Fair game for a "Hows it hanging?" Joke?
Instead of being so blatant, especially to someone who just became a new Mazda owner…How about providing helpful advice and doing so in a friendly way…Remember we’re trying to build a community here, not destroy it, thanks.
Nice car but you sadly left a lot of money on the table. Also you never buy gap insurance from the dealer and that prepaid maintenance was a total waste of $$ but if you are happy with the deal then enjoy
@quigley2003 This isn't a terrible deal, I'm unsure of the variables in terms of your taxes/fees in your specific location, however based on some assumptions if you are close to MSRP out the door with both GAP and Excess Wear and Tear included, it's definitely not a bad deal.
@Tchman2016 I think the idea of never buying GAP insurance or Excess Wear or any dealership product is a bit ignorant, respectfully. There is just way too much variability in such an absolute position when talking about state by state and dealer by dealer. IMO, a better position is that before buying any product from a dealer is to make sure you are well informed of what those products cover, what your alternative options are and what a fair price to pay is.
GAP is often a product you can only buy at contract inception, as a matter of fact, if leasing Mazda Financial won't let you add GAP to your lease after the lease is signed for. Had a situation where our dealer missed adding GAP one time by mistake, customer missed it as well on the contract, dealer was willing to re-book contracts but the Lender (MSF) actually rejected contract modification. Now, some insurance companies offer GAP through your regular insurance, however it is important to consider the valuation methods they use to determine GAP and what is covered. They may only pay up to X% over market value, which in some cases can defeat the purpose of GAP, where dealer GAP may cover a higher valuation gap. Without getting down a rabbit whole of dealer costs on finance products, principal packs on cost, etc GAP should COST a dealer somewhere around $300-$400 (varies by dealer, brand and GAP company) and so if you can score GAP coverage for close to cost or slightly over and if you did not put a large down payment or get a good discount, then GAP should very much be considered. In many cases, if you put a solid down payment and scored a good deal, the RISK is low enough to forego GAP, but that still doesn't make it worthless, just low likelihood of needing it. If you are like many Americans who often put nothing down, may roll negative equity into a car and may not negotiate the best discount, GAP even at double cost can be invaluable in the event of a market crash and a total loss accident. Think about everyone that bought during COVID at over MSRP and now owe way more than their cars are worth.
The same ideas can be applied to excess wear or prepaid maintenance or any other insurance product - it's a waste if you don't use it, but it's a life saver if you need it. The important thing is to make sure the cost of the insurance doesn't outweigh the potential benefit. Often Pre-paid maintenance falls into this trap where dealers mark it up so much its more expensive than your cost of maintenance over the term, do some research of what maintenance will cost for the term and simply make sure you negotiate a value below that, otherwise it brings you no real benefit.