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Any expereince with online shopping for a new Toyota?

We are in the market for a new Toyota. The last car I bought was about

10 years ago and I am still going about it in the old fashioned and painful way: visiting dealerships in person. Besides time and trouble of getting there, one has to deal with salesmen.

I am in Chicago area. One dealership (Grossinger) was a mad-house and the sales guy made you feel like running away. Another one (Bredemann in Park Ridge) was better. Encouraged by that we tried "nice suburbs". At Schaumburg Toyota 5-6 salesmen hanging around at the door like touts in 3rd world countries and all they wanted to know was "are you buying today?"

So I was thinking, why not shop online? But I don't know how. In particular I don't know how to zero in on the features we want:

Manual transmission A specific color (magnetic grey with ash interior) Power steering, locks etc. ABS (Is extra option of "stability control" useful?) Sunroof

6-CD changer

I don't know how to look for this specific combination online!

Sites that ask you to "build your car" confuse me because they begin by asking me to choose a "trim" and I don't care about that and don't know which options are available with which trim.

Ideally I would like to zero in on cars with these precise features, have dealers email me their quotes, and then deal with 1-2 that seem best. But I don't know how to do that. If you have experience, all advice will be appreciated.

Reply to
Ajanta
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Go to the Toyota website to see the inventory that the dealer has in stock and on-order. Once you identify the car you want, you can use the online purchasing at dealer website to get a quote, or if you are Costco member use their car buying service. Most credit unions also have a car buying service. The car buying service is just a way to hook you up with salesperson who handles internet/fleet sales at a particular dealer.

Reply to
Mark A

Our family, including my parents, have purchased about 2 dozen vehicles from Bredemann, and we refer another 5 or 6 friends a year to them. They have an excellent reputation although you may be able to save a couple of hundred dollars if you're willing to go through the hassle and haggle and visit multiple dealerships.

I live within walking distance to Schaumburg Toyota and go there for parts and for service that I don't do myself.

Reply to
Ray O

I bought my '97 Camry via Autobytel.com. They gave me an exact quote for what I'd specified, which dealer to get it from, and who there to ask for. I then went to three other Toyota dealers and none came anywhere close in matching price.

There was no haggling and no surprises. That was 11 years ago. I don't know how much things have changed since then.

Reply to
Henry David

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