I have been trying to find a Fit in my area (Los Angeles) for quite some time, and I am NOT willing to pay a mark-up fee. I see on this forum that people are purchasing their cars before they even arrive. Are they paying above MSRP?

Dealers are acting as if these cars are the hardest cars to get your hands on, but I somehow don't buy it! Is the demand that high? Like how the Prius was last year?? How is everyone getting their Fits then?

Please help! I appreciate your advice...

 

i walked into the dealership and ordered my Jazz and it came in 2 days. mind you thats Thailand.

 

West Coast is currently short on Fits - I had to put a deposit down in May and wait a month to get the specific one I wanted. Now many of the CA dealers that did sell at MSRP at first have bumped up the price 1K or so over MSRP and getting it.
Production has been substantially cut from the original estimated run - I think so Honda can make more Civics, according to a news report posted here last month.
I think (but don't know for sure) California versions are still slightly different from "49 State"- at least the warranty is different, anyway. So you might not be able to buy a new one in some other state and register it as "new" in CA. Anybody know for sure?

 

We are only getting two Fits a month and you can have any transmission you want as long as it is automatic. However despite the demand we are selling them at MSRP with no additional mark-up.

 

ive heard people paying 1k markup for the fits. but its possible getting them at MSRP. searching for one is a long process though. i never thought the fit would be this hard to get.

 

I found a dealership in the Bay Area selling for MSRP and put a deposit down. However, I believe that dealership is now asking a markup.

 

I ordered mine at MSRP about three weeks ago in NC. Was told it would be about August before arrival, but a customer who ordered one like the one I wanted dropped off the list and I was told two weeks ago it should be in by next week. Still no word though. They did have a white MT Sport available which was tempting, but I decided to wait for the one I really wanted.

 

Try finding an Internet Sales Manager, and see if they'll work with you. They're known not to play all the games that the regular salesmen play. I'm dealing with one at a dealer up the road. She's giving me MSRP pricing. Probably because the Fit isn't in as high demand here in Texas as in other places. Supply and demand economics play into it.

If dealers in your area still want more than MSRP, look elsewhere, or be prepared to wait as Honda gets more units into the US.

I was just told (via email) that I could be waiting three months for what I want. Oh well, I can deal.

 

you can refuse to pay markup, it's perfectly reasonable to not wanting to pay markup.

but if there are people willing to pay markup, you arent getting one at msrp. those willing to pay markup will get theirs before you get yours.

and dealers arent acting, we arent getting that many fits. 2-5 a month for most dealerships.

you can not buy we arent getting fits, i dont buy all these people paying below sticker.

 

I've already tried internet dealers, and surprisingly they are most unwilling to remove the mark-up.
Oh well, I might just have to get lucky.

 

There seem to be pretty long waits in Tx. The dealership I went through didn't mark-up the price with cash, they tried to tack on int/ext protection package with no way of getting rid of it. I talked to a manager and traded it for some accessories. There is one dealership in San Antonio not doing fishy stuff, Gunn Honda. But, they weren't getting a silver mt sport for who knows how long.

 

you might call a place out of state and see if you can get it shipped to a dealer near you and they could prolly sell it to you at MSRP

 

I called my local dealer about 8 days before Fits started arriving and told them I had made a deal with the dealership where I usually buy my Hondas. I told him they offered $500 under sticker. He took the deal right then and there, as they had a black 5 speed coming in in the first batch and it wasn't yet sold. I don't think they knew or thought the Fit would be in high demand.

I guess I got really lucky.

BTW, my normal dealer (about 75 miles north of me) had a silver 5 speed coming in about a month after I got mine, but I liked black over silver and wanted it ASAP.

 

Yeah, there were people pre-release warning others not to pre-buy at MSRP because the Fit would be selling for invoice right about now.

If you're willing to spend a couple of thousand more, you can get a lot more vehicle for the money this summer on 2006 close-outs. A Subie Outback Sport comes to mind. All wheel drive and tons of standard equipment. Looks like oil prices will be going down so the cost difference in gas between a Fit and that Subie isn't much as a part of total vehicle operating costs.

Also, Mazda3 comes to mind. Too bad Honda won't give the U.S. a Civic hatch and so few Fits.

 

I got mine ordered at $150 over invoice, with all accessories at dealer internal cost. Of course, I also bought my S2000 and wife's Accord at the same dealership, and do all my servicing there.

I do have quite a wait, though, since I want the Sport in White and a 5-speed. I'm told there are none to be had right now in the entire US. Have to wait for a factory order. Hope my old Civic holds out that long......

JonasM

 

I was lucky and was able to get my fit at $100 over invoice, White sport 5MT black int, first one to hit our store.

 

Hey did u guys sell a black fit not long ago? I see that u work at Rock Honda and well i was walking on main street Huntington beach and i saw a black fit with tinted windows with a Rock Honda dealer plate. P.S. 100 over invoice... lucky lucky u

 

I got lucky and went searching the week of April 20 when it became available and got one before the dealer fully realized how fast the Fits were going to sell. I think if you hunt hard enough you will find an honest dealer. They are RARE but it would be worth a 3 month wait to get a dealer that was honest, and find a salesperson who you feel is honest and not just out for blood, even if there is a markup they may be able to help because they don't feel right about what the dealer is doing. A freind of mine did that at a dealer with a $1800 markup and the honest salesperson worked out a deal for MSRP for him (2 month wait).

 

I got lucky.. I only went to one dealer and they weren't even charging mark-up

 

[quote=yogi-lou]I have been trying to find a Fit in my area (Los Angeles) for quite some time, and I am NOT willing to pay a mark-up fee. I see on this forum that people are purchasing their cars before they even arrive. Are they paying above MSRP?

Dealers are acting as if these cars are the hardest cars to get your hands on, but I somehow don't buy it! Is the demand that high? Like how the Prius was last year?? How is everyone getting their Fits then?

Please help! I appreciate your advice... I will try to keep this short. keep calling dealers untill you find one that will do it. Do not walk into any dealers... Good luck because it is kinda late to be getting good deals. The news is out and crash test results done.
Do you remember when mazda miata debued? It was a very nice quality cheap car that enterd the market when there was no market for convertables. Folks were getting away from buying the nissans and musle cars and switching to trucks and suv s. Well my point is that not long after debue the mazda could only be bought if you preordered them then the price went up and up and up. This is only one example. I bought my fit before first shipment for that reason. My Fit cost msrp. Many dealers got calls from me and finally 120 miles away I got my car. It is really an example of supply and demand. If you dont have to have a new car perhaps next year you could buy a one year used one from a private party. If you buy from the dealer you might as well buy new. Dealers charge alot for used cars. Make those calls.