Prep Fee | Texas Pricing | 2015 FiST

[jdmwagon]

Short version: has anyone heard of a prep fee at $300 in addition to delivery at $825? Moreover, did you pay it?

We're a military family stationed overseas and we're currently working on ordering a 2015 Fiesta ST through the Exchange New Car Sales offered on our base. The price for a 2015 FiST with Recaros, moonroof, and nav is coming in at $23,314 and it will be waiting for us at the dealership.

Is the pricing a little high for Texas for those of you who have ordered there?

 

[caliboy15]

is that OTD price? I think it's ok price

 

[jdmwagon]

is that OTD price? I think it's ok price

Not OTD. We will still have to pay tax, title, and license on it.

 

[caliboy15]

Not OTD. We will still have to pay tax, title, and license on it.

if you can get the factory rebate and all the incentives you should be ok.

 

[FocusMike]

I was able to get the dealer prep fee and delivery fee removed, its what the dealer charges to remove all the plastics coverings and trucking to the dealer.

Take a look at this site for some good information.
http://money.usnews.com/money/blogs/my-money/2013/05/16/7-car-dealership-fees-and-services-to-avoid

 

[jdmwagon]

I was able to get the dealer prep fee and delivery fee removed, its what the dealer charges to remove all the plastics coverings and trucking to the dealer.

Take a look at this site for some good information.
http://money.usnews.com/money/blogs/my-money/2013/05/16/7-car-dealership-fees-and-services-to-avoid

Thanks ATX. It's a little tricky since we're attempting to do this all from Japan. The ENCS program allowed us to save the money directly from our pay and order the car while overseas, but I am not sure where we will be able to cut costs on the order. The gentlemen we're working with seems to think the $300 prep fee, plus $825 delivery is mandatory, but I struggle with paying for a $300 car wash and am more than wiling to check the oil before driving it away.

 

[FocusMike]

Are you required to just work with one dealer or can you shop around?

What the salesman can do is take if off the price of the car and leave all the fees in tact on the paperwork. When you have a chance check out truecar.com and see what people are paying in your area. $23,314 isn't that bad of a deal.

 

[jdmwagon]

Are you required to just work with one dealer or can you shop around?

What the salesman can do is take if off the price of the car and leave all the fees in tact on the paperwork. When you have a chance check out truecar.com and see what people are paying in your area. $23,314 isn't that bad of a deal.

The ENCS program seems a little tricky. Once the order is placed we're entitled to any rebates available at the time of our order up until we take delivery of it —*at least that is my understanding of it. We can take delivery of the vehicle anywhere, nationwide, once our military orders are issued. My wife's family lives in DFW, and so we will be picking up the car there from the closest dealership whose name escapes me at the moment.

Assuming no better rebates or incentives come out we will pay $23,314 plus TTL. The ENCS program I guess is supposed to be a no-haggle deal, which I can see as both a pro and a con. I'm semi-relieved to hear that's a decent price. TrueCar seems to have the price around $21ish and shows it being unusually low for the area.

 

[MKVIIST]

$23,314 is a fair price, I paid $24k for mine with every option including the Rado wheels. This includes their $1500 cash back and 0% financing. What kind of interest rates are currently being offered through the ENCS program?

 

[jdmwagon]

$23,314 is a fair price, I paid $24k for mine with every option including the Rado wheels. This includes their $1500 cash back and 0% financing. What kind of interest rates are currently being offered through the ENCS program?

Thanks for the reply. We haven't looked into financing quite yet and the ENCS program allows you to finance through whomever you choose if I'm not mistaken. We will likely go through USAA, but are open to Ford financing or whatever is available to make the ST a reality.

I'm glad to hear it's a decent price. Two years ago when we started this savings plan we were deadset on a Focus, but being in Japan we've developed an affinity for smaller and smaller cars and my wife is convinced that the Fiesta is the perfect size.

 

[ShadowBlackMower]

I was able to get the dealer prep fee and delivery fee removed, its what the dealer charges to remove all the plastics coverings and trucking to the dealer.

Take a look at this site for some good information.
http://money.usnews.com/money/blogs/my-money/2013/05/16/7-car-dealership-fees-and-services-to-avoid

The $825 delivery fee?

 

[wrongwheeldrive]

That's a pretty good final price IMO. You would not likely do better unless you pitted a few dealers against each other, which doesn't seem plausable given you current situation.

 

[jdmwagon]

That's a pretty good final price IMO. You would not likely do better unless you pitted a few dealers against each other, which doesn't seem plausable given you current situation.

Thanks for the feedback. We're going to continue ahead with the ENCS program and in August we will be picking it up from a dealership in the DFW area. Looking forward to it!

 

[ShadowBlackMower]

Would $200 under invoice be a good price? I'm about to pull the trigger and have this thing ordered already.

 

[MKVIIST]

Would $200 under invoice be a good price? I'm about to pull the trigger and have this thing ordered already.

No, they can do a lot better. At the minimum, try to get $1k below invoice.

 

[ShadowBlackMower]

No, they can do a lot better. At the minimum, try to get $1k below invoice.

$200 under invoice was the best he could do, I'll keep looking