From: hitchens@math.utah.edu
Newsgroups: rec.autos
Subject: Re: 4WD's
Date: 26 Jan 93 21:01:15 GMT
Distribution: usa
Organization: RGI/Mathematics/U. of U.



In article <1993Jan23.011223.13237@uvm.edu> bashiti@newton.emba.uvm.edu.uvm.edu
(Abbas J Bashiti) writes:
>
>     I am currently beginning to look into a new car.  Currently i'm leaning
>towards a Sport Utility.  At this point I am trying to stay with an American
>brand, but if I get a good reason I might look at an import.  I've looked
>at Jeep Wrangler's and found them to be too small and too crude for me
>no matter how much the open feel appeals to me for the summer.  I also 
>took a ride in a base Cherokee with the 6 cylinder in it and I like it
>a lot.  This truck is at the top of my price range considering my
>trade in and recent grad rebates etc.  The salesdroid quoted payments
>in the area of $269 @ 9.9% for 5 years with $2500 down.  This is acceptable
>but still more then i'd like.  He basically wants sticker and isn't offering
>much for my car (which I can kinda understand since its 5.5 YO and has 
>128K mi.).  
>    My questions are centeres around whether I might get a better deal on
>a base S10 or Jimmy with a 6 in it.  Will the Jimmy move as well as that 
>Cherokee did.  I was impressed at the power in that truck.  Does a 
>Jeep rate sticker price, or where should I start to wheel and deal?
>I was thinking to begin with that i'd like to offer something like
>13 to 13.5 taking into account the rebates and all already, but I need
>to know if i'm leaving them anything.  I could also use some advice as
>to common refernces for pricing on these types of vehicles.
>    I'm kinda set on the Cherokee or S10.  I'm getting married this year,
>and my fience has a 4.5 year old, and we'll probably be looking at
>another kid within the lifetime of the car.  This means that i'll need
>enough room to haul 2 kids and 2 adults.  This kinda eliminates the 
>Dodge Dakota V8 I wanted to look at.  This also kinda slipped into my 
>price range.  
>     Well, take your best shot and let me have some advice.  I honestly
>don't get to read rec.autos as much as i'd like so e-mail would be better,
>but i'll keep my eye out either way.
>
>Thanks in advance...
>
>later,
>AJ
>
>
>

My husband is a custom mechanic and restorer. He knows cars...but I know my
experience too.

We had a 1987 Jeep Cherokee and it was the best damn car.

We have three kids-the four doors were perfect (except watch those fingers when
your brother slams the doors shut!)

We had a basic model actually, but he added on lots of things later to make it
nicer. We actually had a vinyl floor, which was a plus actually after al trip
or the kids made a mess-we could literally hose out the dirt.
Steve also hauled dirty mechanical things around in it and the tailgate was
great-the full size spare saved our butt on the San Bernadino freeway, etc. I
can go on and on about the quality  of the Jeep.

But, the best reason to buy a Jeep is thus: Jeep is the original 4WD that all
others imitate (remember that 4x4 of the decade or all time or something it
won?). But, latley the resale price of Jeeps had plummeted due to the Ford
Explorer.
Jeeps are still great 4x4s, but it's the competition that has dropped the
price. 
And since paying retail is always a mistake (which you are doing when you buy
any car new), my serious suggestion is don't buy it new!

Either buy a year-end closeout, dealer incentive, a buy-back or demo model.
Summer is the best time to buy 4WDs, because demand is low. Or, at the end of
the model year.
January is a notoriuously good time to haggle a salesman down (slow sales)
EXCEPT on 4WDs (in snow country). 
If you can wait, get a salesman's card and tell him to _only_ call you when a
dealer incentive or buy-back comes up.

And best of all, buy a new-used car, like a one year old or less, from an
individual in the paper. The price of the car will have dramatically dropped to
more in line with its value, the person probably needs to unload it, and if you
get financing pre-approved, its just as easy to purchase.

And you'll do much better to sell your old car in th paper too-to a student or
someone. 100k+ is not that bad for a well-maintained car. You will certainly
get the same or more than dealer will give you in trade-in.

But, if you don't want to hassle it, and you have to buy new from a dealer and
trade in that old car, don't pay sticker!
A persistant person can get up to $1000 off the sticker-if you go at the right
time (read hungry salesmen, during model-year closouts, delaer incentives, and
the end of the month every month-quotas!).

Good luck.
Don't mean to sound preachy, I just hate to see somebody pay more than they
have to for a Jeep-

L.H.

P.S. I have taken my own advice on the above-