Sommy

Guys,

I've been lurking here for a few weeks and think I'm ready to make the plunge and join the family.


Looking at my first MB purchase and need some insight as to what I should offer and what I should expect to pay for the car detailed below.

C350 with Keyless Go, Panorama Sunroof and Multimedia Pkg

MSRP $46,700

MBRedux

Depending on any factory incentives, figure $2-$3K off sticker!

2012c350

I believe I paid $700 over the invoice that Edmunds lists. Can't recall exactly though... Definitely under $1000.

kev10

I saw a survey late last year on the purchase prices of C-class and 3-series in the tri-state area (NY, NJ, and Connecticut).. For the year of Sep 2010 to Aug 2011, the average purchase price for C-class is 8.2% off MSRP, while 9.3% for 3-series. I have no idea how large the sample size is.

Hope this helps.

user 7540208

I haven't used any of the following services to actually buy a car but it's interesting to see the pricing the provide. You can always use that as a basis for your negotiation with a dealer:

http://edmunds.com/
http://kbb.com
http://carsdirect.com/
http://truecar.com/

Sommy

Here is my dilema:

It appears the 2012 C350 is a little hard to come by. Searching inventory all over the area and only a handful are available in the state (Texas). So I'm wondering when the car comes in, whether the dealer will actually work with me to make a deal. Not sure if they will hold their ground on the MSRP because they know it's a hard car to come by.

I've probably already broken rule #1 with car buying by asking the dealer to call me when it comes in.

Am I just setting myself up to get no sort of deal when this car comes in, since apparently it's hard to come by? I still don't get why they don't make many of them.

user 7540208

I ended up ordering a 2013 model C350 to get the color/spec I wanted due to lack of availability of 2012's on dealer lots. I got 7% off MSRP which I'm happy with. Of course the downside is having to wait 2+ months while they build/ship it. Suggest you get quotes from the internet sales dept at several dealers for a 2013. If you can't wait that long, you could at least use the 2013 quotes to negotiate on an in-stock 2012 - assuming you can find one. Don't pay MSRP.

Sommy

Did they give you any sort of ETA on the 2103 arriving? I guess i wasn't thinking until September. If it's maybe only August, I could probably wait.

user 7540208

Yeah, according to this....

http://www.benzblogger.com/labels/C-Class.html

....the 2013 will be arriving in dealerships in July. Mid/late July is what my dealer was led to believe. My vehicle is supposed getting built at the end of June for US delivery 4-6 week later. Not exactly sure how the process works but dealers have 'slots' in the production queue that they can use to change the color/options on. I ordered mine about 2 weeks ago although I think most of the delay is waiting while they finish out the 2012 production run and switch to 2013. So it will all depend on which dealers have which production dates available.
Seems like you might be able to get a good deal on an outgoing 2012 (if you can find one) with the '13's just around the corner. Or see what dates they'll give you for a 2013 and get the options you want.