Is there anyone like Clint Earhart for the FR-S?? (please read)

[soilent]

I saw on the BRZ forum there is a guy by the name of Clint Earhart that sells huge volumes of BRZs and is therefore able to give huge discounts on them.


http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showt...=clint+earhart

Now, I'd like to get an 86 for as cheap as possible and don't have a major preference for FR-S or BRZ. So, I was wondering, is there anyone out there like Clint for the FR-S? Clint's prices seem amazing, but if someone could discount an FR-S the way he does it should be even cheaper!

If anyone has info on this, let me know! Thanks.

[993Fan]

I'm one of Clint's happy customers.

But you're kind of stuck with Scion's business model...

[soilent]

Originally Posted by 993Fan

I'm one of Clint's happy customers.

But you're kind of stuck with Scion's business model...

That's awesome! I pretty much read his two threads entirely. I'm VERY intrigued with the way he does business. Would you mind shedding some light on how your experience went? I'm sure you probably can't go into specific numbers, but can you give me a rough idea of the discount you got and/or price you paid for your specific vehicle?

[tacoss23]

I'm another happy customer.

What the guy does is pretty simple.

1) His dealership is a high volume/lower margin. Meaning they sell a lot (largest subaru dealership in US), and don't try to get every penny out of every sell. The price their vehicles very low, below invoice, so they move them fast. It's all about allocations. Subaru then allocates them more and more Subarus which in turn they move fast by selling them at unbeatable price.
2) Clint is a young guy just like us, that understands what we want and we don't want when buying a car, pretty simple. He is not one of those middle-aged car salesmen that are instructed and mentored by an even older and dying generation of car salesmen, you know the old style pricks that are there to abuse the lack of information of customers.

So it's a combination of those 2 things up there that makes him so great and why he has created such a loyal customer base that will go out of their way to give him good reviews.

The process is simple:

1) You call and asks the relevant questions you have about the car. Clint is really fast at answering and it's available and reachable. This part is probably the same of any salesperson out there, knowing they are trying to sell you the car.

2) Then comes the quote, which will be so incredibly low, that you would think there is something fishy. But there isn't. So at this point, most people are sold. Plain and simple you won't get a similar price.

3) Then comes the talk about shipping, in my case I didn't have the time to fly there and drive. Since the car is new, there is not much to see, and since he has such a good reviews, you pretty much feel confident in getting it shipped. He arranges everything, at a good price as well.

4) When your car arrives to their dealership, he lets you know, sends you a picture of the car and overnights the paperwork. Then you get a call from his finance manager (he usually works with the same one) which is very nice and also very upfront and doesn't pressure you into buying extra silly warranties and stuff. In the traditional dealerships, dealing with the finance-dude has gotten as bad as dealing with car salesman himself, but this is not the case with Clint and the person he works with.

5) You overnight the papers back, with a pre-paid envelope and then he will let you know when your car is shipping.

It's a simple process, with no pressure at all in any part of the buying process. Clint answers all the questions upfront and fast and you get an unbeatable price. So it's a simple no-brainer deal.

[Frstorm]

He wants an frs. Noticed another negative about the brz the other day, the back blinkers. The list is getting long of what I prefer on my frs and seems to get bigger every time I see an brz on the road

[soilent]

Originally Posted by Frstorm

He wants an frs. Noticed another negative about the brz the other day, the back blinkers. The list is getting long of what I prefer on my frs and seems to get bigger every time I see an brz on the road

I have no strong preference either way. I want whatever's cheaper. The differences are so incredibly minor in my opinion.

[kthxbai]

I'm not a customer of Longo (El Monte), but noticed they had a high volume early on in the game. You may not be able to haggle the price of the car but maybe get $ for your trade or add-on accessories?

s3 Tapatalk

[993Fan]

Originally Posted by soilent

That's awesome! I pretty much read his two threads entirely. I'm VERY intrigued with the way he does business. Would you mind shedding some light on how your experience went? I'm sure you probably can't go into specific numbers, but can you give me a rough idea of the discount you got and/or price you paid for your specific vehicle?

The price was way below invoice. It was the first time I ever bought a new car in which the asking price was so good that I didn't feel any need to negotiate. And I'm someone who enjoys negotiating and actually looks forward to that part of the car-buying ordeal.

In my case, I flew out to Colorado Springs and drove it back. Here's my account of that trip:

http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=51841

Since you're on the BRZ/FRS fence, you should definitely give Clint a call. He'll be very persuasive.

And, if you end up buying from Clint, I highly recommend the fly-drive experience.

[torqdork]

Why does Clint require a finance application for a cash deal? Should he pull an unnecessary credit report it'll ding your FICO 4-5 points according to my personal banker. It might stimulate F&I marketing and income, but shouldn't be required. I've never been asked to do it when I pay cash for depreciating assets like cars.

[mush]

Originally Posted by Frstorm

He wants an frs. Noticed another negative about the brz the other day, the back blinkers. The list is getting long of what I prefer on my frs and seems to get bigger every time I see an brz on the road

the back blinkers? frs and brz has the exact same tail lights

[soilent]

Originally Posted by 993Fan

The price was way below invoice. It was the first time I ever bought a new car in which the asking price was so good that I didn't feel any need to negotiate. And I'm someone who enjoys negotiating and actually looks forward to that part of the car-buying ordeal.

In my case, I flew out to Colorado Springs and drove it back. Here's my account of that trip:

http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=51841

Since you're on the BRZ/FRS fence, you should definitely give Clint a call. He'll be very persuasive.

And, if you end up buying from Clint, I highly recommend the fly-drive experience.

Very cool. Thanks for the response. Did you get the Premium or Limited?

[Frstorm]

Mush- I thought so to but the lighting in them show differently at least on the bone stock brz I was behind.

[993Fan]

Originally Posted by soilent

Very cool. Thanks for the response. Did you get the Premium or Limited?

Premium.

I'm not a fan of the Limited's spoiler design or the look and feel of Alcantara. Plus, I prefer the manual HVAC controls in the Premium.

Other than that, the Limited's a great choice!

[mush]

Originally Posted by Frstorm

Mush- I thought so to but the lighting in them show differently at least on the bone stock brz I was behind.

how? it must of been aftermarket bulb or something because they are both the same stock