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Hootbro

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899 processing fee.... My dealer doesn't charge that in PA. Advertised Price, Your State Tax Title & Registration - That is it. Processing Fee is just hiden markup.
Not exactly hidden when they do not hide it either in this thread or their website ad copy.

I agree it is bit excessive but it is still there to decide whether to accept or shop elsewhere.

All the dealers around me are a $499 processing fee but most are not deep below invoice pricing either. Like anything, have to balance the bottom line and many times Koons will still beat others bottom line even with the $899 fee.
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dayusmc

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It should be in the advertided price... I drove 5 hours last month to buy my wife's JLU to a dealer that advertised a price and stuck by it.
I consider it hidden if it is not in the advertised price. It is just a simple to add that number in and advertise the price so people can compare apples to apples. These dealers label stuff as processing fee - it is called cost of doing business and their advertised price includes all that. I also don't want to hear about dealer prep fees or service fees or fees for their employees childcare, etc .. it is all cost of doing business.
 

Hootbro

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It should be in the advertided price... I drove 5 hours last month to buy my wife's JLU to a dealer that advertised a price and stuck by it.
I consider it hidden if it is not in the advertised price. It is just a simple to add that number in and advertise the price so people can compare apples to apples. These dealers label stuff as processing fee - it is called cost of doing business and their advertised price includes all that. I also don't want to hear about dealer prep fees or service fees or fees for their employees childcare, etc .. it is all cost of doing business.
I hear you. The FTC was suppose to implement a rule to make that happen this July, but that got put on hold pending litigation from some dealer groups like NADA and such.

https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/new...ounces-cars-rule-fight-scams-vehicle-shopping

https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2024/01/ftc-pauses-cars-rule-effective-date
 

dayusmc

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I hear you. The FTC was suppose to implement a rule to make that happen this July, but that got put on hold pending litigation from some dealer groups like NADA and such.
I hope that goes through. I drove 3 hours down to MD (From NJ) because I called on a JLU for my wife and asked about all fees and costs before I drove down, I was assured there was none. When I got to the dealer I was hit with the "if you want it certified it will be another 2K". It was a 2023 with 12k miles on it... Their certification supposedly added a 3 month / 3 thousand mile warranty on it, Really? The Jeep comes with a 3 year / 36 thousand mile warranty from the factory. Even the salesman (new to that dealer) couldn't understand what the manager was talking about with "Certifying" it.
The dealer should be bound to their advertised price + Sales tax and ONLY the Title and Registration fees charged by the state. I will never buy from any dealer that adds any fee, it is just bad business.
When I called the dealer in PA (5 hours from my house) They were straightforward, even emailed me the sales contract before I came to the dealer so I could see it was just the advertised price and NJ Tax , Title and Registration.
When I got to the dealer, it was a normal place, nothing fancy, no salesman with Rolex watches and suits. Everyone there was dressed business casual and friendly. Their ads even advertise, no hidden fees or extra costs, just the price Tax Tag and Registration. My kind of place. I will drive out there for any new jeep I buy.
 

Hootbro

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I hope that goes through. I drove 3 hours down to MD (From NJ) because I called on a JLU for my wife and asked about all fees and costs before I drove down, I was assured there was none. When I got to the dealer I was hit with the "if you want it certified it will be another 2K". It was a 2023 with 12k miles on it... Their certification supposedly added a 3 month / 3 thousand mile warranty on it, Really? The Jeep comes with a 3 year / 36 thousand mile warranty from the factory. Even the salesman (new to that dealer) couldn't understand what the manager was talking about with "Certifying" it.
The dealer should be bound to their advertised price + Sales tax and ONLY the Title and Registration fees charged by the state. I will never buy from any dealer that adds any fee, it is just bad business.
When I called the dealer in PA (5 hours from my house) They were straightforward, even emailed me the sales contract before I came to the dealer so I could see it was just the advertised price and NJ Tax , Title and Registration.
When I got to the dealer, it was a normal place, nothing fancy, no salesman with Rolex watches and suits. Everyone there was dressed business casual and friendly. Their ads even advertise, no hidden fees or extra costs, just the price Tax Tag and Registration. My kind of place. I will drive out there for any new jeep I buy.
Paying to certify it? That is a new I had not heard before.

A couple years back, bought the wife a Honda Ridgeline and the Honda dealer tried some bullshit on my trade in of adding a "reconditioning fee" to the numbers on the trade in.
 

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dayusmc

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Paying to certify it? That is a new I had not heard before.
Exactly, especially when it is still under the factory warranty. When I was at that dealer I saw another couple get up and leave because they were arguing about similar fees.
Referrals and return business are worth a lot more than trying to nickel and dime people. These dealers think because people are financing the car that they won't notice the couple dollars extra a month for these fees.
I guess I am still just old school, I want to know two prices, the Out the Door price before Tax, Tag and Title and the Out the Door price with Tax, Tag and Title. Before I switched to Jeep I only bought Toyota Tacomas (except for my wife). I went to the same salesman at the same dealer for 15 years, and I would have went to whatever dealer he work at if he switched jobs. He knew when I walked in the door, I want the Out the door price and know bullshit. I also didn't haggle with him about price, he gave me the best price he could, pulled the truck up on Edmands and showed me. I didn't have to deal with the "I have to get my manager to see about a price" .
Dealers have to make money, people need to be paid... It costs money to heat the dealership, turn the lights on, etc... BUT when everyone in the dealership is dressed like Lawyers and there are way too many people working there, I don't want to pay for that.
The dealer I bought my wife's JLU from I dealt with two people (both worked for that dealer for over 25 years), the salesman and the finance guy I paid. The finance guy didn't try to push anything else on me. He simple asked if I was interested in information on an extended warranty, no sales pitch. I said because you didn't try and push it on my, sure tell me about it. He was upfront and answered my information suggesting the "middle" Mopar warranty because my wife doesn't drive that much, I said thank you I will take the "best", meaning longest one.
Bottom line, honest people get referrals and repeat business. In my business my clients come from referrals only, I won't advertise. I do things very different from other people in my business, my client's appreciate my honestly and send other people to me.
Sorry to everyone for the long-winded posts, but after just dealing with dealers and buying another Jeep recently I am scorn from these Fees and runaround.
Dealers should not be waiting for the regulation to be passed, they should be doing it already like some (very few) are already doing. When I see any fee from a dealer I get irate, it is the cost of doing business, not an additional fee....
 

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I hope that goes through. I drove 3 hours down to MD (From NJ) because I called on a JLU for my wife and asked about all fees and costs before I drove down, I was assured there was none. When I got to the dealer I was hit with the "if you want it certified it will be another 2K". It was a 2023 with 12k miles on it... Their certification supposedly added a 3 month / 3 thousand mile warranty on it, Really? The Jeep comes with a 3 year / 36 thousand mile warranty from the factory. Even the salesman (new to that dealer) couldn't understand what the manager was talking about with "Certifying" it.
The dealer should be bound to their advertised price + Sales tax and ONLY the Title and Registration fees charged by the state. I will never buy from any dealer that adds any fee, it is just bad business.
When I called the dealer in PA (5 hours from my house) They were straightforward, even emailed me the sales contract before I came to the dealer so I could see it was just the advertised price and NJ Tax , Title and Registration.
When I got to the dealer, it was a normal place, nothing fancy, no salesman with Rolex watches and suits. Everyone there was dressed business casual and friendly. Their ads even advertise, no hidden fees or extra costs, just the price Tax Tag and Registration. My kind of place. I will drive out there for any new jeep I buy.
what dealer?
 
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Just as an update, we will be continuing this pricing on orders through March. Keep those emails and inquires coming!
 

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When I got my quote from them it was laid out exactly like a window sticker. Base MSRP, options and destination fee.

discount was applied to that and then tax, processing, and license fees were added.

destination was never added in there twice.
I haven't seen a Koons proposal though this site but, in the Northern VA area (where Koons is), a dealer's advertised "discount" usually (or dare I say always) includes removal of the destination fee so the discount looks larger, then they add destination back in at the end. As an example, if destination is $2K, an advertised discount of $2K is not a discount at all because they add that $2K back in later.

Always ask for the out the door price: everything included including fees, tags, taxes, and everything else. That is something that can easily be compared 1:1 with other dealers that have different fee structures. They can try to upsell paint protection, oil changes, undercoating, extra warranties, and whatever else when I get there but none of that stuff magically appears as a required part of the deal or I walk.
 

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I haven't seen a Koons proposals though this site but, in the Northern VA area (where Koons is), a dealer's advertised "discount" usually (or dare I say always) includes removal of the destination fee so the discount looks larger, then they add the destination fee back in at the end. As an example, if destination is $2K, an advertised discount of $2K is not a discount at all because they add that $2K back in later.

Always ask for the out the door price: everything included including fees, tags, taxes, and everything else. That is something that can easily be compared 1:1 with other dealers that have different fee structures. They can try to upsell paint protection, oil changes, undercoating, extra warranties, and whatever else when I get there but none of that stuff magically appears as a required part of the deal or I walk.
I have always treated these as two separate business models.

On the lot, yes you can see that they do add some fees back in.

Now in these forums, with the custom orders they place for you. The price that you see is what you get. They lay out the invoice and MSRP price (with freight) , tax registration, and their fee. There are no other added fees.
 

legacy_etu

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Bought the wife’s 2018 JL Sahara and my 2021 JTR from Craig. The deal he’s citing is the deal, no tricks.
Yup, great to do business with. No tricks or surprises. hell, they even offer these deals on Corvettes.......which is very tempting.
 
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