my convenient inspection
from EBay.

Again, don't waste your time at the dealership talking to the sales drones,
speak directly to the sales manager. If you don't know who that is, you can
call and ask his name, or stop in the parts department on your way in and
ask the parts guy the sales/general manager's name. Then when you go into
the show room you can ask for the sales manager by name. Tell him exactly
what you want and how much you are paying, ask him if he would like to sell
what you are buying for your price, or not. If you don't know exactly what
you want' don't make an offer. If you ask questions and are indecisive,
they will OWN you. If he tries to play games walk out.

Nobody

As a side note, do not EVER buy I car I rented. Did you know you CAN get an
Excursion on two wheels if you try hard enough! And I see why cops drive
Crown Vics... no matter how many curbs you go flying off, they still keep
running - and the sparks look really cool in the rear view mirror. My older
friends said that despite their tough as nails status (I love mine), it IS
possible to bend a Bronco frame in the oil fields - but again, you gotta
work for it.

Brad


"JerryC" > wrote in message
.net...
> I'd caution against buying any car that's been a rental. That's why
> CarFax specifically flags these (and leased cars also). The plain and
> simple facts are that since people that drive these aren't responsible
> for them, they beat the crap out of them. I travel almost constantly for
> work, as does everyone in my very large group. Seeing what these folks
> do to rental cars makes me cringe. Speed bumps? no problem. BAM!
>
> and the rental agencies, despite what folklore says, don't take very
> good care of them either as far as the maintenance/upkeep. They know
> they will be used up very quickly and that's why they dump them on the
> market when they are only a few years old and still have pretty low
> mileage. every time i rent a car, i ask for one with low miles because
> even at 20k miles these cars are pretty shot and unreliable, i see it
> every time i get stuck with one of them. sounds like you got lucky with
> yours though!
>
> same thing with leased cars to some extent, but not as bad. you might
> get lucky there, but in general i avoid them.
>
>
> In article <PsRkh.2859$%M1.208@trnddc08>, says...
>> Hi, Jerry,
>> My first Mustang was a 2002 convertible which I bought in '03. It had
>> been
>> leased by Ford to a car rental agency, taken off lease, & sold to my
>> dealer,
>> where I found it. It had 23K on the clock, was immaculate, & priced at
>> $16,700. Love at first sight.
>> Just a thought of place to look for a good deal. When I go looking again
>> it
>> will be to the rental returns first.
>> Cheers.
>> Clint
>> "JerryC" > wrote in message
>> .net...
>> > It's time to reward my wife for all of her years of hard work and
>> > devotion and putting up with my sh*t. The kids are mostly out of the
>> > house now. The only thing she ever asked for was a Mustang, and then
>> > sort of half-jokingly, but I know she's always wanted one. I'm going to
>> > try to make it happen for her birthday in May. I was going to wait 2
>> > years for her 50th but you never know how long you have with someone,
>> > there have been health issues recently that scare me. Plus our second
>> > car has almost 200k miles and is about to fall over for good and she's
>> > often stuck driving that rat-mobile with the interior fabric hanging
>> > down on her head since I have to travel a lot and use our 'good' car
>> > for
>> > that, which is getting old too.
>> >
>> > So I'm new at this, and have limited funds, I'm going to have to get
>> > creative, even with financing since I'm still paying for two kids'
>> > college. What are my best options to pick up a new Mustang? Is this the
>> > time of year that dealers start clearing out 2006 models at low prices?
>> > Or is all that just BS? Is ebay the best bet, can you get new vehicles
>> > that way and is it something I should trust? She doesn't need something
>> > super-fast like the new shelby 500gt (good thing, at the over-msrp
>> > prices I'm seeing here!). She just is in love with the style.
>> >
>> > Anyway, thanks for any help or suggestions.
>>
>>
>>

Well I scoured my area of the country and no dealers had 2006 GTs
available so I couldn't take advantage of the incentives. Bummer.

so now i guess I'll start to focus on the 2007's since i want to get
this for my wife's birthday in May.

Can I get the same type of discounts that were mentioned (thousands
below sticker/invoice) if I order a 2007 to spec rather than taking one
off the lot?

any tips on options, etc such as is the higher end shaker sound system
worth it? I guess i'll go with the premium package vs delux, definitely
GT. she can drive manual but may prefer to just have automatic.

In article >,
says...
> It's time to reward my wife for all of her years of hard work and
> devotion and putting up with my sh*t. The kids are mostly out of the
> house now. The only thing she ever asked for was a Mustang, and then
> sort of half-jokingly, but I know she's always wanted one. I'm going to
> try to make it happen for her birthday in May. I was going to wait 2
> years for her 50th but you never know how long you have with someone,
> there have been health issues recently that scare me. Plus our second
> car has almost 200k miles and is about to fall over for good and she's
> often stuck driving that rat-mobile with the interior fabric hanging
> down on her head since I have to travel a lot and use our 'good' car for
> that, which is getting old too.
>
> So I'm new at this, and have limited funds, I'm going to have to get
> creative, even with financing since I'm still paying for two kids'
> college. What are my best options to pick up a new Mustang? Is this the
> time of year that dealers start clearing out 2006 models at low prices?
> Or is all that just BS? Is ebay the best bet, can you get new vehicles
> that way and is it something I should trust? She doesn't need something
> super-fast like the new shelby 500gt (good thing, at the over-msrp
> prices I'm seeing here!). She just is in love with the style.
>
> Anyway, thanks for any help or suggestions.
>

Well you missed the 2006 clear out sales, and you missed the end of the year
blow out sales.

My suggestion is that you wait until the end of this month to try and make
your deal. Best deals are had the last few days of each calendar month.

How do you and your wife use your current car sound systems? The optional
upgraded sound systems offer NOTHING I need. Whatever you decide, do it
prior to going in and making your deal.
If you need to try out different options and make up your mind, do it on a
different visit and perhaps at a different dealership than you plan on
making you deal at.

When you go to make you deal you need to know EXACTLY what you want, have
all your ducks in a row.
Car ordered exactly X color and options..
Yes/No to dealer add-ons, under coating, paint protection, extended
warranty, etc. (All NO by the way)
Financing provided by X

And once again, don't waste your time at the dealership talking to the sales
drones, speak directly to the sales manager.

For a 2007 Mustang GT off the lot or ordered to your specification, you
should be paying somewhere between just under invoice and up to MSRP.

Good Luck
Keep us informed




"JerryC" > wrote in message
. net...
> Well I scoured my area of the country and no dealers had 2006 GTs
> available so I couldn't take advantage of the incentives. Bummer.
>
> so now i guess I'll start to focus on the 2007's since i want to get
> this for my wife's birthday in May.
>
> Can I get the same type of discounts that were mentioned (thousands
> below sticker/invoice) if I order a 2007 to spec rather than taking one
> off the lot?
>
> any tips on options, etc such as is the higher end shaker sound system
> worth it? I guess i'll go with the premium package vs delux, definitely
> GT. she can drive manual but may prefer to just have automatic.
>
> In article >,
> says...
>> It's time to reward my wife for all of her years of hard work and
>> devotion and putting up with my sh*t. The kids are mostly out of the
>> house now. The only thing she ever asked for was a Mustang, and then
>> sort of half-jokingly, but I know she's always wanted one. I'm going to
>> try to make it happen for her birthday in May. I was going to wait 2
>> years for her 50th but you never know how long you have with someone,
>> there have been health issues recently that scare me. Plus our second
>> car has almost 200k miles and is about to fall over for good and she's
>> often stuck driving that rat-mobile with the interior fabric hanging
>> down on her head since I have to travel a lot and use our 'good' car for
>> that, which is getting old too.
>>
>> So I'm new at this, and have limited funds, I'm going to have to get
>> creative, even with financing since I'm still paying for two kids'
>> college. What are my best options to pick up a new Mustang? Is this the
>> time of year that dealers start clearing out 2006 models at low prices?
>> Or is all that just BS? Is ebay the best bet, can you get new vehicles
>> that way and is it something I should trust? She doesn't need something
>> super-fast like the new shelby 500gt (good thing, at the over-msrp
>> prices I'm seeing here!). She just is in love with the style.
>>
>> Anyway, thanks for any help or suggestions.
>>

From My Name Is Nobody, on 1/5/2007 12:18 PM:
>
> For a 2007 Mustang GT off the lot or ordered to your specification, you
> should be paying somewhere between just under invoice and up to MSRP.

How would you use the Edmunds and KBB invoice prices. If you could get
it at one of these invoice prices, would that be considered a good deal?

"mark greene" > wrote in message
...
> From My Name Is Nobody, on 1/5/2007 12:18 PM:
>>
>> For a 2007 Mustang GT off the lot or ordered to your specification, you
>> should be paying somewhere between just under invoice and up to MSRP.
>
> How would you use the Edmunds and KBB invoice prices. If you could get it
> at one of these invoice prices, would that be considered a good deal?

Like I've posted in the past, I paid invoice price for my new car three
purchases ago, and $1800 under invoice for the one after that, and the last
(2005 I ordered) was $3000 under invoice. Remember you always get all
available incentives, no matter how good of a price you get, or the
dealership keeps the incentives themselves.

You have to negotiate your own deal as best as you can...
Good Luck

go to ford.com click on build your own mustang, choose all the options you
want, print out the build that you come up with. go to KBB get a trade in
value of the car you are trading, print that out too. go to the dealer(s) of
your choice and ask for their best price. don't let them BS you. Tell them
what the car costs exactly, what your trade in it worth exactly, and look
for a rebate or low interest from ford or your bank. I bought a 2007 G6
convertible using this process and felt I got a good deal, I fought for
every penny, but I was not about to let them get away with suckering me into
any crap deal. The dealer caved in the end because I was prepared to go
elsewhere if they did not meet my deal.

Around here 2007 Mustang GTs are plentiful and the dealers will discount
them. I even had 3 quotes for financing before I talked to the dealer so I
knew what the interest rate should be. I had the whole thing figured out
what I was going to pay. The dealer beat my best guess by 200 bucks lower
than I thought.



"JerryC" > wrote in message
. net...
> Well I scoured my area of the country and no dealers had 2006 GTs
> available so I couldn't take advantage of the incentives. Bummer.
>
> so now i guess I'll start to focus on the 2007's since i want to get
> this for my wife's birthday in May.
>
> Can I get the same type of discounts that were mentioned (thousands
> below sticker/invoice) if I order a 2007 to spec rather than taking one
> off the lot?
>
> any tips on options, etc such as is the higher end shaker sound system
> worth it? I guess i'll go with the premium package vs delux, definitely
> GT. she can drive manual but may prefer to just have automatic.
>
> In article >,
> says...
>> It's time to reward my wife for all of her years of hard work and
>> devotion and putting up with my sh*t. The kids are mostly out of the
>> house now. The only thing she ever asked for was a Mustang, and then
>> sort of half-jokingly, but I know she's always wanted one. I'm going to
>> try to make it happen for her birthday in May. I was going to wait 2
>> years for her 50th but you never know how long you have with someone,
>> there have been health issues recently that scare me. Plus our second
>> car has almost 200k miles and is about to fall over for good and she's
>> often stuck driving that rat-mobile with the interior fabric hanging
>> down on her head since I have to travel a lot and use our 'good' car for
>> that, which is getting old too.
>>
>> So I'm new at this, and have limited funds, I'm going to have to get
>> creative, even with financing since I'm still paying for two kids'
>> college. What are my best options to pick up a new Mustang? Is this the
>> time of year that dealers start clearing out 2006 models at low prices?
>> Or is all that just BS? Is ebay the best bet, can you get new vehicles
>> that way and is it something I should trust? She doesn't need something
>> super-fast like the new shelby 500gt (good thing, at the over-msrp
>> prices I'm seeing here!). She just is in love with the style.
>>
>> Anyway, thanks for any help or suggestions.
>>