Current East Coast Used Is 250/350 Pricing?

[jewel]

Hi all,

I'm in the market for a used IS 250...or possibly a 350. Either way, I want silver or granite exterior with navigation and wood trim. Not terribly picky past that, but of course, the more loaded the better!

Just curious as to what these vehicles are going for. Mileage I've seen so far is in the 8-15k range which is fine by me. I would LOVE to pick up and IS 350 for 34k, but that's seems like too far of a stretch. I'm already preapproved for a 28k loan (actually for 50k! I couldn't imagine the payments on THAT kind of loan!!!) from my credit union and have 7500 cash to put down. Does that give me any kind of negotiting power i.e. easy, straighforward sale?

I'm in VA but willing to drive to MD, WV, and probably NJ, PA area and maaaaaybe NC.

Any dealer recommendations? Any dealers to stay away from (besides Silver Spring)?

[bartkat]

I'd suggest searching www.autotrader.com within a comfortable distance from where you live. At least you'll get a good idea of asking prices.

[jewel]

I've checked out auto trader. Asking seems to be in the 36-37k range. Thought I might be able to talk the dealer down to 34/35. Wanted everyone's thoughts and especially good salesman/contact recommendations!

[rubberduckee]

As the previously suggested - try autotrader.

I managed to land a slightly used 2006 IS250 AWD (Smokey Granite Mica) with the following:

1) Nav

2) Luxury Package (Xenon, tilting Wheel, mirrors etc..)

3) 5500 miles

Dealer had it priced @ 33500 - but when I showed up (Drove from Boston to Connecticut) - managed to walk out for $31500. Not the greatest deal but not too shabby either.

Car was only 4 months old (from CarFax VIN) from build date. Owner wanted something nicers so ended up trading the car for a merc.

Key to this is being patient - (if you have the time and want a good deal) and check autotrader.com every day. I bought the car 1 day after it was listed (called up first) because I kept checking out the pages.

HOpe this helps - Good luck!

[jewel]

Wow...rubberduckee, that sounds GREAT! I guess I do have time on my side. Sold my Scion tc, but have mom's old 84 Honda to drive around in until I find one. Even willing to drive out of state. Sigh...guess I'll sit and wait...wonder if there's any truth to cheaper end of the month dealing...

[rubberduckee]

when it comes to used cars, IMO, there is no such thing. I know what you're going through because I went through the exact same thing. I found a deal in NY, it was the car I was looking for (I specifically wanted an IS250 AWD with Nav + LUXURY package - its a rare combo). Two days before the dealer was going to sell me the car, he found a local person.

I was totally devastated as I thought it was a hard deal to find as I managed to negotiate it from $34500 to $32500. It also had only 8.5k miles on it. Well I then decided that I'll just wait ... combing autotrader during my free time - two weeks later, I found my car :-) and to make it sweeter, it had less 3k miles and $1000 less than I was willing to fork out.

If I come across a deal - I'll let you know :-)

Its a fun thing for me - I like looking for the best prices but cars are a hairy thing...

[jewel]

Sigh...it's hard to be patient when you've sold your 2 year old, bought new Scion tc, and have to tool around in your mother's 84 Honda with 307k miles, but...I want the perfect car at a great price. Guess I'll HAVE to be patient!

Thanks for the offer rubberdukee...search away! My zip is 22701 and I might be convinced to drive 300 miles for one. Prefer under 200, but hey...last year I drove out of state...by myself...with a truck and trailer for a 30k horse that I got for 4k. Still happy about that one!

So...if it's the right price I'll go just about anywhere...